Building Al, breaking barriers and rewriting the rules of leadership, Sandhya Oza is helping shape the future of enterprise technology. As Co-founder and Chief Project Officer of Data Science Wizards, she’s building more than AI solutions; she’s building what comes next.
What did you have to embrace about yourself to become the leader you are today?
I had to embrace that I don’t need all the answers at the start. Leadership is about asking the right questions, making decisions with limited information and having the courage to pursue meaningful ambitions.
Tell us about a room you walked into that felt like a defining moment in your career and what made you realise you belonged there.
I realised I belonged when I stopped asking, “Do I belong in this room?” and started thinking, “What can I contribute to this conversation?”
What is a quality in you that was once misunderstood, but has become one of your greatest strengths?
My persistence was sometimes mistaken for stubbornness. But there’s a difference between being stubborn about an approach and persistent about a purpose.
What is one important boundary you’ve learned to set in your career, and how has it shaped your leadership?
I’ve learned to protect my energy and focus. Knowing what to prioritise and delegate has made me more intentional in how I work and lead.
What is one career decision you took that changed the trajectory of your journey?
Moving from working with technology to building it changed everything. At DSW, the question became not just “What can Al do?” but “How do we make AI genuinely a part of the enterprise ecosystem?”
What is one unique challenge women leaders navigate today, and what do you think will change that narrative?
Women often feel pressured to prove themselves before taking up space. Greater representation matters, but seeing women build businesses, create technology and shape industries matters even more.
As technology makes the world smarter and faster, what is one deeply human quality you believe we must never lose?
Empathy. Technology should amplify our humanity and intelligence, not replace them.
What part of your success has required the most resilience, discipline or persistence behind the scenes?
Consistency. Behind every milestone are failed experiments and difficult decisions. Sometimes resilience simply means showing up the next day and saying, “Let’s figure this out.”
What is something you are excited to learn, explore or build next?
I’m excited about enterprise Al becoming an operating capability rather than a collection of individual applications. With UnifyAl OS, we’re working towards making AI scalable and manageable for enterprises.
If PowHER STRIKERS is about women who don’t simply enter the room but change it, what is the change you want to create next?
I want more women not just to have a seat at the technology table, but to build the table. I want them to see themselves as capable of building businesses and technology at scale.
Google knows the highlights of your career. What are the defining choices, lessons and moments behind those highlights that truly shaped the woman and leader you are today?
My journey has taught me that you don’t need the entire path figured out. You need the courage to take the next meaningful step and the resilience to keep going when the path changes.