Sonali Chowdhary (PFM 1998-00) is an international development professional with over 20 years of experience in inclusive economic growth with specialization in financial inclusion, value chain development, business strategy, impact evaluation and institutional building. Sonali picked up nuts and bolts of enterprise finance and livelihood development from BASIX, a large social enterprise group in India, where she worked in her early professional days. Later on, she worked at the SEEP Network, USA in the capacity of Director- Enterprise and Market Development and led various multi-country projects on market system development, value chains, social enterprises, social performance and energy finance among others. Since 2012, Sonali is working as an independent consultant supporting projects in South and South-East Asia, Europe and Central Asia regions for the World Bank, FAO, UNDP, USAID, consulting firms and international NGOs such as Habitat for Humanity International and Government missions. Sonali has travelled to 40 plus countries and feels that it is a privilege to be able to empower people while having fun in the journey seeing the world.
Sonali was a DFID scholar at the University of Bath, UK where she received her master’s degree in International Development. In addition to a degree from IIFM, she holds a post-graduate degree in Agricultural Sciences from Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad. Sonali is an amateur artist and in her free time likes to facilitate corporate art workshops and connecting traditional artists with institutions in order to promote their work and support their livelihoods.
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonali-chowdhary-4bb1833
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/sonali.
Q. How has been your journey from IIFM to this role?
A. Post IIFM has been a fun filled rollercoaster ride, where passion, profession and person all blended into one and it hardly feels like 22 years have passed. My first job with the BASIX group taught me nuts and bolts of rural enterprise financing and livelihoods where I spent 5 years in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh and hinterlands of Bihar and Jharkhand lending to farmers, micro enterprises, and mentoring emerging MFIs to scale up. Work at the grassroots and 5 immensely fulfilling years, I felt the need to expand my world view and get a macro view of development. Armed with the prestigious DFID scholarship I went on to University of Bath in UK and completed my Masters in International Development. From there I moved to the United States and joined the SEEP Network, a global network of international development organizations. An orbital shift that offered a wide view of development and opportunities to engage across a wide array of international development actors. SEEP was more about Strategy and program design and management, and assistance for development interventions. I grew to a leadership role soon and worked as a senior director managing programs across Africa, Africa, Asia, LA and Caribbean Islands.
As a couple we yearned to move back to India. Moving back to India was a new milestone and I decided to go independent given a decent professional network, I had built over the years. Being independent at this stage in my career allowed me to have a flexible schedule to meet my lifecycle needs and travel within limited time zones while maintaining a healthy work life balance. In my role as an independent consultant, I have worked for 3 years with Habitat for Humanity’s Asia Pacific office working on affordable housing lending and value chains. Another 3 years , I worked for the World Bank’s Europe and Central Asia team in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan on rural economic empowerment projects. Also handled several short- term engagements with UNDP, USAID, OXFAM, Sambodhi, BASIX, GIZ among others working in South and East Asia and Europe and Central Asia regions.
Q. What were some of the key milestones/learning in this journey that you would like to share with us?
A. First milestone is working for BASIX. Next and the most important one was life changing, being married to Sasidhar Thumuluri, PFM 97-99, was of course a big milestone without which none other milestones would have been possible! DFID scholarship allowed me to move to the international development arena. SEEP was a milestone and a start to a globetrotting career and since then I travelled to 40 plus countries managing various professional engagements. And having a son, taught me to plan and design my professional and personal life instead of going with the flow.
Q. What is the most satisfying part of your current role?
A. Being an independent consultant, I get to engage with a wide range of themes, people, organizations, geographies and cultural settings. I am uniquely positioned as I am able to work from the comfort of my home and travel anywhere across the globe on field missions. As a consultant, it is very satisfying that you learnt something in X country and apply it in Y country and make it successful. A wide range of engagements provides a ring side view to the development discourse and what might be coming up. And workcations to amazing destinations that I could not think of or afford otherwise!
Q. Has your learning at IIFM helped in shaping how you approach your professional roles?
A. IIFM is more about giving us life skills, and the confidence to do anything which we intend to do anywhere along with navigating our way through any complex setting with poise. Also it taught me to apply an analytical and critical lens to all kind of managerial or real-life problem solving and instilled confidence in my inner capabilities. I also learned the importance of time management while approaching assignments in a mission mode and yet make time for LIFE :)!
Q. What would be your advice to freshers and IIFM graduates who are looking to choose similar sectors/roles.
A. If development is your calling, a gold standard would be to invest first couple of years in understanding the grassroot challenges. No matter what you do, choose to be in India or abroad, plan your next steps carefully and don’t get carried away with jobs and salaries but invest in your long-term passion even if it means working at a lower salary for a while. Try to broaden your world view through handpicked assignments/ jobs that help in progressive career building. Higher education is one of the ways for upskilling yourself and diversifying career trajectories towards international development work sooner in life. International Development, Public Policy, Environmental Sciences, Natural Resource Economics are some of the critical fields pursued by IIFMites. Lot of people ask me about US or UK for education Vs work? My advice would be Masters in UK if you are looking for shorter masters and enhanced opportunities back home. Masters in USA if you like to work abroad for the long haul and Ph.Ds if you are interested in pursuing an academic or research oriented career.
Q. What are your favorite memories during your IIFM days?
A. Leisurely walks up and down the hill, hanging out near Bamboosa without any purpose, group assignments, field-visits to exotic Nainital, Ranikhet, and Almora…and many more.
Q. As an alumni, what’s your advice to freshers or those are joining IIFM to get best out of the 2 years there?
A. Moving through my professional years, I realize the importance of networking and knowing as many people as possible in diverse fields. It widens your world view beyond your own chosen area of work, and helps you become a cutting edge professional. Don’t be closed and focused on securing the best job but focus on how to get the best out of a job.
Q. What is your typical day at the office? (We want to know what your day job looks like). And how about weekends, Hobbies, Family and anything else you want to add.
A. Best part of my job is that I don’t have a typical day. While I have slowed down a little during the pandemic, a typical day could be just writing up reports, or team meetings with someone in Cambodia or Azerbaijan or DC, early mornings or late night calls to adjust cross-geography teams, email communication with remote colleagues, or just wake up and run to the airport.
Weekends are usually busy. Personally, I like painting in free time and recently exhibited my work in India Habitat Center in Delhi in a Pan India Art exhibition. As a family, like most IIFMites we love to travel and try to knit in a vacation with a work trip. I like to call it a workcation 🙂
Q. Favorite Books, movies, authors
A. I grew up reading mystery crime and legal thrillers. As a kid, I was an avid reader and read books like Secret seven and Famous Five then as I grew to middle school I read series on Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys and of course Sherlock Holmes. Soon graduated to legal thrillers like Perry Mason. Loved John Grisham’s fast paced novels and many authors I cant count here. These days with limited time. I enjoy reading biographies. I absolutely detest reading Self Help Books.
Q.IIFM is driven by alumni’s passion and commitments towards its goal. How would you like to contribute to IIFM or IIFM alumni, students?
A. I am happy to guide and mentor anyone interested in pursuing a career in international development.
Q. Any suggestions on who you want to get profiled/interviewed here?
A. Maneesha Chadda (PFM 2000), Ritu Bhardwaj (PFM 2000), Radhika (PFM 2000)