Meet Hari Kurichiyath, GLX Digital’s integration specialist

With two decades of experience in IT, Hari Kurichiyath, a senior software developer and integration specialist at GLX Digital, has made a career of connecting disparate systems through integration, enabling the smooth exchange of data from one system to another. Here, he shares his journey from curious child to integration expert.

‍

Growing up in Kerala in southern India, Hari Kurichiyath’s dream was to become a pilot, but his course changed when his primary school introduced computing as a co-curricular subject.

"I was in year four when my school opened a computer lab. I initially just started playing games, but soon they began teaching us Basic, my first programming language," he recalls. 

While aviation was still his aspiration, studying it presented challenges. "Aviation was expensive, and my parents weren’t keen on the idea. They wanted me to keep my feet on the ground,” he jokes. With his interest in computers growing, he pivoted to pursue a master’s degree in computer applications at Cochin University of Science and Technology.

After completing his Master’s, Hari moved to Bangalore in 2004, diving into India’s thriving software industry.  

“Bangalore is the heart of India’s tech scene and lots of global companies have a presence there,” he explains. Roles at iFlex, later acquired by Oracle, and then MindTree allowed Hari to work on large-scale projects across the US and Europe and introduced him to the unique challenges – and rewards – of integration.

“Integration is such a unique field in software. Not many people specialise in it, but it’s incredibly rewarding,” he says.

Despite the global opportunities, Hari began craving greater work/life balance. “By this stage, I had two young kids, and I felt like I didn’t get to spend any time with them,” he says. “Traffic in Bangalore had grown so, so bad. I’d have to leave home at 6am when the kids were still sleeping get to the office on time, and then by the time I got home at the end of the day, the kids were already back in bed.”

Encouraged by a friend in Perth, he explored the idea of moving to Australia, eventually obtaining residency through a skilled IT program. In 2016, he and his family relocated and by 2017, he had joined GLX Digital as a back-end developer.

Today, he focuses on integration for GLX CARGO, ensuring the software effectively communicates with clients' existing applications. “Integration is about taking two separate systems and making them talk to each other,” he explains. “Often, the customer’s existing applications use data differently than ours. It’s not just plug-and-play – each customer’s systems are different, and It’s my job to translate data into a format GLX CARGO understands, a process called data mapping."

Integration is often an unsung hero, working in the background to make systems feel seamless to the user. “I think that Integration is one of those things that the average user doesn’t really think about,” says Hari. “With integration, everything happens behind the scenes. You don't see it in the UI, but without integration, the two systems couldn’t speak to one another. My job is making this happen seamlessly.”

Hari explains that while some integrations are straightforward, others are more challenging requiring more data reformatting, but it is the challenges of his job that Hari finds most rewarding. “I love the problem-solving aspect. With integration, you’re learning about new applications, not just the ones you’re working on in-house but also those of our clients. Each project is a fresh challenge, and I get to broaden my skills with every new integration,” he says.

Outside the office, life is busy for Hari who now has two active teens – a 16-year-old son who plays basketball and soccer; and a 13-year-old daughter who also plays basketball. “Most of my free time is spent driving them to practices and competitions,” he laughs, but admits he still finds time for himself, playing badminton, attending fitness classes, and catching up with family and friends over good food.

Reflecting on his journey, Hari admits it is problem-solving that has attracted him to most pursuits in his life, from a career in software development through to his employment at GLX Digital.

“When you work for large tech company, or for a big bank for example, they may add new features to their in-house applications, but you often work on the same project day in and day out.

“(At GLX Digital), there is a new challenge every day and so much potential to grow. There is always a new customer with new integration needs. New challenges were what I was hoping to find when I interviewed here, and that is exactly what I got. Plus, the team here is so good – some brilliant, brilliant people – so you are always challenging yourself, and learning new things.”