Manasi Sharma

What’s the most important leadership lesson you’ve learned?

I’ve learned is the power of empowering others while providing clear direction. A leader’s role is to create an environment where people feel trusted, supported, and capable of taking initiative. This balance fosters both individual growth and team success.

What do you consider to be your most important career achievement or milestone?

Leading the development of the Microsoft Teams platform, where I helped drive extensibility and improve collaboration for millions of users. This required balancing technical complexity with user experience, marking a pivotal moment in my leadership journey.

What do you aspire to accomplish in your career and why? What obstacles will you overcome?

I aspire to continue advancing AI in enterprise systems, making technology more accessible and impactful for businesses. I aim to foster innovation while empowering teams to reach their potential. A key obstacle will be balancing rapid technological changes with user-centric design.

What is your favorite word? (only one word)

Empowerment

How do you define it?

I define empowerment as giving individuals the tools, confidence, and autonomy to make decisions and take action. It’s about creating an environment where people feel trusted and supported, unlocking their full potential to contribute meaningfully and grow both personally and professionally.

How has this word influenced or inspired your career?

Empowerment has driven me to create environments where teams feel confident to innovate and take ownership. By fostering trust and autonomy, I’ve seen individuals and projects thrive, reinforcing my belief that empowering others is key to both personal and collective success.

What are you currently reading or listening to?

I’m currently reading Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows, which explores systems thinking and how complex systems operate. It’s insightful for both personal and professional development, helping to approach problems holistically and see interconnections in decision-making and design.

What do you consider the best professional or personal advice you’ve ever received?

See challenges as growth opportunities. Don’t fear failure; use it as a learning step. This mindset has helped me take risks, innovate, and grow both personally and professionally.

Manasi Sharma is a Principal Engineering Manager at Microsoft, leading platform development for Microsoft Teams. With over a decade of experience in full-stack engineering, she specializes in data-intensive web applications and microservices. Manasi holds a patent for productivity enhancement in meetings and is passionate about AI in enterprise systems. A dedicated mentor and advocate for diversity, she judges hackathons like NASA Space Apps and is an IEEE Senior Member and BCS Fellow.