Cxo of the week: Rituparna Mandal, General Manager, MediaTek  

MediaTek Inc. is a Taiwanese fabless semiconductor company that provides chips for wireless communications, high-definition television, handheld mobile devices like smartphones and tablet computers, navigation systems, consumer multimedia products, and digital subscriber line services as well as optical disc drives. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Hsinchu, the company has 25 offices worldwide and was the third-largest fabless chip designer worldwide in 2016. 

The company also provides its customers with reference designs. MediaTek became the biggest smartphone chipset vendor with a 31% market share in Q3 2020. This was assisted by its strong performance in regions such as China and India.

Rituparna Mandal is General Manager at MediaTek Bangalore. She started her career in 1997 with Texas Instruments and has more than 25 years of experience in the semiconductor industry. she is the first woman engineer in her family and draws inspiration from her father, who was the first engineering graduate from his village. She joined MediaTek in 2015 as Director of Advanced CPU and Foundation IP Technology. She is at the forefront of the company and is leading with a passion for excellence and a role model for women in tech and has given advice to women in the industry.

In a recent chat with Rituparna Mandal, General Manager, MediaTek Bangalore, She talks about her tech journey so far and what MediaTek has been up to in the latest edition of CxO of the Week.

Introduction of MediaTek India

MediaTek is a global fabless semiconductor company that enables nearly 2 billion connected devices a year. We are a market leader in developing innovative systems-on-chip (SoC) for mobile, home entertainment, connectivity, and IoT products. Our dedication to innovation has positioned us as a driving market force in several key technology areas, including highly power-efficient mobile technologies, automotive solutions, and a broad range of advanced multimedia products such as smartphones, tablets, digital televisions, 5G, Voice Assistant Devices (VAD) and wearables. MediaTek empowers and inspires people to expand their horizons and achieve their goals through smart technology, more easily and efficiently than ever before. We work with the brands you love to make great technology accessible to everyone, which drives everything we do.

What brought you to MediaTek? Describe your tech industry journey.

I was the first woman engineer in my family and my father was my inspiration as he was the first engineering graduate from his village. In 1997, I started my career with Texas Instruments for 16 years, launched Immensa Semicon­ductors in 2013, and created a foundation internet protocol (IP) portfolio in cutting-edge technologies across top foundries. Later, Immensa was acquired by MediaTek in 2015 and initially, I joined as director of advanced CPU and foundation IP technology. Now I’m designated as General Manager and director of the advanced technology team at MediaTek Bangalore, responsible for foundation IP and advanced CPU designs across MediaTek products.

In my journey, I’ve always focused on my core principles and my capabilities to adapt to change & never take anything for granted has helped me immensely in this journey. Throughout this path, there have been many difficulties, and I think my ability to handle crises has helped me succeed. At MediaTek, while developing the MediaTek Helio P60 and GT90 chipsets, we’ve worked round the clock to meet our goals and even though it sometimes seemed impossible, we were able to prevail. Running the start-up that I built from scratch was the most challenging part of my career I dealt with everything from setting up the office space, hiring, infrastructure, and business development to project execution and l learned new skills in every step of the journey.

How has the perception of women in technology changed over the years?

A few years back, the technology sector was considered the most difficult career path for women due to consistent R&D, long hours, and tough deadlines. Women were discouraged from playing an active role in tech due to workload, but now we are seeing a great change in a couple of years.

Women now contribute a great chunk of the IT workforce, though still not equivalent to men but there’s definitely a huge jump from where we stood just a few years ago. As a result, the industry is now more accepting of women in managerial positions, and the numbers keep on rising every year. It is delightful to see how many young women are now selecting STEM-related sectors and making an impact in the industry.

Tell us about the new technologies that you are working on at MediaTek?

The mediaTek motto has always been democratizing power, computing power in the hands of the user. MediaTek powers nearly 2 billion connected devices a year. MediaTek 5G integrated chips bring out the best of AI, IoT, and Edge to devices of the future and AIoT chipset platforms. We are a global market leader in home entertainment products, including digital and smart TVs, optical and Blu-ray players, routers, and the newest voice assistant devices with our solutions and chipsets.

