MullenLowe Group Sri Lanka launches LoweTech

MullenLowe Group Sri Lanka CEO Thayalan Bartlett (left) and LoweTech Director Dr. Sohan Dharmarajah 

• MIT and Stanford alumnus Dr. Sohan Dharmarajah to head the new division

MullenLowe Group Sri Lanka (MLG) has appointed Dr. Sohan Dharmarajah to lead a specialised unit that will offer clients access to MarTech services.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University alumnus Sohan will be at the helm of LoweTech a new vertical under MLG that will deliver value at scale through multiple technology-based offerings to clients within and outside the group’s portfolio.

Complementing the fundamentals of the world’s notable startup ventures, LoweTech will serve as a technology collaborator helping clients to deeply understand complex customer journeys through the application of ‘first principles’, inclusive of immersive thinking, storytelling, and empathy. LoweTech will research, develop, and implement software solutions which can intuitively help marketing leaders to make mission-critical business decisions, meet objectives and drive innovation within their organisations.

Speaking on the launch of LoweTech, MullenLowe Group Sri Lanka CEO Thayalan Bartlett said: “We have been working on this new offering for some time and its launch has been set back by two years of COVID. With the introduction of LoweTech we will seamlessly integrate our new MarTech offerings with AdTech which is already being delivered through LoweDigital and will complete a holistic digital offering to clients.”

“Despite the current domestic crisis and looming global recession which is expected to hit us in early 2023, we are launching LoweTech knowing very well that clients will actively seek new ways to generate leads and engage consumers efficiently and relevantly. Sri Lanka lags in adopting new technologies and our focus markets will therefore encompass overseas markets which have shown interest in our offering. I am delighted to welcome Sohan to the MullenLowe Group’s Senior Management Team and to spearhead LoweTech,” Bartlett added.

Sohan is as an Academic, Innovator and Entrepreneur with the scar tissue to prove it. He holds an MSc in Optimization from MIT and a PhD in Computational Mathematics from Stanford University. His diverse work experience includes tenures at Goldman Sachs, the US Department of Defense and in several startup ventures in Sri Lanka. In 2020, Sohan won the IATA Hackathon in Athens, Greece, against international carriers like Singapore Airlines and Air France. Before that he was co-founder at ODoc, Sri Lanka’s first and largest telemedicine provider. He has also set-up financial outsourcing BPOs to support the US and Australian markets via digital transformation initiatives such as RPA and automated compliance.  

Commenting on his appointment Sohan says he is excited to be creating enormous leverage by managing and inspiring engineering talent, inclusive of designers and developers. He also enjoys using AI and high-performance computing to solve problems like automation, credit scoring, healthcare, advanced simulation, and optimisation to support MullenLowe’s diverse portfolio of clients with a special focus on overseas markets.