"When I was growing up, the only professionals mentioned in my social circle were doctors, engineers, or lawyers. Somehow, other career paths were never discussed. There was no pressure regarding school; we were allowed to study any subject of our interest. I was a good science and math student, so naturally I decided to go into science," she affirms.
She felt compelled early on to pursue a career in medicine, as it satisfied both her scientific interests and her desire to serve the public. Admittedly, however, there were other options, albeit only a few.
When the time came for her to choose a career, she settled on medicine and was accepted into medical school. The school was outside of her local vicinity, however, prompting concerns about the choice she had made.
"I was raised in a fairly sheltered environment, so my parents were a little hesitant in sending me away to a distant medical school. Also, I didn't seem to have been too keen on pursuing it, either. So I decided not to go into medicine at all, and instead decided to get a bachelor's of science degree with a major in physics, chemistry, and mathematics."
A diligent student, she excelled in her undergraduate studies and, after graduation, came to the United States as a graduate student to join the Chemistry Department at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee (UWM).
"I joined Dr. David Petering's group as a graduate student in biochemistry. This was an easy choice, since chemistry was my favorite subject and biochemistry seemed to be a logical choice, as it took chemistry to the cellular level."
Having built a solid foundation in the basic sciences throughout her undergraduate work in India, Ujjani quickly adapted to the challenges of being a graduate student in the United States.
"My graduate school at Wisconsin was wonderful. It was a vibrant group of very bright post doctoral fellows, graduate, and undergraduate students. The most significant part of my education at UWM was learning to apply theoretical knowledge to real life problems. It was about answering questions and solving problems."
After completing her graduate work, Ujjani joined the university faculty as a research associate studying anti-cancer drugs. Soon thereafter, she relocated to Huntsville, AL.
"Huntsville is a unique place. It is a small town where NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and the Army base Redstone Arsenal are located. It is a very cosmopolitan city with 80% of its population born outside of Huntsville. Huntsville has a very sophisticated community, bustling with entrepreneurs, engineers, scientists, and military personnel. Many successful high tech companies were founded in Huntsville."
After an initial stint teaching at the University of Huntsville-Alabama, she joined TMC, an industrial testing corporation, as a chemist in the company's commercial laboratory. At the time, TMC provided testing and consulting services to NASA MSFC and to the Redstone Arsenal. Almost immediately, Ujjani was able to prove herself as a leader.
"After my first week at the job, I was promoted to be the laboratory manager, as there was a vacancy for this position, and I had obviously proved my ability. I reported to the vice president of laboratory services."
A year later, she was promoted again to the position of laboratory director, which made her responsible for overseeing the entire division. A few years later, she ascended further up the company hierarchy, this time assuming the position of vice president, earning her a spot on TMC's board of directors.
"The reason behind my success was that I had a strong technical background; I managed the staff and money well, and I was successful in marketing and business development. I was able to constantly re-engineer and position the firm to serve the changing needs of its clients. I worked hard at TMC to build a successful organization, and the experience was personally and professionally rewarding."
Ujjani would ultimately spend 15 years at TMC before relocating to New Jersey, a decision she describes as forcing her to choose between her personal and professional life. Like all transitions, however, this one brought new opportunities for change and success.
"Following my relocation to New Jersey, I worked briefly for another environmental consulting firm in New York as the Director of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS). The clientele was different; I enjoyed the challenge and performed very well, exceeding the firm's expectations."
Within the year, she was offered a position as vice president of environmental health and safety with the Whitman Companies, a post she accepted because she felt "Whitman was a more suitable place to get my career back on track and to achieve my professional goals."
Given the breadth of her expertise in both science and public policy, Ujjani has had a wealth of professional milestones which have allowed her to expand a relatively small but indispensable field of specialized study.
"I have spent the last 20 years in consulting services related to material sciences, failure analysis, quality control, environmental engineering, expert services, and regulatory compliance in environmental and occupational health and safety specialties. My work has always been very interesting, whether it is evaluating the health and safety aspects of growing a gallium arsenide crystal on the space shuttle, performing an indoor air quality investigation to determine the cause of a chronic health problem, assessing an occupational exposure of an agent that caused cancer, acting as a subject expert in litigations, or managing remediation of a site contaminated with mold, asbestos, legionella, or chemical contaminants."
She also professes that the very nature of her work provides ample opportunity not only to exercise her knowledge, but to continually learn, as well.
"My work takes me to unusual places: it may be a class 100 cleanroom where flight hardware is assembled, a classified defense facility, the dirtiest old steel mill, a large industrial manufacturing facility, or one of the largest and oldest hospitals in the country. There has never been a dull moment. I am fortunate to say that I have worked on numerous projects I take pride in."
"Due to the confidential nature of my work, it is often difficult to discuss [my projects]," she continues. "One that I can share is the Navy diver's breathing air certification program. I identified the client, wrote the proposal, and won the contract with the U.S. Navy. This was a client my firm had never done any work for before. We were a totally unknown entity to the client. I won the contract purely on technical merit. The next challenge was to set up the program and perform in a manner to provide the highest quality of service, while making my employer's bottom line look very good. TMC had performed trace gas analysis of NASA astronaut's breathing air, and various specialized analyses for purity certification of gas for many years. However, sample collection was performed by TMC's trained scientists. The Navy program required a sample kit that could be shipped to any part of the world where the U.S. Navy was stationed, and the sampling was to be performed from very high pressure systems safely by any field personnel without compromising the sample. Furthermore, the kit had to be sturdy enough to be dropped, and had to be waterproof, lightweight, and safe at 30,000 feet altitude or in a decompression chamber. All of these requirements had to be met within budget. My degree was not in engineering; however, I had the formal educational training, experience, and business acuity to set up a successful contract that continued for many years. I diversified this program to provide similar services to other government and private clients."
