YourStory Media

RESEARCH DIRECTOR
yourstory.com

Dr Madanmohan Rao is the Co-founder of innovation platform MXR.world, Research Director at YourStory Media, and Charter Member at TiE Bangalore. He is a graduate of IIT Bombay, University of Massachusetts at Amherst (USA), and Loyola High School (Poona).

He has given talks, lectures and workshops in over 90 countries around the world. He has written 15 books on knowledge management, innovation, and digital media. His hobbies include world music, jazz, and craft beer appreciation.

Madan is the Innovation Officer at BIGAPC (Singapore) and Conference Chair for Extensia’s Digital Summits (Africa). He was earlier the Communications Director at the United Nations Inter Press Service Bureau (New York), Research Director at the Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (Singapore), Group Consultant at Microland (Bangalore), and Vice President at IndiaWorld Communications (Mumbai).

Madan has developed a range of frameworks and metrics based on his cross-domain expertise and experience, to help companies improve their organisational creativity, knowledge sharing cultures, innovation programmes, skills upgrading, design thinking, leadership, and co-creation partnerships.

He is the editor of five book series: The Asia Pacific Internet Handbook, The Knowledge Management Chronicles, AfricaDotEdu, Global Citizen and World of Proverbs. He was editor-at-large of DestinationKM and contributor to the Poynter Institute blog on new media trends. Madan was on the international editorial board of the book, ‘Transforming e-Knowledge.’

Madan graduated from Loyola High School (Poona), Indian Institute of Technology, at Bombay and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, with an M.S. in computer science and a Ph.D. in communications. He has worked with online services in the U.S., Brazil, and India. His articles have appeared in DestinationKM, The Economic Times, Electronic Markets magazine, Economic and Political Weekly, and the Bangkok Post.

He is a juror for the World Summit Awards, and DEF’s Manthan and mBillionth Awards for best digital content. Madan is on the board of directors/advisors of a range of content and wireless services firms in Asia. He also participates in consultations at UNESCO, IDRC, and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) in India and Nepal.

Madan is an editor and DJ in world music and jazz, and writes for World Music Central and Jazzuality. He produced channels on jazz and world music for RadioWalla, and was previously world music editor at Rave magazine and RJ at Worldspace Satellite Radio.

Specialties: Entrepreneurship, creativity, leadership, design thinking, knowledge management, innovation, digital (Internet/mobile/social), Tech4Good, content management publications, events, marketing, world music, jazz, travel, craft beer appreciation.