Consulting · Advisory · AI-enabled transformation

From strategy to working systems

Back, stronger, for larger global impact. Transformation advisory reinforced by the experience of running companies, building social ventures, leading global expansion, government affairs, investments and M&A, and delivered through high-impact, AI-enabled interventions.

Book a working session → Why GroundReality
Dr. Prathaap Rao, Ph.D. · Turning Possibility into Progress
The next chapter

Back on the ground, with more ground covered

GroundReality has advised leaders on transformation for years. It returns with something frameworks can’t teach: the operator’s experience of having run the businesses, ventures and deals it now advises on.

01

Running companies

Started and run 5+ companies over 15 years. Advice shaped by carrying P&L, operations and teams.

02

Social ventures

PotHoleRaja and GridMats: 40,000+ potholes fixed across 30+ cities, 49 GridMats projects in three years, and 100+ media features with zero ad spend.

03

Global expansion

Work across 30+ countries: entering new markets, building partnerships and leading across cultures and time zones.

04

Government affairs

Policy advisory and public-private partnerships; US$4M+ raised with corporates, governments and institutions.

05

Investments & M&A

Two mergers and acquisitions as a founder-operator, and an investor’s lens on value creation and integration.

06

High-impact AI interventions

Redesign the work, then apply AI: focused interventions that change how decisions and workflows run, with value measured.

Earned, not bought

National visibility for PotHoleRaja and GridMats, without an advertising budget

Marketing and PR were built on impact, story and partnerships, not paid media. The same playbook helps corporates scale, grow, innovate and design with credibility.

100+articles, features and interviews
TV & newsnational TV shows and news coverage
TEDx“Fixing the world, one pothole at a time”, published on ted.com →
Shark TankShark Tank India, Season 3: GridMats by PotHoleRaja

Recognized where it matters

IISc, IITs, engineering colleges and global platforms have recognized the PotHoleRaja and GridMats story of circular innovation and civic impact, and used it in their own programs.

What corporates can use

  • Turn an innovation or transformation into a story stakeholders want to amplify
  • Treat media, academia, government and CSR partners as distribution, not cost
  • Design for visible, measurable impact that earns coverage
  • Build credibility before spend, so scale and growth cost less

Read the article: Earned, not bought →

As featured inShark Tank IndiaTEDx · ted.comHyundai “Be The Better Guy” × Autocar IndiaThe Better IndiaYourStoryThe News MinuteThe Hans India
The gap

Most transformation stalls between intent and execution

The challenge is rarely a shortage of ideas. It is the absence of an integrated system for turning choices into changed work.

01
Strategy

Priorities compete; ownership and decision rights stay unclear.

02
Process

Work crosses silos, but metrics and accountability do not.

03
Technology

AI and digital tools arrive before workflows and governance are ready.

04
People

Training occurs, yet behaviour and operating routines remain unchanged.

Our approach

One partner for the full transformation arc

Diagnostic depth, design discipline, executive advisory and practical capability transfer — in one team.

01

See

Reveal the real system

Evidence, voices, process and value.

02

Choose

Focus the change

Priorities, business case and governance.

03

Build

Design the future state

Operating model, process, product and adoption.

04

Land

Make it work

Pilots, implementation, cadence and benefit realization.

Capabilities

Six connected capabilities. One transformation system.

Engage a focused workstream or an integrated program.

01

Business process transformation

Flow, accountability, metrics and operating discipline — beyond process maps to decisions, behaviours and benefit realization.

  • Process mapping
  • BPM maturity
  • APQC
  • Operating model
02

AI-enabled transformation

Start with work, then apply AI: use-case selection, workflow redesign, adoption and governance.

  • Use cases
  • Workflow redesign
  • Responsible adoption
03

Innovation & commercialization

From insight and prototype to business model, market execution and earned-media go-to-market — beyond the workshop.

  • Design thinking
  • Prototyping
  • Go-to-market
  • Earned media & PR
04

Sustainability & circularity

Convert environmental ambition into product, process and value-chain choices.

  • Circular design
  • Impact metrics
  • Ecosystems
05

Strategy, governance & advisory

Decision architecture, execution cadence, risk, growth and board-level perspective, including expansion, investment and M&A decisions.

  • Board advisory
  • Global expansion
  • M&A integration
06

Organization & leadership

Vision, Values and Learning; behavioural intelligence, training and capability building in the flow of work.

