Biography

Biography
Prof. (Dr.) Laknath Jayasinghe is a Professor in Marketing at JGBS. At the University level, he is also Dean (Office of International Affairs and Global Initiatives, IAGI) and Associate Director at the Centre for India Australia Studies, CIAS.
Australian born and raised, Laknath gained his PhD in marketing (minor in consumer anthropology) at the University of Melbourne after completing his MPhil research in cultural studies at the University of Queensland. He additionally holds a BBus degree (in marketing) from Queensland University of Technology and a BSc from the University of Melbourne.

Research
Laknath’s research examines the deep meanings and processes of consumer culture. He uses advanced qualitative techniques and applies a sociocultural lens to understand how and why people consume branded products and services. He examines this through the contexts of cultural identity and globalisation, social class, gender, sexuality, and family identity. His research has been published in quality scholarly outlets such as Marketing Theory and Journal of Consumer Research.

Teaching
Laknath’s core teaching strengths are in consumer behaviour, brand management and qualitative research methods. He also teaches courses in marketing management, media and society, and gender and consumption; and he previously taught undergraduate and postgraduate students at well-regarded Australian universities such as Monash University, Macquarie University, and University of Newcastle.

Consulting career
Prior to his appointment at JGBS, Laknath was Research Director at 66south, a boutique research firm offering specialist qualitative consumer-brand insights to the healthcare sector in Australia; and he was also Research Manager at Ward6, Sydney, one of the Asia-Pacific’s leading advertising agencies serving the healthcare and medicines sector. He has been a R&D consultant in Melbourne to innovative and award-winning brand strategy firms such as Latitude Insights and Forethought Research. Before his research career, Laknath worked in Australia for several years as an advertising executive at the WPP-owned advertising media giants Zenithmedia (rebranded as Mediacom) and Mindshare.

Institution building
As an Australian citizen working in Indian higher education, Laknath is passionate about providing international higher education experiences to students through his role as Dean, Office of International Affairs and Global Initiatives. He also furthers the bilateral partnership in education that exists between India and Australia through his work at JGU’s CIAS.

Laknath’s media commentary work appears in Australian marketing industry publications such as B&T and Marketing Magazine; in online public affairs portals such as New Matilda, and in leading international newspapers such as The Australian and The Age (Melbourne). His writing has also appeared in the iconic American literary monthly, Harper’s Magazine.

Away from his work, Laknath enjoys reading, travelling across the Indian subcontinent, socialising over food, and exercising. He ran his first full marathon in Melbourne at the age of 12 — and his second the year after.