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Kumaran Shanmuhan posted thisFor years, we've obsessed over User Experience. Now, it’s time to obsess over Agent Experience. UX design asks: what does the human see, feel, and understand at each moment? We built entire disciplines around this. The idea that the person using a system deserves a deliberately designed experience is now obvious. Here's what may not have been obvious: AI agents have an experience too. When an agent processes an insurance claim or reviews a loan document, it is working with what it currently sees, knows, and remembers. That bundle of information — at that precise moment — determines what it does. Most deployments leave that to chance. Anthropic's recent source code leak gave us the first look inside a world-class production AI agent. What stood out wasn't the model. It was how meticulously they designed the agent's experience — what it knows, what it remembers across sessions, what it believes about its own constraints, what it can perceive as a conversation grows long. This is Agent Experience design. AX. At Firstsource, this is where much of our work in regulated industries actually lives. What does the agent need to know about a member's claims history before processing a prior auth? What does it remember about a borrower's documentation across a multi-week origination? What does it understand about the regulatory constraints specific to that state, that plan, that moment? Getting those questions right is what separates a prototype from something you'd trust in production. UX made software human-centred. AX makes AI deployable. #EnterpriseAI #AIAgents #AX #Claude #Firstsource
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Kumaran Shanmuhan posted thisThe Big Tobacco verdict just landed for Big Tech. Enterprise AI deployments in regulated industries should be paying close attention. Last week, a jury found Meta and Google liable not for what users posted — but for how their products were designed. Addictive by architecture. Harmful by intent. Section 230 protected the content. It didn't protect the design choices. Scott Galloway's read on this is sharp (link in comments) — but here's what I think gets missed in the broader conversation: this isn't just a consumer tech story. It's a preview of where enterprise AI liability is headed. In health insurance, a wrong output from an AI agent isn't a UX bug. It's a denied claim, a compliance breach, a regulatory event. And if the design choices that produced that output are later scrutinized — who reviews? what escalates? where's the human in the loop? — "the model got it wrong" won't be a sufficient answer. This is why the architecture decision matters as much as the model decision. What we've landed on at Firstsource is what AI engineers are now calling the reliability sandwich: A deterministic input layer that enforces structure and context before the model ever sees the data. A probabilistic AI core that reasons, extracts, and decides — doing what it's actually good at. A deterministic output layer that validates against rules, flags exceptions, and triggers human review when the stakes demand it. The model proposes. The system enforces. The human remains accountable. That separation isn't overhead. In regulated industries, it's the only defensible design. The Big Tobacco reckoning took 30 years. Opioids took 20. AI in enterprise is moving faster — and so will the scrutiny that follows. Are you building AI systems, or just AI features? The difference will matter in a courtroom. #HealthInsurance #EnterpriseAI #AIGovernance #ResponsibleAI #Firstsource
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Kumaran Shanmuhan shared thisMost COOs I talk to are eager to scale AI, but there is a persistent gap between the promise of the technology and operational reality. The question teams are grappling with isn't the business case for productivity—it’s the case for reliability in trust-critical business operations. You can’t scale what you can’t govern at the moment of execution. As I explore in the latest UnBPO Quarterly, reliability doesn't emerge from the AI model alone. It requires a Control Plane—the governance infrastructure essential to delivering Intelligence That Operates. Without it, you aren't scaling an operation; you're scaling risk. Check out the article to see the three questions every leader should ask to define and scale an AI-first operating model. Scaling AI in Operations: https://lnkd.in/dyqARYvU Intelligence That Operates: https://lnkd.in/dM3FkCm9 #DigitalTransformation #Operations #COO #AI #FirstsourceWhy Scaling AI in Operations Without a Control Plane Increases RiskWhy Scaling AI in Operations Without a Control Plane Increases Risk
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Kumaran Shanmuhan reposted thisKumaran Shanmuhan reposted thisAI doesn't need more hype. It needs a new operating model. Most enterprises are still trying to bolt AI onto structures built for another era - siloed teams, linear handoffs, effort-based contracts. No wonder the pilots stall. A year ago, when we introduced UnBPO™, we said the services industry would have to reinvent itself for a world where intelligence, not labor arbitrage, becomes the primary input. This was our call that the old outsourcing playbook wouldn't survive the agentic era. At Firstsource, we've now redrawn our operating model around one simple idea: if we can't underwrite the outcome, we haven't earned the right to operate it. We call this Intelligence That Operates - a full-stack, agent-first way to design, build, and run AI in production, where every decision makes the system smarter for the next. This isn't about buying capability. It's about owning results. And it's already reshaping how our clients think about the work their businesses will be built on next. #WeMakeItHappen #UnBPO™ #IntelligenceThatOperates | Ritesh Idnani | Aniket Maindarkar | Arjun Mitra | Ashish Chawla | Dinesh Jain | Hasit Trivedi | Himani Babbar | Jagriti Bhattacharyya | Kumaran Shanmuhan | Matthew Barlow | Rajiv Malhotra | Scott Schrader. | Shamita Mukherjee | Sohit Brahmawar | Sundara Sukavanam | Vivek Sharma | Bala Viswanathan | Phil Fersht | DENNIS STETZEL | Jimit Arora |
