Management Team

Srini is a technology strategist with executive leadership experience in building teams, business development, operations, growth management, change management and process improvement. As a Co-Founder and CEO of Educational initiatives (EI), his mandate is to scale the company with the objective “to help EI's scientifically developed assessment and learning solutions permeate across all strata of society.�

Srini has a rich experience of partnering with leaders to scale up businesses multiple times by focusing on core technology aspects. In the immediate last decade, he served as Senior Vice President & Managing Director in Bally Technologies (NYSE:BYI), where he helped the company grow its revenue by over 300% and stock price by over 700%. This was followed by a stint as CHRO with Scientific Games (SGMS), after their acquisition of Bally during the integration period.

In his earlier stints, he was with Manhattan Associates, Cadence Design Systems and Pepsi. Srini started his career in the Indian Army, where he served for six years and gained experience in operational as well as ceremonial duties.

Srini is a member of NCERT's National Expert Group for Assessment in School Education (NEGASE). He has always been passionate about education and was instrumental in starting a school in a strife-torn part of the country during his tenure in the army. He has also been associated with EI as a shareholder since the company's inception.

Srini holds a B.A. (Honors) degree in Economics from Delhi University and a Diploma in Management from IGNOU.

Sridhar Rajagopalan is an educational entrepreneur who has helped change the way student-learning outcomes are seen in India. He worked in IBM India for two and a half years before co-founding and running Eklavya School in Ahmedabad. Sridhar is a member of various central and state government committees related to education, including the committee for devising model rules for the Right to Education Act in Gujarat. He is a member of NCERT's National Expert Group on Assessment in Elementary Education (NEGAEE) and a trustee of Pratham, Gujarat as well as other educational institutions.

Sridhar got his bachelor's degree in Engineering from IIT Madras before going on to complete his PGDM from IIM Ahmedabad.

Executive Vice President of Sales, founder of EI, mentor to many and a teacher by heart - Sudhir Ghodke has got a knack for all these things.

With a flamboyant personality, Sudhir has set up a network of people at EI who are interacting with schools all over India. He believes that EI has the potential to make a significant difference in the domain of primary school education and open up opportunities for like-minded people to join this exciting and eventful effort.

This IIM-A Alumni and a Mechanical Engineer worked in corporate for a while before plunging into the world of Education, where he is making significant changes for two decades now.

Anshuman is one of the key leaders driving the National Sales division at EI. He is a result-driven executive with 14 years of PAN India experience in Sales, Customer Retention, Training and, Managing Teams/Channels. He believes that a strong strategy in business and developmental activities fosters a positive change and fuels long-term growth and success, coupled with personnel transformation. His key focus areas at EI are: 1) Propelling Business Development 2) Improve EI's Visibility and 3) Revenue Growth.

Anshuman holds a Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Communication.

Srini has more than two decades of experience in many successful global software organisations, serving in many capacities from an award-winning developer to chief architect and VP of engineering. Before joining EI, Murthy was the VP of Engineering at Basic6 (Westport, CT), where he has developed the proprietary device Basic6 gateway technology and a highly scalable IOT platform for managing smart lighting using cutting-edge serverless and CSR/BLE mesh technologies. He also led the vision and development of the Basic6 analytics platform li-fi retail application. He has also been the Chief Architect at Aperture Technologies (Stamford, CT), where he was responsible for building the award-winning data centre capacity management and planning application for VISTA. He is also one of the original core architects of the enterprise CRM application VALEX.

Murthy comes with a rich and diversified portfolio across all stages of product development and has managed highly skilled on-shore and off-shore development teams. He has also worked with Godrej & Boyce EBE R&D and Pitney Bowes in the past. Murthy holds a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru (IISc). He was the valedictorian of his graduating class in Mechanical Engineering from Karnataka University. He is also a member of the Aeronautical Society of India (ASI) and a trustee of the Arivu Foundation NGO.

Anand leads the commercial operations for Educational Initiatives (EI) including National Sales, International Sales and Academic Consulting, along with the Gifted Education & Counselling's delivery. Enhancing visibility for EI's brand portfolio is also one of his goals for EI.

Anand started his career in Telecom when the industry was at the cusp of transformation and spent the next 20 years witnessing and being part of its growth story. He excels in building compelling customer propositions based on consumer insights and go-to market strategies. He has worked with behemoths like Idea Cellular, Airtel and Vodafone - leading Sales, Marketing and Business Operations. His last assignment was with Vodafone-Idea as COO for Karnataka region.

Anand is a Maharashtrian, born and brought up in Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh). He has completed his MBA from ICFAI Business School, Pune, and has a Master's degree in Economics.

Jayanti Dasgupta leads the academic consultant team at Educational Initiatives (EI). She along with her team is the conduit between our products and the user (Schools), ensuring a smooth transition from product expertise to classroom practices. Her team also looks after the academic needs of schools in India and abroad by absorbing the dynamic needs of schools (assessment) and consulting them with appropriate solutions.

