Problem Solver Applies His Problem-Solving Skills to Community Leadership

By: Rebecca Moon Ruark

Growing up in the southern part of India, Pradhyumna Soni saw himself as a natural-born problem solver, fascinated with the process of moving from problem to solution through critical thinking and analysis. Now, nearing completion of his information systems program, the problem solver is that much closer to reaching his goal of becoming a technical leader with the skills to solve problems at scale.

Pradhyumna’s analytical mindset is what attracted him to the computer science degree, which he earned in his native India. (He is also a veteran hackathon participant, having competed in several tech industry app competitions.) But he knew his higher education journey wasn’t complete. Work experience—namely, three years as a network engineer for Cisco Systems in Bangalore—nudged him toward his current academic role. At Cisco, he enjoyed his customer-facing positions and collaborating with his coworkers, especially after the isolation of the pandemic. He learned he was skilled at handling projects—and people. He decided he wanted to work toward being more on the “technical management side of things.”

Pradhyumna was attracted to the information systems program at Northeastern in Arlington for its close-knit campus environment that would offer him more and deeper connections with faculty—for greater insights as he traveled his career path. “I would be able to have more time with faculty, gain more leadership insights,” he said. Accustomed to taking on leadership roles in class, at work, and in personal projects, he said, “I knew I could be seen here, make an impact here.”

He has made an impact, in his courses, on campus, and even far off campus at his Nokia co-op in California. He described the process of securing the co-op as tough but well worth it. For four months, he worked in software quality assurance for the multinational telecommunications and IT company, developing scripts to aid operations and closing approximately 20 defects. In addition to brushing up on certain aspects of networking, he honed his soft skills, adapting quickly, communicating with colleagues, making professional connections, and enjoying a supportive company culture. “It was pretty great,” he said, looking back. “And I can’t complain about the Bay Area weather.”

Projects with Purpose

Being from India meant that making Arlington his campus home wouldn’t be without its challenges, said Pradhyumna. One of the biggest: searching for housing using the hodgepodge of apps and websites that U.S. renters piece together to find a new place. “I didn’t know about the housing platforms here,” he said. Between the time carefully reviewing listings on multiple platforms, one by one, to being uncertain of their trustworthiness and accuracy, he found the current system to be a time-consuming “hassle,” he said.

From that “personal pain point” emerged his project for a cloud computing course. He developed a prototype housing aggregator, which leverages AI tools to search multiple, trustworthy platforms to provide the user with scored housing matches. What started as a course project has continued as a personal project he plans to develop further, hoping it helps students following in his path to Arlington.

Pradhyumna said that the problem solver in him has been “well nurtured” at Northeastern, Arlington. With the right balance of technical and management skills development, the information systems program has provided a solid foundation for his future as a technical leader. He especially enjoyed his business analysis class, which he took to better understand the business administration side of his discipline. Together, he and his classmates explored the integrative business process—from market research to product development, launch, and marketing—exercising their problem-solving skills. “I learned how a product should be made and marketed, checking the viability, and examining how it might be scaled. As a leader, you have to see clearly all of these aspects.”

For the course’s final presentation, the students showcased their product launch. Pradhyumna’s project was an expense management and analysis platform he called ExpenseWise (think: a more personalized Splitwise that generates expenditure information and insights, such as money spent on dining out, clothing, or travel). “I’m pretty proud of it,” he said. If this were a product for a hackathon? “I think I would have caught the eye of two or three potential sponsors,” he said.

The course’s focus on troubleshooting from beginning to end was especially attractive to Pradhyumna. “Being a developer sometimes means chasing the next shiny thing,” he said. “But as a business person, you have to consider the market and find the problems to create a solution, building things for the user that are actually needed.”

After a successful semester, he served as a teaching assistant for the business analysis course. Again, he honed his management skills, through developing interactive class activities, holding office hours, and helping judge the students’ final presentations. His leadership proved true the adage that says the best way to understand a subject is to teach it. “I’ve always loved helping other students,” he said. “Thinking from a teacher’s perspective, trying to teach a concept to someone else, you get deeply involved.”

Strengthening Foundations, Community

For Pradhyumna, graduation in December, 2025, is fast approaching. In the meantime, he hopes to take every opportunity to strengthen his leadership foundations, in and out of the classroom. With a burgeoning Asian community on campus, Soni and a friend co-founded a club called Tarang, which explores various cultural aspects of Asia through programs and events. More than an antidote to homesickness for Pradhyumna, he’s proud that Tarang has earned the highest engagement of any club on campus, highlighting its popularity to the student body at large. “It’s a good sharing moment for us,” he says of the club’s cultural events. “It brings students on campus closer.”

Pradhyumna is looking forward to their celebration of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, and other cultural events, which will bring students together for “good food, good music, and good times.”