[21 May 2008]
SMU appoints Rajendra K. Srivastava as new Provost

Professor Srivastava, a renowned marketing faculty who hails from the Goizueta School of Business at Emory University, will also assume the position of Vice President for Academic Affairs at SMU.

Singapore, 21 May 2008 (Wednesday) – The Singapore Management University is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Rajendra K. Srivastava as the University's new Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs starting from July 1, 2008. Professor Srivastava (also known as ‘Raj' amongst academic circles) is currently a senior faculty member at the Goizueta School of Business, Emory University where he holds the appointment of Roberto C. Goizueta Chair in e-Commerce and Marketing.

During his 30-year academic career, Professor Srivastava has served as Senior Associate Deans at both the Goizueta Business School at Emory University as well as the University of Texas at Austin. At the University of Texas at Austin, he also held the positions of George Kozmetsky Centennial Chair and Professor of Marketing and Management Science & Information Systems. He was a Visiting Professor at the London Business School, Indian School of Business and Helsinki School of Economics. He is also the founding director of both the Center for Customer Insight at the University of Texas at Austin and the Emory Marketing Institute at Goizueta Business School.

Professor Srivastava is widely considered a thought leader on issues related to strategic brand management, customer management and market-driving strategies. Recognized for his pioneering work linking marketing strategy to financial performance, Professor Srivastava is an “evangelist” on issues related to marketing metrics and has spoken extensively on the topic to international audiences. He has a prolific and outstanding body of research, having written, published and edited hundreds of papers in top journals and presenting many at leading international conferences. His current research focuses on the impact of marketing processes and market-based assets on corporate financial performance and shareholder value. Over the years, Professor Srivastava has garnered no less than 25 awards and nominations for research and teaching excellence, and contributions to the pursuit of marketing studies.

Professor Srivastava graduated with a Bachelor of Technology (Honours) in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of Rhode Island. His MBA and Ph.D. (Business Administration) degrees are from the University of Pittsburgh.

As Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Professor Srivastava will occupy a key university position as SMU's Chief Academic Officer. He will have primary responsibility for the general conduct, coordination, quality and development of the University's academic programmes. His main duties will include overseeing undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum development and planning as well as driving research activity in SMU. Professor Srivastava will be third most senior in the SMU management team, working closely with Professor Howard Hunter, President of SMU and Professor Tan Chin Tiong who continues as Deputy President of SMU. The Deans of the six schools in SMU will report to Professor Srivastava.

Said Professor Howard Hunter, President of SMU: “We welcome Raj as our new member of the senior management team in SMU. The University has seen tremendous growth and development over the past eight years. It has become essential for a third senior academic leader to assist Chin Tiong and myself to steer the future directions of SMU. Raj, with his many years of experience in heading academic affairs and executive education at top American universities, and impressive track record in research, will be more than capable of taking charge of SMU's academic advancement. He will make it possible for Chin Tiong and myself to focus more time and energy on the long term strategic development of the University and our many relationships with external partners. I am confident he will make significant contributions to bring SMU to new levels of excellence.”

Said Professor Rajendra K. Srivastava, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, SMU: “I look forward to the new appointment and am excited to be a part of an iconic development in Asia that is SMU – a young, emerging university that prides itself in being cutting edge and different. SMU shares many similarities with leading American universities in educational pedagogy and grooming of young minds. It is a convergence of many talents – a top quality faculty pool and passionate students eager to embrace new challenges. I see great potential in SMU becoming a university of choice in the region and beyond.”

Refer to Annex for more on Professor Srivastava.