HBS appoints Prof. Nitin Nohria ('84) as Dean
Harvard Business School has selected Nitin Nohria ('84) to serve as Dean ... Nohria is the Richard P. Chapman Professor of Business Administration at HBS and becomes the school’s 10th dean effective July 1. Harvard’s announcement notes that Nohria received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1984 from the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay, and a Ph.D. in management in 1988 from MIT’s Sloan School of Management. Nohria joined the HBS faculty in 1988 and became a business administration professor 11 years ago.
Harvard Business School has appointed Indian-origin Nitin Nohria (BTech '84 ChE) as its 10th Dean, making him the first member from the community to occupy the post in the prestigious institution's 102-year old history.
Nohria, the Richard P Chapman Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School (HBS), will take up his new role on July 1, President Drew Faust said on Wednesday.
INTERVIEW: NITIN NOHRIA
"IIT Bombay taught me that I can survive anything"
Q: You are the first Indian-born person to be chosen dean of HBS. How do you feel? Also, how has your initial training at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay helped you achieve what you have thus far?
Ans: Like so many other immigrants in America, I am truly proud of my heritage and equally proud of being an American citizen. HBS has given me extraordinary opportunities over the last 22 years to travel around the world and do research in all parts of the world. And that has given me a global perspective that I think would be very useful in the history of business and business education.
I have very fond memories of my time at IIT Bombay. Those were very formative years. IIT Bombay taught me that I can survive anything and as you can imagine that being in America at times was challenging. So I feel very indebted to my alma mater, IIT Bombay, for having prepared me for the challenges life has thrown at me and I don’t think I would be here today but for that foundation.
... more.
A scholar of leadership and organisational change, Nohria has previously been the School's senior associate dean for faculty development and chair of its organisational behaviour unit.
A current co-chair of the HBS Leadership Initiative and member of the HBS faculty since 1988, Nohria succeeds Jay Light, who in December announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2009-10 academic year after five years as dean and four decades of service on the HBS faculty.
"At a pivotal moment for Harvard Business School and for business education more generally, I'm delighted that Nitin Nohria has agreed to lead HBS forward. He's an outstanding scholar, teacher and mentor, with a global outlook and an instinct for collaboration across traditional boundaries," Faust said.
On his appointment as Dean, Nohria said, "I feel a profound sense of responsibility for continuing Harvard Business School's proud legacy of groundbreaking ideas and transformational educational experiences.
With business education at an inflection point, we must strive to equip future leaders with the competence and character to address emerging global business and social challenges".
He said as the school enters its second century, he is looking forward to working with the faculty and students "to forge a vision for Harvard Business School that will enable it to remain a beacon for business education for the next 100 years".
Nohria received his bachelor of technology degree in chemical engineering in 1984 from the IIT Mumbai, which awarded him its Distinguished Alumnus medal in 2007. He received his Ph.D. in management in 1988 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management, where he earned the outstanding doctoral thesis award in behavioral and policy sciences.
... more.