Jayanti has been working in the academic division at EI for last 4 years before which she has spent two decades with school. Someone who prefers to be introduced as a teacher; she completed her post graduation in Mathematics from Osmania University.

Kushark has over 15 years of experience in international business in the education and training industry covering franchise management, business development, marketing, alliance management, operations, B2B and B2G verticals. He has initiated, managed and developed international business in across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

With a proven track record to build up businesses from scratch and establish growth-oriented business lines, Kushark has helped various organizations make successful entry, setup, diversification and expansion into international markets. In India, he has worked extensively on skill development initiatives of Central Government and State bodies and managed multiple projects across India. He is also involved with various social welfare activities.

Kushark, a global trotter, is a B.Com, LL.B and Post Graduate in Management from T. A. Pai Management Institute, Manipal.

Shekhar, is a co-learner in this journey, who strongly believes in the mantra "You are therefore I am"!

Before taking charge as an Academic Director at the ASSET Summer Programme (ASP), Shekhar has been the Academic Dean at previous ASPs. He is an integral part of Educational Initiatives, Ahmedabad as an Academic Director at the ASSET Summer Programme (ASP). He has previously worked as the Principal and IB coordinator at IB World School at Rajkot, India and has been at leadership positions in a school system. He has also worked as Master Trainer for Cambridge Teacher Training Programme and for Oxford University Press in India.

So Shekhar brings in core values of academics and education to the table.

Pranav Kothari is the Chief Executive Officer at Educational Initiatives (EI).

Pranav has been associated with EI for over a decade and has made significant contributions to the company through his involvement with EI's adaptive learning product, Mindspark, and as the head of HR, Gifted Student Education, and, most recently, EI's Large Scale Education Programme division.

Pranav spearheaded the deployment of Mindspark which is recognised as the only software-based EdTech tool to have demonstrated significant learning impact as measured by independent third parties including J-PAL. He is a thought leader in the industry, having led teams that scaled high-quality student assessments, personalised adaptive learning, and impact evaluation services for governments, CSR funders, and philanthropic foundations.

Pranav is a TEDx speaker and an INK Fellow and has been named by The World Economic Forum's Schwab Foundation as the Corporate Social Intrapreneur of the Year in 2019.

Pranav studied Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology and MBA at Harvard Business School. Prior to EI, he worked at GTI Capital and the Boston Consulting Group in five countries.

Aarthi leads EI's Learning Solutions and Assessments division including Mindspark Maths, Mindspark English, ASSET and Detailed Assessment. She is passionate about education and giving children from all socio-economic backgrounds access to quality education. She believes that the use of technology is the way ahead to address the many challenges in this space. This prompted her to take the plunge into the education sector, after spending 6 years in developing enterprise – server-management solutions at Dell's R&D Center.

She is an M. Sc. Degree holder in Information Systems from BITS , Pilani.

Nishchal Shukla leads the Pedagogical Research division at Educational Initiatives (EI). Pedagogical Research team goes deeper into understanding how students think and how they learn different concepts, and different subjects. Nishchal also oversees the project to create a Comprehensive Assessment System for the US market. In the past 12 years that he has spent at EI, he has worked on various aspects: from tool development, data analysis, product development, capacity-building workshops and student interactions to team and project management.

He is a gold medalist in the Life Sciences domain from the 2005 batch of Gujarat University.

Ritesh Agarwal is passionate about solving for learning outcomes in public schools of India. He currently leads EI's work on large scale assessments and Mindspark in regional languages, working with government, foundations, CSRs and civil society partners.

Ritesh has a rich experience of working with governments, institutional funders, and other key stakeholders in the social sector. He is well-versed with evolving trends in assessments, educational technology, policy, and developmental finance. Prior to EI, he was an early member at the edtech startup- Covegenius heading their growth and partnerships work. For a project with Ashoka University, he helped create the blueprint for the foundation of the Centre for Social Impact and Philanthropy.

Originally from Darjeeling, he graduated with a degree in History from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi. Ritesh has been recognized as a Gandhi Fellow, Young India Fellow with Ashoka University, and an Anubhav Fellow with UChicago. He has spoken on edtech and social impact at multiple national and international forums including-UNICEF, UNESCO and the Education Commission.

Anupama is a hands-on data scientist with extensive experience in building and deploying analytical solutions for various domains, including auto, retail, healthcare, travel & hospitality, e-commerce and education for both B2C and B2B organizations. Over the past 17 years she has worked extensively on various data science solutions in the areas of classification, predictive modeling, NLP, pricing, market-mix model and forecasting. Anupama worked in various positions in leading MNCs, including Genpact Research & Services and Symphony Teleca Corporation, and has demonstrated experience in building, managing and leading data science teams and driving advanced analytics across the organization.

As VP, Data Science at EI, Anupama's mandate is to build a high quality data science team at EI that works on the latest as well as the most appropriate methodologies and techniques in the field of data science, eventually leading to cutting-edge products and businesses.

