By P Mohan Chandran
How does a country known for its rich cultural heritage and bustling street markets also foster minds that lead some of the world's largest corporations? How does a nation with a GDP of around $3 trillion produce leaders steering companies whose cumulative worth surpasses its own? Let's delve into the remarkable journey of Indian-Americans, who've made waves in the international business arena, heading firms with a staggering total market value of over $5 trillion.
One of the first pioneers in this remarkable trend is Vasant Narasimhan, the CEO of Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis. Then there's S. Ravi Kumar at the helm of IT giant Cognizant and Sanjay Mehrotra guiding Micron, a leader in memory and storage solutions.
George Kurian at NetApp and Amrapali Gan, heading the popular platform OnlyFans, represent the growing Indian presence in the digital space. With Jayshree Ullal leading Arista Networks, Sandeep Kataria at Bata, Thomas Kurian as CEO of Google Cloud, and Sundar Pichai making strides as CEO of Alphabet, it's clear that this isn't a small wave – it's a veritable tsunami.
In the bustling coffee industry, we see Howard Schultz of Starbucks passing the CEO baton to an Indian-American, Laxman Narasimhan. Deloitte, the multinational professional services network, also welcomed its first Indian-origin CEO, Punit Renjen.
While Indian-Americans are making their mark across industries, the world of online content creation sees two formidable leaders, Anjali Sud at Vimeo and Neal Mohan at YouTube. In the fashion industry, we find Leena Nair at Chanel.
Niraj Shah at Wayfair, Shantanu Narayen at Adobe, Satya Nadella at Microsoft, Vivek Sankaran at Albertsons Companies, Nikesh Arora at PaloAlto, Rajesh Subramaniam at FedEx, Raghu Raghuram at VMware, and Revathi Advaithi at Flextronics, all echo the same testament of Indian prowess in the global leadership scene.
IBM and Ogilvy, two companies with rich histories, have also entrusted their futures to Indian-origin leaders, Arvind Krishna and Devika Bulchandani, respectively.
When you look at these CEOs, what you see are not just Indians leading global corporations. Instead, it's the demonstration of an ethos ingrained in them – a blend of Indian values and global perspectives. It's the story of the Indian immigrant, their resilience, and their unyielding drive for excellence.
These trailblazers carry with them a part of their Indian roots, which influence their leadership styles and corporate decisions. Their tenacity and foresight have propelled them to the top of their respective fields, serving as inspirational figures for future leaders worldwide.
As we celebrate these achievements, we must also ponder, what is it about the Indian ethos that produces such effective global leaders? How can we leverage this to better equip our future generations? Does the economic discrepancy between India's GDP and the combined value of these firms point to a greater potential waiting to be harnessed within India itself?
The rise of Indian-origin CEOs in global corporations is a testament to the enormous human potential India possesses. As we admire these leaders, the question that remains is – how can India itself create an ecosystem that can further nurture such talent, and harness it for its own economic growth and global standing? After all, if India can lead the world, why shouldn't it lead itself?
Do you think Indians are ruling the world with their intelligence?
Yes, absolutely. Indians have always been world-leaders.
No, it is often exaggerated and over-hyped.
© 2023. P Mohan Chandran. All Rights Reserved.
27062023
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