People

Our Research Advisors

Naushad-Forbes
Dr. Naushad Forbes

Co-Chairman,
Forbes Marshall

View Bio

Dr. Naushad Forbes

Co-Chairman, Forbes Marshall
Naushad Forbes is Co-Chairman of Forbes Marshall and past president CII. Naushad is a founding member of Nayanta University spearheaded by CII. He taught at Stanford University from 1987 to 2004 where he developed courses on Technology in Newly Industrializing Countries.
He is on the board of several educational institutions and public companies. His book, The Struggle and the Promise: Restoring India’s Potential, was published in 2022. Naushad received his Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD Degrees from Stanford.
Farhad-Forbes
Dr. Farhad Forbes

Co-Chairman,
Forbes Marshall

View Bio

Dr. Farhad Forbes

Co-Chairman, Forbes Marshall
Farhad Forbes is Co-Chairman of Forbes Marshall and former global Chairman Family Business Network - International (FBN-I). He is a past Chairman of the CII National Committee on Affirmative Action and a past Chairman of CII western region.
He is a past member of various advisory councils at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. Farhad received his B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford and M.S. in Management from the Sloan Master’s Program at Stanford.
Janak Nabar

Chief Executive Officer,
CTIER

View Bio

Janak Nabar

Chief Executive Officer, CTIER
Janak Nabar has been leading CTIER’s research initiatives. He has worked as an Economist and Investment Strategist in Singapore and the UNHCR in Serbia. He has served on various Government and Industry committees to inform innovation policy.
He is a trustee and on the governing council of various healthcare and education NGOs. Janak holds a BA in Mathematics from the University of Pune, an MA in Mathematics from Oxford and an MSc in Econometrics & Mathematical Economics from LSE.
Riah Forbes

Member,
Forbes Marshall Supervisory Board

View Bio

Riah Forbes

Member, Forbes Marshall Supervisory Board
Riah Forbes works on digital initiatives, communication, and strategy for Forbes Marshall. She also works to remove barriers to success for leaders in the Indian social sector, particularly those from marginalised communities.
Her work experience includes time at Google, Endless Computers (a social enterprise building low-cost technology for emerging markets), and Omidyar Network. Riah holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a master's in Public Administration and International Development from the Harvard Kennedy School.
Dr. Sunil Mani

Former Director,
Centre for Development Studies

View Bio

Dr. Sunil Mani

Former Director, Centre for Development Studies
Dr Sunil Mani is an Honorary Visiting Professor at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Thiruvananthapuram. He was Director and RBI Chair Professor at CDS, and head of graduate studies at the now UNU-MERIT, Maastricht.
His recent books include ‘Rise to Market Leadership, New Leading Firms from Emerging Countries’ (co-edited with Franco Malerba and Pamela Adams) published in 2017, and ‘India’s Economy and Society, Lateral Explorations’ (co-edited with Chidambaran Iyer) published in 2021. Dr Mani obtained his M. Phil and PhD in Economics from JNU.
Rakesh Basant
Dr. Rakesh Basant

Former Prof of Economics,
IIM Ahmedabad

View Bio

Dr. Rakesh Basant

Former Prof of Economics, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad
Dr Rakesh Basant is a former Professor of Economics and JSW Professor of Innovation and Public Policy at IIM, Ahmedabad. He was a member of the Indian Prime Minister’s.
High-Level Committee (also known as Sachar Committee) that wrote a report on the Social, Economic and Educational Conditions of Muslims in India. His research interests include firm strategy, innovation, intellectual property rights, entrepreneurial business models, public policy and regulation. His book ‘The Black Box – Innovation and Public Policy in India’ was published in 2021.
Pankaj Chandra
Prof. Pankaj Chandra

Vice Chancellor,
Ahmedabad University

View Bio

Prof. Pankaj Chandra

Vice Chancellor, Ahmedabad University
Professor Pankaj Chandra is the Vice Chancellor, Ahmedabad University. He has served as Director, IIM Bangalore, Professor of Operations and Technology Management, IIM Ahmedabad, and as faculty at McGill University. He was a member of the Government of India’s Yashpal Committee on Higher Education. He serves on the board of several firms and institutions.
His research interests include manufacturing, supply chains, technological capabilities, higher education, and hi-tech entrepreneurship. His book, ‘Building Universities that Matter’ was published in 2017. Professor Chandra holds a BTech from the Banaras Hindu University and a PhD from Wharton.