Among the most memorable projects she has worked on include the following: "reverse engineering of the aircraft windshield for the Space Shuttle Challenger, failure analysis of shuttle hardware (steel bolts) after the disaster, NASA/MSFC contamination control analytical support contract, Navy contracts, a crystal growth furnace certification project, test support of munitions de-militarization operation, environmental audits of some of the latest healthcare facilities, setting up health and safety programs for various industrial clients, and expert work related to the occupational exposures to asbestos and hazardous chemicals."
Additionally, Ujjani lists her most significant career accomplishments as "diversifying and expanding business to include industrial hygiene, health and safety consulting, testing and training, and a clientele which includes various government agencies and large industrial clients. One of the highlights of my job was being invited by NASA/MSFC as a special guest to watch the shuttle take off at the Kennedy Space Flight Center."
Ujjani is also a member of several professional organizations, where she holds a number of prominent positions, including:
- American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH)
- American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA)
- New Jersey Chapter of American Industrial Hygiene Association — treasurer
- American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), Environmental Issues Committee Vapor Intrusion Project — team member
- American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), Healthcare Workgroup, Pollution Prevention Project — Team Leader
- Huntsville Association of Small Business in Advanced Technology (HASBAT) — past president
- Hospital Engineers Society of Greater New York (HESGNY)
"In any organization, your personal and professional growth are tied in with the growth of your organization. Hard work pays off. Evaluate your situation periodically, and if you are not reaching your goal, it is time to evaluate the situation and to make necessary changes. Communication and building relationships are important; these apply to your boss, your coworkers, and your clients."
She also acknowledges the important role that mentors have played in her professional and personal success, especially the idealism of her father.
"I have been very fortunate to have been around some truly remarkable people throughout my life, including my father and a generation of idealists, leaders, politicians and scholars while growing up in India.
Later, influential people in her life include Dr. David Petering at UWM who was her former boss at TMC, and Dot Humphrey, a former TMC president.
"Dot was a significant mentor during my career; she recognized my talent and had tremendous faith in my ability to do the job. She offered me every opportunity for growth. She encouraged me to take advantage of various professional development courses in technical and management fields," she said.
Another influence in her life was Thomas Pierce Ph.D., MD, C.I.H., a former professor and head of the Industrial Hygiene Department at University of North Alabama (UNA).
"[He] first introduced me to the field of Industrial Hygiene. A Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) is a professional who is trained to anticipate, recognize, and prevent hazardous conditions and to protect the worker. He suggested that I should go for the CIH certification, since I had the hands-on experience in Industrial Hygiene practice and a chemistry background," she said. "So I took the exam without preparation and scored 96% of the passing grade. Later, I spent countless hours to prepare and take the exam to pass and practice comprehensive industrial hygiene confidently. Looking back, I see that it was a great choice for me. It allows me to understand the interaction and relevance of chemicals with each other, with the environment, and with human health. This gives me the broad knowledge base to forge into the environmental health and safety field."
"Another learning opportunity was offered to me when I served as the president of the Huntsville Association of Small Business in Advanced Technology (HASBAT)," she recalls. "I had the opportunity to meet and work with the top entrepreneurs, community leaders, and distinguished officials."
For the aspiring professional looking to find the kind of multifaceted success Ujjani has created in her own career, she advises many things, but none more so than maintaining a current set of working skills.
"Always keep your technical skills sharp. Don't stop learning," she advises. "Be the best you can be at what you do. Do the right thing: it keeps life less complicated and you can direct your energy towards the pursuit of more important things in life. Enjoy your work because you spend too much time at work, so make it count. Be passionate about your work; stay focused, and work hard. The rewards will come to you — if they do not, take a good look at yourself and your situation, and change whatever you need … to go where you want to go. Short-term reward is great, but it is important to keep the bigger picture in mind."
| Q. What do you do for fun? A. I love traveling, hiking, meeting people who make me think, and intellectual discussions. Q. What CD is in your CD player right now? A. Bolero, but I am an NPR junky. I listen to NPR regularly. Q. What was the last magazine you read? A. Forbes Q. What is your favorite TV show? A. BBC World News and movies on IFC channel Q. Who is your role model? A. My father is my role model. He was a visionary, a Gandhian, and India's freedom fighter. Born and raised in a well-to-do family, he pursued his ideals at the cost of personal comfort; he was a successful attorney and an idealistic politician in a young Indian democracy. He taught by example, he taught me about integrity, enjoying life, traveling, appreciating art and beauty, and the joy of accomplishment. He believed in education. He believed that one should have the ability to be self supportive, to set high goals and achieve them, to do the right things for the right reasons, to make difficult decisions, and to take responsibility for your actions. Having a higher ultimate goal that is global in nature where you make a difference gives you a true sense of accomplishment. Q. What makes you laugh? A. I am generally a happy person. I laugh easily. |
