New Relic’s Riya Shanmugan

Riya Shanmugan
Group Vice President, Global Alliances & Channels | Global MSP Sales
New Relic

Riya Shanmugam, New Relic’s group vice president of global alliances and channels, and global MSP sales, has a long history in the channel, driving huge cloud transformations at Google, Adobe and IBM. She joined New Relic just over a year ago.

“We’ve had a transformational year, not just in our work building out channels and partnerships, but also in our team culture and environment,” she said. “If I can in any way help shape the tech industry to be more empathetic and more diverse, then it’s truly an accomplishment and a privilege.”

Shanmugam said it’s not lost on her that there aren’t many people in this industry “who look like me or have followed a similar path.”

“My work demonstrates that there’s a place for everyone, there’s a seat at the table for everyone who wants it and is willing to work for it,” she said. “I hope to use my influence to make those opportunities more equitable, both at New Relic and across the industry.”

The tech industry is known for toxic environments and cutthroat competition, and it doesn’t have to be that way, Shanmugam said.

“You can achieve great things by treating people well and making the effort to understand each other,” she said. “I’ve seen that at New Relic, and I hope others will follow our example and make their organization a more empathetic place.”