‘Success Is Not a Straight Line’: Former Pre-Med Student Becomes President of Leading Travel Tech Firm Navan

ATLANTA, GA. — For Michael Sindicich, success didn’t follow the predictable path he once imagined in medicine. Today, as President of Navan, one of the world’s fastest-growing business travel technology platforms, he’s proof that ambition, adaptability, and curiosity can turn a non-linear journey into a remarkable career story.

Once a pre-med student preparing for medical school, Sindicich decided to take a year off — a move that changed his life. “I was actually a pre-med major who decided to take a year off to explore the startup world in Silicon Valley,” he said. That decision led him to a “practice interview” with Navan founders Ariel and Ilan, and soon after, he became the company’s first salesperson — long before the company became a global player in corporate travel.

Building a Company From Scratch

“When I joined, Navan had fewer than 10 people,” Sindicich recalled. “We literally started with nothing, so I spent my first days building out the tooling, systems, and sales processes — and of course, winning our first customers.”

What began as a hands-on sales role soon evolved into a leadership position overseeing more than 600 employees worldwide. Through every phase of Navan’s expansion, Sindicich relied on what he calls “first-principles thinking” — stripping away complexity and always focusing on the company’s core purpose: removing friction in business travel.

Leadership Lessons From the Ground Up

Sindicich compares leadership to driving a car for the first time. “When you’re a kid in the passenger seat, it looks effortless. But once you start to drive, you realize how fickle and borderless lanes really are,” he said. “Leadership is the same way.”

He admits that leaders rarely have all the answers. Instead, he relies on three core values: listen to the customer, trust your instincts, and stay approachable.

“I enjoy when the team brings me problems,” Sindicich said. “I don’t want them to be afraid to come to me with a problem — that’s how you build a culture of ownership.”

Balancing Details and the Big Picture

Rising through the ranks brought new challenges. Learning to step back from day-to-day details and focus on long-term growth became crucial.

“That’s one of the toughest challenges when you grow within a company,” Sindicich said. “To solve this, leaders need to hire the best people they trust to run their teams and then shift focus to systems-level thinking that positions the company for long-term success.”

Now, he spends his time studying industry trends, competitor weaknesses, and emerging technologies to ensure Navan stays ahead in the fast-moving travel sector.

Putting Customers First — Always

Sindicich’s leadership philosophy revolves around one principle: customer happiness drives business growth.

He recalls an early example where a corporate client couldn’t use the company’s new app because its employees had older iPhones. Instead of delaying the rollout, Navan bought the employees new devices to eliminate the issue immediately.

“It saved us tons of time and resources,” he explained. “But more importantly, it showed the customer how far we were willing to go for them.”

That kind of service, he says, turns satisfied customers into long-term advocates — often bringing Navan with them to new companies or even joining the team themselves.

Rethinking Business Travel as a Growth Engine

As companies adjust to post-pandemic work culture, Sindicich believes travel is more important than ever.

“Even remote companies travel more now because they bring employees together for off-sites,” he said. “Top-performing salespeople are often the ones on the road, building relationships face to face.”

He urges leaders to view travel and expenses (T&E) not as a cost to cut, but as a strategic investment.

“When you can see how travel impacts your business through data, you stop thinking of T&E as a tax and start seeing it as a growth lever,” he said. “That’s when technology like Navan becomes invaluable.”

For Sindicich, success is defined not by linear progress, but by the ability to pivot, learn, and stay driven by purpose. “Leadership,” he says, “isn’t about having all the answers — it’s about knowing how to keep driving even when the road bends.”

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