EMC Proven Professional Spotlight - Sumit Nigam

• Certification Achieved: Information and Storage Management v2
• Education: Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Calicut
• Area of Expertise:  Distributed systems, scalability, Big Data, data structures/ algorithms
• Employer: EMC Corporation
• Function/Role: Consultant Engineer with Global Solutions Engineering
• Location: Bangalore, India
• ECN: nigams1
• LinkedIn: Sumit Nigam

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Give us a brief overview of your Knowledge Sharing paper.

The Knowledge Sharing paper ‘Software defined planet with Internet of Things’ attempts to provide a comprehensive coverage on Internet of Things (IoT). What makes IoT so formidable is its ability to transform and redefine our planet in unimaginable ways. This is feasible because of culmination of some of the most advanced technological break-through such as advances in semiconductor industry, cloud computing, big data and machine learning.  The paper attempts to also describe challenges that industries will face which include security of data, network limitations, storage aspects ranging from payload variations, archival, backup, readiness of IT teams, costing models, skilled resource shortage, etc.

What was your chief motivation for writing on this topic? Is it related to your work, or a personal interest?

My motivations for writing on this topic were twofold –

There are many papers on IoT available today but most of them do not cover it in entirety. They are specific to one aspect of IoT. This paper explains entire IoT landscape in a comprehensive manner.

The working principles of IoT are simple and that should be a motivation enough to think of potential uses of it. To give readers that confidence, I’ve identified new use cases and put them in the document. It was important to explain all the parts of IoT in a simple manner. This was a difficult task and I wanted to attempt it.

This is not directly related to my work. However, this is an area which I have keen interest in.

Did you write this paper with the idea of providing material for others to implement your ideas? How do you see other people using the knowledge that you’ve shared?

Most of the people who are working on IoT have expertise in specific aspects of it. For example, data scientists may not have very good appreciation of challenges and technologies behind semiconductor industry and so on. So, no matter whether the reader is new to IoT or an expert, there is something for everyone to gain a deeper understanding of, from this paper.  Any new technology creates a lot of hype. People start trusting it to the point of blind faith hoping to take their businesses to new heights by just adopting it. So, the paper also attempts to warn about such misconceptions and urges readers to build their foundations on good business models instead.

Describe the process of writing the paper. What was most challenging? What did you enjoy the most?

I had a good understanding of IoT and technologies which power it. However, to make readers aware of the entire breadth required researching on how industries and businesses are using it presently. Once, I had gathered a lot of information, I found it challenging to create a compelling theme. I did not want the paper to be entirely technical in nature. At the same time, the depth and width of IoT spectrum demanded explanation of all its moving parts. I enjoyed research part the most wherein I read through report after report on challenges that are being addressed by IoT.

This isn’t the first time you’ve submitted to the Knowledge Sharing Competition. What about the previous time made you want to enter again? Was it easier or harder this time?

I’ve always believed that this is one of the best platforms due to diversity of topics. This aspect along with the quality of papers makes it probably, the most unique knowledge sharing platform. So, it is the program itself which made me enter this time also. It was tougher this time. Unlike last year, this time I was writing on a topic which was not directly related to my work.

Can you briefly describe your background, for example, how did you first become interested in IT? What training did you undertake to start your career?

I have close to 18 years of IT experience. I have worked on some big systems and along the way made some big mistakes. Those learning have been instrumental in growing me as an IT professional.  I hold an engineering degree and my interest in IT stemmed from an interest in microprocessors during the college days.

Describe your current position/role. What most interests you about your work?

My current role is that of a developer and an architect for a set of projects here at EMC. My work involves not only designing systems but also researching new areas of technology. It is the research time that I enjoy the most.

What are some projects that you have worked on in the past that you are particularly proud of?

One of the projects involved handling varied aspects such as database tuning, deep knowledge of TCP stack and its optimizations, algorithms and data structures, distributed and scalable architectures. The system posed some of the most challenging problems when put under massive production loads. That also required troubleshooting some of the most complex problems of memory leaks, inefficient designs and wrong data structure choices. All in all, a great learning experience.

What projects/technology are you planning on for the future? Are you planning on more training, or learning a new skill?

I would like to learn Data Science as well as any new programming language.

Name a major achievement in your career or any awards that you have won. What accomplishments are you most proud of?

I was one of the winners at last year’s (2014) EMC Knowledge Sharing Competition. I was also a presenter at the international event - Verisign Technical Symposium in 2007 where my presentation was very well received.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Where do you ultimately want to be in your professional career?

I have not given much thought to that as yet. But one thing is sure that I’d like to stay technical and work on as many technologies as I can. I’d like to nurture very strong technical teams. I’d also like to write research papers and author technical books.

Are you active in the EMC Proven Professional Community? If so, what part of the Community do you most enjoy?

I like reading articles by fellow authors the most.

Briefly, how has the EMC Proven Professional Program benefited you personally or professionally?

Personally, it is through this platform only that I could share my experiences with others and that brought me accolades and recognition. Professionally, it brought me in contact with many talented professionals and scores of information available through training and documents.

What advice would you give to someone entering the EMC Proven Professional Program?

The only advice would be to make full use of it. The program is so wide in its coverage that there is something for everyone. We’d only be limited by our own lack of effort.

Is there anything else you’d like to share about yourself? Name some hobbies or interests you have.

I like playing harmonica and listening to music. I also like reading books on diverse topics ranging from spirituality to Mathematics to Physics to mythology. I like writing short stories and would like to publish them some day. I play ping pong too.

Read other EMC Proven Professional Spotlight interviews in the Proven Professional Spotlight Archive