Transformative Collaborations and Partnerships

Industry-Icon
Industry
  • Forbes Marshall
  • BlueStar
  • Dixon Technologies
  • Tata Chemicals
  • Tata Steel
  • Godrej & Boyce
  • Godrej Industries
  • Pidilite
  • Laxmi Machine Works
  • Rane Group
  • Confederation of Indian Industry
Policy Makers
  • Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India
  • NITI Aayog
  • Punjab State Council for Science & Technology
  • Maharashtra State Innovation Society
  • British High Commission
  • Department of Science and Technology
  • Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade Guidance, Tamil Nadu
Academia
  • Stanford University
  • University of Sussex
  • UNU-MERIT
  • IIT lndore
  • IIT Madras
  • Delhi School of Economics
  • Symbiosis School of Economics
  • Gokhale Institute for Politics and Economics
  • Ahmedabad University
  • Centre for Development Studies
  • Open University
Research Organizations
  • Ananta Centre
  • KEM Research Centre
  • World Without GNE Myopathy
  • Nesta

CTIER Expert Network

CTIER’s network is composed of technologists who have extensive experience leading R&D teams at global MNCs and large Indian firms and academic luminaries who have shaped the minds of several generations of industry leaders.
Abrar Ali Saiyed

Associate Professor,
Adam Smith School of Business, the University of Glasgow

View Bio

Abrar Ali Saiyed

Associate Professor, Adam Smith School of Business, the University of Glasgow
Abrar Ali Saiyed is an Associate Professor of International Business and Entrepreneurship at the Adam Smith School of Business, the University of Glasgow. He accomplished Fellowship in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. His specialization is in strategy, entrepreneurship, and international business. He has teaching experience of 10 years in reputed Government and Private business schools and education institutes in India and abroad. He has taught at IIM Calcutta; IIM Khozikode, IIM Indore, IIM Kashipur, IIM Shillong, IIM Jammu, Center for Environment and Planning Technology, Nirma Institute of Management, Entrepreneurship Development Institute, Pandit DinDayal Petroleum University, B.K.School of Business Management, Ahmedabad Management Association, and many reputed other institutions. He taught courses on Strategy, International Business & Entrepreneurship.
He published papers in the International Business Review; Journal of Business Research, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, International Journal of Islamic and Middle Eastern Finance and Management, Management, and other peer-reviewed journals. His papers have been selected for the Academy of Management, European Academy of Management, Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference, Eastern Academy of Management, Academy of International Business, European International Business Academy, and Indian Academy of Management. He got the best paper award in IIMA Doctoral Colloquium in 2013.
He served as a consultant to the Industrial Commissioner and Industrial Extension Bureau (Gujarat Government), ASL Logistics, Qua Nutrition, and I-Tiffin. His research interests are in the Internationalization process in New Ventures, Entrepreneurial firms, SMEs, and Family Businesses in emerging markets. He has been working as a consultant to the center for heritage management, the Cooperative Federation (of handicrafts) of Self Employed Women Association (SEWA is the biggest self-employed women's NGO in India), and many other organizations in heritage, art, and culture.
He also teaches courses using old city markets and community-based businesses to many international students. He was also a resource person teaching strategy in Management Development Program in Crafting Luxury and Lifestyle Businesses in IIMA. He has a keen interest in social work and promoting local heritage and culture. He is also the founder of the Association of Muslim Entrepreneurs to help Muslim small businesses and entrepreneurs to overcome their day-to-day challenges and problems.
Aradhana Agrawal

