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Mr. Jayant Krishna has had a distinguished career of over three decades across the industry, government, think tanks, and non-profit foundations. He is currently the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Foundation for Advancing Science and Technology, an organization dedicated to enabling transformation in the science and technology landscape in India.

Mr. Krishna has held multiple C-level roles over the last 15 years. He led key initiatives of the Prime Minister’s Skill India Mission, as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director & Chief Operating Officer of National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). He was also the Group Chief Executive Officer of the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) and Executive Director (Public Policy) at Silicon Valley non-profit WF. As Group CEO, he led UKIBC in strengthening UK-India bilateral economic ties. He is Senior Fellow with the US-India Policy Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a top-ranking US think tank based in Washington, DC. He also carried out multiple global leadership roles at TCS.

During the last decade, he championed apprenticeship reforms in India that resulted in a new Act passed by the Parliament. Mr. Krishna’s contribution to the National Skills Qualification Framework led to its ratification by Union Cabinet. As Skill India Mission as CEO, and ED & COO NSDC, he focussed on policy formulation and implementation, including the rollout of India’s largest skilling initiative PMKVY for youth at the bottom of the pyramid. On secondment, he worked extensively with the Advisor to the Prime Minister of India for over 5 years. He also served as Chairman of the Government of India’s Special Task Force on Apprenticeship Rationalisation. He was also Co-Convener of the erstwhile Planning Commission’s Task Force on Enhancing Employability in Higher Education.

Mr. Krishna played key roles at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), including Global Relationship Manager for one of its top 5 accounts worldwide, Director, Life Sciences and Healthcare, Regional Director (UK & Ireland), Regional Manager in London, and Business Relationship Manager for British Airways. He led a variety of successful Indian e-governance initiatives. As Delivery Centre Head, Mr. Krishna led TCS’s facility where the Government of India’s Passport Seva software application was developed, transforming citizen service delivery in India through digitization. Several lakh illiterates in India became literate using computer-based functional literacy steered by him in Indian states.

Most of Mr. Krishna’s diverse experience of 35 years spanning industry, government, think tanks, and international organizations were with the Tata group where he also executed several complex management consulting interventions for the World Bank, UN agencies, governments, and corporations, and contributed to Tata’s group-level initiatives such as corporate social responsibility, corporate communications, sustainability, Tata Administrative Services (TAS) and business excellence.

He was awarded the British Chevening Scholarship by the UK Government’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to study at the University of Leeds. He is a Fellow of the All India Management Association (AIMA) and the youngest-ever Fellow of the Computer Society of India (CSI). He is a recipient of the APJ Abdul Kalam Award for Innovation in Governance (2016) for his contribution to skill development in India. He has served as an Adjunct Professor, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur, and on the Board of Governors and Board of Studies of leading educational institutions in India. All across his career, he played a pivotal role in advancing academia-industry relationships to the next higher level of maturity. He is also an Independent Director on the Boards of varied companies and has served as India’s Official Delegate to World Skills International.

Publications

He has published >150 papers and OpEds in top journals and newspapers and by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva, and CSIS in Washington, DC, featured as an expert panelist on >100 national and international TV channels, and delivered numerous keynote and convocation speeches. Widely traveled to over 65 countries, he led Indian delegations abroad for bodies such as CII and has represented India in various international summits and bilateral meetings. He has also led and served on a number of committees of the Government of India, CII, PHDCCI, and NASSCOM. He also made a huge contribution to adult literacy, information technology, minority welfare, gender issues, and digital inclusion.

Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Washington, DC

35+ years

Skill Development, E-Governance, Strategy