Guru Madhavan, Sr Director of Programs, National Academy of Engineering
- Guru Madhavan is the inaugural Norman R. Augustine Senior Scholar and senior director of programs of the National Academy of Engineering.
- He is also the founding director of the Forum on Complex Unifiable Systems (FOCUS).
Podcast
Overview
In this episode of The Brand Called You, Guru Madhavan, Sr. Director of Programs at the National Academy of Engineering, discussed his career trajectory and key influences. He highlighted three inflection points: his early morning discipline from assisting his grandfather in a village temple, his engineering education emphasizing systems thinking, and a transformative anthropology course in grad school. Madhavan’s diverse experiences include working in various industries, developing biomedical instruments, and leading vaccine development during crises like Ebola and Zika. He emphasized the importance of systems engineering, interdisciplinary thinking, and addressing “wicked problems” through a holistic, generative approach.
00:51- About Guru Madhavan
- Guru Madhavan is the inaugural Norman R. Augustine Senior Scholar and senior director of programs of the National Academy of Engineering.
- He is also the founding director of the Forum on Complex Unifiable Systems (FOCUS).
- He has served as a technical advisor to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the European Union Malaria Fund.
41:00- How do you tackle wicked problems to Engineer a Better World? What are FOCUS’s goals and an example? How has advising the US HHS and EU Malaria Fund shaped your work?
- In “Wicked Problems”, I introduce the concept of complex challenges that resist traditional “solving” – they must be “resolved” or “dissolved” through a generative, multidisciplinary approach.
- The FOCUS forum I founded explores systems engineering to tackle these wicked problems, bringing diverse experts together.
- My HHS and EU Malaria Fund advisory work showed that technical solutions alone are insufficient – you must also address cultural, social, and political dimensions.
50:07- Are there any final recommendations for the audience?
- Beware of the addiction to “mono-causal taxophilia” – the tendency to seek single-point explanations and solutions.
- Manage the side effects of this reductionist mindset by embracing complexity and interconnectedness.
- Develop a more holistic, systems-level perspective to engage with problems on their own terms, not just your own.
RESOURCES:
Learn more about Guru Madhavan: LinkedIn
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Profile
- Guru Madhavan is the inaugural Norman R. Augustine Senior Scholar and senior director of programs of the National Academy of Engineering.
- He is also the founding director of the Forum on Complex Unifiable Systems (FOCUS).
- He has served as a technical advisor to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the European Union Malaria Fund.
