Revathi Advaithi

Early life

Revathi Advaithi was born in Gujarat, India, into a Tamil family. Her father, A. N. N. Swamy worked for Indian Oil Corporation, and her mother, Visalam Swamy, was a homemaker. She has four sisters. Her family lived in Bihar and Assam before settling in Madras (now Chennai). Raised in a household that valued education, discipline, and curiosity, and encouraged independence, Advaithi developed an early interest in mathematics and problem-solving, which later led her to pursue engineering.

Education

Advaithi graduated with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science in 1990, and earned an MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management in 2005.

Advaithi began her career as a shop floor supervisor at Eaton in Shawnee, Oklahoma. She joined Honeywell in 2002, where she spent six years in functions spanning manufacturing and supply chain. In 2008, Advaithi returned to Eaton and helped run various groups within the electrical business unit for approximately 7 years before becoming Eaton's COO.

In February 2019, Advaithi joined Flex as CEO with a focus on driving the next era of technology, manufacturing and supply chain.

Under Advaithi, Flex has shifted its focus to end-to-end customer value chain ownership, augmenting its core contract manufacturing business.

Revathi has shared that her business philosophy heavily focuses on sustainability, culture, and diversity and inclusion. She frequently provides industry guidance for the manufacturing and supply chain sectors.

United States President Joe Biden appointed Advaithi to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations (2023) and the Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness (2022). In June 2023, Advaithi participated in the "Innovation Handshake" at the White House with India Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Biden. The following month, Advaithi hosted President Biden at a Flex factory in South Carolina, highlighting Flex's partnership with Enphase Energy.

Advaithi is also heavily focused on driving sustainable manufacturing practices at Flex. During her tenure, Flex made CDPs 'A list' for tackling water security and has pledged to cut operational emissions in half by 2030 based on a 2019 base year. In July 2022, under Advaithi's leadership, Flex announced a commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

Advaithi served on the board of BAE Systems between January 2018 - July 2020. In July 2020, she stepped down from this role and joined Uber as a board member. She is also a member of the Business Roundtable, and Catalyst CEO Champions For Change initiative.

Advaithi met her husband Jeevan Mulgund in Hutchinson, KS and they married in 1998. Mulgund and Advaithi have since lived in England, Shanghai, Phoenix, AZ, Pittsburgh, PA, and they are currently residing in the San Francisco Bay Area. They have two children.

Advaithi is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion in the workforce, as well as STEM education for girls and computer science education. Advaithi often says that she is inspired by her mother, who singlehandedly raised five daughters after her husband's death and ensured that they received good educations.