It is the defining ambition of many a technologist to work for
General Electric as the company is famous for being a global innovator.
Gopichand Katragadda is now one such person. Katragadda has been picked
to head the company’s largest R&D centre outside the US. "I had been
with GE for a long time and was heading the energy division prior to my
present role. It is always exciting when you work with lots of
innovators," he says.
The India technology centre of this global behemoth is spread across
three cities—Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bangalore. Katragadda clearly loves
challenges, whether it is in his professional or personal life—the last
15 years saw him attempting to decipher the complex Indus script, not
exactly a job for the fainthearted.
In his new role as the Managing Director, GE India Technology Center
Katragadda's aim is to similarly find solutions to complex problems. He
says that he wants to make the GE India Technology Center a national
asset, where technology is developed to solve the world's and India's
toughest problems in a responsible way.
With an experience spanning 10 years and various roles in the
company, he is in charge of 5,500 people who contribute significantly to
the various portfolios of GE globally. Prior to this, he served as the
GM for GE Energy Infrastructure's India Engineering Operations
overseeing, 2,000 employees in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai.
With over 400 patents filed by GE India Technology Centre last year
alone, Katragadda expects to see a flood of innovations coming out of
the India centre. He also predicts a huge opportunity in the field of
energy, locomotives, transportation and healthcare.
Katragadda holds a Bachelor's degree in Electronics Engineering from
Bangalore University and both his master's and doctorate in electrical
engineering from Iowa State University. He is also a writer and a
painter.
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