I’m Shivani Gopalkrishna: a qualitative researcher with extensive experience in cross-cultural contexts involving multiple languages such as Japanese, Hindi, Kannada and English. This engagement with diversity has helped me observe through a new set of lenses and ask new questions when studying a social phenomenon.

Through research that delves deep into how consumers perceive and value products and services within the rich context of culture and local practices I try to characterise the nuances of consumer behaviour, lifestyles and evolving aspirations. By applying practical ethnographic methods to make sense of the complexity and numerous variables that exist in India’s rapidly changing society, I aim to provide perspective, insight, context and analysis for improving ideas in strategic planning and design to a range of stakeholders from consumer facing businesses to public policy institutions. More about some of my work is here.

My immersion in Japan through language, culture, work and lived experience has equipped me with observational and analytical skills to study social hierarchies, roles and expectations, behaviours around technology, cultural perceptions around obligation and risk and other complex social phenomena. This experience has fuelled my passion for applying ethnographic methods to understand core questions concerning people in their cultural context and use that to provide better designed products and services. 

QE Synthesis, my research consultancy is based in Bangalore, India. QE stands for Quiet Eye, a technique prevalent in sports science and medicine. It refers to the long, deliberate gaze an athlete or surgeon takes before a critical task and is known to improve outcomes.

If there are ways we can work together please do get in touch at [email protected] or on LinkedIn.