PADMA RANGASWAMY, PhD
Senior Associate

Padma is a Senior Associate in the areas of India-related programming and business development for LCW. Padma is also a highly sought after lecturer, presenter, and facilitator on U.S.-India related cultural and immigrant issues and is a client favorite to lead LCW programs, such as: "Building Bridges: Working & Communicating Effectively with India/USA" ^TM and "Short-Term Assignment Briefing: Adjusting to your new Community and Workplace in India/USA" ^TM.

Padma grew up in Delhi, India and holds a Doctorate in History and South Asian Civilization from the University of Illinois at Chicago, USA. Padma first went to the United States to earn a Master's degree in English from the University of Illinois, and then stayed to work in advertising and marketing for several years. She later returned to India as a return migrant, and to raise two daughters in an Indian environment. Padma re-settled again in the United States in 1991, while retaining her home and involvement in the engineering design and manufacturing business that she and her husband had developed in Gurgaon. She and her husband regularly travel back and forth between India and the United States throughout each year--as and when they need to. For the last three years, Padma has also been traveling extensively in China to support establishing a battery-manufacturing plant in Baotou, Inner Mongolia.

Padma ensures business-relevant approaches to developing cultural competence among LCW's clients. Skilled at facilitating LCW's growing body of highly acclaimed Intercultural Development Programs, Padma regularly leads country-specific briefings to prepare traveling subject matter experts and managers for professional and personal success overseas, as well as programs designed to support global virtual teams in incorporating cross-cultural competencies into their workflows. Padma is also certified to administer the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) as part of LCW's coaching offerings. 

Before collaborating with LCW, Padma was an adjunct professor at numerous Chicago-area universities, focusing on the history of South Asians in the U.S.  She is currently the director and co-founder of the South Asian Policy and Research Institute, dedicated to researching and reporting on South Asian affairs for various media including journals, books, and encyclopedias. She also has many years of experience as a presenter and keynote speaker at various South Asian-related conferences and workshops. She has facilitated workshops conducted in partnership with the Chicago Field Museum, Children's Museum, and many immigrant cultural institutions.

In her role with the Chicago Historical Society, Padma also developed multi-cultural communication and training tools including workshops, seminars, and training sessions. She is actively involved with the Chicago Sister-Cities International Program and the Indo-American Center.

Among Padma's many major publications are:

• Asian Indians of Chicago, Arcadia Publishing, (co-author)
• “The South Asian Diaspora” in Encyclopedia of  Modern Asia, eds.

• Asian Immigration to the United States: A Unit of Study for Grades 8-12, Organization of American Historians and National Center for History in the Schools, (co-author)

• Namaste America: Indian Immigrants in an American Metropolis, University Park: Penn State Press

• “Gujaratis” in Encyclopedia of American Immigrant Cultures, New York: McMillan

• “Indians in Chicago” in Ethnic Handbook, Chicago: Illinois Ethnic Coalition

• “Indian Immigrants in Chicago: Growth and Change in a Model Minority” in Ethnic Chicago, eds. Melvin Holli and Peter D’A Jones, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing

• Entries on Indians and Indian Americans in Asian American Encyclopedia, Pasadena: Salem Press

• “The South Asian Diaspora” in Encyclopedia of Diasporas, Human Relations Area Files

• “Asian Indians in Chicago” and “Devon Avenue: A World Market” in The New Chicago, Temple University Press

• 11 entries on Asian Indians in Asian American History and Culture: An Encyclopedia, eds.

• “South Asians” in Encyclopedia of U.S. Labor and Working Class History, Routledge

LANGUAGES: English, Hindi