Disha Shanbhag
dishashanbhag80@gmail.com · linkedin.com/in/disha-shanbhag-digianth · London, UK
Resume
Fieldwork
& Findings
Download resume (PDF)Profile
In brief
A public sector professional with 3+ years of experience in delivering commercial, design research and evaluation services across the UK’s central and local government departments. As a trained anthropologist, I bring a relational, inclusive, policy-informed and commercially sensitive approach to digital transformation and technological adoption in government.
- Public sector clients
- DSIT, GCA, LGA, Companies House, Innovate UK, DBT, DfE, MHCLG and Camden Council, Teignbridge Council, Open Contracting Partnership & Partners for Public Good
- Private sector clients
- MasterCard, Meta, AWS Marketplace and Microsoft
- Tools
- Figma, Miro, Dovetail, NVivo, The Data City, Crunchbase, Stotles, Google Slides, Excel, Python, Gephi, Qualtrics, Claude Code and Typeform
- Product & research
- Product discovery, Roadmapping, Mixed-method user research, Stakeholder synthesis, A/B testing, Scrum Master, Agile delivery, Impact evaluation (HMT Green & Magenta Book) and Competitor analysis
Experience
Where I've worked
Consultant (Associate II)
PUBLIC
Led 15+ Transforming Public Procurement (TPP) Steering Group sessions, supporting the first frameworks and commercial assets to go live under the Procurement Act 2023.
Delivered 12+ digital transformation projects in the product team of the Government Commercial Agency (GCA), the UK’s largest procurement body, running rapid user research and delivery sprints to turn frontline needs into product improvements.
Delivered LGA’s Technology Innovation Showcase, running workshops with 100+ local councils to develop AI challenge statements and use cases.
Developed a GTM strategy for Meta’s and MasterCard’s open-source AI and payments products to enter the UK public sector.
Led research for US charity Partners for Public Good (PPG) on European public sector innovation, identifying practices to pilot in US state and local government.
Advises early-stage GovTech startups on selling to the UK government, from procurement routes to market strategy.
Manages a £450K innovation procurement portfolio, driving business development and stakeholder relationships.
Product Research and Design Intern
Anthropie
Conducted comprehensive discovery research, interviewing 10+ stakeholders and 15+ users across India for Anthropie’s upcoming sexual wellness platform for urban youth called ‘Izaar’.
Designed report and findings for upcoming presentation with investors, which helped the company finalise problem areas and target audience for further development phases.
Editorial Consultant
National University Students' Skill Development Programme (NUSSD)
Conducted baseline process and impact evaluation, interviewing 15+ participants to develop an internal case study library.
Developed strategic social media campaigns, online and offline events, and the annual table book detailing the programme's scope and impact on the target population.
Education
Qualifications
Fellowship Candidate
Newspeak House
A one-year practitioner's course for mid-career technologists working in the UK civic and government technology sector.
L4M8 Procurement and Supply in Practice
Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS)
L4M4 Ethical and Responsible Sourcing
Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS)
MSc Digital Anthropology
University College London (UCL)
BA English Literature
Ramnarain Ruia Autonomous College, Mumbai University
Presentations
Talks, panels & papers
Selling to Government
UK PropTech Association, Lunch & Learn Sessions
Invited session on navigating public sector procurement and government sales strategy for the PropTech industry.
Read more →The Gig Economy and Flexibility
Cloud Civilisations Podcast
A recorded conversation on flexible working conditions, digital labour, and what it means for international students navigating the platform economy in London.
Listen / watch →Ethical Design
Service Lab London · December 2023
Invited speaker session exploring ethics in service and digital design practice.
Dial-in-ing in Love: use of ICTs in long-distance relationships
19th IUAES World Anthropological Congress · October 2023
Peer-reviewed paper on the role of information and communication technologies in maintaining intimacy and connection across geographical distance.
Writing
Reports & publications
Italy's Multiplicity Principle: Moving Away from Model-Centric AI Governance
Interweave, Special Issue
Co-authored feature on Italy's AGID agency proposing a full-stack approach to AI governance — prioritising institutional flexibility, technological sovereignty, and operational resilience over model-centric risk assessment.
Read more →Using the Competitive Flexible Procedure for Innovation
PUBLIC
A report on approaches to complex technology and innovation procurement in the public sector, developed with industry partners including Innovate UK.
Read more →Beyond balance: understanding how digital applications help create narratives of flexibility in case of casual jobs in London
Disrupting Technology Conference, Leeds · Passed peer review
Peer-reviewed paper examining how digital platforms construct and communicate flexibility for casual workers in London.