EXPERTS ADVISORY

ANN ARBOR—Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the U.S. Sept. 23-28.

After addressing the U.N. General Assembly in New York and meeting with President Obama, Modi will visit California for two days to drum up investment in the Silicon Valley for India. He also will take part in a town hall-style event at Facebook’s headquarters, hosted by Mark Zuckerberg, to discuss how communities can work together to address social and economic challenges.

University of Michigan experts are available to discuss Modi’s U.S. visit:

Puneet Manchanda, professor of marketing at the Ross School of Business, researches business in emerging markets, business in India, strategy and marketing.

“The confluence of two big trends makes this the perfect time for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Silicon Valley,” he said. “First, interest in funding Indian startups is at the highest level ever. Second, the Indian presence at the top level in tech companies is also at the highest level ever. For the trip to be a success, however, something tangible needs to emerge. Otherwise, it will remain a public relations exercise.”

Contact: 734-936-2445, pmanchan@umich.edu

M.S. Krishnan, professor of technology and operations and associate dean of global initiatives at the Ross School of Business, studies businesses in India and technology and operations.

“I think it is a brilliant move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to connect with Silicon Valley for multiple reasons.” he said. “First, information technology is emerging as a key enabler to finding new economical and effective solutions for social and business challenges in emerging economies. In fact, economies like India have the special advantage of leap frogging through these technologies.

“Second, Silicon Valley, as we all know, is the central hub of talent and resources.
Third, India can be a significant market for some of the leading companies like Apple, Facebook or Google for their devices and platforms, and also a resource base for their manufacturing and service facilities. Finally, by connecting with Apple, Facebook and Tesla, etc., the prime minister is also touching the aspirations of the younger generation and India.”

Contact: 734-763-6749, mskrish@umich.edu

Joyojeet Pal, assistant professor at the School of Information, has studied how Modi uses social media, such as Twitter.

“With 15 million followers on Twitter and 30 million likes on Facebook, Modi runs a media machine that surpasses the reach of most mainstream media,” he said. “We should expect plenty of tweets about the Indian-American community in the Silicon Valley, and selfies with Zuckerberg and other major personalities. Finally, I expect Modi will take no sides in the upcoming U.S. election by being as nonpartisan as possible.”

Contact: joyojeet@umich.edu

Brian Min, assistant professor of political science, studies the political economy of development, with a focus on the politics of energy, ethnic politics and civil conflict.

Contact: 734-546-6824, brianmin@umich.edu

Leela Fernandes, professor of political science, studies the relationship between politics and culture.

Contact: 734-780-7514, leelaf@umich.edu