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Prateek is an Associate Professor of Business Management and Health Sciences at University College London (UCL) in the UCL Global Business School for Health (GBSH), leading UCL’s new BSc/MSci Programme in Business and Health. He is the author of the book Atypical: Five Strategy Rules for a New World, published by Westland Books.
Prateek is interested in how atypical people and groups at the fringes are often the principal agents of innovation and social progress, and he is currently working on his follow-up book, Fringe: A New History of Progress. Prateek is an Affiliate Fellow at the Stigler Center at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and previously served as an Assistant Professor of Strategy at IIM Bangalore, founding the Inclusive Markets Lab (2019) and co-chairing the inaugural flagship India Strategy Conference (2023)
An interdisciplinary impact scholar Prateek works on Inclusive Markets and Innovation. He is especially interested in the question - how/which innovation can improve healthcare and education at the grassroots, especially for those who are economically disadvantaged, socially underrepresented, and historically stigmatised.
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Prateek's recent studies include understanding the historical marriage patterns of Korean elites (Stigler working paper), the causes of income gaps faced by business owners from stigmatised groups in India (PLOS One) and the role of private businesses in managing the COVID-19 pandemic crisis (Stanford Social Innovation Review). Over the years, Prateek has secured research grants from notable institutions like the UK's ESRC, India's ICSSR, and Indian state governments. These grants have supported his work on the handicraft industryand the Kumbh Mela. He has also co-authored reports on journalism in the age of digital platforms and strategic vision for the Indian state of Karnataka in 2047.
Beyond academia, Prateek is passionate about addressing social issues like health access, LGBT rights, and hate speech. He co-founded Project Chhaav, which provided healthcare kits to over 120,000 rural health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in India, and the Action to Improve Representation Collective, which supports underrepresented scholars in management academia. He regularly delivers talks at universities, industry bodies, and conferences worldwide, and his work is frequently featured in national and international media outlets such as Bloomberg, Forbes, Indian Express and Times of India.
Prateek grew up in Dhanbad, India, and holds a bachelor’s degree from IIT Delhi, along with a master’s and PhD in Management from UCL. During his PhD, he was a visiting researcher at Kellogg School of Management and taught at the LSE. His doctoral research explored the historical evolution of institutions like caste and merchant guilds, and he also worked as a research associate at the Stigler Center at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
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Atypical: Five Strategy Rules for a New World
What if the most valuable insights into your company’s future aren’t buried in your big data or shared by industry experts—but voiced quietly at the edges, by the very people you’ve been ignoring?
Publisher: Westland Business | Year: 2025 | Geography: Worldwide
READ UPDATES (chronological)
Latest:
"The Atypical Shift: In Conversation with Prof. Prateek Raj on strategy for a new world", IIM Bangalore podcast, 3 Apr, 2025
“That delightful Studio Ghibli photo should prick your climate conscience” - Sustainability Karma, 2 Apr, 2025 (interview)
"Toyota workers are empowered to be hands-on problem solvers. It comes from management’s trust", The Print, 29 Mar, 2025
"Why do we need to rethink our business strategies?", Mid Day (Instagram Live), March 28, 2025
"The promise of Charity-Owned Businesses", ProMarket, March 24, 2025
Talk at Bangalore International Centre: “Business beyond Capitalism” on March 13, 2025.
“Learning to lead with a Himalayan mindset”, Mint, 24 February, 2025
“A management professor argues that experience and empathy will still be valuable in the age of AI”, Scroll.in, 18 February 2025
Book: Atypical: Five Strategy Rules for a New World, Westland Business, 17 Feb, 2025 (book launch in IIMB on 28 Feb 2025)
“We need DEI initiatives to ensure diverse and atypical perspectives”, Sustainability Karma, 15 February 2025
Research and public engagements (read here):
Working paper: Elite Control through Marriage over Institutional Change, Stigler Center Working Paper, 31 Jan 2025 (with Francis D. Kim)
Joined University College London (UCL) Global Business School for Health on 20th January 2025 as Associate Professor of Business and Health and Programme Lead of UCL's BSc/MSci Business and Health Programme.
