iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-
U.S. House of Representatives has honored an Indian American for his contributions to the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
Kamalakar “Kam” Shenai – an alumnus of the Saunders College of Business – was honored as a distinguished leader in Central Florida during Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.
Shenai emigrated to the United States from India in 1976 “with $208 in my pocket, an engineering degree, a determination to work hard, and a heart full of ambition,” he recalled. Before earning his degree from Saunders, he obtained a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1977.
“The motto of Kamalakar “Kam” Shenai ’89 MBA (marketing) — ‘Do common things uncommonly well’ — is a testament to his commitment to excellence and his desire to make a difference in the lives of those around him,” said the Rochester Institute of Technology in an article uploaded on its website on November 17.
He began his successful business career in Buffalo, N.Y., as a salesman for Xerox Corp. in what would become a 35-year corporate journey. He was the head of marketing operations for Xerox North America before being named chief client officer at Sutherland Global Services in Rochester.
The Indian American also serves on various boards and has assumed a role on the Kidney Advocacy Committee for the National Kidney Foundation, contributing to health-related advocacy efforts.
Since his retirement, Shenai has served on several boards. He is on the Kidney Advocacy Committee for the National Kidney Foundation, and he is the co-founder of Asian Pacific Islanders Coming Together (ACT)—a grassroots, non-partisan organization whose mission is to amplify AAPI voices through voter-participation.
“We don’t have a voice — we have a whisper. Why is that? Because we don’t participate in anything, we have to take the whisper and convert it into a roar,” he said, highlighting the role of his organization in an interview with Spectrum News 13.
“One needs to have a solid educational foundation to build a successful career, and the MBA in marketing from Saunders College—which came in the middle of my career—solidified my trajectory,” Shenai said.
