Seneca Alumni

A Seneca graduate is making an impact in the field of mechanical engineering

Timothy Selvadurai exemplifies the art of hard work.

“Nothing good comes easy,” he said. “And I think that holds true. I don’t mean for that to sound negative, but with hard work and good and healthy ambition, I think people can achieve much more than what they think they can.”

The Mechanical Engineering Technology – Building Sciences (MBT) graduate has been a problem solver and go-getter all his life. For Mr. Selvadurai, the more complex a problem, the better. That’s why, when he was introduced to Seneca’s MBT program, he knew it would be a good fit. “I loved it. It was everything I thought it would be,” he said.

Unafraid to take on new challenges, Mr. Selvadurai was able to rise through the ranks from his entry-level position to supervisor, then to manager and, finally, to his position as National Director, Operations at BGIS. “I used knowledge gained at Seneca to propel myself into my career, and then I did that again and again,” he said.

An advocate for safety and sustainability, Mr. Selva­durai has championed implementing innovative men­torship programs for building operators and developing benchmarking programs to address existing gaps in operations. This led to the International Facility Management Association’s (IFMA) recognition of Mr. Selvadurai as a recipient of its Forty Under 40 award.

Through his success, Mr. Selvadurai has maintained a sense of humility and appreciation for the people in his life and those he encountered on his journey, including at Seneca.

“I had the benefit of learning under some great pro­fessors,” he said. “I owe a lot to people like Filimon Tsionas, who is now the program co-ordinator, and other professors who went the extra mile — people who genuinely cared about students’ success.”

It’s clear that not one cheer from a friend or moment of support from a mentor has been forgotten by Mr. Selvadurai. “My journey shows how one person can change the trajectory of someone’s life with simple mentorship and guidance,” he said.

Given his accolades and that he expects to complete his MBA and welcome his second child soon, one might wonder if Mr. Selvadurai will hit pause on his unrelenting pursuit. To that, he said: “My journey is not done yet. I’m not retiring any time soon. I’m ambi­tious beyond my years, and I don’t know what my jour­ney holds; something I’m trying to do is look at what I want to leave behind — a legacy.”