Shalini is a Consultant Project Manager and she manages several projects – both external and internal. 

For our client-facing jobs, Shalini’s primary responsibility is to ensure the smooth running of the project, within the agreed budget and timeline. She does this by being involved in the projects from the start to understand the client needs and steer the stakeholders in the right direction towards a tangible goal. Her primary focus is on community breeding program projects in developing countries (India, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Uganda, Burkina Faso) for goats and sheep, but she is also involved in projects from the US and in New Zealand.  

Shalini is equally involved in internal projects for the company to make AbacusBio more efficient in the strategical implementation of the latest tools and technologies. Being one of the SalesForce experts in the office, Shalini trains colleagues to get confident on the platform. As a team, she is involved with troubleshooting and in knowledge sharing. 

Shalini is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). This certification has vastly improved her confidence and understanding of project management and she is happy to tap into this valuable skill towards driving our company to greater heights! 

Being at the forefront of implementing change, and seeing the results are what energizes Shalini. As a Biology enthusiast from a young age, she has always dreamed of working closely with the flora and fauna. At AbacusBio, she is able to combine both these dreams in the same role. 

Finding ways to channel her creativity is important to Shalini. When she is not working you can catch her in the 38°C heated room of the Dunedin Hot Yoga studio (where she feels she’s dying during the workout, but always return for more). Living so far away from my homeland, India, Shalini finds it important to stay in touch with her culture. So she is happily picking up her passion for Indian Classical dancing (Bharatnatyam) and Carnatic vocals. She loves reading and painting – New Zealand sceneries are always such an inspiration! Apart from this she is also a busy full time mom to a beautiful yet a cheeky little one. 

She started her career as a Biomedical Scientist, working in India for 8 years and finishing up that stint with a PhD in Physiology (Neuroendocrinology) from the University of Otago. Never did she foresee herself working so closely with people and helping them build a community just from rearing goats or other animals and plants. And she hasn’t looked back since! 

Projects involved in:
  • Project Mesha
  • Resilient Dairy Programme DairyNZ
  • PigBoost project