Sridhar Dhanapalan is a problem solver at heart
He has a passion for using technology to empower people, organisations and societies around the globe
About Sridhar
Sridhar enjoys solving complex problems with innovative, multi-disciplinary solutions, working with people from different professional backgrounds and connecting the dots.
Having been a director of 6 organisations and a co-founder/founding-team member in 7 startups, he has professionally made a high impact in sectors including SMEs, startups, education, social enterprise, not-for-profits and government.
He has a passion for empowering people, organisations and society and has led development behind several world-first solutions.
With a reputation for solving complex problems with multi-disciplinary teams and approaches, he is known for his leadership and entrepreneurial flair. This has created new business initiatives that have truly created an impact and made a difference globally.
STRATEGY & INNOVATION
In organisations such as Fossmart, Native Title Services Victoria and VISITS, Sridhar has empowered organisations to thrive in changing regulatory and economic environments through new practice management systems and business practices. He has also led organisations through the development of new products to enter new markets as well as established practices to provide new managed services.
START-UPS
Sridhar has provided strategic direction and oversight in startups and not-for-profits such as Activity Central, Unleash Kids and OLPC enabling them to be more agile and competitive. He has experience establishing and leading teams as well as rolling out technologies used by millions of children worldwide and winning multi-million dollar government grants.
CONSULTANT & ANALYST
In organisations including URSYS, Solutions First and BizCubed, Sridhar has designed, built and managed business networks as well as create and implement policies and systems to streamline technical support activities to improve reliability and productivity both internally and externally.
MULTI-DISCIPLINARY LEADERSHIP
Sridhar has worked at executive and senior leadership levels with experience building and leading teams in organisations including Western Sydney University, Fossmart and OLPC. He worked for Western Sydney University’s CIO to forge executive level relationships across the organisation and was a founding member of the Digital Strategy and Innovation unit. He has experience leading teams of subject matter and technical experts from around the globe delivering consistent and quality products, services and relationships.
CAREERNEXUS
Co-Founder of CareerNexus, a unique talent acquisition platform that empowers both employer and candidate for better fit
SCALEGY
Founder of Scalegy, Innovation and Technology consulting with a focus on strategic and business alignment
LINUX AUSTRALIA
Leader and keynote speaker in global open source projects and conferences. Held roles such as Director – Linux Australia and President – Sydney Linux Users Group
ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD
We invented the first comprehensive children’s literacy experience for a hybrid laptop / tablet device and were rewarded with a $11.7m Federal Government grantCREATING AN EDUCATION PROGRAM
Sridhar gave talk in the main keynote room about our educational programme, in which he explains the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) mission and how they intend to achieve it.
ENABLING CONNECTIONS TO OPPORTUNITY
Sridhar spoke at the linux.conf.au on the OLPC mission in context of the ever changing landscape.
Sridhar has been a leader in international open source communities including Director of Linux Australia and President of Sydney Linux Users Group, as well as CTO for One Laptop Per Child with end-to-end technology responsibility across APAC.
Here you’ll find some of Sridhar’s featured articles, talks, publications and interviews.
How to Create a Venn Diagram with Independent Intersections in PowerPoint
A Venn diagram can be a great way to explain a business concept. This is generally not difficult to create in modern presentation software. I often use Google Slides for its collaboration abilities. Where it becomes difficult is when you want to add a unique...
read moreNew LinkedIn Interface Delete Your Data? Here’s How to Bring it Back.
Over the past few years it has seemed like LinkedIn were positioning themselves to take over your professional address book. Through offering CRM-like features, users were able to see a summary of their recent communications with each connection as well as being able...
read moreCareerNexus: a new way to find work
The start-up that I have co-founded, CareerNexus, is looking for job seekers to take part in a product test and market experiment. If you, or someone you know, wants to know more and potentially take part, message me. If we can help just a fraction of those people who...
read moreA Complete Literacy Experience For Young Children
From the "I should have posted this months ago" vault... When I led technology development at One Laptop per Child Australia, I maintained two golden rules: everything that we release must 'just work' from the perspective of the user (usually a child or teacher), and...
read moreInterview with Australian Council for Computers in Education Learning Network
Adam Holt and I were interviewed last night by the Australian Council for Computers in Education Learning Network about our not-for-profit work to improve educational opportunities for children in the developing world. We talked about One Laptop per Child, OLPC...
read morePublished in Engineers Without Borders Magazine
Engineers Without Borders asked me to write something for their Humanitarian Engineering magazine about One Laptop per Child. Here is what I wrote. The school bell rings, and the children filter into the classroom. Each is holding an XO – their own personal learning...
read moreNot afraid to ask the thought-provoking questions, Sridhar is inquisitive and experienced in unlocking the potential of SMEs, startups and not-for-profits.
Sridhar will bring his years of business, technical and personal experience to deliver strategy, process and capability to lead and drive your organisation forward.
Contact Sridhar if you’d like to know more about him or his ventures.