MHRD appoints Harvard professor Dr Ashish Nanda new IIM-A director

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MBAUniverse.com News Desk |
August 14, 2013
Harvard Law School professor Dr Ashish Nanda will take over as new Director of country's top management institute IIM-A effective September 2, 2013.
Dr Nanda who has over 25 years of oversees academic experience, mostly with Harvard institutions, will be the first director at any IIM with substantial international background

Harvard Law School professor Dr Ashish Nanda will take over as new Director of country’s top management institute IIM-A effective September 2, 2013.

An IIM-A alumnus from 1983 batch of PGDM, Dr Nanda who has over 25 years of oversees academic experience, mostly with Harvard institutions, will be the first director at any IIM with substantial international background. The appointment of Dr Nanda to the coveted position under IIMs system also indicates to the policy shift on part of MHRD towards benchmarking premier IIMs with the top ranked global business schools.

Before joining Harvard Law School in 2007, Professor Nanda was a Harvard Business School faculty member for 13 years, where he taught ‘Professional Services’ in the MBA program and continues to teach in the school’s executive education courses.

A new Director at IIM-Ahmedabad was awaited since November 2012 when Dr Samir Barua completed his tenure. The delay in selection of the new director, however, resulted in two short extensions for Dr Barua and appointment of another IIM faculty as an Acting Director thereafter. It is learnt that the appointment to the position by MHRD was delayed for nearly a year over lobbying from IIMs on appointing someone from within the IIM system and the complications involved on high salary issues towards bringing in an internationally acclaimed candidate from outside India.

Prof. Nanda is a Robert Braucher Professor of Practice at Harvard Law School. He is a Gold Medalist from both, IIT – Delhi and IIM - Ahmedabad. He completed his M.A. in Economics and Ph.D. from Harvard University and has been teaching courses in Harvard Business School and Harvard Law School. He is faculty director of Executive Education and research director at Program on the Legal Profession at Harvard Law School.

While appointing Prof. Nanda as the Director, Mr. A.M. Naik, Chairman, Board of Governors and Society said, "IIMA is the premier management institute in India with global recognition. It has great legacy, and its students, faculty and staff form the backbone of this outstanding Institute. Prof. Nanda, an alumnus with an impeccable academic record, with decades of experience in leading international schools, brings in a right mix of international experience and familiarity with IIMA. With the appointment of Prof. Nanda as the Director, I am sure the Institute will grow from strength to strength and chart new territories."

Professor Ashish Nanda who will take charge on September 2, would be visiting IIM-A campus for a few days from August 15, 2013 for acquainting himself and meeting faculty & staff, said an official announcement from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A).

The search for the new director in IIM-A had begun with advertisements published in national and international media in the month of July-August last year. The advertisement also published in ‘The Economist’, sought application from candidates who could stand up to global challenges.

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