Senior Advisor to the Trade, Technology, and Skill Team at
NCAER

View Bio

Dr. Aradhana Agrawal

Senior Advisor to the Trade, Technology, and Skill Team at NCAER
Dr. Aradhna Aggarwal is Senior Advisor to the Trade, Technology, and Skill Team at NCAER and a freelance international consultant specializing in SEZs, international trade, and investment-related issues. Her four decades of career in academia began at the University of Delhi. In 2014, she joined the Department of International Economics, Government, and Business at Copenhagen Business School, Denmark as Full Professor and resigned from her position in 2024 to work as a freelance international expert. Throughout her academic journey, she collaborated with numerous international organizations, including ADB, UNDP, UNCTAD, the World Bank, UNESCAP, ESCAP-SSWA, UNIDO, GIZ, and the National Board of Trade, Sweden. She has also been affiliated with prominent policy think tanks such as the Institute of Economic Growth, NCAER, ICRIER, the Research and Information System for Developing Countries, the Centre for Trade and Development, and the Policy Research Centre at the Wadhwani Foundation.
Dr. Aggarwal’s research spans a wide array of topics, including new structural economics, entrepreneurship, globalization, economic reforms, competition, international trade, FDI, special economic zones, technology transfer and innovation, export competitiveness, and WTO-related issues. She has received several accolades, including the Global Development Network (GDN) Best Research Award (2000) and fellowships from GDN-IMF and Cambridge University for ‘Cambridge Advanced Program on Rethinking Development Economics’ (CAPORDE).
She served as a Visiting Fellow at the Korean Institute of Economic Policy in 2009 and as a Visiting Professor at Kobe University in 2010. Dr. Aggarwal’s work has been widely published in per-reviewed international journals, as well as in national journals and edited book chapters. She has authored three significant monographs: The WTO Anti-dumping Agreement and Developing Countries and Social and Economic Impact of SEZs in India, both published by OUP Delhi, and Special Economic Zones in South Asia: Structural Change, Competitiveness and Growth by Routledge, London. Additionally, she served as the principal author of the Kerala Perspective Plan 2030.
Dr. Aggarwal’s research on special economic zones has garnered attention, leading to her involvement in SEZ projects across Central and Southeast Asia. Notably, she developed the strategic framework for industrial zones and SEZs in Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic and authored ADB reports on SEZs in the IMT-GT and BIMP-EAGA subregions. Currently She is working on SEZs in the Mekong subregion.
Aravind Chinchure

Innovation Leader

View Bio

Aravind Chinchure

Innovation Leader
Dr. Aravind Chinchure is a renowned academician, a corporate strategist and an innovation leader. He is an expert in the formulation of corporate and governmental policies that influence innovation and research. He holds a PhD in Physics, and has an experience spanning 25 years in R&D, innovation, intellectual property, startup venture investment, policy, social development and teaching.
Until recently, he served as the CEO of Deshpande Startups, one of the largest startup incubators in India. Aravind's professional journey also encompasses working with prominent multinational and Indian corporations, including GE Global Research Centre, Honeywell Technology Solutions, and Reliance Innovation Leadership Centre. He has authored 28 research articles published in international journals and has filed 4 patents. His most recent book, "The New Age Organisation," introduces a ground-breaking framework to help organizations navigate rapid disruptions and assume leadership in the fourth industrial revolution.
Dinar Kale

Senior Lecturer in Innovation and International Development, Open University, UK

View Bio

Dr. Dinar Kale

Senior Lecturer in Innovation and International Development,
Open University, UK
Dr. Dinar Kale is a Senior Lecturer in Innovation and International development at the Open University, UK. He is co-Director of the Innogen Institute and visiting lecturer in the School of Social and Political Science at the University of Edinburgh.
His research interests include technology strategies of healthcare technology firms from developing countries, dynamics of innovation and issues of knowledge transfer. His current work focuses on challenges of inclusive healthcare in developing countries and concerns with resolving issues that hinder innovation and development of the healthcare industries from developing countries. He has published in leading and highly respected international journals such as Research Policy, World Development and British Journal of Management.
He is currently external assessor at the University of Sussex and academic expert reviewer for the Newton Fund. He is on the editorial board of International Journal of Intellectual Property Management and Efil Journal of Economic Research.
He holds an MSc in Organic Chemistry (University of Pune), an MBA in Marketing Management (University of Pune) and a PhD in innovation management from the Open University.
Ipsita Roy

Lorem Ipsum

View Bio

Ipsita Roy

Lorem Ipsum
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.
Megha Patnaik

Assistant Professor,
Department of Economics & Finance at LUISS Guido Carli University