Anupama is keen on applying data science in education to bring visible difference in the way children understand and learn. She closely observes and compares Indian & US education trends as a parent. She believes that data & technology will help tremendously in paving the way to learning with understanding.

Anupama holds a Masters in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Mother of a 12-year-old, Anupama loves travelling and hoarding flora and fauna from various places she visits.

Jagadish has more than two decades of extensive experience in Information Technology, having handled multiple software projects. His passion for technology has helped him deliver solutions across different domains such as Gaming, Finance, Telecommunications, Healthcare and Food across different geographies, including India, Asia, Africa, Australia, UK, and the USA. He is known for his expertise in providing distinctive solutions through a deep understanding of customer as well as product requirements.

Jagadish holds a bachelor's degree in Engineering from Osmania University.

Umesh is responsible for delivering high quality products that support EI's business goals, which involves product management, product development, product delivery and product impact chain.

An IIT-Kanpur alumni and a serial entrepreneur, Umesh has more than 20 years of experience having worked across diverse roles in product development, product management and software development in organisations like VMware, Yahoo, McAfee, Talisma Corporation, Aditi Technologies and Mahindra British Telecom.

Prior to joining EI , Umesh was the Chief Technology Officer at Hush. He also co-founded Hush and VoyageUp.

Colonel BP Sharma (Retd) leads the HR function at EI. Col. Sharma served in the Indian Army for 21 years which includes his tenure as a commanding officer of an Artillery Regiment, a faculty in the prestigious Defense Services Staff College, and as a United Nations Military Observer in the conflict-torn Congo.

In his corporate innings, Col. Sharma was an HR Business partner responsible for Employee Engagement, Recruitment, and Performance Management etc. with Bally Technologies for more than 5 years.

He is a keen trekker, loves swimming, golf, yoga and philosophical writing/books.

Col. BP Sharma holds a bachelor's degree in Arts from JNU, Delhi, a master's degree in Technology (Weapon Systems) from University of Pune, a master's degree in Defence & Strategic Studiies from University of Madras and a PG CHRM from XLRI Jamshedpur.

A Chartered Accountant with over 16 years of experience, Garima has spent a large part of her professional journey with the Bharti Group in various roles leading Financial Planning & Analysis, Business Reporting, Strategy, and Investor Relations.

Besides Bharti Group, Garima has worked with Sony and Genpact, and as a CFO with two startups , Nxtra Data and Runnr.

Her last stint was as an entrepreneur wherein she founded and led a home design company called Home Razzle.

Poornima is an HR professional with over 20 years of experience specialising in Talent Attraction, Talent Management, and Employee Engagement. She believes in continuous learning. Poornima ensures the effective conceptualising and execution of HR programmes and their alignment with business goals.

A large part of Poornima's career was with Tejas Networks, focusing on organisation effectiveness, operational excellence, and driving HR programmes. Poornima has worked with Cisco and Intuit in their formative years in India. She has partnered and collaborated with business and HR leaders across geographies. Apart from HR, she has also managed Administration and CSR activities.

Prior to joining EI, Poornima worked as a Senior HR Consultant with Rapido.

Poornima is an alumnus of IIM Bangalore and XLRI Jamshedpur.

Bhuvnesh drives business growth and manages the GEC operations.

A Sales and Marketing professional with over 20 years of corporate experience , Bhuvnesh has worked with organizations like Idea Cellular, Aircel Ltd., Godrej, Tata Teleservices and MTS. His expertise largely lies in B2B and enterprise sales.

Prior to EI, Bhuvnesh was managing his independent practice in Business Consulting.

He is a firm believer in leveraging people for achieving business results; and that no goal is unachievable against the collective might of a team.

Bhuvnesh likes investing his time in travelling, connecting with people, navigating the spiritual realms and performing voice-overs.

Sree comes with extensive marketing experience in industries spanning Advertising, Media, Movies and Telecommunication.

Sree started his career with Bozell Worldwide followed by The Times of India, worked in marketing roles at Warner Bros., and led the digital transformation mandate at Vodafone.

At EI, Sree is responsible for marrying business to marketing as he brings his mantra of meaningful disruption to EdTech! He believes in 'Nano-disruptions to transform!' In his own words, 'Education is about one child at a time. To reach and transform the journey that a child takes, leveraging data for nano-disruptions, and preparing EI for the big league as a marquee credible change agent makes me #superexcited.'

Anand heads Consumer Business at EI and is responsible for driving customer aquisition and revenue through online and offline channels. An entrepreneur, Anand also comes with 18 years of experience of having worked with Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Bank of America, managing technology teams and developing high throughput trading platforms for equity, derivatives, and fixed income products.

Prior to joining EI, Anand was the Co-Founder and Chief Operations Officer of Datawrkz, a digital marketing and Ad-Tech company.

Anand is an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and IIT Kanpur.