Thomas Schmidheiny, Media - Indian School of Business (ISB)

Thomas Schmidheiny Research Chair

The ISB announced on December 14, 2006 the setting up of a Research Chair in ‘Family Business and Wealth Management’ at the Indian School of Business. The Chair is titled the Thomas Schmidheiny Chair of Family Business and Wealth Management. Professor K Ramachandran, Clinical Professor of Business, has been appointed as the Thomas Schmidheiny Fellow of Family Business and Wealth Management till March 31, 2008. He has been working in the area of Family Business for over two decades and one of his key research areas is in the challenges of the professionalisation of Family Business.

Thomas Schmidheiny, on behalf of ‘Spectrum Value management’ based in Switzerland, has committed to fund the Chair on Family Business and Family Wealth Management at the ISB. The funding will support the Chair for an initial period of five years in order to support research, education, publications and conferences conducted by the Chair.

Professor Rammohan Rao, Dean, ISB, said, “We are privileged that Dr Schmidheiny has agreed to fund this Chair at the ISB. The ISB’s Centre for Entrepreneurship Development has been conducting several courses on family business as this is a key area of study for India as well as other emerging markets. With the Research Chair being established, we will be able to conduct in-depth research as well.”

Talking about his decision to support this Chair, Schmidheiny said, “ I have closely watched the ISB’s very promising five years, and I am convinced that the ISB is on the right track to develop into a world-class institution which can easily compare with other leading institutions in the US and Europe. I hope this Chair will enable Indian families to learn about the subject, exchange best practices, and profit from cutting-edge research. I see a huge demand for knowledge in this field, especially in the Indian context.”

Dr Schmidheiny is a leading figure in entrepreneurial circles both in Switzerland and abroad. He comes from a highly influential family of industrialists and political leaders. For over 25 years, Dr Schmidheiny was the CEO and Chairman of HOLCIM, the world’s leading cement, concrete and aggregates enterprise. He has built up the company internationally, and is currently the company’s largest stakeholder.