By Aishwarya Kanungo | Interview Times
Changing industries after building a successful career takes courage, adaptability, and a willingness to embrace new challenges. For Susmita Pattnayak, Chief Executive Officer of SOS Infotech & Telecom Pvt. Ltd., the transition from banking to technology represents an opportunity to apply years of professional experience to a new vision for innovation. In October 2026, her journey reached another milestone when she received the Computer Vision & Network Monitoring Award at the World Al Awards 2026, held during the World Al Summit in Bengaluru, on behalf of SOS. The recognition highlighted the company’s work in technology-driven solutions and its commitment to practical innovation.
With an MBA in Finance and Marketing and 15 years of banking experience, Susmita brings financial discipline, customer focus, and administrative expertise to the technology sector. Progressing through banking roles to become a Branch Manager, she developed a strong understanding of decision-making, accountability, and long-term value qualities that continue to shape her leadership.
Her journey also carries personal significance. She was the first woman in her joint family to pursue a professional career, supported by a father who encouraged her education and ambitions. After achieving important milestones in banking, she embraced a new professional challenge and joined SOS in 2026.
The transition introduced her to unfamiliar technical terminology and concepts. Rather than allowing her non-technical background to become a barrier, she approached the challenge with curiosity and a willingness to learn. Her experience reflects an important lesson: professional growth does not always mean climbing higher on the same ladder; sometimes, it means choosing an entirely new one.
1. Technology with a Purpose
SOS Infotech & Telecom operates across digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence, computer vision, networking, software platforms, and field operations. Its integrated approach connects equipment, software, communication systems, and technical support to help clients manage complex operational requirements.
One of its key areas is intelligent traffic monitoring and enforcement. Camera-based analytics, automatic number plate recognition, and radar-based speed detection can help identify violations such as speeding, riding without helmets, driving without seat belts, using mobile phones while driving, and triple riding. The resulting information supports enforcement processes handled by the relevant authorities.
During Puri’s Ratha Yatra, SOS supported Odisha Police in managing inward and outward vehicle flows by providing relevant vehicle-movement information for traffic and parking coordination. With the authorities directing operations, the contribution showed how intelligent infrastructure can support public administration beyond routine enforcement, serving the mobility needs of devotees and visitors during one of Odisha’s most significant cultural gatherings.
For Susmita, technology must deliver more than advanced functionality; it must also perform reliably in real-world conditions. Infrastructure resilience, timely repairs, system availability, and long-term maintenance are essential to ensuring that technology continues to serve its intended purpose.
This focus on operational reliability extends across the company’s wider portfolio. NETRAVIQ provides network-monitoring capabilities, while SOS ONE connects service tickets with responsible teams, field updates, and evidence of service restoration. Together, these platforms reflect the company’s emphasis on combining technological capabilities with accountable service delivery.
2. Looking Towards Intelligent Transportation
As transportation systems evolve, artificial intelligence and connected technologies are opening new possibilities for safer and more efficient mobility.
During the interview, Susmita discussed SOS’s efforts to reduce manual intervention in routine operations while retaining personnel for maintenance and repairs. She also highlighted development initiatives involving driver-behaviour analysis, lane-transition information for autonomous vehicles, and vehicle-to-everything (V2E) warning systems.
According to the interview, the company was targeting the launch of certain new solutions before March or April 2027. Turning these plans into practical applications will require technical collaboration, investment, and careful implementation.
Susmita’s banking background offers a complementary perspective, particularly in financial planning, procurement, resource allocation, and evaluating long-term project value. Her approach reflects a belief that innovation is most meaningful when it addresses real-world challenges and can be sustained over time.
3. Leadership Through Accountability
For Susmita, effective technology depends as much on capable people as it does on sophisticated systems. Her leadership responsibilities span strategic oversight, technology selection, procurement, implementation, and operational coordination.
Employee development and communication form an important part of her approach. SOS conducts quarterly interactions involving senior leadership and field engineers, while its “Coffee with MD and CEO” initiative gives small groups of employees an opportunity to engage directly with top management.
Practical training, automated issue reporting, and quarterly performance scorecards further support employee development and accountability. These practices help connect management decisions with the realities of field operations, where clear responsibilities and timely responses are essential.
Her leadership philosophy centres on continuous improvement, teamwork, and building teams that take ownership of their work. By encouraging communication between management and field personnel, she aims to create an environment where operational challenges can be addressed more effectively.
4. A Message to Gen Z
Susmita believes that career decisions should be guided by more than immediate financial gains. She encourages young professionals to look beyond small salary increments and consider opportunities for learning, organisational reputation, meaningful responsibilities, and long-term career growth before changing jobs.
At the same time, she recognises Gen Z’s technical awareness, creativity, and capacity for innovation. She believes the relationship between young professionals and management must work both ways. While employees should value learning and professional development, managers must also approach them with empathy and understand their expectations.
A workplace that combines experience with fresh thinking, she believes, can create opportunities for both individuals and organisations to grow.
5. Inspiring Women Beyond Boundaries
Susmita’s move from banking to technology carries a broader message about women’s participation in leadership. Her journey demonstrates that professional experience can open doors beyond the industry in which it was first acquired.
The support she received from her father helped her pursue education and a career while navigating traditional family expectations. Today, she hopes to encourage more women to enter the technology sector and take on leadership responsibilities across administration, operations, and technical functions.
Her story challenges the assumption that a non-technical background must limit a person’s contribution to a technology-led organisation. Adaptability, determination, and a commitment to continuous learning can create new professional possibilities at different stages of a career.
6. Recognition and the Road Ahead
October 2026 marked an important milestone for SOS Infotech & Telecom Susmita received the Computer Vision & Network Monitoring Award at the World Al Awards 2026
on behalf of the company during the World Al Summit in Bengaluru, held on 14-15 October. The recognition acknowledged the company’s work across computer vision, network monitoring, and technology-enabled infrastructure operations.
Earlier that month, on 7 October, Susmita represented SOS at the Trafficinfra Tech roundtable in New Delhi, bringing the company’s implementation experience and operational perspective to discussions on road infrastructure and technology solutions.
Looking ahead, her vision is to strengthen SOS as an innovation-led technology partner by expanding its technical capabilities, developing accountable teams, and advancing the practical application of software and artificial intelligence. Maintaining financial discipline while delivering dependable solutions and measurable value for clients remains central to this ambition.
Her journey from banking to technology is ultimately a story of professional reinvention of carrying the lessons of one profession into another and discovering new ways to lead. For Susmita Pattnayak, the next chapter is about more than adopting innovation; it is about building reliable systems, empowering people, and creating lasting value.
Her guiding principles remain straightforward: teamwork, honesty, integrity, and passionate effort. In a rapidly changing technological landscape, these enduring values remain essential to sustainable growth and meaningful innovation.
