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Krea University appoints Dr. Mahesh Rangarajan as Vice Chancellor

Eminent scholar of history and environmental studies to lead Krea University’s efforts to re-imagine education

31st March 2021, Sri City: Krea University announced the appointment of Dr. Mahesh Rangarajan as its next Vice Chancellor, effective July 2021. 

A scholar of global renown, Dr. Rangarajan has an MA and a DPhil, both from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar.  His wide experience in academia includes faculty positions as Professor of Modern Indian History at the University of Delhi and Professor of History and Environmental Studies at Ashoka University, where he previously served as the Dean of Academic Affairs.  He has also taught at Cornell University, Indian Institute of Science and National Centre for Biological Sciences. His first book ‘Fencing the Forest’ was published in 1996 and the most recent ‘Nature and Nation’, in 2018. His co-edited works include ‘India’s Environmental History’, and ‘At Nature’s Edge’. Having started his career as a journalist, he has also served in roles outside academia, including as the Director of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi.

Dr. Rangarajan’s appointment by the Chancellor of Krea University, Mr. N. Vaghul, comes after a rigorous global search launched by the University last year. The search was led by a committee co-chaired by Dr. Vishakha Desai, Senior Advisor for Global Affairs to the President of Columbia University and Mr. Kapil Viswanathan, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Governing Council. Commenting on the appointment, Mr. Kapil Viswanathan, said, “As a scholar and an administrator with a global outlook, Dr. Rangarajan is well placed to further Krea University’s mission to help humanity prepare for an unpredictable world.  We look forward to Dr. Rangarajan’s leadership, building on Krea University’s strong foundations of ethics, innovation, excellence, inclusivity and accountability.”

Dr. Vishakha Desai, co-chair of the search committee added, “As a renowned scholar of history and environmental studies, Dr. Rangarajan embodies the spirit of interwoven learning that Krea University stands for. His experience in the academy and in public institutions would serve to strengthen Krea University’s commitment to bridging the intellectual world with the one beyond.”

On his appointment as Vice Chancellor, Dr. Mahesh Rangarajan said, “It is my honour and privilege to accept this position, and join the extraordinarily talented faculty, staff and students of Krea University in pursuit of our shared mission. I will strive to uphold the high standards of innovation and excellence that Krea University stands for.” Krea University’s current Vice Chancellor, Dr. Sunder Ramaswamy will complete his tenure in June 2021 and will continue to be associated with Krea as Distinguished Visiting Professor of Economics.  As the inaugural Vice Chancellor, Dr. Ramaswamy played a key role in shaping Krea University in its formative years.  

IFMR GSB students bag CMA scholarships again!

We are delighted to share that four IFMR GSB students from the MBA cohort of 2022 have received scholarships from the CMA Program, awarded by the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA), USA.

Our heartiest congratulations to Siddharth Poddar, Meenakshi Murugan, Nitin Kumar Khandelwal and Shreyans Bandi!

‘The Case for Women’ Global Case Writing Competition shortlists impactful case study by Prof R Sathyanarayanan

‘Happy Self Publishing’, a business management case study authored by Prof R Sathyanarayanan (Associate Professor of Marketing at IFMR Graduate School of Business – Krea University), has been shortlisted as one of the Top-6 Global finalist case studies in “The Case for Women” Global Case Writing Competition open to management faculty members around the world.

In partnership with ‘The Case for Women’ Organization and Forté Foundation, Emerald Publishing launched this case study competition focusing on the female case protagonist. Prof Sathyanarayanan’s case study — focusing on a woman-led firm in India with a successful global operation — was published earlier this month.

Access the case study here: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/CFW.2020.000008/full/html

IFMR GSB students bag CMA Program scholarships

We are thrilled to share that six IFMR GSB students from the MBA cohort of 2021 have received scholarships from the CMA Program, awarded by the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA), USA. Our heartiest congratulations to Nitin Kumar Mathuria, Sushma Animalla, Aayushi Jhunjhunwala, Umesh Pareek, Sanjoli Mishra, and Jahnavi Sharma!

Social Science Research Network publishes impactful paper co-authored by Dr Anantha Nageswaran

Dr Anantha Nageswaran – Distinguished Visiting Professor at Krea University and Member of PM Economic Advisory Board – co-authors a paper on “Impact Investing – An Assessment and Proposal for Reforms”, published by the Social Science Research Network (SSRN).
The paper attempts to dispel some of the misconceptions associated with impact investing and provide a more realistic perspective of its challenges.

Access the paper here: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3759142

Top management journal ‘Information Systems Frontiers’ publishes paper authored by Dr Amit Das & Dr Shobha Das

The Springer Journal’s Information Systems Frontiers, ranked A in the ABDC list of management journals, has published ‘E-Government and Entrepreneurship: Online Government Services and the Ease of Starting Business’, jointly authored by Dr Amit Das and Dr Shobha Das from IFMR Graduate School of Business at Krea University. The paper examines the effect of offering government services online on the ease of setting up new businesses around the world. Read the paper here.

