Madhu held several leadership positions in state government and the non-profit sector prior to joining the Citizens Research Council in 2024.  Her expertise is in local and state taxation, government finance, and regulatory policy.  In addition to working on landmark tax, school finance, and pension reforms, she helped Michigan earn a AAA bond rating as Chief Deputy State Treasurer.  Under her directorship of CEPI, Michigan became one of the first states to offer web-based performance metrics for school districts.  Madhu also served as a Deputy Director at the Department of Environmental Quality and at the Michigan Agency for Energy.  Her non-profit experience includes Director of Government Relations for the Michigan chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and Treasurer for a local ceramics cooperative.

After receiving an A.B., in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley, Madhu earned an M.P.P from The Ford School at the University of Michigan.