  • Leader labs
  • Academies
  • Coaching
Method

The 5D transformation pathway

A consistent logic from evidence to sustained value — every engagement is modular, but anchored in the same discipline.

1

DISCOVER

Listen and map

Stakeholders · data · process · maturity

2

DEFINE

Focus the value

Priorities · feasibility · business case

3

DESIGN

Create the future

Future state · operating model · measures

4

DEVELOP

Pilot and equip

Pilots · capability · adoption · governance

5

DELIVER

Scale and sustain

Implementation · cadence · benefits

AI-enabled transformation

Start with work. Then apply AI.

GroundReality helps leaders choose high-value use cases, redesign workflows and put responsible adoption around the technology.

Workflow first. Governance and adoption built in, value measured — not pilots that never scale. Read the article →

1

Value

Where can AI improve cycle time, quality, insight or experience?

2

Workflow

What work, decisions and hand-offs must change?

3

Data

What information, controls and human review are required?

4

Adoption

How will leaders, teams and measures reinforce the new way?

Engagement models

Flexible entry points. One outcome discipline.

Choose the depth that matches the decision, urgency and transformation horizon.

01

Diagnostic sprint

2–4 weeks

Evidence, opportunity map, priorities and executive readout.

02

Transformation program

3–12 months

Future state, pilots, implementation governance and benefits.

03

Executive / board advisory

Retained

Strategy, governance, risk, expansion, investment and execution counsel.

04

Capability build

Embedded

Leader labs, academies, coaching and practitioner transfer tied to live work.

Evidence

An enterprise BPM diagnostic converted complexity into five priorities

An APAC specialty-ingredients enterprise: process evidence, stakeholder voice and maturity assessment combined.

>200stakeholder inputs
APQCprocess classification
5enterprise priorities
5Dconsulting pathway
Output

A fact-based transformation agenda

Five enterprise priorities, each traced back to the evidence behind it.

Customer relationshipSupply chainManufacturingKnowledge managementPeople & talent

Read how the fact base was built →

Dr. Prathaap Rao, Ph.D. at a PotHoleRaja event
Circular commercialization

GridMats & PotHoleRaja

From waste-material insight to a patented recycled-polypropylene product, deployment ecosystem and quantified impact reporting.

ProductMarketEcosystemImpact
RM 165M a yearin savings · engineering & construction group, Malaysia LKR 240Madded to the bottom line · listed conglomerate, Sri Lanka RM 13,300+saved per work order · infrastructure asset management, Malaysia 40,000+ potholesfixed across 30+ cities · PotHoleRaja, India

Evidence is case-specific and source-labelled. Clients are described by sector and region.

See all 18 case studies →
Global footprint & selected experience

30+ countries. Consulting, training and transformation at scale.

Consulting, training, workshops, large-scale implementations and transformations across Asia, the Middle East, the UK, Europe and the USA.

30+Countries

Based in Bengaluru, India, with work across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America.

South Asia

India · Sri Lanka

Southeast Asia

Malaysia · Singapore · Indonesia

Middle East

Dubai · Abu Dhabi

UK & Europe

United Kingdom · Europe

United States

USA

And more

Engagements across 30+ countries

What the work has coveredConsultingTrainingWorkshopsLarge-scale implementationsTransformations

Organizations, labelled to distinguish advisory engagements, facilitated programs and prior enterprise leadership.

Consulting / advisory

Kemin IndustriesSiemens HealthineersTenaga NasionalMashreq BankLandmark GroupUEM Group

Facilitated programs

Asian PaintsInternational Business Management (IBM) · University of Portsmouth, London campus

Visiting faculty

IIM BangaloreChrist UniversityAlliance UniversityIFIM Business SchoolWelingkar (WeSchool)Jain UniversityMS Ramaiah

Enterprise leadership

HPHewitt / AonAditya Birla GroupVanguardMphasisCiti
Latest thinking

Thought leadership from the ground

Lessons from advising, operating and building, written to be used.