“The Mandala Economy”, Outlook India, 1 October 2024
“India's handwoven carpet industry has immense potential to create jobs and exports: Report” – ANI, Sep 29, 2024
Report: Small Firms Global Ambitions: Understanding enablers and obstacles to UK-India trade studying the Indian carpet handicraft industry (with Kamini Gupta and Sunil Kumar) - Sep 18, 2024
“Educated aplenty, skilled in shortage: Why India’s employers are struggling despite a surplus of graduates” – Economic Times – Sept 26, 2024 (interview)
“Caste Price: Editorial on social capital doing little to enhance income of Dalit business owners” (editorial) - The Telegraph, Aug 16, 2024
“Impact of institutional stigma on Dalit business owners’ earning capacity” (feature) – The Hindu, Aug 14, 2024
“Dalit business owners experience income gap of 16%” (paper coverage), Various newspapers, August 2024
Hindu, Indian Express (1, 2), News Minute, New Indian Express, Telegraph India, Times of India, The Wire
Article: It’s not who you know, but who you are: Explaining income gaps of stigmatized-caste business owners in India, PLOS One, 2024 (with Hari Bapuji and Thomas Roulet)
“A blueprint for creating good jobs in India”, Forbes India, 2 July 2024
“An appeal to HR professionals”, Open Letter, 30 June 2024
“Indian democracy needs a reinvigorated civil society”, South First, 8 June 2024
“A Right in the Making” – Outlook– May 29, 2024
“Letter expressing disappointment on PM’s recent hate speech”, Open letter, 23 April 2024
“Marriage equality: We won’t win this battle from the shadows”, Indian Express, 20 October 2023
“The Post-Pandemic World, Lay-offs and Recession”, IIM Bangalore Podcast, 10 September 2023
“How hate can hurt India’s economic dreams”, Times of India Podcast, 24 August 2023
"‘We really mean it…’: IIM-Bangalore professor who penned letter critiquing corporate funding of ‘hate speech’" - Indian Express - Aug 11, 2023
“Open letter to corporate India to de-fund hate speech”, Open letter, 8 August 2023
Report: “Karnataka @ 100: A vision document for 2047”, Indian Institute of Management Bangalore for Confedation of Indian Industry (CII), 12 June 2023
“Queer rights are essential for the progress of the nation”, Times of India, 23 April 2023
“Homophobia is a colonial legacy – government must break from it clearly”, Indian Express, 28 March 2023
“ESG Calls For A Pro Ecosystem Approach”, Outlook India, 25 March 2023
Online course: Business and economic history MOOC Evolution of Business and Markets launched, IIMBx - edX, Swayam, 12 Oct 2022
“Empathy, adaptation, and bottom-up approach: 3 ways to design businesses better”, Forbes India, 13 September 2022 (with Vikram Kohli)
MBA course: Non market strategy MBA elective Strategic Stewardship launched, 5 Sept 2022
"आज़ादी की क़द्र करें, क्षीण न होने दें भारतीयता", Patrika, 26 February 2022
“Prime Time with Ravish Kumar: Right-Wing "Trads" And How They Spread Hate Online” – NDTV – Jan 12, 2022
“Letter to the Prime Minister to stand firm against forces that seek to divide us”, Open Letter, 7 January 2022
"विपदाओं से लड़ने का सूत्र सजगता और एकता में ही", Patrika, 31 December, 2021
“Transparency, participation, and accountability: Three ways to fix Indian cities”, Forbes India, 26 November 2021 (and Patrika, 7 December 2021)
"दीपावली का संकल्प", Patrika, 4 Nov, 2021
“How should a manager balance responsibility towards shareholders and society?”, Forbes India, 21 September 2021 (with Anjul Khadria)
“Universal Basic Wealth is a better option to protect the vulnerable poor”, Forbes India, 3 September 2021
Report: “Prayagraj Kumbh 2019: An Integrated Assessment", Indian Institute of Management Bangalore for the Government of Uttar Pradesh, Aug 01, 2021
“What America’s dramatic turnaround can teach India”, Forbes India, 17 June 2021 (with Anjul Khadria)
Article: "How to Manage Large-Scale Public Crises", Stanford Social Innovation Review, Summer 2021 (with Haritha Saranga), paper coverage in CII Blog, June 14, 2021
Initiative: Launch of Project Chhaav, a joint collaboration between IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore volunteers to deliver health care kits to healthcare kits to rural health workers in remote areas during the COVID-19 pandemic (May 2021)
"याद रखें नागरिक धर्म और बुनियादी मुद्दों में रुचि लें", Patrika, 8 May, 2021
"How Twitter weakened India's information ecosystem", ProMarket, 7 May 2021
“Indian health care in the broader development context”, World Health Parliament, 21 January 2021 (and Patrika, 1 February, 2021)
"भारत की वीआइपी संस्कृति ही है इसके लिए अभिशाप", Patrika, 24 December 2020
"माहौल की महिमा। Why Narratives Matter?", Puliyabaazi Podcast, 24 December 2020
“TN’s sui generis development model”, Hindu Business Line, 16 December 2020 (with Prassanna Venkatesh)
