SINGAPORE (TIP): Ravi Kumar, an IIT alumnus, was on June 19 appointed Dean of the Nanyang Technological University’s Business School here, with the prestigious institution describing him as an academic heavyweight with a good blend of East-West experience. Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) appointed Professor Kumar as dean of its Nanyang Business School, a statement by the institution said.

Kumar did his mechanical engineering from IIT-Madras in 1974. 61-year-old Kumar comes from the University of Southern California‘s Marshall Business School where he held several key leadership positions, including that of Vice-Dean for international programs and Vice-Dean for graduate programs. His academic experience in the East comes from his two years as Dean of the College of Business at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology while on a leave of absence from University of Southern California.

There he introduced reforms that saw the Korean college break into the top 100 of the Financial Times global MBA rankings, the statement said. The statement described Kumar as, “An academic heavyweight with a good blend of East-West experience. A passionate professor who believes in embedding ethics in his curriculum”. Commenting on his big move to NTU, Kumar said, “NTU has an ambitious leadership that has been consistently building its brand worldwide.

As one of the pillars of the university, the Nanyang Business School has a great reputation for thought leadership.” NTU Provost Prof Freddy Boey said, “It has taken two years, as the person chosen as Dean of Business must have accomplishments that commensurate with the school’s reputation as one of the world’s finest business schools. Prof Kumar was a clear and compelling choice”.