Indian management thinkers who made an impact in 2014: Corporate leaders from Tata Sons, Social Venture, GMR, ODA make it to the list
Thursday, December 18, 2014 12:36PM IST (7:06AM GMT)
IIM faculty as well make the cut. Rama Bijapurkar and Gita Piramal are the women thought leaders.
New Delhi, December 18, 2014 – Thinkers50 India released the definitive list of most influential management thinkers residing in India for the year 2014. The list looks at honoring and celebrating the best and brightest management thinkers in India. Thinkers50 India is a joint initiative of Institute for Competitiveness and Thinkers50 London.
The objective of Thinkers50 India is to create, expand and enhance the process of thought leadership in India. The Thinkers50 India management thinkers residing in India were selected based on the votes of peers and corporate leaders. Their exemplary contribution to the advancement of the theory and practice of business and management in the areas of strategy, leadership, marketing etc. helped them to make to the list. The basis of selection was relevance and presentation of ideas, rigor of research, international outlook, originality and impact of ideas, business sense and power to inspire.
According to the 2014 list, the most significant living management thinker residing in India is Nirmalya Kumar of Tata Sons. He was ranked 1 on the list because of his outstanding work in the field of marketing strategy. He has authored six books, among which Harvard Business Press published five. He also has accomplished the rare feat of publishing six articles each in both the Journal of Marketing Research and the Harvard Business Review.
He was followed by Ashish Nanda of IIM, Ahmedabad ranked 2 on the list because of his contribution in the field of management via research, teachings, and other professional services. A recipient of the Henry B. Arthur Fellowship, the Center in Ethics and the Professions Fellowship, President of India Gold Medal (twice), and the IIMA Director’s Gold Medal, he has published several case studies and Harvard Business Review articles.
Ravi Venkatesan of Social Venture Partners India was ranked 3 on the Thinkers50 India management list 2014. This was because of his powerful ideas and its practicality in the Indian context to address the social problems through venture philanthropy. He has also published the much-acclaimed book “Conquering the Chaos: Win in India, Win everywhere” published by Harvard Business Review.
The list further includes Gurucharan Das (Author, Commentator & Thought Leader) ranked 4, Arun Maira (Former Member, Planning Commission) ranked 5, Devdutt Pattanaik (Mythologist and Leadership Consultant) ranked 6, Kiran Karnik (Former President, NASSCOM) ranked 7, Nandan Nilekani (Former Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India) ranked 8, Vineet Nayar (Sampark Foundation) ranked 9.
Academicians from Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and primarily from IIMA dominate the Thinkers50 2014 list. Three directors of IIM’s namely, Ashish Nanda (2), Rishikesha T Krishnan (12) and Debashis Chatterjee (14) are present on the list.
Some of the other significant thinkers are leading corporate leaders who have made positive contribution to the thought and practice of management in India. They are Nirmalya Kumar (1), Ravi Venkatesan (3), Nandan Nilekani (8), Vineet Nayar (9), V Raghunathan (16), Rama Bijapurkar (22), Santhosh Babu (26).
Dr. Amit Kapoor, Editor-in-Chief, Thinkers and Curator of Thinkers50 India said that, “Not many Indian minds are celebrated across the world. Therefore, we thought of working with Thinkers50 London and created a platform where we honor the Indians who have made an impact and are trying to be at the forefront of thought leadership. This is clearly reflected in the Thinkers50 India 2014 management list which specifically highlights the Indian thinkers that live in the country.”
The Thinkers50 India is also coming up with a special compendium of articles by world-renowned thinkers in January 2015, celebrating the different ideas. It comprises of contributions from Don Tapscott, Stuart Crainer, Des Dearlove, Vineet Nayar, Mark Goyder and interviews of Mark Kramer, Roger Martin, Jagdish Sheth and discussion by Stuart L. Hart and Navi Radjou et al.
About The Initiative
Thinkers50 India is a joint initiative of Institute for Competitiveness, India and Thinkers50.
Institute for Competitiveness, India is an international initiative centered in India, dedicated to enlarging and purposeful disseminating of the body of research and knowledge on competition and strategy. Institute for Competitiveness, India conducts and supports indigenous research, offers academic and executive courses, and provides advisory services to the Corporate and the Governments. The institute studies competition and its implications for company strategy; the competitiveness of nations, regions & cities and thus generates guidelines for businesses and those in governance; and suggests and provides solutions for socio-economic problems.
Created in 2001 by Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove, the Thinkers50 was the first-ever global ranking of management thinkers. In the intervening decade, the scope of Thinkers50 has broadened to include a range of activities that support its mission of identifying, ranking and sharing the best management thinking in the world. Today, Thinkers50 is widely recognized as the world’s definitive ranking of the top 50 business thinkers, and the T50 Distinguished Achievement Awards are widely regarded as the “Oscars of management thinking.
Notes to Editors
Neera Vohra
E: neera.vohra@thinkers50.in
M: +91 98104 73213