The other side of the tableThe other side of the tableWhat running companies, building social ventures and working with government taught me, and why it changes how consulting should work.Read → The other side of the tableSeven lessons from running companies that no framework taught meWhat starting and running 5+ companies, including two mergers and acquisitions, teaches about strategy, people and execution.Read → The other side of the tableWhat social ventures teach about impact, scale and doing more with lessLessons from building PotHoleRaja and GridMats that apply to CSR, ESG, innovation and any initiative that must scale on limited resources.Read →

All articles, notes, talks & media →

Partner

Advisor, operator, builder and investor

Dr. Prathaap Rao, Ph.D., Managing Partner, GroundReality

Dr. Prathaap Rao, Ph.D.

Managing Partner
Turning Possibility into Progress

Back, stronger, for larger global impact: consulting depth combined with the experience of running companies, building social ventures, expanding globally, working with governments and doing deals, now applied through high-impact, AI-enabled transformation.

Enterprise

Former Air Force pilot · 26 years of impact · senior transformation, BPM, HR operations and quality leadership.

Operator & builder

Has run companies and built social ventures, including GridMats / PotHoleRaja. TEDx speaker; Shark Tank India, Season 3.

Global & government

Work across 30+ countries; global expansion, cross-border partnerships and government affairs.

Capital

Investments, M&A and a value-creation view of transformation.

Boardroom

Strategy, governance, risk, sustainability and independent-advisory perspective.

Method + AI

Lean Six Sigma, process consulting, systems thinking and high-impact AI interventions.

Teaching & academia

Why a consultant keeps teaching

  • Builds and retains deep subject matter
  • Connects us to young minds and fresh thinking
  • Spreads knowledge beyond any one client
  • Keeps us close to academic research
Subjects taught as visiting professor

LeadershipStrategyBusiness process managementHR management & HR analyticsAdvanced data analyticsOperations managementEntrepreneurshipCSRBusiness simulations

At IIM Bangalore, Christ, Alliance, IFIM, Welingkar, Jain and MS Ramaiah, plus 1,000+ professionals trained and certified in project management, Lean Six Sigma and analytics.

Where
  • IIM Bangalore
  • Christ University · Alliance University
  • IFIM Business School · Welingkar (WeSchool)
  • Jain University · MS Ramaiah
Degrees & executive education
  • Double Ph.D., Management Science: organization design & development; social & behavioural science (Alliance University; CCU Malawi)
  • MBA (IIMM) · M.S. Statistics · MDAP
  • Harvard Business School executive programs (ALDP, LNVI)
  • MIT Sloan: Negotiation & Influence; Design Thinking
  • B.E. Mechanical Engineering · B.Sc. Mathematics
Certifications
  • Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (Indian Statistical Institute)
  • PMP and PfMP (PMI)
  • COPC Registered Coordinator · ISO QMS & EMS Lead Auditor
  • Lead assessor: ISO, COPC, SOX, SAS 70, EFQM
  • Human Process Lab (ISABS) · DDI · FranklinCovey 7 Habits · Agile-Scrum · TQM · Risk management
Recognition & authorship
  • Former Indian Air Force fighter pilot; youngest trainer for fighter aircraft
  • All India Air Force Best Cadet, awarded by the Prime Minister at the Republic Day parade; Global Best Cadet, UK Youth Exchange
  • Best Global Tower Leader (HP); one of Hewitt’s youngest AVPs
  • Author of 4 books, 25+ research papers and 50+ articles
  • TEDx speaker · Shark Tank India
Boards & memberships
  • Board director and advisor to 8+ organizations and start-ups
  • Member: IGBC, FICCI, CII (CSR panel), NASSCOM, ASSOCHAM, PMI
  • IISc CST and product-design network
Ecosystem

A clear path for every audience

prathaap.com

Thought leadership

Personal profile, essays, speaking and advisory point of view.
groundreality.org

Consulting platform

Diagnostics, programs, advisory and insights.
arpitha.com

Transformation partner

Vision, Values, Learning and People–Process–Technology depth.
opptimise.com

Behavioural platform

Assessment, behavioural intelligence and development pathways.
Start here

Let’s turn the ground reality into a working transformation agenda.

Choose one business-critical outcome. A 60–90 minute executive working session frames the evidence, priorities and pathway before any larger commitment.

01Which transformation is strategically important — but operationally stuck?
02Where are silos, decisions or hand-offs destroying value?
03Which AI, innovation, expansion or sustainability opportunity needs a credible route to scale?
Book a working session →
prathaap@groundreality.org
+91 99727 11331