Meet the unstoppable force known as Anjana Puttu, seamlessly juggling the realms of technical resources and customer success. When not navigating the tech universe, you’ll find her being a passionate “Swiftie”– because nothing says conquering the IT world like belting out ‘End Game’ lyrics on a Thursday afternoon! She’s not just a pro at managing Okta implementations but also a maestro in handling projects from kickoff to close out, all while keeping the beat of high standards and BeyondID values.
Buckle up as we take you on a tour of Anjana’s life, where work meets play and being a tech wizard meets being a woman who rocks the professional stage!
What three words would your friends use to describe you?
Helpful, responsible, enthusiastic
Outside of work? What are your passions, hobbies, interests?
I love to watch movies and TV series too. Some of my favorites are “FRIENDS” and “Greys Anatomy”.
Do you have a morning or evening routine?
I always take some personal time each morning before I get started with my work day. I have my morning coffee in our little backyard and sit in the greenery that surrounds it. The chirping sounds of birds and the slight morning breeze always help me to start my day on a peaceful note.
Evenings are usually when I try to cook and do some household chores with my husband. We watch a movie or two and spend quality time. I also take some time during evenings, to connect with my mom and dad, who stay in India. They always make me feel better.
If you won the lottery, what would you do with the money?
I would like to use it for travel. My husband and I love to travel and try new experiences in different tourism areas. Sky diving is on the top of the bucket list for now!
What do you do to de-stress?
Music! I like to go for a walk with some good music on, this always helps me to de-stress. Taylor Swift’s “Reputation” album. I’ve completely memorized the song “End Game”. I hope to witness a live concert at least once in my lifetime! I also love to connect with my family, they always help me stay stable in any type of situation.
Would you say you’re more of an extrovert or an introvert?
Extrovert for sure
What’s your game plan in a zombie apocalypse?
I just hope the zombies like me – LOL
Tell us a little bit about your journey that led you to where you are now.
My journey started with my first job in India, at TCS, I was a security analyst then working on different IAM tools and trying to do everything I could to pursue the “American dream”. I worked night shifts, while I was simultaneously making plans and clearing the exams for entering the US.
I was accepted to five different universities to pursue a Masters in Computer Science and Cybersecurity. I am so proud to say I have graduated from The University of Texas – San Antonio, which is one of the top universities in the US in the field of cybersecurity.
Previous NextBriefly describe your career prior to BID. 
Career life before BID, is like knowing what you want to do, but not knowing what to do in order to get there. All my previous stages, I wanted to learn more and do better, but I was not given an opportunity to take the lead. That is what made me push myself further and I am here now, at BID. Where my actions and things that I do, count. When a raving fan feedback is shared with me, it keeps me on the top of cloud and extremely satisfying. This urge for receiving great feedback keeps me on my toes and helps me find ways I can do better.
Do you still live near where you grew up? Why or why not?
I am from India, and due to my American dream, I don’t stay there anymore. I am currently visiting my family in India and it’s a different feeling altogether.
If you could only eat one dish for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Chick-fil-A forever!
What does a typical day look like for you at BID?.
Every day is different. I initially started as a technical consultant and received training for about three months wherein I had a chance to obtain all my Okta certifications. The next six months I have been leading multiple projects and I got promoted to senior technical consultant now I am part of more complex projects.
Currently I am on the training ramp to become an architect. This clearly shows how the rapid career growth that beyondid has given me.
What do you enjoy most about your role?
Each customer comes to us with different requirements and look for guidance to solve or automate a business situation. It feels really good when we are in a position to give solutions to the customer in a way that we contribute to value of their business.
What is the key to achieving success in your role?
Key to success – all of my colleagues at BeyondID are a pleasure to work with. There is not a day in these 2.5 years wherein my questions were not addressed. There are always people who are willing to help you and we work together to build a solution. So many innovative minds at BID!
What qualities do you look for in a boss?
Always being there when your team member is stuck with a blocker and following up with customers on project timelines and milestones is helpful.
What topic(s) could you give an hour-long presentation on with little to no preparation?
- How to prepare for okta certifications
- How to handle projects from kickoff to close out
- Tools to help Inprove communication and gain trust from the customer
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever heard?
Learn something new each day. Eventually you will see progress and excellence.
What’s the career highlight you’re most proud of?
All the positive customer feedback sent to my team is something that I will never forget.
What’s the biggest misconception people have about your position?
That Okta is just a tool which has a list of things to learn and then we can work with that limited knowledge. Okta Is dynamic and expanding into different sections of access management and is very tough to keep ourselves updated on the upgrades.
What’s different about BID’s culture versus other companies you’ve worked at?
Team work
How do you ensure that your actions align with the company’s values, even when faced with challenging situations or temptations?
No matter how busy I am, If I have someone ask me for help, I always take extra time in the day to help them understand a concept or a scenario. This company has given me the roots to my foundations in okta and I’m happily obliged to do the same.
What does integrity (BID core value) mean to you on a personal level, and how does it influence your actions and decisions in your daily life?
Being faithful to what we have and what we do. It becomes necessary for both personal and professional parts of my daily routine. Having all the critical details of a customer and the ability to utilize is crucial for my role Is the key part of integrity in my profession.
How do you ensure that BID customers have a Raving Fan (BID Core Value) experience with our products or services? Can you provide an example?
There are time when customers want to have an OIE upgrade and prefer to go live late at night. I had customers who went live at 2am my time, and I still took that as a possibility for me to be available and make sure upgrade goes smoothly.
Another time, a customer felt overwhelmed about learning all the Okta features we teach during the technical sessions, so I started documenting everything for them and sharing them as meeting notes to help them better understand and remember things.
When it comes to BeyondID Principles, which ones resonate with you the most?
- Obsess over customers. Always obsess over customers, go above and beyond and delight them with our knowledge.
- Encourage “successful failures”. Failures are stepping stones of success. My best professional learning has come from a failure in a project or during an escalation which was caught early. I missed something but I’m glad I learned and have never repeated it.
- Focus on high standards. Always elevate the standards of what we know and how we present ourselves to the customer specifically in terms of the technical aspects.
