Subroto Roy, an Indian American professor, has been honored with a prestigious award for his research on the role of artificial intelligence in business-to-business sales and higher education.
Subroto Roy, a marketing professor at the Pompea College of Business at the University of New Haven in Connecticut, has received the Best in Track Paper Award from the American Marketing Association during its 2026 Summer Academic Conference.
This award recognizes Roy’s insightful paper titled “Beyond the Polanyi Paradox in B2B Marketing: Leveraging AI to Extract Tacit User Knowledge in Product-Led Growth.” His research delves into how artificial intelligence systems can process unstructured actions in the workplace to uncover unexpressed customer preferences. This capability enables business-to-business firms to enhance their market outreach and improve value delivery.
Roy highlighted the significant implications of his research for business education, noting that as routine marketing tasks—such as drafting sequences and building lists—become automated, entry-level marketing positions will increasingly demand skills in analytical reasoning, question design, and ethical judgment.
“The graduates who thrive in the AI age will be the ones who can direct AI rather than compete with it,” Roy stated. He emphasized that integrating current research into university curricula is essential for preparing students to meet the evolving demands of the workforce.
Roy’s academic journey began in India, where he earned a Master of Science degree from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science in 1980. He later obtained a postgraduate diploma in rural management from the Institute of Rural Management Anand in 1982 and completed his doctorate in marketing at the University of Western Sydney in Australia in 2002.
Before transitioning to academia, Roy accumulated valuable experience in India’s commercial sector from 1982 to 1995. He served as the head of marketing and sales for Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), a joint venture between Sweden’s Tetra Pak and India’s National Dairy Development Board. During his tenure, he played a pivotal role in introducing aseptic packaging to the Indian market, contributing to the launch of well-known products such as Amul and Frooti.
Since joining the University of New Haven in 2001, Roy has held various leadership roles, including chair of the Department of Accounting, Finance, and Marketing. He has also served as co-editor of the American Business Review and has been a visiting lecturer at Texas Christian University, as well as a visiting scholar at the Yale School of Management.
Throughout his academic career, Roy has made significant contributions to the field of marketing, publishing extensively in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, the Journal of Product Innovation Management, Marketing Science, and Industrial Marketing Management.
In addition to his editorial role with the American Business Review, Roy is also involved with the editorial review boards of the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science and the Journal of Supply Chain Management.
His recent recognition by the American Marketing Association underscores the importance of his research in shaping the future of marketing education and practice, particularly in the context of advancing artificial intelligence technologies.
According to The American Bazaar, Roy’s work exemplifies the critical intersection of technology and marketing, paving the way for future innovations in the field.