Washington, D.C.– The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) announced the addition of two new board members. They are Caterpillar CEO Jim Umpleby and Medtronic CEO Omar Ishrak.
With the addition of the two new members, the number of the board members has increased to 28. USISPF continues to attract high caliber board members, who serve as both prominent business leaders and global influencers with an ability to impact international relations and corporate affairs worldwide.
Mr. Umpleby brings a wealth of experience to his position on the Board. He joined Caterpillar subsidiary Solar Turbines in 1980, and has served in multiple engineering, manufacturing, sales and marketing roles. Immediately before his election as Caterpillar CEO in January 2017, he was the group president managing Caterpillar’s Energy & Transportation business.
Mr. Umpleby said, “The importance of the strategic relationship between India and the United States is increasing every day. I’m pleased to join the USISPF board. I look forward to working with my fellow board members to advance economic growth in two of the most important democracies in the world.”
Mr. Ishrak joins USISPF with six years of experience as Medtronic CEO, where he’s focused on Therapy Innovation, Economic Value, and Globalization. Previously, he served as President and CEO of GE Healthcare Systems.
He lauded the importance of the U.S.-India relationship and his USISPF Board Membership, saying, “I’m pleased to join the board of the USISPF. Medtronic is dedicated to working in closer partnership with the Indian government and healthcare system leaders to improve access to care, efficiency and affordability, and improved healthcare outcomes. USISPF is an excellent forum for building collaboration and dialogue with India on healthcare issues.”
While promoting trade is an important part of the organization’s work, the convergence of priorities between the U.S. and India today go far beyond trade. There are strategic opportunities that both economies can leverage through advancements in technology and skill development. USISPF will embrace this by expanding its focus to include areas ripe for growth like energy cooperation, promoting job creation, financial inclusion, start-ups, innovation, and education. USISPF works to create the most powerful strategic relationship between U.S. and India, and believes this can be achieved by business and government coming together to create meaningful opportunities that have the power to change the lives of citizens.
Previously announced USISPF Board Member, Bhavesh (Bob) Patel, CEO of LyondellBasell Industries, said, “The relationship between the U.S. and India is strategically important on many levels. As we look to the coming decades and the challenges that they will bring, I believe that this relationship will only grow in its importance.”
“We are excited to welcome these two important leaders to our board,” said Dr. Mukesh Aghi, President of USISPF. “They join an extremely well-positioned USISPF Board of Directors who have the capability to make serious strides in partnership and trade growth between the U.S. and India.”
As champions of the U.S.-India commercial and strategic partnership, we believe there is an unprecedented opportunity for business communities in both countries to play a larger role in the next chapter of this important bilateral-partnership. USISPF is uniquely suited to work together with leaders in the U.S. and India to achieve our shared goals.
Headquartered in Washington D.C., USISPF has offices in New York, Silicon Valley, Mumbai and New Delhi.
The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum is committed to creating the most powerful strategic partnership between the U.S. and India. Promoting bilateral trade is an important part of our work, but our mission reaches far beyond this. It is about business and government coming together in new ways to create meaningful opportunities that have the power to change the lives of citizens.
