Management Guru CK Prahalad, Dies

It was the end of an era, when on Friday,16th April 2010, the pioneer in corporate strategy and a firm believer in the potential of "fortune at the bottom of pyramid", Coimbatore Krishnarao Prahalad, world's leading management thinker died. Popularly known as CK in the business fraternity, he was, by far, India's most leading authority in management thinking. While the brunt of harsh economies and Wall Street Crashes can be mended, the demise of CK Prahalad is certainly a huge loss for business world and research academia.

Hailed as one of the top 10 management thinkers of the world, his achievements and credentials seem tiny with respect to the towering stature of his vision. A vision that encompassed not only billionaires and business tycoons or the wealthy class but those who are at the base of this society, those 5 billion plus people who have to fight tooth and nail to arrange a day's square meal.

CK Prahalad (August 8th, 1941 - 16th April, 2010) died at the age of 69 after a brief illness in San Diego on Friday, that was reported to the world media, on Saturday, through his family members. He is survived by his wife, Gayatri and two children Murali Krishna, Deepa and their spouses. CK Prahalad was born in a large family in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the year 1941 that comprised nine children, one was CK Prahalad. His father was a Sanskrit scholar and a judge.

After completing his bachelor's of science degree in Physics in 1960 at the age of 19, from Loyola college in Chennai, he was recruited in Union Carbide battery plant. After working for four years in the Union Carbide factory, that he said to have great impact on his understanding of life and business and about "the extraordinary wisdom of ordinary people ", he moved on to take a post graduation degree in management in 1966 from the esteemed Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM - A).

Further, after completing his PhD in multinational management from Harvard business school in 1972, CK Prahalad returned to India as a faculty in IIM - A. Here, Prahalad met his wife, Gayatri who was also a student in IIM- A. Since India at that time was too stiff to accept unconventional ideas, he moved to USA as a faculty at the Stephen Ross Scholl of Business, under the Michigan University. CK Prahalad held the most reputed position of Paul and Ruth McCracken Distinguished University Professor of Corporate Strategy at the time of his death.

Prahalad's genius lay in a domain where theory, vision, and solution of seemingly complex business problems encountered with his unconventional thinking and practical case studies driven by immaculate facts and figures. When he said something, it was always backed by data and figures, not to mention some extraordinary vision for the ordinary people. His unique business models picked from his own home state, helped enterprises develop business growth strategies inclusive of poor.

CK Prahalad authored a number of best selling books in his lifetime. Some of the most popular corporate strategy books written by him were, The Future Of Competition: Co-Creating Value With Customers with Venkat Ramaswamy, 'The Multinational Mission, Balancing Global Integration With Local Responsiveness and "Competing for the Future" with Gary Hamel.

Besides these books, one that revolutionized the way business enterprises thought about billions of poor people across the globe was "Fortune at the Bottom of Pyramid". An example of exceptional research and innovation, this book categorized poor population as a form of consumers, as a market pool whose potential still remains to be tapped. This was opposed to the conventional thinking that poor people are primary producers. The fruits of his work, will truly reveal their benefits when poor in developing countries like India, are able to get access to food, health and education.

CK Prahalad, a humanitarian and known as "guru of poverty" regarded entrepreneurships as an antidote to poverty. He believed that Indian youth is sure to transform India into a major global economy. He worked as a member of the board of NCR Corporation, Hindustan Lever, TVS Capital Funds and the World resources institute. Being consultant to many top management firms of the world, he was regarded as management guru who had sharp business acumen that not only focused on "growth" of the firm, but one that empowers people, at the very base of pyramid.

The Indian government honored him in 2009, with the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian awards for his invaluable contribution in the field of education and literature. In the year 2004, he was awarded the Global Indian ET award.

CK Prahalad was a man who was role model for many. A supreme master of professionalism, exceptional MBA teacher, most sought after CEO coach and world's leading influential thinker, his contribution to the business world is immense.

The world community salutes the legacy of CK Prahalad, he will always be remembered as the one, who fundamentally changed the world of corporate strategy. The world will certainly miss "fighting poverty through profitability" ideas of this scholar. His demise leaves us saddened.