Mr. Vivek Sharma based in Boston currently serves as the CEO of Piramal Pharma Solutions, a global leader in providing Contract Research, Development and Manufacturing services supporting Pharma companies globally. Piramal Pharma Solutions offers integrated solutions from discovery through development and commercialization, with 12 research and manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe, and Asia. Mr. Sharma was awarded CEO of the year by CPHi pharma awards in 2015.

Mr. Sharma joined the Piramal group in 2011 to lead the Piramal Critical Care business. By focusing on strategies that emphasised operational efficiencies and geographical expansion, he led the business towards improved profitability and rapid growth. The Critical Care business is now the third largest in the world and and serves patients in more then 100 countries. Prior to joining Piramal Mr. Sharma was Managing Director with Thomas H Lee Partners, Boston based Private Equity firm.

Mr. Sharma is based in Boston and has over 25 years of Global management experience, and has been listed among ‘The Top 100 Finance Professionals in the United States’. He is a Chartered Accountant from India, a qualified CPA, and also holds a Masters in International Business from Thunderbird School of Management.

At the India Conference at Harvard on February 16, 2019, Sharma talked about Indian Roots, American Soil – How are Indian companies investing and contributing to the US?

It is often perceived that it is only US and other countries that make Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India and create jobs in India. However, Vivek Sharma discussed how India and Indian companies are investing and contributing to the US economy. US – India trade is about $114 B and India is US’ 9^th largest trading partner. India is among the top 10 sources of FDI in US.

Indian companies have invested over $18B and employ nearly 113K employees in the US. Included in that is $600M in R&D and $150M through CSR. The five states with the largest investments are NY, NJ, MA, CA and WY. Among the largest investors are Tata, Reliance, Piramal, Infosys, Birla, Mahindra and Dr. Reddy’s. Besides IT, these companies have made significant investments in life sciences, manufacturing, energy and hotel/hospitality industries.

Piramal is a conglomerate with focus on Health Care, Financial, Glass, Realty and Foundation. It has invested $1.3B in US and has over 2000 employees in the US and more than 600 in Boston area.  It has 12 sites with 3 of them FDA approved. They have commercialized 36 drugs here and have more than 60 active joint programs in oncology and cancer. Its location in NJ is the 3^rd largest producer of inhaled anesthetics and supplies medicines to over 100 countries around the world. Its Decision Resource Group works with top 48/50 life sciences companies, top 17/20 medical device companies and top8/10 health systems. It glass division makes every 3^rd nail polish bottle.

Sharma believes that the success of Piramal and other Indian companies is rooted in strong value system for sustainable growth.

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