Bio
Bharat Rao is an Associate Professor
of Technology Management and the Director of the Ph.D. Program in Technology Management
at the Polytechnic
Institute of New York University. He is a Research Affiliate at the European
Institute of Interdisciplinary Research in Paris, and an Academic
Advisor at the Institute for Innovation and Information Productivity in San
Francisco. He earned a Ph.D. in Marketing and Strategic Management from The
University of Georgia, and received a bachelor’s degree in
Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the National Institute of
Technology in Calicut, India. Prior to joining Polytechnic, he held
a post-doctoral Research Associate position at Harvard Business School
in Boston. He has been a visiting faculty researcher at the Center for Advanced
Learning Technologies, INSEAD, in Fontainebleau, France, and an Othmer Faculty Fellow
from 2002-2004 at Polytechnic University. In 1995, he was an American Marketing
Association Doctoral Consortium Fellow at the Wharton School, University of
Pennsylvania.
Dr. Rao’s research has examined the impact of information and
communications technologies on multiple industries including retailing,
logistics and distribution, supply chain management, wireless and
broadband innovation, financial services, entertainment and media. His
current research focuses on the diffusion of emerging technologies,
business model evolution, the integration of multiple technologies for
improving business effectiveness, and global innovation strategy. His research
has been published in the Communications of the ACM, European
Management Journal, International Journal of Electronic Commerce, Journal of
Computer Mediated Communications, EM-Electronic Markets, Journal
of Media Management, Technology in Society, International
Business Review, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, and in
numerous conference proceedings and book chapters. He is also the author of
multiple business case studies which have been published by Harvard Business
School Publishing, the Institute for Technology and Enterprise, and the
European Case Clearing House. His recent research has been funded by the National
Science Foundation, NYSTAR (New York State Science Office of Science,
Technology and Academic Research), and the Othmer Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies.
Dr. Rao serves on the editorial
boards of various academic journals including EM-Electronic Markets, International Journal of Business Data
Communications and Networking and Electronic Commerce Research and Applications.
From 1998-2001, he was an academic advisory board member of the Harvard-Wharton
Merchandising Effectiveness Project. He has been an invited speaker at industry
and academic events in the US, Europe, India, Israel and Taiwan, and has taught
in graduate and executive management programs at Polytechnic University,
Harvard Business School, INSEAD, State University of New York (SUNY), and Tufts
University. He has consulted for firms in the areas of electronic commerce,
software, financial services, pharmaceuticals, fashion merchandising and also
with government agencies and the non-profit sector. He was recently involved in
a team advisory capacity in formulating a telecommunications and economic
development strategy for New York City, for the Office of Mayor Michael R.
Bloomberg. Dr. Rao is also a Member of the Council of Reference of the OPLAN
(Open Public Local Access Network) Foundation, an international charitable body
founded by the successful British serial entrepreneur Malcolm J. Matson, to
educate the public and political leaders on the benefits and emergence of
OPLANs and to encourage their further deployment.
A listing of his current research activity can be found here