Episode #3
Choosing the Unscripted Path: Amitav Virmani on Education, Purpose, and a Life in the Social Sector
In this episode of PolicyPod, Ayush is in conversation with Amitav Virmani, Founder and CEO of The Education Alliance — an education non-profit working on systems change in public education, for a wide-ranging and deeply reflective conversation on leadership, education reform, and building change that lasts. Apple podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/policy-pod/id1848677169 An alumnus of St. Stephen’s College and an MBA from the University of North Carolina, Amitav took an unscripted path from early stints in the private sector in India & the United States to a decisive shift to the social sector in his late 30s. Over the last 17+ years, he has worked at the intersection of government, civil society, and philanthropy, helping strengthen India’s public education system at scale.In this conversation, Amitav reflects on what drew him to the education space, the realities of pay and progression in the social sector, the journey of building The Education Alliance and its key milestones, how government partnerships actually function on the ground, the role of NGOs and civil society in sustaining reform, and what it takes to build a long-term career in the social sector. Tune in! Read more about Amitav here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amitav-virmani-71716944/ Read more about The Education Alliance here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the_education_alliance/ Read more about Ayush here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayush-singhal-8b454434/ 00:00 Introduction & early life 05:21 Choosing an unscripted path 14:14 Finding purpose in education 15:39 From corporate to social sector 19:47 Starting The Education Alliance 24:57 Reforming schools at scale – the TEA journey 29:20 Inside government partnerships 36:30 Impact vs showing impact 40:42 The permanence of civil society 46:46 Mission Ankur & FLN at scale (Madhya Pradesh) 54:09 Working in consortia & partnerships 59:58 Building careers in the social sector 01:08:02 Rapid fire & closing reflections
