Madan Venugopal — CTO

I am a seasoned engineering leader with over a decade of experience building and scaling data platforms, solving complex problems, and nurturing high-performing teams in data-driven organizations. As Head of Data Engineering at PhonePe, I’m passionate about creating scalable, efficient systems and enabling teams to deliver business impact while fostering innovation, trust, and growth. Technical Expertise Data Platforms & Architecture: Modernized one of India’s largest on-premise data warehouses (~25 PB), with optimized data tiering strategies and archival solutions. Distributed Systems & Streaming: Led design and development of high-throughput systems (200K RPS) and real-time recommendation engines. Cloud & Infrastructure: Implemented cost optimizations on AWS, built customer data lakes on GCP, and provisioned dynamic cloud resources at scale. Scalability & Observability: Designed systems for fault tolerance, performance monitoring, and troubleshooting in regulated, high-availability environments. People & Leadership Skills Built and scaled engineering teams from scratch, hiring top talent in competitive markets and fostering a culture of ownership and accountability. Provided technical mentorship and career development frameworks, empowering engineers to grow and take on greater responsibilities. Led cross-functional collaboration with product, design, support, and operations teams to align technical efforts with business goals. Expert in resolving conflicts, facilitating difficult conversations, and helping teams find middle ground during disagreements to ensure progress and alignment. Established engineering cultures rooted in trust, transparency, and continuous learning. Managed high-pressure scenarios, including audits, cost reductions, and complex migrations, while maintaining team morale and focus. I enjoy working at the intersection of technology and leadership—solving difficult technical challenges while creating environments where people can innovate, grow, and succeed. I believe that listening, empathy, and structured problem-solving are key to guiding teams through uncertainty and contention toward shared success.

Stackforce AI infers this person is a Data Engineering Leader with expertise in building scalable data platforms in Fintech.

Location: Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

Experience: 19 yrs 7 mos