From academia to technology consulting: Bahar Sateli finds her niche at PwC Canada
Bahar Sateli is a senior data scientist in Consulting and Deals and part of PwC Canada’s One Analytics team in Montréal. She’s always been passionate about building things and solving problems. With a post-graduate degree in artificial intelligence (AI) and her own startup under her belt, she’s excited to be learning the business aspects of the industry and proud to be applying her skills to have a real-world impact.
Following her curiosity
Growing up in Tehran, Iran, Bahar used to take things apart to see how they worked, such as her Walkman, which she was unable to put back together. At age 12, she’d bug her brother whenever he was on the computer, very curious about what he was doing. He explained that he was programming. “I want to do that!” she exclaimed — so he taught her.
Ten years later, she came to Canada to pursue a master’s degree in software engineering. She quickly immersed herself in hackathons and anything related to the world of AI and then went on to do a PhD in computer science at Concordia University.
While working as a research assistant, Bahar became frustrated with the amount of reading she had to do. But her specialization was natural language processing — teaching computers to read and understand text. She decided to apply that work to create a virtual research assistant. “You should use your human brain for creativity and things that computers can’t do,” she explains.
The PhD committee approved her topic but was mainly interested in the theoretical foundation. Bahar, however, was keen to implement her idea, so with the backing of her professor, she launched a startup.
A woman in a male-dominated domain
It was a tremendous learning experience. She attended networking events and participated in incubation programs, including the competitive Creative Destruction Lab, where at times, she was the only female co-founder pitching to investors.
People loved her product, but as students, they didn’t necessarily have the cash to buy it. After a while, Bahar realized her company’s problems weren’t technical but came from a lack of business and marketing expertise.
She decided to take a leap of faith and pursue technology consulting, remaining part-owner of the startup but leaving day-to-day operations. That’s when an acquaintance referred her to PwC Canada. At her interview, she discovered she and the partner interviewing her had been at some of the same industry events and meetings. Bahar explained that while she had an in-depth knowledge of AI, she didn’t know how to sell it — and she wanted to learn.
Building confidence at PwC Canada
At PwC Canada, Bahar feels extremely fortunate to be part of a friendly and supportive team. Her role is dynamic and twofold: at the start of an engagement, she participates in client meetings as the AI subject matter expert, listening carefully to understand the exact problem and help figure out the best way to fix it using AI/machine learning techniques. Once a solution has been agreed on, she takes full responsibility for all the technical aspects of the project, overseeing the design, implementation, deployment and testing. It’s this combination of consulting and hands-on development that she loves and finds truly invigorating.
Bahar credits Annie Veillet, PwC Canada’s AI and Automation partner in Montréal, with helping to build her confidence. “Annie teaches by example, asking my opinion about things outside my technical knowledge, providing me with diverse learning opportunities.” Annie also deeply values her relationship with Bahar, noting that Bahar is a “fabulous human being first and one of the smartest people I know second.” Among other things, Bahar has been working together with Annie to develop PwC Canada’s innovative Responsible AI toolkit, which includes a comprehensive ethical AI framework.
Being a woman in tech
Being a woman in tech can be difficult — especially as you climb the echelons, where fewer women are present. Bahar firmly believes in the power of a positive attitude; she takes the viewpoint that as long as you do a good job, you can earn people’s trust and respect.
“You have to know what you bring to the table,” she says. “If you’ve been invited to a meeting, it’s because you have something valuable to offer.” This doesn’t mean that you need to know everything or pretend that you’re better than others. “If you’re confident in what you can do, while being open and respectful to other people, then you’ll find your place,” says Bahar.
Solving real-world problems
When people ask about opportunities at organizations like PwC Canada, Bahar tells them it’s very important not to label or limit yourself to one thing. “If you have a passion, you can do anything. This is the age of the internet and upskilling.” Jobs are changing fast, with some roles disappearing and new ones continuously emerging. What’s important is to be equipped to participate in an increasingly digital world. “My own job revolves around data, data, data,” she says.
When Bahar left academia, she knew she didn’t want to end up in a cubicle moving code around for a software application; she wanted to have a real-world impact. “At PwC Canada, even when you’re doing a small thing, the impact is big because the clients are big,” she notes, pointing to examples of clients in the energy distribution, water and retail sectors.
Dreaming big
Recently, Bahar was recognized by Re-Work, a UK-based organization, as one of the Top 30 Influential Women Advancing AI in 2019. The award couldn’t have come at a better time. Bahar was taking a much-needed vacation to recover from what had been a difficult year on a personal level, asking herself existential questions, when she received the news.
The recognition restored her confidence in life and affirmed some of the bold decisions she’s made in the past few years. “It’s a testament to dare to dream big, to go far, to set a plan and push through thick and thin,” she says.
