Indian-origin Srikant Datar named dean of Harvard Business School

Eminent Indian-origin academician Srikant Datar has been named as Dean of Harvard Business School, succeeding Nitin Nohria and becoming the second consecutive dean hailing from India to lead the prestigious 112-year-old institution.

Datar, an alumnus of University of Bombay and Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, is the Arthur Lowes Dickinson Professor of Business Administration and the senior associate dean for University Affairs at Harvard Business School (HBS).

He will assume charge as the school’s next dean on January 1, President Larry Bacow said.

Bacow described Datar as an "innovative educator, a distinguished scholar, and a deeply experienced academic leader."

"He is a leading thinker about the future of business education, and he has recently played an essential role in HBS's creative response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. He has served with distinction in a range of leadership positions over his nearly 25 years at HBS, while also forging novel collaborations with other Harvard Schools," Bacow said.

Datar said he is in equal measures "humbled and honoured" to take on the new role.

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