Recently, we have expanded our MediaTek Dimensity portfolio with the new MediaTek Dimensity 9200+ chipset for flagship 5G smartphones, with a performance upgrade and better gaming experiences. We have also announced the innovative 3GPP Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) technology that brings two-way satellite communications to smartphones. Recently introduced MediaTek Dimensity Auto offers a comprehensive portfolio including Dimensity Auto Cockpit, Dimensity Auto Connect, Dimensity Auto Drive, and Dimensity Auto Components.

How much do you think the technology industry has changed regarding diversity?

Diversity empowers both the company and its employees and opens new possibilities and avenues. I believe that women play a vital role in the industry, notably in managerial roles and the responsibility is now on us, fellow women that are working in technology and tech companies ensure that women get equal opportunities to realize their enormous potential.

Further, we at MediaTek strongly believe in equal opportunities for all people, regardless of gender, and we offer a platform for all engineers to shine and showcase their capabilities. By organizing the up-skilling programs that support and motivate employees, leadership training modules internally, and encouraging our female coworkers to attend conferences and seminars that help advance their skills, MediaTek has taken steps to maintain and increase the percentage of working women. The industry needs diversity to thrive, so we must take the necessary efforts to make diversity and inclusion a reality.

What are the common challenges faced by women in the tech industry according to you?

The technology sector has been predominately led by men especially in India due to various socio-cultural facts that force women from pursuing challenging careers. Women who want to work in the technology sector confront many obstacles, from stereotypes about their abilities to a shortage of female role models in the industry. It's time to recognize the potential of women in technology and build a more inclusive environment for them to thrive. India continues to strive for excellent growth in electronics manufacturing and the government should focus on increasing women’s participation in the tech sector to realize their potential towards the country’s development.

Many Indian females ultimately forego their dreams of a profession due to marriage, motherhood, and other familial responsibilities. This is especially true for girls who struggle to reject societal norms that restrict their possibilities and live in rural areas. Sadly, the loss of female skills and potential has significant effects on the growth of the nation. It is essential to develop an environment that promotes women's career objectives and offers equal chances to everyone, regardless of gender.

What is the future trend of the semiconductor industry?

In the modern technology-driven era like 5G, AI, IoT, Cloud, and Mobility, the scope of semiconductors is increasing at a rapid pace. The Internet of Everything (IoE) is propelling the new digital revolution with applications like wearables, home security, biometric scanners, smart factory robotics, and others gaining popularity across the globe. By boosting digital adoption across industries, the semiconductor industry will flourish in the new innovative world. The continuous R&D efforts in semiconductors are focused on improving user performance by making every device smarter. Research highlights that the total R&D spending by semiconductor companies is expected to rise by CAGR of 5.8% between 2021 and 2025 to $89.3 billion, which further emphasizes the importance of semiconductor innovation and the collaborative efforts made by industry players to drive the mission.

We’ve observed a lot of serious intent from the government and industry partners. The government has realized that the semiconductor industry is a very strategic one, and we need to have some control over it without completely relying on external parties. India is still in an early stage of development from the design point of view, and we have been doing great in the last few years. Further, we have multiple patents from MediaTek India, and we are constantly working on widening its reach to more customers and new market segments through increased investments in R&D and collaborating with technology firms and OEMs. We’ve seen momentous growth in the Indian market and our focus is to continuously innovate to meet the industry demands.

What advice would you give to women who aspire to leadership roles in the tech industry, particularly in India?

I was always influenced by the women pioneers in the technology sector, and I continue to be amazed and feel motivated by the tremendous determination and drive exhibited by the women I see around me. For advice, I swear by the motto ‘stay relevant and keep learning’ as technology is moving forward in the evolving world and it is important to learn how to adapt. This can only be done by extending your knowledge base as getting into the tech industry is relatively easy, staying in is the hard part but in the end, it’s worth it. Maintain a hunger for learning, foster a genuine spark of interest, know your surroundings, and be passionate about your work, these traits will make you an expert in any field you choose. Hence, it’s very important to make yourself relevant for today and be future-ready for tomorrow.