Biden appoints two Indian-Americans to Advisory Council on Trade Policy, Negotiations

US President Joe Biden on Friday appointed two Indian-Americans — Revathi Advaiti, CEO of Flex, and Manish Bapna, CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council — to the Advisory Council on Trade Policy and Negotiations.

On Friday, Biden announced his intention to appoint 14 people to the Advisory Council, which will provide overall policy advice to the U.S. Trade Representative on the development, implementation and administration of U.S. trade policy.

These include the objectives and negotiating positions prior to entering into trade agreements, the impact of implementing trade agreements, matters concerning the operation of any trade agreement once entered into, and other matters arising in connection with development, implementation and administration. America’s trade policy, the White House said.

Revathi Advaithi is the CEO of Flex, “the global manufacturing partner of choice, helping a diverse customer base design and develop products to improve the world”.

Since assuming the role in 2019, Advaithi has been responsible for shaping the company’s strategic direction and leading Flex through a transformation that will define a new era in manufacturing, according to the White House.

Prior to Flex, Advaithi was President and Chief Operating Officer of Eaton’s Power Sector business with over 20 billion in sales and 102,000 employees.

He has also worked at Eaton’s Power Division, Americas and Honeywell, and serves on the boards of directors of Uber and Catalyst.org.

Advaithi is co-chair of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Advanced Productivity CEO Community and joined the WEF Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders.

She has been recognized in Fortune’s Most Powerful Women in Business list for four consecutive years and named one of India’s Most Powerful Women by Business Today. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Birla Institute of Technology and Science and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management.

Manish Bapna is president and CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), which has been behind many of the most important environmental milestones of the past half century, grounding environmental legislation, landmark legislative victories and foundational research, the White House said.

Over his 25-year career, Pabna’s leadership roles have focused on addressing the root causes of poverty and climate change with equitable, sustainable and scalable strategies. Most recently, he served for more than 14 years as Executive Vice President and Executive Director of the World Resources Institute, a research organization focused on the intersection of environmental and human development.

An economist by training, he got his start at McKinsey & Company and the World Bank before pursuing a career as a lawyer at a banking information center. He holds master’s degrees in business and politics and economic development from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from MIT, the White House said.