Dr. Shekhar Mitra joined Procter & Gamble in 1984 as a staff scientist and was appointed senior vice president of Global R&D in 2010. He is a member of P&G's Executive Committee, the Global Leadership Council. His contributions include leading the creation and development of game-changing technology platforms and innovation strategies that have resulted in a number of well-known consumer products, several of which (Crest Whitening Expressions, Whitestrips, Olay Regenerist, Prilosec and Secret Clinical Strength) were named among the top ten consumer product innovations in past years. These innovations have created and grown major P&G brands and their equities with the help of noticeable, meaningful benefits provided to global consumers by fulfilling their unmet needs in a superior way. Mitra has been awarded over 50 patents and is an invited speaker on topics ranging from game-changing innovation approaches to organization development. In 2010 he was awarded the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor recognized by the U.S. Congress and listed in the Congressional Record for his contributions to touching/improving lives via innovation leadership and community service. He received his undergraduate degree in biophysical chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Life Sciences from Columbia University. He was Jane Coffin Research Fellow at Yale University.