In an unprecedented development that will propel Indian management education globally, Global Thinker & Padma Bhushan Awardee Dr Jagdish Sheth has accepted to rename IFIM Business School Bangalore in his name as the Jagdish Sheth School of Management (JAGSOM). Dr Sheth accepted the request of present Chairman and noted business leader Sanjay Padode to rename the School after the living legend. This is one of the rare instances
where an institution is being named to honor a globally renowned Indian academic – and is not based on any endowment or grant. This is also a unique case where Trustee/Promoter has selflessly relinquished his position as Chairman of the Board to propel the B-school further on its globalization journey.
Accepting the Chairmanship and renaming, Dr Sheth said, “As India gets globally integrated, it will become increasingly necessary for management schools to meet or exceed global benchmarks, global accreditations and global recognitions. I am truly humbled and honoured that Sanjay Padode, Atish Chattopadhyay, the Governing Board and all the faculty invited me to rename IFIM Business School in its journey towards becoming globally admired and recognized as Jagdish Sheth School of Management .”
Sharing the significance of the development, Shri Sanjay Padode said, “After incubating IFIM Business School for 25 years to become an AACSB accredited and globally ranked institution, I felt that it is time to cut the umbilical cord and give more wind under its wings by professionalising the governance of the Institution. I am grateful to Prof Jagdish Sheth for his acceptance to Chair the Governing Board. His acceptance of permitting us to use his name for
renaming the school permanently is a testimony to the effort made by the faculty and the
leadership of the institution for developing IFIM Business School. I am confident that Jagdish Sheth School of Management will soon make India proud.” Prof Jagdish Sheth is Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Business in the Goizueta Business School at Emory University. He is globally known for his scholarly contributions in marketing,
competitive strategy, and geopolitical analysis. Professor Sheth has over 50 years of combined experience in teaching and research at the University of Southern California, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Columbia University, MIT, and Emory University. Prof Sheth has been an advisor to numerous companies including Whirlpool, Motorola, AT&T, WIPRO, Aditya Birla Group, E&Y, Hughes Corporation, and others. He has published numerous books and award-winning articles. Professor Sheth has been advisor to the Government of Singapore
in repositioning the nation for the future. He has also been the policy advisor to the U.S. Government about the future of the telecommunications industry. Recognizing his achievements, Government of India conferred him with the prestigious Padma Bhushan Award in 2020.
JAGSOM takes off from the many recent achievements of IFIM B-School, which is well known for its focus on industry-interface, a contemporary innovative curriculum and pedagogy to groom professionals of tomorrow. In 2018, IFIM became only the 6th B-school in India to be accredited by AACSB International. Recently, IFIM was ranked by QS Masters in Marketing Ranking 2021 amongst the Top 100 such programs (in 51-100 band) in the World for its PGDM Marketing program.
Commenting on the significance of the development, Dr Atish Chattopadhyay, Director, Jagdish Sheth School of Management (formerly IFIM Business School) said, “This is a watershed moment for management education in India which is marked by several ‘Firsts’: This is the first time that an Indian Management Institution is being re-named to honour a globally renowned scholar and not based on receipt of endowments. This is also the first time that an owner has given way to an academic to make a shift from being an owner driven institution to an academic
driven institution – my salute to Shri Sanjay Padode for his courage, conviction and honesty of purpose.”
Dr Chattopadhyay further added, “The renaming of the school will result in higher visibility in the global arena. I am grateful to Prof. Sheth for agreeing to lend his name and would like to thank my board, my faculty colleagues, and the alumni for supporting this bold move.”