IIMA signed an agreement with Nykaa, to set up the ‘Nykaa Chair in Consumer Technology’ on Sep 27, 2022. The partnership announcement was made at the Institute’s campus by Professor Errol D’ Souza, Director, IIMA and Falguni Nayar (PGP 1985), Founder & CEO, Nykaa. The Chair has been set up for an initial period of three years and has been facilitated by the IIMA Endowment fund.

Commenting on the formation of the Chair at IIMA, Ms Falguni Nayar said, “It’s a moment of pride for Nykaa and specially for me to launch a programme with my alma-mater, that focuses on consumer technology. As the founder of an organization that has harnessed the power of technology to disrupt beauty, and more recently the fashion market, I am convinced about its role in shaping the present and the future of Indian entrepreneurship. Through this chair at IIMA, we look forward to stewarding research and education by equipping students with foundational knowledge for building meaningful, insight -driven business models that use technology to solve for consumer needs.”

Speaking about the importance and objective of this Research Chair, Professor Errol D’Souza, Director, IIMA said, “With advancements in technological innovations in the last decade, the nature of technology and its social-economic impact has significantly evolved. Consumer connectedness through virtual and augmented environments and increased usage of digital tools across cultures requires knowledge on aspects of consumer tech innovation. Through our partnership with Nykaa, we aim to work together on finding research solutions to some of the immediate, real-time questions in the consumer tech space. We look forward to bringing on board a talented, research focused individual to take up this position at the institute.

Thanking Nykaa, Ms Chhavi Moodgal, Chief Executive Officer, IIMA Endowment Fund said, “The Consumer Tech industry in India is pipped to become a $200-$250Bn opportunity by 2025. To reach its full potential, this sector needs dedicated research, assimilation, and propagation of best practices; and as well as guidance on usage of AI and Data Science, in which IIMA can be a thought leader. We would like to thank Nykaa and our alumna Falguni Nayar for this valuable contribution to the Institute. This is the third Chair being setup at IIMA courtesy the efforts of the IIMA Endowment Fund and we are delighted to bring such collaborations and opportunities to the IIMA ecosystem.”

The Chair will work closely with students of IIMA and faculty members from Marketing and Information Systems areas. The focus will be on research and education that will:

1. promote scientific practice of marketing
2. present insights on the impact of digital, social, and mobile technologies on business models, customer behavior, and social changes at large
3. facilitate incorporation of AI and machine learning insights in a disrupted marketplace.
4. deploy economic and statistical models to measure the role of the Internet and new media on consumer and firm behavior
5. understand the privacy-preserving future of digital advertising

IIMA has already established Centres of Excellence in new age areas in technology such as Centre for Digital Transformation (CDT) and Brij Disa Centre for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (CDSAI). The Chair will also work closely with faculty members associated with these Centres and will enable multi-disciplinary research and generate insights that will help shape strategy, influence policy, and benefit the entire consumer technology sector in India.