Lankan ISB alumnus receives inaugural Global Influential Leaders Award

The Indian School of Business (ISB), with campuses in Hyderabad and Mohali, announced this week that AACSB International (AACSB), the premier global accrediting body and membership association for the world’s leading business schools, revealed that Don Mohanlal, an alumnus of ISB, had been recognised as one of the first 100 AACSB Influential Leaders. 

Mohanlal’s work exemplifies the innovative mindset and meaningful contributions to society that ISB graduates display around the world and every day, whether they operate within large corporations, small businesses or the non-profit sector.

 Mohanlal, a native of Sri Lanka, studied at S. Thomas’ College Mount Lavinia and graduated from the ISB’s Post Graduate Program in Management for Senior Executives, PGPMAX in 2012. Currently he serves as the Executive Director, Innovation and Impact, at the National 4-H Council, USA.

 Additionally, Mohanlal is Vice Chairman at the Nand & Jeet Khemka Foundation, a philanthropic entity of the Khemka family dedicated to making a substantial impact on the reduction of poverty, with a deep commitment to innovative collaborative and partnership approaches in the areas of integrated rural development, climate change, social entrepreneurship and school-based leadership development with values.

Mohanlal joins individuals such as the CEO of one of the world’s largest global relief services, a technology pioneer who is working to cure cancer, the founder of a global e-commerce powerhouse, and an enterprising president attributed with reviving an international toy industry favourite. More than 20 industry sectors, from consumer products to healthcare to nonprofits, across 21 countries, are present in this year’s group.

 “ISB alumni are our brand ambassadors and standard bearers. It is naturally a proud moment for all of us at ISB as they get global recognition across various fields. ISB’s PGPMAX alumni have been demonstrating an excellent record of attaining leadership positions and entrepreneurial success. As alumni of a young and fast-growing program, they are making a mark for themselves in the business world and are playing a pivotal role in contributing to society in many ways including work, wisdom and wealth,” said ISB Dean Ajit Rangnekar.

 “I am both humbled and honoured by this award,” Don Mohanlal said in response to the announcement. “ISB brought together a world-class faculty and an accomplished group of leaders as my classmates. Global in outlook, it gave me an opportunity to study and to value innovation and impact on its Hyderabad Campus, Wharton, Kellogg and Fundação Dom Cabral in Brazil. It also afforded me opportunities to walk a path to be a servant leader in today’s world. ISB is a role model of what a business school ought to be in a middle-income or emerging market. And I truly benefited from it.”

For the nomination process, AACSB developed a shortlist of open-ended questions that provided a framework for expectations for nominees. 

From April to June 2015, AACSB-accredited schools nominated notable alumni who had made (or are making) an impact in the world. From the nominations, a selection committee reviewed and chose stories that showed a sampling of the positive impact that business school graduates had made in society.

“It is my honour to recognise Don Mohanlal for his contributions as an influential leader, and to thank the Indian School of Business for its dedication to providing a business education environment based on engagement, innovation, and impact,” said Thomas R. Robinson, President and Chief Executive Officer of AACSB International. “If told, the success stories of all business school graduates would fill immeasurable volumes. AACSB is honoured to celebrate Mohanlal’s success — and that of the collective 100 Influential Leaders — as a representation of how business school alumni have positively influenced society, as well as the management education industry’s past, present and promising future.”

The Indian School of Business (ISB) is a global business school offering world-class management education across its two campuses – Hyderabad and Mohali. 

The school has grown at a rapid pace over the 14 years since its inception and already has several notable accomplishments to its credit – it is the youngest school to consistently rank among the top Global MBA programs, the first institution in South Asia to receive the prestigious AACSB accreditation, one of the largest providers of Executive Education in Asia and the most research productive Indian management institution. 

A vibrant pool of research-oriented resident faculty, strong academic associations with leading global B-schools and the backing of an influential board have helped the ISB fast emerge as a premier global business school in the emerging market.