How Vijayaraj Murugesan’s mantra of learning by doing empowers him at work
“Life is our resume. It is our story to tell, and the choices we make write the chapters.”
—Matthew McConaughey, Greenlights
In college, Vijayaraj M was such a fan of the aura and simplicity of “well-designed and beautiful web apps” that he started learning MySQL and Python in 2012 to design and develop small web applications himself.
In the same year, when one of his friends referred him to Freshworks (then Freshdesk), he felt “an instant connection.”
Vijayaraj was “wow-ed” by Freshdesk’s seamless user experience that helped customer support agents deliver great value to their customers. He sums it up beautifully.
The very moment I laid my eyes on Freshdesk’s website, I was reminded of my love for well-designed apps! It was a first for me to find such a neatly designed app by a company based out of India. Freshdesk looked modern in 2012, and that’s when I decided I mustn’t miss the opportunity of watching it grow.
“I have done some of my best and proudest work at Freshworks, ” he says in a watercooler conversation for ‘A Freshworker’s Life’ series. Keep reading to know more about Vijayaraj.
A decade of delight
Vijayaraj, who joined Freshworks fresh after college, completed a decade in the company in June 2022. Born in the temple city of Madurai in South India, it was always his dream to work in a “fast-growing product company.” And he’s elated that ten years ago, he convinced his parents of his decision to join “G’s startup”— Girish Mathruboothan studied engineering at the same institute (SASTRA in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu). “Now my parents are more than happy that I chose Freshworks,” he beams.
Having witnessed Freshworks’ phenomenal growth—from a one-product start-up to a public company listed on NASDAQ, Vijayaraj throws light on his unique vantage point.
At Freshworks, I have seen the best ideas win, not the loudest. Young folks are free to voice their ideas and opinions. In our engineering teams, the management hosts knowledge transfer sessions to explain product plays and get feedback from everyone. At regular intake sessions and surveys, employees are encouraged to post questions, feedback, and opinions anonymously to the board. For a company that prioritizes employee happiness, it’s no wonder we are considered a desirable place to work in locations around the world.
Overcoming hurdles, welcoming opportunities
Growing fast comes with its own challenges. Vijayaraj’s biggest challenge was navigating the fine line between perfection and excellence, motivation and discipline. He says, “During the early days, I wanted every task I worked on to be flawless and perfect, which often resulted in me getting stressed. Over time, I realized that my approach was counterproductive and not sustainable. So now, I prioritize delivering the most important tasks on my plate first, and then start working on the rest.” He has also learned that motivation is usually lost within a few days of taking up a new task, so he makes sure “that I talk to people to clear the hurdles in my work and strategize better to deliver my work on time.”
Key Learnings
What he loves most about his roles at Freshworks (and he’s had more than a few) is the company’s “learning by doing” philosophy.
Powered by “the will to do better,” he started in product development, working on features related to in-product subscription and payment modules. “This was one of my crucial phases of work since smaller bugs have a bigger impact, like charging customers’ credit cards, and I had to ensure everything was right,” he says. He also built the ‘Reseller (aka Partner)’ portal using Ruby on Rails and MySQL to manage and pay partners. In a few years, Vijayaraj caught Shan Krishnasamy’s eye and went on to build and launch Freshteam. “I only had three years of experience then, and I did not expect this opportunity to come my way. But I was trusted with building the product from day one, which included everything from developing new features to hiring and mentoring new employees and interns,” he adds. Following his passion for empowering folks with easy-to-use business software, Vijayaraj moved to the Unified Customer Records (UCR) team, an initiative by the Freshworks Neo Platform that powers most of our solutions. He adds that he has moved to Java and is now working with NoSQL data stores like DynamoDB and Cassandra to design and implement technical solutions that can help customers and employees love their software.
Vijayaraj’s proudest moment with Freshworks was when he was conferred the “Silent Performer of the Year” award in 2015 by Girish, Shan, Kiran, and the management team.
Growing every day
When Vijayaraj is not working on code, he enjoys working on his body. “A lot of people are impressed by how fit I look today, but it’s my discipline that helped me achieve this. I don’t give up when I feel demotivated, and I never miss my workouts,” he says.
He also enjoys sketching monuments from places he has visited. Once an avid reader of Tamil fiction, he has an extensive list of books to get back to—whenever he finds the time. He loves spending time with family and considers his mother his closest confidante: “My mother is always the first to know whatever happens in my life, good and bad. She encourages me to keep learning and to improve myself.”
Interested in working with passionate Freshworkers like Vijayaraj who have discovered their potential, passion, and purpose at work? Look no further! At Freshworks, we empower people who power businesses, and we are hiring across roles.
