vvProf Venkatakrishnan has rejoined KIIT School of Rural Management (KSRM) from 1 November 2016.   He obtained PhD (Development Studies) from the University of Mysore through the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore. He had earlier served at the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA), Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), Hyderabad, Centre for World Solidarity (CWS), Secunderabad, Addis Ababa University (AAU), Ethiopia and the University of Dodoma, Tanzania. He had undertaken various research and consultancy assignments for NABARD, Dairy India, Kerala Horticulture Development Programme, Sagoserve and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). He had been trained by the Central European University (CEU), Budapest, Hungary/the World Bank Institute and MNNIT, Allahabad. He has presented research papers in various international and national seminars at the Witwatersrand University, Johannesburg, South Africa, REPOA, Dar es Salaam and Mzumbe University, Morogoro, Tanzania and the Ethiopian Economic Association, Addis Ababa. During his previous stint at the KSRM during 2007-09, he coordinated the District Plan Projects for Bolangir and Swarnapur districts, Village Study and Management Traineeship Segments. He has supervised 50 Masters’ dissertations and currently co-supervising a couple of PhD candidates. His areas of interest include ICT for Development, e-Business, Sustainable Livelihoods, Decentralized Governance and Rural Development Policies.