Vithala R. Rao, PhD., is the Deane W. Malott Professor of Management and Professor of Marketing and Quantitative Methods at the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management. He holds master’s degrees in mathematical statistics from the University of Bombay and in sociology from the University of Michigan, and a PhD in applied economics and marketing from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
He has published over 135 papers on several topics including conjoint analysis and multidimensional scaling, pricing, bundle design, brand equity, market structure, corporate acquisition, and linking branding strategies to financial performance. His current work includes competitive bundling, diffusion of attribute information for new products, and trade promotions. His papers have appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research, Marketing Science, Management Science, Journal of Marketing, and Journal of Consumer Research, among others.
In addition to his 2004 book, Applied Conjoint Analysis, he is the co-author of Applied Multidimensional Scaling, Decision Criteria for New Product Acceptance and Success, and Analysis for Strategic Marketing. He also edited a volume of research papers entitled, Handbook of Pricing Research in Marketing.