Dr Anantha Nageswaran at the Michigan India Conference 2021

The Michigan India Conference is the Annual India Conference hosted by the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor students, with a focus on opportunities and challenges that faces the Indian economy. Dr Anantha Nageswaran, Distinguished Visiting Professor at Krea University and Member of the PM Economic Advisory Board, was part of the opening panel, sharing his insights on this year’s theme ‘Stability and Change’.

“Marketing has moved from Brand-led to Category-led,” says Shiv Shivakumar, Management Thinker at IFMR Graduate School of Business’ Marketing Conclave

Giving the keynote at the virtual conference ‘Inside Marketing 2021’ organised by the IFMR Graduate School of Business (IFMR GSB), Krea University, management thinker and Group Executive President, Corporate Strategy & Business Development at Aditya Birla Group, Shiv Shivakumar said, “Marketing, thanks to digital, has moved from being brand-led to category-led. In the past, I went looking for a brand. Today, when I search on the net, I look for the category. For instance – earlier, if I wanted to buy an SUV, it is quite likely that I would have looked for an SUV in the brand’s outlet. Today, I type ‘SUV’ in the search engine. I type the category and not the brand. That’s a fundamental shift in marketing. Once I get a category’s full-list, then I say – ‘can you share brands in the INR 5-12 lakh category?’ and add other filters and look at reputation, what my friends have to say, recommendations, price, service and convenience.” He further added that good marketing content today is audiovisual—video in most cases—and is in vernacular languages.

Shiv Shivakumar asked the hundreds of faculty and students in attendance, “When was the last time a serious academic came up with something new in the world of management? Not for the last 25 years. Practising managers are bringing the concepts to the table by experimenting with their companies.” He exhorted academics to lead the way and not to follow. He also urged academics and universities to ensure that more real-world examples and interdisciplinary thinking be brought to learning as innovation is happening at the intersection of disciplines of study.

The conclave featured some illustrious marketing professionals, entrepreneurs and leaders from a gamut of industries, shedding light on some of the recent trends that have changed the way marketers look at products, markets, distribution channels, consumers and user experience. The three panels for the day were—“Marketing in the Age of Millennials” with Hrishikesh Shende, Business Director, Adidas for Emerging Markets and David Appasamy, Head of Brand and Strategy at Social Beat; “Marketing in the Age of AI” with Janani Dwarakanath, Head of Product Marketing at Freshworks and Girish Ramdas, Co-Founder and CEO of Magzter; and “Marketing during Crisis” with Mudit Mathur, General Manager for India and South Asia at Dole Foods and LV Navaneeth, CEO of The Hindu Group.

The conference concluded with an exclusive power talk for the students of Krea, delivered by Chetan Gore, Vice President and Business Head of Reliance Retail.

Announcing ‘Inside Marketing 2021’, hosted by IFMR GSB at Krea

IFMR Graduate School of Business (IFMR GSB), Krea University is all set to host ‘Inside Marketing 2021’ on Friday, 12 February 2021. This marketing conclave will feature experts and leaders from a number of sectors, sharing their insights and knowledge related to the theme of Marketing in the New Age. With the aim of bringing us one step closer to decoding Marketing 5.0, this half-day long conference will feature power talks, engaging sessions and discussions. The opening power address will be delivered by senior industry leader Shiv Shivakumar, Group Executive President, Corporate Strategy & Business Development – Aditya Birla Group.

Hosted on the virtual platform, the conference will explore the following topics – ‘Marketing in the Age of Millennials’ with Hrishikesh Shende (Business Director, Adidas – Emerging Markets) and David Appasamy (Head – Brand and Strategy, Social Beat);  ‘Marketing in the Age of AI’ with Janani Dwarakanath (Head of Product Marketing – Freshworks) and Girish Ramdas (Co-Founder and CEO – Magzter); and ‘Marketing in the Times of Crisis’ with Mudit Mathur (General Manager for India and South Asia – Dole Foods) and LV Navaneeth (CEO – The Hindu Group).  The conference will conclude with ’10 Commandments for a Young Brand Manager’ — an exclusive power talk for the students of Krea, delivered by Chetan Gore (Vice President and Business Head of the FMCG department, Reliance Retail).

Click here to register.

Prof Sumit Mishra publishes impactful research paper on caste-based residential segregation

IFMR GSB faculty member — Sumit Mishra, Assistant Professor, Economics and Data Science has published an impactful research paper. His paper “Fractal urbanism: City size and residential segregation in India” co-authored with Naveen Bharathi (Harvard University), Deepak Malghan (IIM – Bangalore), and Andaleeb Rahman (Cornell University) was published as a forthcoming article on World Development — an A journal as per the ABDC list and listed amongst the top-five development econ journals. The paper presents the first-ever large-scale snapshot of urban residential segregation in India at the neighbourhood-scale. The analysis from 147 largest cities in contemporary India shows how caste-based residential segregation is independent of city size (with the sample including all cities in India, with at least 0.3 million residents in 2011).

Access a copy of the paper here. For detailed summaries of the paper, visit here and a commentary in Ideas for India here.