“क्या हम रूढ़ियों से उठ मानवता की रक्षा कर पाएँगे”, Patrika, 3 December 2020
“धर्म या जाति - हम दोनों का चुनाव नहीं कर सकते”, Patrika, 6 November 2020
Grant: Awarded a grant to study the Enablers and Obstacles for UK-India Trade: Banks and Diasporas, by the UK's Econonomic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) for their call to study the future of UK-India trade. 21 Oct 2020 (with co-PIs Kamini Gupta and Sunil Kumar based at King’s College London)
“युवाओं का भविष्य नीतियों के केंद्र में, तो ही विकास”, Patrika. 15 October 2020
“Gandhi’s relevance in a populist world”, Forbes India. 7 October 2020 (with Kamini Gupta)
“विकास का बुनियादी सिद्धांत है सतत मूल्य सृजन”, Patrika. 22 September 2020
“हिंदी समाज दक्षिणी प्रांतों से क्या सीख सकता है?”, Patrika. 28 August 2020
“Prof. Prateek Raj discusses the Indian Economy in the wake of COVID-19”, IIM Bangalore podcast. 12 July 2020
“India’s Covid-19-led reverse migration could be an opportunity for its Hindi heartland”, Quartz. 16th June 2020 (with Rishikesh Krishnan)
“The silent crisis of India’s healthcare sector”, IIMB Turn Turn. 19th May 2020
“Why do migrants get such a raw deal?”, Hindu Business Line. 12 May 2020 (with Manaswini Bhalla and Trilochan Sastry)
“Need to Improve Emergency Funding in India” BW Business World. 17th Apr, 2020
"Age of Human Dignity", Deccan Herald. 1st Feb, 2020
“What the trek to a Himalayan peak taught me”, Business Line. 30th Dec, 2019
"Reimagining India into economic clusters to boost growth", Deccan Herald. 14th Oct, 2019
Grant: Awarded a grant to study the 2019 Kumbh Mela held at Prayagraj, by the Government of Uttar Pradesh, Jan-May 2019 (with G Ramesh and Ritu Kumar)
"South India's growth model is worth emulating", Hindu Business Line. 14th Sept, 2019 (with Sruthi)
"We need to deal with WhatsApp's misinformation problem", ProMarket. 8th Jul, 2019
"To stop Lynchings...North India needs investments", Hindu Business Line. 1st Jul, 2019
Report: Protecting Journalism in the Age of Digital Platforms. Stigler Center at the University of Chicago. 1st July, 2019 (with Guy Rolnik et. al.)
Article: "A Brief History of the Marketplace for ideas", Milken Institute Review. 26th Jun, 2019
“Real Indian priorities that politics does not prioritize”, Mint. 19th Jun, 2019
“Politics of substance”, Hindu Business Line. 30th May, 2019
“Economic geography central to India’s regional inequality woes” – Mint – Apr 30, 2019
"What do voters want? Better job opportunities tops the list", Hindu Business Line. 18th Apr, 2019
"Hindi Heartland needs a urban revolution", Hindu Business Line. 13th Mar, 2019
“The Missing Metro - The key to India’s growth story lies hidden in the Hindi heartland” – Economic Times – Nov 15, 2018
Joined Indian Institute of Management Bangalore on 18th July 2018 as Assistant Professor in Strategy and IIMB Young Faculty Research Chair.
Thesis: The friends we make: network, culture and institutions, University College London, 21st June, 2018
"Prize-Winning Innovations in Measuring Civic Capital and its Effects", ProMarket. 22nd March, 2018
"This explains why modern markets developed where they did" - Bloomberg - Jan 15, 2018
“The role of trade and information technology in the decline of merchant guilds”, VoxEU. 4th Jan, 2018
“A Tale of Two Cities- Hamburg and Lübeck”, ProMarket. 13th Nov, 2017
“Antimonopoly is as old as the Republic”, ProMarket. 22nd May, 2017
“Can Narratives Shape Society?”, ProMarket. 11th April, 2017
“Does Regulation Build Trust or Entrench Cliques”, ProMarket. 8th March, 2017
“Role of Narratives in Economics”, ProMarket. 13th February, 2017
“How to come up with strategy under true uncertainty?, LSE Business Review. 2nd September, 2016
Invited talks and seminars:
University of Chicago, Stigler Center Affiliate Fellow Virtual Workshop: “Corporate Market Stewardship” on January 9, 2025.
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur: “Lessons from Kumbh Mela: Excellence in Missions, Inefficiency in Routines” on January 8, 2025.
Chulalongkorn University, School of Integrated Innovation, Bangkok: “Lessons in Creating Markets: From Amsterdam to Bengaluru” on August 20, 2024.
University College London, Global Business School of Health: “Excellence in Missions, Inefficiency in Routines: Understanding the Paradox of Indian Organisations” on June 6, 2024.
St Joseph’s University, Bangalore: “The Past, Present, and Future of Democracy in India” on April 26, 2024.
University of Chicago, Stigler Center Affiliate Fellow Virtual Workshop: “Time Constraints and Echo Chambers” on January 17, 2024.
Cardiff Business School, Department of Entrepreneurship and Innovation: “Census and Salience of Caste: India’s Imagined Communities” on September 26, 2023.
