From Chemical Engineer to Product Leader: A 16-Year Journey

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# From Chemical Engineer to Product Leader: A 16-Year Journey

When I graduated from IIT Kharagpur with a dual degree in Chemical Engineering, my first job was at Reliance's Jamnagar refinery as a Shift Field Engineer. Sixteen years later, I lead product and data teams across global markets. Here's what the journey taught me.

The Engineering Foundation

My time at IIT Kharagpur instilled something invaluable: the ability to break down complex problems into solvable components. Chemical engineering, with its focus on systems thinking and optimization, provided a mental framework I still use today.

What engineering taught me:

First principles thinking over pattern matching

Quantitative rigor in decision-making

Systems-level understanding of how components interact Even today, when I look at a business problem, I instinctively think about inputs, outputs, and optimization functions.

The Analytics Bridge

My transition from engineering to business happened at ZS Associates, where I discovered the power of data in solving business problems. Working with Fortune 500 pharmaceutical clients showed me how analytics could drive strategic decisions.

At Snapdeal, I built this further by leading a 20-member analytics team. The ability to translate data into actionable insights became my professional superpower.

Key skills developed:

SQL, Tableau, and business intelligence tools

Stakeholder communication and storytelling with data

Building and managing analytics teams

The Product Evolution

The shift from analytics to product happened gradually at Fossil Group. As I took on P&L responsibilities, I realized that owning outcomes required owning the products that delivered those outcomes.

Product leadership taught me:

Vision-setting and roadmap prioritization

Cross-functional team alignment

Customer obsession over metric obsession At CureBay, this evolution reached its peak when I built the product function from scratch, managing 15+ digital products.

The Leadership Dimension

Leading 100+ member teams across geographies taught me that leadership scales differently than individual contribution.

Leadership principles I've adopted:

Hire for potential and curiosity, not just experience

Create clarity on priorities and let teams figure out the how

Build systems that work without you

Celebrate wins publicly, address issues privately

Reflections for Aspiring Transitions

If you're an engineer considering a move to product or business:

Start with curiosity: Ask why things work the way they do beyond the technical layer

Build T-shaped skills: Deep expertise in one area, broad understanding across many

Seek cross-functional exposure: Volunteer for projects that put you at intersection points

Embrace ambiguity: Engineering often has right answers; business rarely does

The engineering foundation never goes away — it becomes a differentiator in a world of generalists. The key is to layer business acumen, customer empathy, and leadership skills on top of that technical foundation.

Building Data Monetization from 0 to 1 in HealthTech

Himanshu skipped presentations and built real AI products.

Himanshu Dhiman was part of the January 2025 cohort at Curious PM, alongside 13 other talented participants.