Somaiya Vidyavihar Univ Appoints Ex-BASF CMD, Raman Ramachandran, as Director of KJSIM

Somaiya Vidyavihar University (SVU) has announced the appointment of Raman Ramachandran as the Director of the K J Somaiya Institute of Management (KJSIM). Ramachandran will succeed Dr. Monica Khanna, who will pursue her passion for teaching and research.

“We are delighted to announce that Dr. Raman Ramachandran as the Director of KJSIM,” said Samir Somaiya, Chancellor, Somaiya Vidyavihar University. He adds, “Raman’s deep expertise in strategic thinking, planning, and resource management will enable KJSIM in developing, leading, and executing at the forefront to create a dynamic approach towards education with various stakeholders. K J Somaiya’s vision is to build a world-class research and teaching institution that is global in reach for its ideas and universal in its service. With the leadership of Raman, we can design, deliver programs that will further strengthen the impact of the Institute on business and society.”

Raman Ramachandran, Ph.D, said, “I am extremely honoured and excited to head KJSIM as Director. I look forward to translating my 3 decades of corporate experience to management education and will strive to lead KJSIM to greater heights. I also wish to thank Dr. Monica Khanna, former director for building a great team and a robust platform to build on.”

Raman is the former Chairman and Managing Director of BASF and Head of the BASF legal entities in South Asia. He spent 22 years with BASF and held many positions of responsibility for the Asia Pacific region and South Asian region. Raman was also a member of the Asia Pacific Business Board, Vice-President, CropLife Asia and chaired the Chemicals and Petrochemicals group of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII). He is also the Non-Executive Vice Chairman of board of Calibre chemicals, Independent Director on board of Proklean Technologies. He received a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural from Tamil Nadu University further he pursued Masters in Agricultural from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, and a Ph.D. from the University of Adelaide. He is the recipient of Robert S. McNamara Fellow of World Bank in 1990 and was awarded the ‘Life Time Achievement Award’ by the Chemical & Petrochemicals Sector of Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) in 2021.