Back To College

“As an individual I am never afraid of taking up a challenge. Once I take up an assignment, even if it is beyond my comfort zone, I make every effort possible to acquire the requisite skills and deliver the desired outcome. Always eager to learn and share.“

If you were to go to Zubair’s LinkedIn page - and I would recommend that you do - this is what you would find in the “About Me” section. Typical LinkedIn page? Think again.

This is a guy who is currently at the John F Kennedy School at Harvard, finishing up a Masters degree in Public Administration. Prior to that, Zubair was the Deputy Director, Office of Chief Economic Adviser. That little thing called the Economic Survey - partly his creation.

That apart, Zubair is in the Indian Economic Service, with stints at the Centre for Global Development and IFMR along the way.

And, it gives me enormous pleasure and pride to report, also a past student of the Gokhale Institute: who better to have as a guest on Back to College?

In this 50 minute talk, we cover his work with the Indian government, the differences (good and bad) between his current college and his old one, how he ended up at Gokhale Institute and lots else besides.

Zubair is (always!) kind, helpful and all too approachable. Reach out to him via social media, and he’ll be happy to help out in any way he can.

Without further ado, here’s my conversation with Zubair. Enjoy!