Top 50 Emerging Leaders 2021 continued (in alphabetical order by CVC unit): Raja Doddala, managing director and head of fintech strategy and CVC, TIAA
Raja Doddala leads the financial technology strategy and corporate venture capital (CVC) group of US-based financial services firm TIAA. His team designs, builds and runs the digital experience for institutional clients, partnering TIAA’s institutional and asset management businesses.
TIAA provides financial services in the academic, research, medical, cultural and public sectors. The corporate offers financial solutions, including investing, banking, advice and guidance, and retirement services. Doddala’s team’s technology serves the employees of 16,000 universities, hospitals and other non-profit institutions.
Doddala manages TIAA’s CVC portfolio and is responsible for TIAA’s enterprise-wide fintech strategy and partnerships, exploring innovative technologies and investment opportunities in the digital technology ecosystem that are relevant to TIAA’s different business units.
TIAA hired Doddala in 2016 to head the digital team at its institutional financial services department, implementing self-service sales, mentoring new hires and managing storefront website. The move was followed by TIAA’s acquisition of wealth management platform MyVest for an undisclosed sum a month later.
Prior to joining TIAA, Doddala spent a decade at US-based convenience retail chain 7-Eleven, where he held various senior roles, co-founding its corporate venturing unit, 7-Ventures, in 2013 as senior director of services and new ventures.
He developed strategies for digital, mobile and application programming interfaces, founded 7-Eleven’s innovation practice and led the investing team at 7-Ventures. During Doddala’s time at 7-Ventures, the unit invested in consumer technology startups including customer loyalty platform Belly and digital locksmith KeyMe.
Applying technology to achieve concrete results, his team launched on-demand product delivery in all major US cities. He was promoted to vice-president of omnichannel strategy at 7-Eleven in 2015 and helped it partner student-focused food ordering platform provider Tapingo.
He holds a master’s degree in business administration from Southern Methodist University, in Dallas, Texas and a master’s in computer science from La Trobe University, in Melbourne, Australia.
