Ram Rao

Ram C. Rao is the Founders Professor and Professor of Marketing at the Naveen Jindal School of Management, University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), where he has been since 1983. He holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Administration from Carnegie-Mellon University (1977) and earlier degrees from institutions in India and UCLA. Prior to UTD, he taught at Queen’s University, Canada, Purdue University, and the University of Chicago, and served as a visiting lecturer at institutions like INSEAD and the Indian School of Business.

• Education:
  • M.S. in Engineering Systems, UCLA (2018)
  • M.E. in Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Science (2018)
  • B.E. in Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering Guindy (2018)
  • Ph.D. in Industrial Administration, Carnegie-Mellon (1977)

His research focuses on competitive marketing strategies, pricing dynamics, and digital advertising, with publications in top journals like Marketing Science and Journal of Marketing Research. He has received NSF grants and awards such as the Runner-up John D. C. Little Award (1991) and the Honorable Mention for the 2014 Davidson Award.

Rao’s work spans strategic pricing, consumer behavior in promotions, and retail competition. Recent studies include analyzing digital advertising effects, daily deal websites, and rationed promotions in airline pricing. He advises doctoral students who excel in academia and industry.

He serves on editorial boards of leading journals and teaches marketing courses in MBA, executive programs, and doctoral game theory.