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Kumaran Shanmuhan reposted thisKumaran Shanmuhan reposted thisWhat a privilege to be in Melbourne today to sign a landmark MoU between Firstsource and Monash University — a partnership that moves us from promise to practice on AI, talent, and real-world impact. When we opened our ANZ Headquarters in Melbourne in 2024, it was a long-term commitment to that very vision — backed by investment in talent, research, and infrastructure. In just a year, we’ve welcomed over 200 #Firstsourcers, already halfway to our five-year goal of 400, across key sectors including healthcare, financial services, retail, and utilities. At its heart is our AI Innovation Lab, focused on applied AI, robotics, and digital experimentation. Today’s signing, alongside Professor Craig Jeffrey Vice-Chancellor, International & Senior VP and in the presence of Danny Pearson , Minister of Finance, Economic Growth and Jobs, Victoria Government, marks the start of a long-term collaboration to translate Monash’s world-class research into scalable solutions that deliver outcomes for industry, government, and society. To Professor Sharon Pickering , Vice-Chancellor & President, Professor Ann Nicholson , Dean, and Professor Shonali Krishnaswamy, Director of the Monash AI Institute, I’m proud that we’re partnering to co-develop next-generation AI capabilities across priority sectors — and to build pathways for the next generation of innovators and technologists. This collaboration is more than a milestone. It’s a model for how global expertise and local innovation can come together to shape a more responsible, inclusive, and resilient AI future — for Australia and beyond. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who made today possible: Amanda Caples PhD PhD, Victoria’s Lead Scientist, Michelle Wade , Commissioner - South Asia at Global Victoria, State Government of Victoria and Nik Guruprasad and Annie Jiang from Invest Victoria and a special shoutout to my colleagues Gagan Vohra and Vivek Sharma who sowed this seed and truly #MadeItHappen. Why this matters: • It’s industry-grade execution meeting frontier research — not for AI’s sake, but to operationalize responsible AI at scale. • It builds local capability and jobs, nurturing the next generation of Australian technologists and researchers. • It strengthens Victoria’s innovation ecosystem and deepens cross-border collaboration between Australia and India. As we scale our ANZ operations, this MoU is an important step in our commitment to grow locally and responsibly — combining Firstsource ’s execution strength and UnBPOᵀᴹ approach with Monash’s research excellence to create measurable, human-centred impact. Grateful to Monash University, the Victorian Government, and everyone who joined us today. Excited for what comes next — turning research into real outcomes, together. Photos by Darren Keane - with thanks to all who attended. #AI #Innovation #MonashUniversity #Firstsource #UnBPOᵀᴹ #Talent #Australia #ANZ
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Kumaran Shanmuhan shared thisThrilled to share that I’ve joined Firstsource as Chief Strategy Officer. What drew me to Firstsource is its deep domain expertise in sectors like healthcare, financial services, CMT, and retail, and its AI-led platform offerings that span entire value chains. Equally important is the company’s ability to embed AI-infused operating models at scale — critical to helping clients capture the value of generative AI while building proprietary services-as-software offerings. Firstsource also brings a strong record of commercial model innovation — moving beyond effort-based contracts to outcome-based partnerships that deliver real impact, not just services for a fee. Together, these strengths make it uniquely positioned to help clients realize the full potential of data and AI in the years ahead. I’m fortunate to work again with Ritesh Idnani, grateful for the warm welcome from Aniket Maindarkar, Shamita Mukherjee, Venkatgiri Vandali, Ashish Chawla, and Sundara Sukavanam, and stoked to reunite with Sudha Bhat, Anshul Mohan, and Amar A.. Looking forward to connecting with Firstsourcers, clients, and partners in the days ahead. #CareerUpdate #Firstsource #UnBPO #DomainLed #OutcomesDrivenKumaran Shanmuhan shared this🚀 Big news from Firstsource! We're excited to welcome Kumaran Shanmuhan as our new Chief Strategy Officer. Why is this important? Because our UnBPO™ vision isn't just about reimagining outsourcing—it's about leading the industry shift toward hyper-personalized solutions, AI-driven operations, deep domain expertise, and outcome-focused partnerships. And Kumaran is the perfect leader to take this forward. With over 20 years of experience driving high-impact growth at high-growth SaaS and Enterprise AI companies, Kumaran knows what it takes to translate bold strategy into real-world outcomes. He has built and scaled AI consulting and industry solutions teams, fueled 70% YoY revenue growth, and generated significant new business. At Firstsource, Kumaran will lead the charge to consolidate our strengths and craft a market strategy that accelerates growth, deepens client impact, and keeps us ahead of disruption. Here's to the next phase of our transformation. Welcome, Kumaran! 👏 Read the full news here: https://lnkd.in/gQKUv4-K #UnBPO™ #Leadership #BusinessTransformation #AI #Strategy #Firstsource | Ritesh Idnani | Aniket Maindarkar | Arjun Mitra | Ashish Chawla | Dinesh Jain | Hasit Trivedi | Himani Babbar | Karan Kapoor | Rajiv Malhotra | Shamita Mukherjee | Sohit Brahmawar | Sundara Sukavanam | Venkatgiri Vandali | Vivek Sharma |
