ICBI Management Team | Founders & Senior Leadership

Rakesh Agarwal

Managing Director & Co-Founder, ICBI

Rakesh Agarwal is a pioneering entrepreneur, business mentor, author and advocate of self-image development and personal transformation. With over 35 years of entrepreneurial experience, he has built and led ventures across services, training and professional education.

In 2009, he co-founded ICBI and has since played a central role in building an ecosystem that enables professionals to develop expertise, build careers and create meaningful impact through Image Consulting and Soft Skills Training.

35+ Years Entrepreneurial ExperienceBusiness MentorAuthor & SpeakerDirector, IMPA

“When people improve the way they see themselves, they improve the way they experience life. Every meaningful transformation begins with self-image.”

An Entrepreneurial Journey of Pioneering Ideas

A graduate of Boston University and a second-generation entrepreneur, Rakesh has consistently demonstrated an ability to identify emerging opportunities and build businesses ahead of their time.

At the age of 21, he introduced organised car rental services to India through a collaboration with Hertz Rent A Car. In 1989, he launched Ask Me, a telephone-based search service that anticipated the directory and search platforms that would become commonplace years later.

His belief in the power of learning and personal development also led him to introduce Winning in Sales Every Time, a self-help sales training program, in 1994. His entrepreneurial achievements earned him recognition as one of the Top Five Finalists for the India Young Business Achievers Award in 1996.

Building Expertise Through Professional Education

From 2000 to 2009, Rakesh served as Managing Director of Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess Training, contributing significantly to its growth as a vocational training institution.

In 2009, he co-founded Image Consulting Business Institute (ICBI). His entrepreneurial and professional education experience has played an important role in shaping ICBI not only as a learning institution, but as an ecosystem that helps professionals translate their expertise into careers, consulting, training and independent practice.

Through ICBI's education, mentoring and professional development initiatives, thousands of professionals have developed capabilities in Image Consulting and Soft Skills Training and gone on to work with individuals and organisations across areas such as appearance, behaviour, communication, confidence, leadership presence and personal effectiveness.

Championing Self-Image and Professional Growth

For more than three decades, Rakesh has championed the importance of self-image, self-esteem and personal development. He believes that sustainable transformation begins with how individuals perceive themselves and the possibilities they believe they can create.

As a speaker, trainer, mentor and entrepreneur, he has mentored aspiring professionals and entrepreneurs in building careers and businesses around their expertise.

He also serves as a Director of the Image Management Professionals' Association (IMPA), supporting professional standards, industry development and social-impact initiatives within the Image Management profession.

Rakesh is the co-author of First Impressions, Lasting Impressions, published by Times Group Books, which explores the role of image, perception and personal impact in everyday life.

His larger mission is to extend the impact of personal transformation through a growing community of Image Consultants, Trainers, Coaches and Mentors - helping more people strengthen self-belief and create lives of confidence, purpose, fulfilment and success.

Suman Agarwal

Co-Founder, ICBI | International Authority in Image Management

Suman Agarwal is an International Authority in Image Management and the pioneering force behind establishing Image Consulting as a profession in India. Her expertise spans Image Management, service excellence, quality standards, professional education and human development.

As Co-Founder of ICBI, she has helped create a structured professional learning ecosystem that has enabled thousands of individuals to build expertise and meaningful careers while extending the impact of Image Management across individuals, organisations and communities.

Image Management AuthorityIndustry PioneerEducator & MentorIMPA Leadership

“Image is not merely about how others perceive you. It begins with how you perceive yourself. When self-perception and external perception align, true transformation begins.”

A Foundation in Service Excellence and Quality

Before pioneering the Image Consulting profession in India, Suman held senior national-level leadership roles with responsibility for establishing quality standards, service excellence frameworks, training systems and implementation processes across large organisations. Her experience in customer experience, quality management, human behaviour and professional image created a strong foundation for the work she would later lead in Image Management.

Earlier, she spent eight years with Jet Airways, where her work included cabin crew recruitment, grooming standards and service excellence. Her contribution to the airline's service culture and professional image was recognised when she was chosen as the “Face of the Airline” in 2003.

Advancing Image Management as a Profession

Suman holds a Master's Award in Image Management Consulting from the Federation of Image Professionals International (UK) and is widely regarded as the most senior Image Consultant in the Indian subcontinent.

Her technical expertise has been central to adapting Image Management principles to the Indian context and developing structured, practical approaches to professional education. She has also created comprehensive personal style and colour analysis tools used in Image Consulting practice.

As an educator and mentor, she has helped professionals understand Image Management as much more than appearance - bringing together self-image, behaviour, communication, personal style, credibility and the way individuals are perceived by others.

Industry Leadership and Wider Impact

As President of the Image Management Professionals' Association (IMPA), Suman has played an important role in advancing professional standards, strengthening the Image Management community and extending its impact beyond commercial practice. Through IMPA's outreach and social-impact initiatives, Image Management expertise has also been used to support underserved communities.

A speaker, mentor, educator and author, Suman has consistently advocated the role of Image Management in helping people strengthen confidence, credibility and influence. She is the co-author of First Impressions, Lasting Impressions, published by Times Group Books.

Her continuing mission is to establish Image Management as an essential life skill and professional discipline - helping individuals align who they are with how they are perceived, while enabling professionals to build meaningful careers around transforming the lives of others.