USA (Commonwealth Union)_ The narratives of Indian-origin individuals attaining prominent positions within global IT corporations and other enterprises are always inspiring. Noteworthy figures like Sundar Pichai, Satya Nadella, and others have inspired many. However, the stories of Indian-origin women leading global companies remain less known. One such inspiration is Jayshree V Ullal, the CEO and president of Arista Networks, who stands as a remarkable example in this regard. According to Forbes, with a net worth of $2.5 billion, she is among the four women featured on Forbes’s list of the richest self-made women in America.
Comparatively, CAKnowledge states that the net worth of Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet Inc., is $1.31 billion, and the wealth of Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, is estimated at $420 million. Together, the combined net worth of Pichai and Nadella amounts to $1.7 billion, significantly lower than the individual net worth of Jayshree Ullal, which is $2.5 billion. Jayshree Ullal’s journey began with her birth in London, followed by her schooling at the Convent of Jesus and Mary School in New Delhi. Thereafter, she obtained her engineering degree in San Francisco, holding a B.S. in Engineering (Electrical) and an M.S. in Engineering Management.
According to reports, before serving at Arista, Ullal gained experience through employment at prominent companies such as AMD, Fairchild Semiconductor, and Ungermann Bass. Further, she contributed to the design of high-end semiconductor chips for IBM and Hitachi before joining Crescendo Communications, which was eventually acquired by Cisco Systems. During her tenure at Cisco, Ullal played a pivotal role as Senior Vice President, overseeing a $10 billion business in the data center, switching, and services domains.
Following her 15-year service at Cisco, Ullal entered Arista in 2008 and was appointed CEO and President by Andy Bechtolsheim and David Cheriton. Despite facing initial profitability challenges, Ullal steered the company towards remarkable success. Under her leadership, Arista experienced significant growth, culminating in a historic and successful IPO that transformed the company from a startup to a multibillion-dollar business. Jayshree Ullal boasts a wealth of experience in networking, spanning over three decades. Her contributions have been recognized through numerous awards, including E&Y’s “Entrepreneur of the Year” in 2015; Barron’s “World’s Best CEOs” in 2018; and Fortune’s “Top 20 Business Persons” in 2019.
Further, Forbes has added Ullal to its list of America’s richest self-made women. As stated by Forbes, with a net worth of $2.5 billion, Ullal possesses 2.4% of Arista Networks’ shares, some of which are designated for her two children, niece, and nephew. In 2022, Arista Networks achieved revenue of about $4.4 billion. Additionally, Jayshree Ullal also serves on the board of directors for Snowflake, a cloud computing company that went public in September 2020.