View Bio

Megha Patnaik

Assistant Professor, Department of Economics & Finance at LUISS Guido Carli University
Megha Patnaik is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics & Finance at LUISS Guido Carli University and a Research Affiliate at the Centre for Economic Policy Research. Her research interests include management, innovation, and firm productivity.
She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University, an M.Sc. in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics from the London School of Economics, and a B.Sc. in Mathematics from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi. Her work has been published in the American Economic Review and Management Science. She is the recipient of the Kapnick Scholarship from SIEPR, the Kauffman Dissertation Award and the LUISS teaching excellence award.
She is cofounder of Leap insights and part of the Network of Women in Data Science & Social Science. Previously, she has held positions at the Indian Statistical Institute and the Esya Centre, and worked as a consultant for Intuit, Britannia, Ambit Capital and the Esya Centre.
Raja Krishnamurthy

Technical Advisor, Mentor and Consultant to companies across India and abroad

View Bio

Raja Krishnamurthy

Technical Advisor, Mentor and Consultant to companies across India and abroad
Raja Krishnamurthy is a Technical Advisor, Mentor and Consultant to companies across India and abroad. He has almost 30 years of experience in product development and R&D across various industries and segments. His expertise is in Product development and commercialization, Research & Development, Project Management and in Senior Management roles as R&D head and CTO for two different Organizations. He is a Certified Independent Director by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs under the Aegis of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Govt. of India.
Raja completed his B. Tech from NIT, Trichy and has a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from The University of Akron and an MBA from Queens University in the US. He has successfully led large teams that developed and launched new product innovations from lab to commercial scale. His career spans work experience in Indian and Global multinational companies such as 3M, GE, tesa, Dow and Asian Paints.
Ruchi Sharma

Lorem Ipsum

View Bio

Ruchi Sharma

Lorem Ipsum
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.
Smita Srinivas

Professor,
AFEE Clarence E. Ayres Scholar

View Bio

Smita Srinivas

Professor, AFEE Clarence E. Ayres Scholar
Prof. Smita Srinivas is the 2021 AFEE Clarence E. Ayres Scholar (“[..] to an international scholar for outstanding work in the area of institutional economics.”) and 2015 EAEPE Joan Robinson Prize awardee (former Myrdal Prize, evolutionary economics/political economy) for her book Market Menagerie: Health and Development in Late Industrial States (Stanford University Press, Economics & Finance 2012). She holds a Ph.D. in Economic Development and Technology Planning from MIT, with prior training in economics, mathematics and physics.
Smita Srinivas has extensive experience in economic development, including industrial strategy, firm-level priorities, technological innovation, and industrial policy. She is a frequently invited advisor, keynote speaker, author and grants awardee. CEOs, Directors, research organisations, universities, and government agencies seek her out for advice and leadership.
She has held academic full-time as well as Honorary and Visiting appointments as faculty member, Professorial Fellow or other Fellow appointments with leadership roles in higher education in the world's leading universities These include among others University College London (STEaPP), the OU, the LSE, Columbia University, Harvard University, IISc, NCBS-TIFR, and think-tanks such as CTIER. She has served as Co-Chair, Scientist, and Expert Committee member on technical and policy advisory committees. She has advised the private sector, government, development agencies, NGOs, and civic initiatives. She has examined a large number of M.S. and Ph.D students (US, India, Europe) on economics and institutional analysis.
Her expertise is strategic problem-framing and theory, core concepts and goal-setting, high-level expert reviews including evaluation of methods, industry-specific technical plans, competitive investment domains, policy-responsive industry investment, fine-tuning policy instruments, and a focus on establishing ethical, high-impact policy process and partnerships. She has served in senior leadership positions in global higher education programs toward economics reform, planning or sustainability concerns. She founded the Technological Change Lab (TCLab,) originally at Columbia University, now a website of research and consulting, with a 3-way focus on Economic theory, Policy design, and Realistic development plans. She is widely published, serves on research councils and committees in healthcare, AI, sustainability, and innovation, and several global and local thinking groups.
Subash Sasidharan

Associate Professor,
Indian Institute of Technology

View Bio

Dr. Subash Sasidharan

Associate Professor, Indian Institute of Technology
Dr. Subash Sasidharan is an Associate Professor of Economics at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. He has previously been a researcher with institutions like the Madras School of Economics, Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum and United Nations University Institute-MERIT, Maastricht, The Netherlands. His research interests include Innovation, Technology change and studying the impact of Foreign Direct Investment and Multinational enterprises. He has also appeared in journals like World Development, Research Policy, Economic Systems, Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Developing Economies etc.
He holds an MPhil in Planning and development and a Ph.D. in Economics from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.

