Podcast Link : eMobility Consulting Professional Podcast

The field of eMobility, as promising as it sounds, is fraught with several technological, operational and logistical challenges that need to be overcome before it becomes mainstream !

Divya Singla, our next pathbreaker,  Public Charging Product Analyst at Jaguar Land Rover (London), contributes to building accessible, convenient, and luxurious EV public charging experiences globally.

Divya talks to Shyam Krishnamurthy from The Interview Portal about being influenced by Environment friendly technologies and Sustainability, which led her to eMobility Consulting !

For students, always be curious about new developments and read as much as possible about new technologies 

Divya,  can you share your background with our young readers?

I grew up in Mohali, North India in a joint family with 2 younger siblings. I graduated in Science from Panjab University. As I was in 2nd year, I realized science didn’t interest me and I always wanted to learn business, my father being a businessman in the real estate industry. So I studied for CAT and did MBA.

What did you do for graduation/post graduation? 

I am a BSc and MBA in Marketing and Finance. 

What were some of the key influences that led you to such an offbeat, unconventional, and unique career in EV Consulting?

I was influenced by Environment friendly technologies and Sustainability, and by my coaches at my first company, EY.

I had to choose an industry in my early career at EY; so I was inclined towards Finance and Energy. After I chose Energy as an industry, I got an opportunity to work on long term projects in eMobility that helped me with building my career in the field.

How did you make a transition to a new career? Tell us about your career path

At EY, I worked with utilities focused on EV charging related projects for 5 years. EY provides professional consulting services to different clients in different industries. I was in the Energy industry catering to utilities and OEMs in Europe, US and MENA regions. The role involved competitor benchmarking, GTM analysis, industry analysis, financial modelling. After 2 years, I was promoted to eMobility Lead for Energy clients. I was responsible for managing a team of 4 analysts and senior analysts and was working as Project Manager for those projects. My role then inclined more towards scoping, resource allocations, budgeting, etc. I was also responsible for existing accounts looking at 1Y, 2Y, 5Y roadmap for eMobility as a solution.

After EY, I moved to the UK and started with JLR in their EV public charging team where I am responsible for product strategy related to charging services to make our customer experience seamless.

How did you get your first break? 

I got campus placement in EY from my MBA B-school which gave me my first job.

What were some of the challenges you faced? How did you address them? 

Challenge 1: One needs technical acumen in this industry to understand data flows between different players so read as much as possible 

Challenge 2: This industry is evolving a lot which means there are lots of new technologies and challenges 

Where do you work now? What problems do you solve?

I work with JLR in the UK. I make sure if a customer buys an EV from JLR, they don’t have to worry about charging away from home. Stakeholder management, project management, analytical acumen are the skills needed for this job. I look after partnerships that JLR has for charging services, and identify gaps and opportunities in our offerings. I love how I’m able to make a difference from an environment point of view by encouraging EV adoption.

How does your work benefit society? 

My work focuses on delivering Environmental benefits of cleaner vehicles and sustainability

Your advice to students based on your experience? 

Be curious and read as much as possible about new technologies 

Future Plans? 

I am looking for next steps in my career within the EV charging industry and hopefully with other type of industry players in eMobility.