Metro Man E Sreedharan gets Forbes India Lifetime Achievement award

The biggest names in Indian business make it an evening to remember at the Forbes India Leadership Awards 2012 held in Mumbai last week

Best Media Info Bureau | Delhi | October 1, 2012

Forbes India, seen as the champion of entrepreneurial capitalism since its launch in 2009, announced the names of the awardees at the second edition of the much awaited Forbes India Leadership Awards in Mumbai on September 28, 2012. Celebrating transformational leadership, this year Forbes India honoured outstanding leaders who have epitomised success in their fields and are visionary champions in creating a sustainable future.

The prestigious Lifetime Achievement award went to E Sreedharan, the man who made the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.

After a meticulous, exhaustive screening process and discussions, the shortlisted nominees were scrutinised by a powerful jury comprising industry veterans like KV Kamath (Jury Chairman), Adil Zainulbhai, Zia Mody and other prominent business personalities.

The FILA 2012 award winners are:

• Outstanding Start-up: Manish Khera / Rishi Gupta - FINO
• NextGen Entrepreneur for the Year: Vinod Ramnani, Opto Circuits
• Best CEO - Public Sector: MD Mallya, Bank of Baroda
• Best CEO - Private Sector: N Chandrashekharan, TCS
• Best CEO - Multinational: Nitin Paranjpe, HUL
• Woman Leader for the Year: Mallika Srinivasan,TAFE
• Entrepreneur with Social Impact: William Bissell, Fabindia
• Entrepreneur for the Year: Kumar Mangalam Birla, Aditya Birla Group
• Conscious Capitalist for the Year: Kamil Hamied, CIPLA
• Lifetime Achievement: E Sreedharan, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation

The awards were given at a glittering ceremony attended by the who's who of corporate India. The highlight of the evening was the three-minute talk each given by some of the most illustrious names in industry on “The one thing that will change everything for people in this room, except that they haven't heard of it”.

Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group stated that globalisation as we have come to understand it in the last decade and a half has been rolled back partially. He stated "The unfortunate thing is that the business is being accused of being non-inclusive and working for the benefit of only a few strata of society. This hampers industrial growth and hence growth of the society as a whole. The consequence of this is that the State has a much bigger role to play going forward than it has had in the recent past.”

Nitin Paranjpe, CEO, Hindustan Unilever Limited spoke about why corporate profits and sustainability will no longer be two discreet topics and what this means for companies in the near future. He stated that trust and confidence in business are at a new low, which is ironic since business over the last many ages has contributed more to improve the quality of life of people through innovation and enterprise. He stated, "The model of capitalism we follow today is being questioned as narrow and not addressing the larger interests of the society. It is also ironic that if the world ever needed business to contribute, recreate growth and stimulate the economy, it is now.....If we simply have to reinvent the model of business as we know it, it is simple. We just have to get the purpose of business back to its centre. Purpose must lead, profits will follow."

Adil Zainulbhai, MD, McKinsey India, stated that all leaders need to consider humility as an important personality trait. He also mentioned that leaders must also remember other leaders who were humble to help them when required.

William Bissell, MD, Fabindia, spoke about how we need new methods of measuring progress as conventional ones have failed. He also pointed out that what's going to change in the future is how we define success and benefit.

Karl Slym, MD & CEO, Tata Motors, spoke about the future of transportation. How about living in an age where smart cards actually drop you right at your doorstep? More greenery and more open space is the road ahead. He also stated that the speed of decision-making is the key for leadership.

Gurmeet Singh, CEO, Forbes India, said, “The response we have received for the second year of Forbes India Leadership Awards is tremendous and very encouraging. We are delighted with the wonderful and out-of-the-box ideas shared this evening and hope that this platform inspires new and more absorbing conversations to be taken forward.”

The presentation ceremony concluded with a fireside chat between Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, founder of Isha foundation, and KV Kamath, Non-executive Chairman, ICICI Bank, and Chairman, Infosys. The chat was anchored by Indrajit Gupta, Editor, Forbes India. They discussed how business leaders prepare themselves and their organisations for this journey.

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