Dr. Geeta Menon is dean of the undergraduate college at New York University’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business (NYU Stern, estb. 1900). Ranked among the Top 10 B-schools worldwide for research productivity by the University of Texas at Dallas (Research Contribution 2007-11 in All A-level journals), Stern is globally renowned and ranked #19 by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) in its Global 200 Business School Report 2012-13. An alumna of Madras Christian College and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign which awarded her a doctorate in business management, Menon signed up with NYU Stern in 1990, served as the chair of the marketing faculty (2004-08), and was appointed dean of NYU’s undergrad college in 2011.

Newspeg. Menon was in India early this year to host NYU Stern’s inaugural India business Forum convened at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, Mumbai. The objective of the forum titled ‘India in the 21st Century — From Potential to Progress’, was to discuss India’s role in global economic growth in the 21st century. The full-day talk fest which attracted 125 delegates, included sessions on the future of India’s urban growth, effective corporate governance, and infrastructure development.

Direct talk. “The purpose of the conference was to create an intellectually-driven dialogue between our faculty, the Union government and industry leaders on pressing issues that will affect India’s economic growth in the 21st century. How India conducts business, serves its citizens and interacts with the world, is a critical part of the global conversation,’’ says Menon.

India agenda. With an aggregate enrolment of 2,400 including 100 foreign students, NYU Stern has been averaging 20 students from India for the past decade. To boost its annual intake of Indian students, the school is set to raise its India profile. “There are opportunities for Stern faculty members to carry out India-related research. In the undergraduate college, we have a  Stern Around the World programme, under which some students enroll for courses on social and economic development in India. Though the course is conducted in New York, students visit India for a week every January and attend classes in HR and St. Xavier’s colleges in Mumbai. Moreover, we have a long-time partnership with Loyola College, Chennai, under the Stern International Business Exchange Partnerships,” says Menon.

Future plans. “NYU Stern will look at a physical presence in India if we find suitable partners. At present, we are looking at greater content-based interaction with alumni, parents and so on. India is very important to us and we plan to gradually increase our presence here. However, we need assistance from local alumni and individuals, in terms of finance, resources and infrastructure,” says Menon, bullish about deepening Stern’s engagement with India.

Praveer Sinha (Mumbai)