The Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations will include two Indian-American CEOs, alongside 14 more team members.                                       

Two Indian Americans–Revathi Advaithi, CEO of Flex, and Manish Bapna, CEO of Natural Resources–were appointed by president Joe Biden to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations.

The White House Press Release disclosed a team of 14 people to form the US Advisory Committee that was finalized by President Biden. Alongside the two Indian Americans are Timothy Michael Broas, Thomas M Conway, Erica, RH Fuchs, Marlon E Kimpson, Ryan, Shonda Tvette Scott, Elizabeth Shuler, Nina Szlosberg-Landis, and Wendell P Weeks.

One of the chosen Indian American Committee Members, Mrs. Advaithi, serves as the CEO of Flex, the global partner of choice that helps a diverse customer base design, and build products to improve the world. Ever since taking up the role in 2019, she holds the responsibility of architecting the company’s strategic decisions, leading Flex through a transformation and defining a new era in manufacturing.

Mrs. Advaithi focuses on driving technology innovation, supply chain, and sustainable manufacturing solutions across varied industries and end markets, and served as a president and COO for the electrical sector business, Eaton, with an annual turnover of 20 billion USD in sales, managing 102,000 employees priorly. Holding corporate responsibility for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa regions, Advaithi handled North, South, and Central America offices of Eaton’s electrical sector.

Mrs. Advaithi holds immense participation in global organizations such as the Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Advanced Manufacturing CEO Community, and a member of the WEF Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders. She also serves on the Board of Directors of Uber and Catalyst.org and was recognized as Fortune’s Most Powerful Women in Business, for substantially four consecutive years. The renowned Advocate specializing in diversity and inclusion in the workforce holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and completed her MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Another Indian-American member to be added to the Committee was Manish Bapna who serves as the president and CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a backbone of most significant milestones, be they the creation of bedrock environmental laws, landmark legal victories, or foundational research.

Mr. Bapna holds 25 years of expertise in leadership roles, tackling the root causes of poverty and climate change with equitable, durable, and scalable strategies. He previously served as an EVP and MD of the World Resources Institute, a research organization on the intersection of the environment and human development for almost 14 years. The economist holds a master's degree in Business and Political and Economic Development from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from MIT.

The Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations provides overall policy advice to the United States Trade Representative on matters in connection with the development, implementation, and administration of the trade policy like negotiating objectives. It includes bargaining positions prior to trade agreements, the impact of the implementation of trade agreements, and matters concerning the operation of trade agreements.

The Committee encompasses nearly 45 members, recommended by the US Trade Representative, appointed by the President, and holds firm expertise in general trade, investment, and development issues such as representatives of no-federal governments, labor, industrial agriculture, small businesses, services industries, and retailers.