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Bay Area’s Abhyankar to lead Persistent’s global strategy
Hari S. Abhyankar holds a Ph.D. in operations management from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
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Staff Reporter - Mon, 23, Mar 2026
- 04:46 EDT
- 16
Hari S. Abhyankar / Persistent Systems
Persistent Systems, a Pune-based multinational technology company with branches across the world, has appointed San Francisco Bay Area resident Hari S. Abhyankar as executive vice president and global head of private equity and professional services, the company announced on March 20.
In his new role, Abhyankar will lead Persistent’s global strategy and growth across private equity investors, their portfolio companies and professional services organizations.
He joins Persistent with more than two decades of experience at the intersection of strategy, technology and business transformation.
Before joining Persistent, he was a partner at McKinsey & Company, where he advised top technology firms and global enterprises on corporate strategy, large-scale transformations and revenue acceleration.
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He later worked with AI-native startups to scale tech-driven innovation and build next-generation operating models, and previously held senior leadership positions at Interpublic Group and Digitas, where he established and led analytics, digital strategy and data-driven marketing teams for major technology and enterprise clients.
Abhyankar holds a Ph.D. in operations management from the MIT Sloan School of Management, along with bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Purdue University.
Outlining the challenges faced by the sector and how he plans to address them in his new role, Abhyankar said in a statement, “Private equity firms are operating in an environment where value creation needs to be faster, more predictable and more technology-driven than ever before.”
He continued, “This requires a fundamentally different approach, one that integrates strategy with execution and scales results across the portfolio. Persistent’s engineering-led DNA and focus on AI-driven transformation position it strongly to address this need. I look forward to working with our clients and partners to accelerate portfolio performance and deliver measurable business results.”
Sandeep Kalra, chief executive officer and executive director of Persistent, highlighted the significance of the appointment and said, “We combine engineering depth, AI-led platforms and execution discipline to deliver results that matter, from accelerating growth to improving operating margins and enabling exit readiness.”
He added, “Hari’s experience strengthens our ability to deepen our engagement with private equity firms and drive sustained performance across their portfolios.”
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