University at Buffalo School of Management

Spring 2023 Buffalo Business 15 and how willing they are to explore ways they can help us. Our big opportunity is to leverage this ecosystem and the goodwill of our alumni to make things happen quickly. Q. YOU ARE A RENOWNED PROFESSOR AND PROLIFIC RESEARCHER. TELL US ABOUT A RESEARCH TOPIC THAT INTERESTS YOU. Iyer: One paper I just finished with my former PhD student and now colleague, Aditya Vendantam, was driven by work we did with the U.S. Department of Energy on criti- cal material supply chains. These days, everybody is looking at renewable energy and more sustainable transportation, but as we move into this field, we need materials that we previ- ously didn't use as much. In this case, it really it comes down to batteries and magnets, and there are constraints based on where the material for these batteries and magnets comes from. Lithium is primarily sourced from Chile, cobalt is sourced from the Congo and refined in China, and the success of these initiatives is a function of availability throughout the world. Should you care that the cobalt needed for your car battery is supporting a bunch of warlords? Or should you say, "I'm going to procure from people whose values align with mine, even if it's more expensive." You can think about this with all other supply chains, as well. What happens if consumers start caring about the entire chain of custody, from growing the product, to consumption, to post-consumption waste and the environmental footprint? The answer has a lot of policy and regulatory implications. It's not clear that everybody will care about everything, but the fact that laws get made that hold companies responsible for the entire chain of custody will change how sourcing happens, and how and where things are produced. This, to me, is a really exciting development in the supply chain world. Q. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO A NEW BUSINESS STUDENT OR RECENT GRAD? Iyer: I have a rule that every Friday I ask myself what I learned this week. It's a question you can ask regardless of where you are in your career. It's a way to understand how you as an individual can contribute, because we are recog- nized by the value of what we bring to the table. AGE: 62 HOMETOWN: Mumbai, India FAMILY: Wife, Vidhya, and two adult daugh- ters (one works for Google and the other is in law school) INTERESTS: Reading, walking TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF THAT'S NOT ON YOUR CV: Once I partici- pated in National Novel Writing Month and wrote a novel in 30 days. It was an amaz- ing challenge, because I did it while I was doing everything else, but it was actually a wonderful experience. I never submited it for publication, though I may revisit it someday. FAVORITE PLACE YOU'VE VISITED: Alaska — it's an order of magnitude more beautiful than any pictures I've ever seen. FAVORITE CUISINE: We like to cook, and we have found some good Greek, Indian and Mexican restaurants in Buffalo. We are still looking for a great Middle Eastern restau- rant — so if any of our alumni have sugges- tions … UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL

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