Siva Shankar is currently Managing Director ( Private Equity) at The Rohatyn Group (“TRG”) based in Mumbai, India. He has 23 years of experIence in financial services across treasury operations, debt capital markets and investment management. He is a B Tech ( Electronics ) from IIT Madras (1988) and a MBA from IIM Lucknow (1991).

Message:

I recently changed jobs in December 2013 after a 22 year stint with Citibank. It was a period of introspection for me and also happily coincided with the silver alumni reunion of the 1988 IIT Madras batch. As I looked back, it was easy to see the huge positive impact IITM has had in my life although my career has been almost entirely in financial services. The analytical, problem solving approach that becomes second nature to IIT graduates has stood me in good stead. IITM has been a credible calling card which opened doors and provide me access to a powerful alumni network. When I thought about making a contribution to my alma mater, I did of course consider the ” utility ” of the B Tech degree – but what weighed the scales more was the warm and fuzzy feeling of the great time I had on campus. The friendships forged over many lunches and dinners at the hostel mess, hugely contested debates on a range of technical, moral and ethical issues with peers of significant intellect are difficult to match. Whilst IITM has many notable achievements to date, the immortal word of Robert Frost apply in equal measure to our institute – ” And miles to go before I sleep ” . So, it is with hope and confidence that the money will be well spent to further the institute’s ambitious plans that I make this small contribution.