UpDate - Vol. 14, No. 13, Page 5
December 1, 1994
Prof. combines academic rigor, practical relevance

     A sequence of fortunate "accidents" is how Ajay K. Manrai,
associate professor of marketing in the College of Business and
Economics and a recipient of the University's 1994 excellence-in-
teaching award, describes his arrival at the University of Delaware.
     Born in India, he earned his bachelor's degree in mechanical
engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi and
an MBA from Indian Insititue of Management Ahmedabad. For the next
several years, he worked for Gabriel Shock Absobers, partially owned
by a U.S. company in Bombay, India.
     With the support of business and professional mentors and
elders-referred to as "well wishers" in India-Manrai decided to pursue
a doctorate in marketing, with a minor in econometrics and
optimization theory.
     In 1982, he and his wife, Lalita, also an associate professor of
marketing at Delaware, moved to Evanston, Ill., to attend Northwestern
University.
     After one year as an instructor at Northwestern's Kellogg
Graduate School of Management and five years as an assistant professor
at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, Manrai accepted
his current position at the Newark campus in 1991, joining his wife
who had been on the Delaware faculty since 1987.
     The year 1986, Manrai recalled, was a hectic but memorable one.
His two children were born-Padmini in January and Arjun in December;
he finished his doctorate; he accepted a job at Wharton; and he moved
to Philadelphia.
     Manrai's field of expertise is the mathematical modeling of
consumer perceptions, preferences and choices. In marketing, he said,
the central question is how consumers make selections, how they choose
one brand over another. He focuses on the 4Ps: product, price,
promotion and physical channels of distribution. How these four
entities, and their innumerable combinations, interact and overlap to
influence consumer activity is what he studies, researches and shares
with his students.
     Manrai teaches two graduate-level courses, one on marketing
management and the other on marketing research. The first is an
introductory, case course in marketing; the second is an advanced,
analytical course.
     While growing up, Manrai said, it was the medical profession that
initially grabbed his attention. It wasn't until he began using his
presentation and teaching skills in his industry job that he was
attracted to education.
     "Later, when I was asked to teach an MBA class at Kellogg,"
Manrai said, "I found it was wonderful. I think that's when I made up
my mind. I was there, standing in front of 50 MBA students. It was
wonderful, and I enjoyed it."
     Now, with nearly a decade of experience in his chosen profession,
Manrai does not hesitate when asked to share his favorite aspect of
teaching.
     "The students," he said. "I think here at Delaware, we are very
fortunate in terms of the ability and mix of MBA students we get. They
are very brilliant."
     Manrai said he enjoys the challenge of adult, working students in
the evening MBA courses. He finds them well prepared, enthusiastic and
challenging.
     Speaking from firsthand experience, he said he would rank the
University's MBA students on an equal level with those he taught at
Pennsylvania's Wharton School. He is particularly impressed by the
DuPont MBA students.
     According to Manrai, these working, adult MBA candidates attend
classes at the DuPont site near Wilmington and bring their corporate
knowledge, experience and real-world problems into the evening
sessions. Working with them is both challenging and extremely
satisfying, Manrai said.
     He said he considers teaching a great job for several reasons: He
has the flexibility to conduct research on the topics he deems
appropriate, and he has input into what courses he teaches, how to
design those courses and how to incorporate his research into his
classes.
     "I'm trying to combine academic rigor with practical relevance,"
Manrai said. "In teaching marketing, I keep asking the questions: 'So
what?' and 'How does this apply to the real world?' "
     One of the most satisfying aspects of his job, Manrai said, is
seeing the impact of his research and teaching on his students, seeing
them use his thoughts to influence how things are done.
                                                         -Ed Okonowicz


Editor's note: This story is one of a series of articles featuring the
1994 recipients of the University's excellence-in-teaching and
excellence-in-advising awards.