Edy Widjaja was born in Pontianak and grew up behind the counter of his parents' nine-square-meter provision shop in Chinatown, West Jakarta. He learned to read what a customer needed before they asked. It turned out to matter more than almost anything he later learned in a classroom.

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He studied metallurgical engineering at the University of Indonesia and earned a PhD in materials science at Northwestern, and later an MBA at INSEAD. The plan was a life in the lab, and for a while it was. He worked as a scientist in Belgium. Then a case interview at Bain & Company changed the plan.

 

He stayed fifteen years. He co-founded Bain's Jakarta office, led its Southeast Asia Financial Services practice, and spent a decade shaping how the region hired and mentored its people. He retired as Senior Partner, and in 2026 closed the laptop for the last time.

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Since then he has written two books, The Accidental Partner and The Accidental Education, and become a student again, studying theology. He lives in Singapore with his family.