Articles 1 to 10 of 43
M. Damodaran, Former SEBI Chairman: 'The Courage of Conviction Is More Evident Today'
M. Damodaran, former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India, sees at least two major positive trends for Indian business. One is a push for better corporate governance, such as the inclusion of more independent directors on boards and stronger auditing standards. Another is the fact that, unlike previous generations, India's younger entrepreneurs "don't shy away from asking the tough questions" and are willing to ride out failure in order to succeed. In an interview with Wharton management professors Jitendra Singh and Harbir Singh, coauthors of the book The India Way: How India's Top Business Leaders Are Revolutionizing Management, Damodaran spoke about what he envisions for India's business future.
New 'Right-hand Men': The Growing Role of Women in Indian Family Business
Women have always been powerful forces in Indian politics. When it comes to business, however, they have had little opportunity -- often regarded as marriageable assets, useful for tying up business alliances. But forces such as globalization, liberalization and a growing emphasis on education have enabled women to move away from peripheral roles and, in many cases, take over the reins of the company. According to experts, this trend is altering the paradigms for everything from succession planning and inheritance to what constitutes "entry level" work for the offspring of family business heads.
ISB Founding Dean Pramath Sinha: 'Over the Years, I Have Become a Student of Leadership'
According to Pramath Sinha, founding dean of the Hyderabad-based Indian School of Business (ISB), the single biggest challenge in starting a business school in India was "building a great reputation in a short period of time." So far, the gamble has paid off: In 2008, ISB became the first Indian institution to be included by the Financial Times in its global ranking of the top 20 business schools -- only seven years after the school was launched. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, Sinha answers questions about the genesis of ISB, what it takes to lead different kinds of organizations, and -- in keeping with his latest venture as founder of 9.9 Media -- where he thinks the media industry in India is headed.
Cricket Legend Sunil Gavaskar: 'The Biggest Challenge Is to Get the Team to Believe in Itself'
According to Sunil Gavaskar, former cricket captain for Team India, success in any vocation requires Three Ds: discipline, which is more mental than physical; dedication to hours of practice; and determination -- because, as Gavaskar says, during the time when he was playing the game, "cricket wasn't a career option." Today, of course, that last part has changed, with top players earning millions of dollars and corporate sponsors lining up to pay them. At the recent Wharton India Economic Forum in Philadelphia, Gavaskar spoke with India Knowledge@Wharton about his career, how the business side of cricket has changed, and what he has learned about teamwork and leadership along the way.
Incoming ICICI Chief Chanda Kochhar Sees Promise for India, Hope for Banks
In the February 27 edition, India Knowledge@Wharton published an interview that Michael Useem, director of the Leadership and Change Center at Wharton, conducted with K. V. Kamath, CEO of ICICI, India's largest private bank. In this companion interview, Useem speaks with Chanda Kochhar, who will replace Kamath as ICICI's CEO on May 1. Both conversations took place during the recent World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Kochhar is a keynote speaker at the Wharton India Economic Forum in Philadelphia on March 21.
ICICI's K.V. Kamath Believes Falling Prices Can Drive Growth - Even in a Downturn
During the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, which ended February 1, Wharton management professor Michael Useem interviewed K.V. Kamath, who has served for more than a decade as chief executive of ICICI Bank, the largest private bank in India and a major player in the Indian economy and beyond. Discussion centered on the decision to name Chanda Kochhar as ICICI's new CEO, the crisis facing U.S. banks and the current business climate in India, among other topics.
Why Sutherland Global Succeeds: An Interview With CEO Dilip Vellodi
Sutherland Global Services was involved in business process outsourcing long before the term became widely known. Headquartered in Rochester, N.Y., Sutherland Global has 22,000 employees and operations in seven countries, including India, the Philippines, Canada, Mexico and Bulgaria. India Knowledge@Wharton and Ravi Aron, a senior fellow at Wharton's Mack Center for Emerging Technologies, spoke with Dilip R. Vellodi, CEO of Sutherland Global Services, about the company's business model and its future.
HCL's Vineet Nayar: 'We Are Stepping on the Accelerator'
As the global economy slows down, demand for the services of Indian IT firms should shrink. But for Vineet Nayar, CEO of New Delhi-based HCL Technologies, one of India's largest IT firms, the slowdown does not signal a need to "step on the brakes." Instead, Nayar believes the way out of the recession lies in aggressively increasing investment, opening new offices and offering new services. "At HCL, we are stepping on the accelerator," he told India Knowledge@Wharton in an interview at the HCL Global Meet in Florida in mid-November.
Infosys CEO S. Gopalakrishnan: Lessons on Building a 'Globally Respected Corporation'
In 1981, seven young entrepreneurs in Mumbai set out to create a global corporation from scratch. The company they founded, Bangalore-based Infosys Technologies, has become a US$4 billion information technology powerhouse, with more than 100,000 employees. "We focused on building a world-class company," said S. "Kris" Gopalakrishnan during a recent Wharton Leadership Lecture. Gopalakrishnan described what it took for him and his six co-founders to see their vision through, and how Infosys envisions its future in the IT sector.
Infosys: Wanting to Be a 'Transformation Partner' While Undergoing Its Own Transformation
Infosys Technologies, which recently passed the milestone of earning $1 billion in profits, has set its sights on becoming what chief mentor N.R. Narayana Murthy calls a "trusted transformation partner" for its customers. Meanwhile, the company is also going through its own transformation, as demonstrated by its recent acquisition of Britain's Axon Group. India Knowledge@Wharton spoke with Infosys executives and industry experts to explore how the company plans to rise to its next level of growth.
