Over the past five years I have chaired the Banga Family Trust, a philanthropic initiative, and led the Banga Family Office investing in technology.
The focus of the Family Trust is on supporting cancer research. Within that remit, donations have been made to projects at CRUK, Centre for Cancer Immunology at the University of Southampton, Cancer Research Institute in New York, and Marie Curie in the UK.
We believe in education through visual and performing arts and the Trust is very proud to be associated with The Poetry School, the Laurel Prize (initiated for eco-poetry by poet laureate, Simon Armitage,), The Royal Academy of Music, The Almeida Theatre, and the Story Museum in Oxford. The donations to these institutions ensure that important projects do not fall off the radar for lack of funds.
I am a Trustee on the Board of the Almeida Theatre in the UK, a member of the Theatre Advisory Committee of the NCPA, the premier Institute of Culture in Mumbai founded by JRD Tata. I was a member of the Development Board of the National Theatre, a role from which I have stepped down recently.
The Trust champions thought leadership through Chatham House, and our alma mater, IIM, Ahmedabad (IIMA, the premier MBA programme in India) donating to initiatives which align with our philosophy. As Chair of the IMA Alumni Group in London, I helped raise awareness of the IMA brand and built a community of the alumni in London.
Banga Family Office investments span the UK, the USA, Europe, China, and India, with focus on healthcare, fintech, edutech and enterprise software. Investments are both in VC Funds and in start-ups.
I am a member of the UNAids Cross Border Exchange Investor Coalition. The Health Innovation Exchange (HIEx) and Cross Border Impact Ventures (CBIV) launched an Investor Coalition with a focus on growth-stage innovative solutions for Sustainable Development Goal 3 through a systems-based healthcare lens. 2020 was a year of challenges, learning and opportunities around healthcare, making it extremely timely to join forces in 2021 across investors, government leaders, international organizations and innovators to ensure that the incredible developments in health technology can be meaningfully identified, deployed, and scaled in countries around the world, including the Global South.
In a career spanning 30 years working in the UK, India, China, Turkey and other emerging markets, partly with WPP and partly as an independent strategic consultant, I have worked for global companies on multiple brands and product categories. The primary focus has been on brand strategy, as well as innovation to lead growth based on research and consumer insights. The consultancy, combined with teaching and writing for business periodicals, culminated in an award-winning book, The 86% Solution.
A close and deep engagement as a professional has resulted in an extensive global network of professionals, media, industrialists, and academia. Non-executive directorships in public and private companies have provided experience in corporate governance.
A Master’s degree in Physics, followed by an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad has been the foundation for my career.
Marketing
Berry – AMA award for the Best Marketing Book 2007
Honouring Top Marketing Works for Innovation of Ideas and Overall Impact on Marketing and Related Fields.
Poetry
The Poetry Society’s annual National Poetry Competition 2017, is one of the most prestigious prizes in the world for previously unpublished single poems About 13,000 entries from 70 countries were received I was pleased to find my name in the 2018 Long List of 113 people …Read on
I was Pleased to Find My Name in the Long List of The Poetry School Pighog Poetry Pamphlet Competition 2014…Read on