In this interview, Poornima Chandrashekaraiah, director of portfolio and industry marketing, reflects on her eight-year career journey at UL Solutions — from an unexpected start to a path shaped by continuous learning, cross-functional experience and meaningful mentorship. She shares how the company’s supportive culture, emphasis on career mobility and encouragement of personal growth have helped her evolve as a strategic marketing leader while making a lasting impact across the organization.
In what ways has UL Solutions supported your career development and growth?
Since joining UL Solutions in a regional marketing role, I have significantly benefited from the company's commitment to professional development and growth. UL Solutions and its leadership have consistently provided me with diverse opportunities to learn, explore and contribute — both to my own career and to the organization as a whole.
My career journey here has included short-term assignments in which I developed an annual marketing plan for South Africa, as well as participation in valuable learning programs such as the Yale Strategic Marketing Program and the Strategic Learning Journey. Additionally, I have experienced meaningful lateral moves, including transitioning into a global portfolio/product marketing role within Enterprise & Advisory (later named S&A), and further expanding my expertise through global portfolio marketing roles in Growth & Business Marketing.
Outside of work, I have taken the initiative to further my education, earning two postgraduate diplomas: Data Science & Business Analytics (2021-2022) and Product Management (2023). The knowledge and skills gained through these programs have been directly applicable in my current position, where I support portfolio and incubation marketing. This role enables me to leverage my experiences and training to deliver value to our teams and drive organizational success.
UL Solutions has played a vital role in my career development by fostering a culture of continuous learning, encouraging career mobility and supporting my personal growth initiatives.
Why did you join UL Solutions?
My decision to join UL Solutions was unexpectedly serendipitous. Initially, I applied for the Marketing Manager – South Asia role on LinkedIn almost by chance, not fully realizing what an impact it would have on my career. Shortly after, I was contacted by the regional HR manager, whose passionate explanation of UL Solutions’ mission and values immediately piqued my interest. This motivation led me to participate in three rounds of interviews, driven more by curiosity than intent.
Throughout the interview process, I was genuinely impressed by the professionalism and warmth of the leaders I met. Even so, I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be joining the company — primarily because I was happy with the job I had, and the ULS office location was quite distant from my home. However, everything changed after a thoughtful call from HR. She took the time to understand my commute challenges and shared in detail how UL Solutions’ flexible work hours could help me balance my professional responsibilities with my personal life and family commitments. Her empathy and understanding made a lasting impression on me, and in that moment, I realized this was the kind of organization I wanted to be part of.
Since joining UL Solutions, I have found the people here to be supportive, collaborative and genuinely invested in each other’s success. I feel valued and inspired to contribute, and I am grateful that what began as a happy accident has led me to a place where I truly belong.
What keeps you here?
It’s a combination of my role, my team and the remarkable opportunities I’ve had to make a meaningful impact.
Over the past eight years at ULS, I’ve been privileged to work with leaders and line managers who consistently empowered me to take on innovative and exciting projects. Some of the most memorable experiences include:
- Publishing a coffee table book to commemorate ULS India’s 20th anniversary (2017)
- Hosting Asia’s first Griffins’ Nest Programme, a pioneering local innovation initiative
- Launching a Sales Center site for one of our businesses
Among all these, my favorite role has been leading Portfolio Marketing, a Commercial Excellence (CE) initiative that enables selling across our portfolio. This project gave my team and me the rare opportunity to shape the future of marketing-led MVPs by evaluating their feasibility and strategic direction before scaling them company-wide. To date, we’ve successfully launched 10 portfolio campaigns — starting with Energy Transition and Sustainability megatrends in September 2024 and most recently with Data Centers in October 2025.
Ultimately, what keeps me here is the sense of purpose I find in my work, the collaborative spirit of my team, and the chance to grow while contributing to something bigger than myself. ULS isn’t just a workplace for me — it’s where passion meets opportunity and innovation becomes reality.
What are your future ambitions at UL Solutions?
With my team, I want to witness the portfolio or solutions marketing initiative move from a minimum viable product (MVP) on UL.com to its full growth potential across the organization and make a difference for our customers.
What has changed the most about you since you first joined UL Solutions?
As a strategic marketing leader, adopting a mindset centered on change and growth has not only enhanced my own performance but has also helped my team better align with organizational and business objectives, driving impactful results.
Since joining UL Solutions, the most significant change in me has been my intentional focus on applying and optimizing my top five CliftonStrengths — Command, Analytical, Learner, Achiever and Connectedness — in my daily work. I actively seek out roles, responsibilities and projects that allow me to leverage these strengths wherever possible. This approach has made my work more fulfilling and effective. For areas where I’m less naturally skilled, I’ve learned to rely on the expertise and support of my team, peers and leadership. This collaborative spirit has been instrumental in advancing our strategic initiatives and achieving key objectives together.