University of Chicago, Stigler Center Affiliate Fellow Virtual Workshop: “Role of Vertical Interindustry Linkages in Capabilities Spillover and Firm Heterogeneity” on April 5, 2023.
King’s College London, UK India Trade Virtual Seminar: “Capability Spillovers and Its Implications on Heterogeneity in Capabilities” on February 2, 2023.
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Karnataka Annual Meeting: “Karnataka @ 100: A Vision for 2047” on March 6, 2023.
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Karnataka CSR Conclave: “Corporate Strategic Stewardship” on March 3, 2023.
Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI), Bengaluru: “Pushing Karnataka to the Frontier” on June 17, 2022.
Banaras Hindu University, Department of Economics: “Path to UP’s Trillion-Dollar Economy” on April 27, 2022.
University of Kashmir, Department of Management Studies: “Evolution of Business: Role of Networks and Hierarchies” on April 21, 2022.
Peking University, Department of Economics Virtual Seminar: “It Is Not Who You Know But Who You Are: Lessons from Dalit Entrepreneurs” on April 15, 2021.
World Health Parliament (Virtual): “Indian Healthcare in the Broader Developmental Context” on January 21, 2021.
Economic History of Developing Regions Seminar (Virtual): “Trade and Information Shocks and Market Development: Evidence from Early Modern Europe” on November 26, 2020.
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh: “Path to UP’s Trillion-Dollar Economy” on November 8, 2019
NSRCEL, Indian Institute of Management: "Evolution of Business and Markets" on October 22, 26, 29 2018
University of Oxford, TMCD-SBS Joint Workshop: “Measuring the Historical Evolution of Mass Media” on June 11, 2018.
Stanford University, Hoover Institution Seminar: “A History of the Fourth Estate and Journalism” on May 30, 2018.
Stanford University, Economic History Lunch Seminar: “Trade and Information Shocks and Market Development: Evidence from Early Modern Europe” on October 5, 2016.
Conference Presentations
India Strategy Conference: “Using Design Thinking in Strategy Research,” Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, December 15, 2024.
International Conference on Corporate Governance and Sustainability: “Role of Formalisation in the Rise of Firms and Markets,” Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, January 13, 2024.
India Strategy Conference: “Workshop in Quantitative Research Design,” Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, December 14, 2023.
ANZAM Conference: “Implications of Capabilities Spillovers in Vertical Linkages for Heterogeneity in Firm Capabilities,” Victoria University of Wellington, December 6, 2023.
Stigler Center Affiliate Fellows Conference: "Measuring the Impact of Lithography on Non-Alphabetic Societies," University of Chicago, September 21, 2023.
Academy of Management (AOM) Annual Meeting (Virtual): "Role of Vertical Interindustry Linkages in Capabilities Spillover and Firm Heterogeneity," August 8, 2023.
India’s Political Economy Workshop: "Enablers and Obstacles for UK-India Trade: Role of Credit and Networks," King’s India Institute, King’s College London, June 15, 2023.
Stigler Center Affiliate Fellows Conference: "Measuring the Marketplace for Ideas in Non-Alphabetic Societies," University of Chicago, September 24, 2022.
European Group for Organization Studies (EGOS) Conference: "Unbreakable Glass Ceiling: Lessons from Dalit Entrepreneurs," Vienna, July 7, 2022.
Academy of Management (AOM) Annual Meeting (Virtual): "Unbreakable Glass Ceiling: Lessons from Dalit Entrepreneurs," August 3, 2021.
Business-Government Virtual Workshop: "Corporate Strategic Stewardship," ESSEC Business School, March 11, 2021.
Society for Institutional and Organizational Economics (SIOE) Conference (Virtual): "Is What is Good for Business Also Good for the Market?" June 18, 2020.
International Conference on Indian Business and Economic History: "Census and Salience of Caste: India’s Imagined Communities," Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, August 30, 2019.
Academy of Management (AOM) Annual Meeting: “Emergence of Modern Impersonal Exchange: Role of Formalization”, Boston, August 12, 2019
Academy of Management (AOM) Annual Meeting: "It Is Not Who You Know But Who You Are: Lessons from Dalit Entrepreneurs," Boston, August 12, 2019.
Stigler Antitrust and Competition Conference: "Protecting Journalism in the Age of Digital Platforms," University of Chicago, May 15, 2019.
World Economic History Congress (WEHC): "Trade and Information Shocks and Market Development: Evidence from Early Modern Europe," Boston, August 1, 2018.
CAGE/IAS Culture, Identity & Economic Development Summer School: "Census and Salience of Caste: India’s Imagined Communities," University of Warwick, June 27, 2018.
Society for Institutional and Organizational Economics (SIOE) Conference: "Trade and Information Shocks and Market Development: Evidence from Early Modern Europe" (Cancelled), Montreal, June 22, 2018.
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