Illini Insider | My Campus: Gies College of Business’ Unnati Narang | Business

Meet 2025 Central Illinois Business Magazine Forty Under 40 honoree UNNATI NARANG, who grew up the daughter of two doctor-scientists in New Delhi, India, earned her Ph.D. from Texas A&M and joined the faculty of the UI’s Gies College of Business in the summer of 2020.

What you won’t find on her CV: all Narang does when she’s not teaching, researching or writing about new technologies, which she says bring her both “a surprising amount of joy and meaning.”

“I have more hobbies than I can keep up with,” she says. “I write fiction, I am learning to play the piano, I am a powerlifter and have been lifting heavy weights consistently four to five times a week since 2021, I am a certified personal trainer and I also run several cultural groups in the Indian and Jewish communities locally. My husband (the UI College of Education’s Joshua Camins) is Jewish.

“Finally, I am a ‘newly’ minted parent — my husband and I adopted an 18-month old baby girl from India last summer and she is the highlight of our life.”

The Gies Advanced Study Scholar took Editor Jeff D’Alessio for a virtual tour of some of her most memorable places and spaces on and around the UI campus.

Where I’d take a newcomer I wanted to impress

I love nature, so it would have to be Japan House and the Idea Garden. A slow stroll through these spaces — especially in the fall — is an antidote to just about everything.

Where I went on my UI job interview

I interviewed with Cele Otnes, the department head of business administration at the time.

I remember walking into her office at the end of spring/almost early summer and being greeted with a big, welcoming smile. She had my resume printed and several lines highlighted in front of her and said: “You are clearly very passionate about what you do!”

Later, the faculty took me to Miga Sushi, which is unfortunately now closed, for dinner; and then Caffé Bene — and Pour Bros. for drinks. The faculty weren’t rushing but were genuinely interested to get to know me. It made me see that this was a place where work and people both mattered.

The spots that remind me most of home

Two places come to mind. The first is Silvercreek Restaurant, where my husband and I got married in 2021. The second is the Atkins Tennis Center, simply because my dad and I play there every time my parents visit.

I grew up in Delhi, a big, chaotic city — very different from the quiet, peaceful life we have in Champaign-Urbana. But for many reasons, C-U feels even more like home to me than my hometown.

Where I like to teach more than anywhere else

I’m happiest teaching in open, flexible spaces. Sometimes, I take my students to the Siebel Center for Design and run interactive games like a prisoners’ dilemma while teaching competition and market dynamics. Being able to walk around, form groups and move makes the learning feel more alive.

I also really love our live studios for teaching in the Gies iMBA program. The technology is cutting-edge and the team is exceptionally skilled at what they do — and treat the faculty like celebrities.

My favorite place to think

I think best when walking. This might sound morbid but I really like the Mt. Hope Cemetery. I park very close to it when I go into my office at Gies. It’s quiet, open and almost never crowded, with long sightlines and old trees.

I also really like the older residential streets east of campus around Nevada, Oregon or Illinois streets. I used to walk there all the time when I first moved to the Urbana side of Green Street in 2020 during the pandemic.

My favorite place to eat or drink

You won’t see me eating out very often — I love pre-planning my meals for the week and tracking macros, so I usually bring lunch from home.

For coffee, though, I’m a regular at Espresso Royale, where I almost always order a cortado or an espresso with a splash of milk.

Pro tip: even at the Espresso Royale in BIF, pre-ordering on their app can save you a surprising amount of time.