CTIER Team

CTIER-Team

CTIER’s core team is composed of individuals with a deep understanding of the R&D ecosystem and the challenges R&D leaders face, strong data skills, and a passion to transform R&D in Indian firms through well-designed programmatic interventions.

Hemant Zende

Finance and Administration

View Bio

Hemant Zende

Finance and Administration
Swati Joshi

Senior Research Associate
at CTIER

View Bio

Swati Joshi

Senior Research Associate at CTIER
Swati is a Senior Research Associate at CTIER. She has extensive experience working with state governments and international agencies such as UNICEF and the World Bank across different development sectors like education, WASH, public health, social security, and participatory planning.
She holds a MSc with Distinction in Industrial Biotechnology from Newcastle University and a BSc with Distinction from the University of Pune.
Chaitanya Lekharaju

Research Associate
at CTIER

View Bio

Chaitanya Lekharaju

Research Associate at CTIER
Chaitanya Lekharaju is a Research Associate at CTIER. He has helped establish CTIER’s in-house survey unit. His research interests include firm level innovation, emerging technologies, and India’s higher education sector.
He has previously worked as a Project Management Professional (PMP) in the Power plant and Telecom construction industry. Chaitanya holds a MA degree in Development Studies from National Institute of Technology, Rourkela.
Soumya Misra

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

Soumya Misra

Research Analyst at CTIER
Soumya Misra is a Research Analyst at CTIER. She has previously worked with UNICEF evaluating the SDG goals performance of the state government of Uttar Pradesh. Her interests lie in development economics, Indian economy and international relations.
She has a MA in Economics from Dr B. R. Ambedkar School of Economics, Bengaluru and a BSc (Research) Economics from Shiv Nadar University.
P J Nishok

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

P J Nishok

Research Analyst at CTIER
P J Nishok is a Research Analyst at CTIER. He has helped establish CTIER’s in-house survey unit. His research interests include economics of innovation and new technology, fintech, and the gig economy.
He has a MA in Applied Economics from the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum, and a BE in Mechanical Engineering from Chennai Institute of Technology.
Neha Kumari

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

Neha Kumari

Research Analyst at CTIER
Neha Kumari is a Research Analyst at CTIER. Her research interests include higher education, startups, and their synergies. She has previously worked as a retail manager at an MNC and as a research intern at IIT Kharagpur.
Neha holds an MA degree in Development Studies from the National Institute of Technology, Rourkela.
Yash Karmarkar

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

Yash Karmarkar

Research Analyst at CTIER
Yash Karmarkar is a Research Analyst at CTIER. He is a data enthusiast and his interests lie in data extraction using python.
He has a MSc in Statistics from MIT-WPU, Pune and a BSc in Statistics from Abasaheb Garware College, Pune.
Nishant Dewaney

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

Nishant Dewaney

Research Analyst at CTIER
Nishant Dewaney is a Research Analyst at CTIER. His research interests include the public sector’s role in R&D, adoption of new technologies by firms, innovation policy, and the communication of data. He has previously worked as a science communicator at an MNC and as a research intern at the DST - Centre for Policy Research at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
Nishant holds an MSc degree in Science and Technology Communication from CSIR - National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research and an BSc degree in Physics from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai.
Pranali Patil

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

Pranali Patil

Research Analyst at CTIER
Pranali is a Research Analyst at CTIER. She has contributed CTIER's efforts on India Management and Growth Survey. Her Interests lie in Public Policy, Development Economics and Indian Economy.
She has an MA in Economics from Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics Pune and a BA Political Science from Savitribai Phule Pune University.
Sukhada Raible

Research Analyst
at CTIER

View Bio

Sukhada Raible

Research Analyst at CTIER
Sukhada is a Research Analyst at CTIER. She has contributed to CTIER's efforts on firm level surveys. Her interest areas lie in Manufacturing sector dynamics, Data Analysis and Public Policy.
She holds a BBA Degree with a specialisation in Marketing from Savitribai Phule Pune University.

Current Openings and Internships

Currently, we have no openings.
Scroll to Top