Contributor

Akhtar Badshah

Former, Senior Director of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Microsoft Corporation

Dr. Badshah led Microsoft global philanthropic efforts for the last ten years where he administered the company’s global community investment and employee programs that included: monetary grants, software and curriculum donations, technology solutions, and employee volunteer hours, supporting programs and organizations that address the needs of communities worldwide. Badshah oversaw investments of around $5 billion in cash, services and software to nonprofits around the world through localized, company-sponsored giving and volunteer campaigns during his time at Microsoft.

Badshah managed the philanthropic elements of Microsoft’s YouthSpark, a global initiative launched in 2012 that is designed to help youth into opportunities through training, employment and starting their own ventures. YouthSpark has reached 180M youth and supported over 100 nonprofits in 100+ countries in the last two years.

In 2003/2004 Badshah launched and managed the Unlimited Potential grants program where he established over 70,000 Community Technology Learning Centers in 100+ countries impacting over 200 million people in underserved communities by providing accesses to information technology and training.

In addition to the grants program, Badshah also managed the ‘Technology for Good’ program which included supporting the technology needs for nonprofits. Over the last 10 years, hundreds of thousands of nonprofits have benefited from this technology support. Just last year with the launch of O365 for nonprofits, over 11K nonprofits have downloaded O365 with over $1 Million seats deployed. Under his guidance and direction the Employee Engagement program crossed over $1 Billion in amount contributed.
Prior to joining Microsoft, Dr. Badshah was the CEO and president of Digital Partners Foundation, a Seattle-area nonprofit organization whose mission is to utilize the digital economy to benefit the poor. At Digital Partners, he established the organization’s core programs in India, Africa and Latin America. His work included development of the Digital Partners Social Venture Fund, designed to support the expansion of IT-based anti-poverty efforts around the world, and the Digital Partners Social Enterprise Laboratory (SEL), an initiative that provide mentorship and seed money to entrepreneurs whose vision and business models use ICT to empower the poor and their underserved communities.

Dr. Badshah is the Vice Chairman of the Board of Council on Foundations, he is the Chairman of the Telecentre.org Foundation, and also serves on the Advisory Board of the US Chamber’s Corporate Citizenship Center. He has served on the Boards of the United Way King County and Youth Empowerment and Sustainability.

He authored “Our Urban Future: New Paradigms for Equity and Sustainability,” co-authored Technology at the Margins – How IT Meets the Need of Emerging Markets and co-edited “Connected for Development – Information Kiosks for Sustainability.” He has also published numerous articles in international journals on CSR, ICT4D, megacities and sustainability, housing, and urban development. Dr. Badshah has also lectured at numerous universities around the world on issues of Technology and Development, Social Innovation and Corporate Social Responsibility.

Dr. Badshah is a doctoral graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He and his family are very active in the Seattle area community.