Upasna Kaul helps companies make sense of employee travel, for now. And the work fits, given that she’s worked in and traveled to many countries herself. But there are also surprising aspects to the work this former marketing and communications professional finds herself doing today.
Whatever the role I have, I enjoy helping companies realize, ‘yes, this is an issue, and it’s going to take some time and commitment to figure it out, but here are the simple steps we can take to get started.'
— Upasna Kaul, manager, Deloitte Tax LLP
Human GPS
Working in Deloitte’s Global Employer Services, Upasna helps companies develop policies and processes to address compliance issues related to employees who travel for business. As the economy became more global and employees more mobile, plenty of considerations emerged that weren’t on anyone’s radar previously. The subject requires a comprehensive view—including individual income tax and corporate tax rules and all the variations of those across the US and in other countries, too. Upasna and her team start with empathy, knowing that many clients have had challenges tracking employees efficiently. Beyond helping clients develop relevant policies, the team also uses technology to provide valuable analytics for structuring compliance tracking for employee travel going forward. |  |
Many coordinates, various experiences
The fact that she works in tax is a surprise to Upasna, but it’s bolstered by her extensive and diverse background elsewhere within Deloitte. Her role requires project management and change management, along with team and product development, daily. It’s experience she’s earned honestly. She started with Deloitte nine years ago, writing proposals and helping internal stakeholders with business development. She moved to Deloitte Hong Kong and took on a communications role that included opening offices in Myanmar. A move to the US came next, and she dove head first into client relationship management.
Language arts
Upasna embraces and even craves all the change in her career at Deloitte. She loves learning new cultures and nuances of language. It’s an interest she developed as a literature major and now puts to use in a way she never expected. Her latest station is New York, where she and her husband are expanding their family. She lauds the flexibility the organization offers, and while she’s staying put for a little while, she’s well aware that there are plenty more ZIP codes on the horizon.