Dr. Santosh Kumar Tarai

Associate Professor, Fashion Management Studies (MFM)

Bhubaneswar Campus

Dr. Santosh Kumar Tarai

faculty-1
  • santosh.tarai@nift.ac.in
  • Project I/C
LinkedIn Profile

Dr. Santosh Kumar Tarai is an Associate Professor in the Department of Fashion Management Studies at the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Bhubaneswar, Odisha. He has more than twenty-five years of experience in management teaching, research, academic administration, and academic editing. His areas of teaching and academic specialisation include Research Methodology, Business Analytics, Export Merchandising, Strategic Management, and Organisational Behaviour.
His research interests include sustainable fashion, development economics, entrepreneurship, and business strategy, with a particular focus on apparel export firms and SMEs. He holds a PhD in Economics from the Department of Analytical and Applied Economics, Utkal University. He has also completed an MBA in Marketing and a Certificate Course in Garment Export Merchandising and Management (GEMM) from NIFT, along with export-related courses offered by the International Trade Centre (ITC).

Dr. Tarai has presented research papers at numerous national and international conferences and has published several research articles in peer-reviewed journals and has published a book. He has also chaired technical sessions at academic conferences and actively contributed to various scholarly and professional engagements.
During his tenure at NIFT, Dr. Tarai has served at different centres, including Delhi, Patna, and Bhubaneswar, in various capacities such as Centre Coordinator (CC), Regional Industry Coordinator (RIC), Cluster Initiative Coordinator, Campus Academic Coordinator (CAC), Resource Centre In-Charge, Project In-Charge and, has contributed actively for promoting the NIFT programme among prospective students as part of an outreach initiative.

Prior to joining NIFT, he worked on a World Bank project at the National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA), New Delhi.
He also serves as an anchor and advisory member for management course curriculum development. He has been invited by various academic institutions to serve as an academic advisor and resource person, contributing his expertise to academic and educational initiatives. Dr. Tarai has also undertaken professional development programmes in emerging areas of management and technology. He attended a one-week training programme on Business Analytics, Big Data, and Digital Marketing at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM Bangalore).