[9] Sharma was brought up in Earley and Whitley Wood and was privately educated at both Presentation College and Reading Blue Coat School in Sonning,[10] before studying at the University of Salford, from where he graduated with a BSc in Applied Physics with Electronics in 1988.

[11] He subsequently qualified as a chartered accountant, training with Deloitte Haskins & Sells in Manchester before moving into corporate finance advisory with Nikko Securities and then Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, where he held senior roles based in London, Stockholm and Frankfurt.

[23] Sharma initiated a Parliamentary debate on the issue[24] and backed a petition, started by the families of victims, which gained more than 55,000 signatures.

[25][26] Sharma campaigned to reduce the number of first-class carriages on trains operating on the Great Western route between Reading and London.

In January 2015, he held a meeting with Rail Minister Claire Perry and First Great Western managing director Mark Hopwood to discuss proposals to increase Standard Class capacity to reduce overcrowding.

[27] In 2016, Sharma was appointed as the Prime Minister's "Infrastructure Envoy to India" [12] and was a key member of the UK team responsible for ensuring that the first ever “masala” or rupee-denominated bond, issued outside of India by an Indian company, was listed on the London Stock Exchange, strengthening further London's position as a pre-eminent world financial centre.

[35] Sharma was appointed Secretary of State for International Development by Boris Johnson following the resignation of Rory Stewart in July 2019.

Upon assuming the role, he said: "I am delighted... We will work across the whole of government to deliver Brexit and make sure the United Kingdom's aid is tackling global challenges that affect us all".

[37][38] In October, Sharma stated he wanted to use the United Kingdom's leverage over the World Bank to focus the use of the nineteenth International Development Association fund on fighting climate change, building sustainable economies and promoting women's rights.

[39] Following the dismissal of Andrea Leadsom in the 2020 cabinet reshuffle, Sharma was appointed to the position of Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, taking office on 13 February.

In April 2020, Sharma led the Department's response to support businesses and jobs during the Coronavirus pandemic and chaired the UK Vaccine Taskforce's Ministerial Investment Panel.

[43] Although he underwent a test for COVID-19 which came back negative, the situation led to questions being raised about the government's decision to end the use of the virtual parliament and make MPs return to the House of Commons chamber.

[44] In July 2020, Sharma instructed officials to purchase half of OneWeb, a satellite communications company, for $500 million.

In November 2020, Sharma led on the Prime Minister's 10-point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution [46][47] and an Energy White Paper.

[52] On 8 January 2021, Sharma left his position as Secretary of State to become President of COP26 on a full-time basis, and chair of the Climate Action Implementation Committee.

[55] Amid the July 2022 Conservative Party leadership election, Sharma threatened to resign if the winning candidate did not remain committed to the UK's net zero targets.