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Kumaran Shanmuhan posted thisA few weeks ago, I ended my journey with Uniphore, which began years ago at Jacada. I’m excited about what comes next and will share more details soon. But before hopping back on the hamster wheel, I wanted to pause and say thanks. From professional services to product management, consulting, sales, and marketing, I’m thankful for the opportunities, milestones, and certainly the scars that fueled my growth. I’ve been blessed with colleagues who cared as much about people as they did about outcomes — partners in crime and craft with whom I helped clients and global leaders across industries navigate major shifts like digital adoption, automation, and most recently AI. Special thanks to Umesh Sachdev, Ravi Saraogi, Yochai Rozenblat, Guy Yair, and Giddy Hollander for your trust and leadership. Shoutout to my Kellogg classmates, and to the eternal friendships from BITS and SBOA — I’m indebted to you for your support and love. Most of all, I’m grateful for my family — my wife, the force of nature that keeps my universe going, my daughters who define my purpose, and my parents and sisters whose unconditional love has always been my source of strength. To my classmates, colleagues, customers, and partners — I’d love to reconnect. DM me anytime. #Gratitude #Leadership #Growth #Values #CareerJourney
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Kumaran Shanmuhan liked thisKumaran Shanmuhan liked thisLately, I’ve been spending more time in the air than on the ground- and it’s made one thing very clear. We’re getting #CXtransformation wrong. Take Air India for example. The moment you land, the AI kicks in- chatbots respond instantly, IVRs are smarter, miles get credited almost real-time. On paper, this is “modern CX.” But then you board the flight… and the seat is unserviceable apart from many other known recent operational issues, the experience feels dated. That contrast says it all. We’re over-optimizing visible interactions with #AI, while under-investing in fixing the actual drivers of customer experience. In the #AgenticAI world, this gap will only widen if we’re not careful. At Firstsource, we’re deliberately flipping this: Not starting with “what can we automate,” but “why is the customer reaching out at all?” Because real #CX transformation doesn’t start with bots. It starts with truth. The winners won’t be those who automate faster but those who understand better. Curious if you have seen this gap between ‘AI-led CX’ and actual experience? #CustomerCentricity #DigitalTransformation #ConversationDesign
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Kumaran Shanmuhan liked thisStrong example of where AI is actually moving the needle in BFSI. Sourcepoint Mortgage Language Model (MLM), an 8B-parameter Small Language Model purpose-built for U.S. mortgage underwriting ,is exactly the kind of domain-specific innovation the industry needs. In a space where generic LLMs often fall short on accuracy, compliance, and context, this approach stands out. Focused models like these can meaningfully improve decisioning, consistency, and turnaround times , especially in complex processes like underwriting. Vivek, Sreenath, Srinivas, John, Jeanette, Matt SandeepKumaran Shanmuhan liked thisFirstsource’s Mortgage Language Model (MLM) is an 8B-parameter Small Language Model built exclusively for U.S. mortgage underwriting. That's Firstsource — Hasit Trivedi, Chief Digital & AI Officer, Firstsource — and that's why they're a 2026 AI Excellence Award winner in Small Language Models (SLMs) Strategic Planning. 🤖 Congratulations. See who else made the list: https://lnkd.in/eAY4DZnv #SLM #AIExcellence #LLM
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Kumaran Shanmuhan liked thisKumaran Shanmuhan liked thisAn opportunity to be a part of my wonderful team!
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Kumaran Shanmuhan liked thisKumaran Shanmuhan liked thisFirstsource has been named a Leader in the Overall Market Segment in the NelsonHall Healthcare Payer Agility & Innovation NEAT Evaluation 2026. Healthcare payers are moving beyond experimentation with AI and focusing on how to embed it into production workflows, where automation, co-pilots, and data-driven insights support everyday operational decisions. NelsonHall’s evaluation called out our AI-powered co-pilots and agentic AI workflows as production-ready capabilities, not pilot-stage deployments, a distinction that reflects our UnBPO™ shift from labor-led to intelligence that operates. This recognition reinforces our approach to build intelligence as an integral part of how work gets done, rather than an overlay. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gmzd8fyz #WeMakeItHappen #FirstsourceProud #AnalystRecognition #UnBPO™ | Matthew Barlow | Bilal Chaudhry |
Experience & Education
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Firstsource
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Board Member
Children's Restoration Network
- 1 year
Children
CRN is a non-profit agency helping children and their mothers in metro-Atlanta break the cycle of homelessness, by providing them with academic, emotional and financial support, through a variety of programs and services.
I led digital marketing initiatives to raise cause awareness within the communities. Also redesigned and launched the CRN web site and leveraged social media marketing to increase awareness.
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