Kalai S. Kalaichelvan, PhD
President & CEO, EION Wireless
Sector: Business & Technology Innovation
Birthplace: Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Residence: Ottawa/Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Out of more than 1.5 million Indo-Canadians, Maneesh Media has named 75 people as Jewels of India in Canada and is releasing a book supported by the High Commission of India in Canada. Kalai is one of the leading Indo-Candians to be selected for this honour.
Introduction
A leader since childhood, it was obvious that he would lead the industry as he grew up. His very foundation was on ‘making an impact on society’ and it reflects his leadership philosophy. Exploring entrepreneurship rather early on, he was driven to become a serial entrepreneur, has written books, was the only Canadian on the global advisory board for Samsung’s CEO, was on the board of Hydro Ottawa for five years and was named Canada’s Innovator of the Year. How does he continue to accomplish so much in his life and have such a significant impact in the lives of the people he touches?
A Love of Mathematics
An outstanding student during school, he always excelled in mathematics. “I wanted to become a mathematician. The art of numbers intrigued me,” remembers Kalai. “So, my parents’ idea behind my profession was, in their words, ‘Why don’t you do something which can make a bigger impact on society, instead of becoming a mathematician?’ – I have grown up with that spirit – it drives me. So, then the best choice was to become an engineer, which at the same time would allow me to use my mathematical skills.”
Kalai pursued a Bachelor of Electronics and Communications degree, from Madras University, Guindy Engineering College, Chennai, which is one of the oldest institutions in India. He successfully graduated with an Honours degree. What next, he had no clue; but, his professor, Prof. N. Sujeer, nudged him to apply for a Master’s in electrical engineering, specializing in numerical mathematical modeling at the University of Toronto. Within a month he was selected with a full scholarship. He later completed a Ph.D. in the same field, from the University of Toronto.
New Beginnings
Kalai’s PhD thesis was based on the work of a Russian mathematician, Prof. I.D. Mayergoyz, who coincidentally met Prof. J.D. Lavers, his supervisor, at a conference where the latter was presenting one of the many papers Kalai wrote. This paper happened to have upped the original work of Prof. I.D. Mayergoyz by several notches and impressed him a lot, so much so that he agreed to be Kalai’s external examiner.
Kalai, Dr. Kalaichelvan, once he completed his PhD in 1980, he had four job offers – two in the USA and two in Canada. He decided to stay in Canada and joined Bell Northern Research (BNR) in Ottawa, a premier research lab in Canada. This critical decision determined his new trajectory of life in Canada.
After a few years at BNR, Kalai joined Nortel, where he rose to the position of Vice President and General Manager, ran three business units, and took them to become hugely successful and profitable enterprises. It was his mentor, Terry Curtis, who hand picked him from the bunch of engineers and propelled him up so rapidly, seeing his leadership skills. Kalai credits his dear friend and mentor, Dr. Rama Munikoti, who was instrumental throughout his journey of success at Nortel. Rama and his longtime assistant, Esther Leafloor, were extremely proud when Kalai was honoured with the Platinum Top Talent award, which had been given to only a few out of the estimated 100,000 people who worked at Nortel at that time. Kalai was one of the youngest Vice Presidents at Nortel.
The urge to do something on his own and make an impact on society led him to leave Nortel in 2001, to embark on his true passion – to be an entrepreneur. Unlike many who only want to start one company, Kalai co-founded four companies. Two of them were co-founded with two of his friends, Cistech Limited and Cistel Technology. The other two that he co-founded in 2001 where he was at the helm, were: EION Wireless (Embedded Intelligence Of Networks) and IPINE Networks. IPINE Networks was in turn acquired by NOKIA. Later he co-founded CHiL Semiconductors which was acquired by International Rectifier.
“Today, we have a lot of EION products deployed around the world, in major US airports like LAX (Los Angeles), JFK (New York) and DFW (Dallas Fort Worth); in South America, the Middle East and 15 Indian airports, which use our products to monitor and manage runway traffic control systems. In India, for example, TATA communications and BSNL have been our major customers. Today over 500,000 wireless radios are deployed globally,” he says with satisfaction.
Kalai has received numerous awards throughout his career, including Canada’s Innovator of Year in 2004 and EION being ranked in Deloitte’s Fast 50 list, three times.
Philanthropic & Volunteer Activities
Kalai and his wife, Sujatha, who has always provided her unwavering support even at times when he had an intense international travel schedule, have been active in social and philanthropic work, including: the creation of an endowment fund at the Ottawa Hospital, Ottawa Food bank, Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation, Annai Karunai Illam, Plan International, World Vision, Shriners Hospital, DO-IT India (Development of India Together), to name a few.
He contributes a lot to the development of entrepreneurship in the community by grooming, influencing and mentoring aspiring entrepreneurs as a Charter Member of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) organization in Ottawa. His hallmark is the excitement with which he helps people and in being a catalyst for numerous businesses, to take them beyond what the founders think may be possible. Many credit him for providing access to his sphere of influence and his personal positivity and belief in them, for changing their life trajectories.
His journey to the top has seemingly been hurdle free, though he believes there is always a moment when you get tired and want to stay where you have reached. And that is when your conviction in your dreams pushes you forward. Winston Churchill once said, “Success is not final. Failure is not fatal.” That means you have to continue in order to succeed in what you are doing, no matter what.
Kalai with Sujatha
Summary of Kalai’s philosophy:
Success: True success is to be a catalyst to positively impact peoples’ lives.
Failure: If you truly believe in something, never ever give up, even when you fail.
Gadgets: OURA Ring and Cars
The last thing on TV: Stand-up comedy shows
The highlight of your resume: Being an entrepreneur with both a heart and conscience.
One word to describe you: Changemaker
Eulogy: A catalyst focused on bringing positive change in peoples’ lives.
© EION Inc. 2022
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