Nandan Nilekani

Nandan Nilekani
World Economic Forum from Cologny, Switzerland · CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Name	Nandan Nilekani
Birth date	June 2, 1955
Birth place	Sirsi, Karnataka, India
Spouse	Rohini Nilekani

Nandan Nilekani is a renowned Indian entrepreneur, technocrat, and politician, best known for his role as the co-founder of Infosys, a multinational corporation providing business consulting, information technology, and outsourcing services, along with Narayana Murthy, Nandan Nilekani's friend and fellow Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur alumnus, Kris Gopalakrishnan, S. D. Shibulal, Ashok Arora, and K. Dinesh. He has also served as the Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), where he played a crucial role in implementing the Aadhaar project, a national identification system, in collaboration with National Informatics Centre, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and Tata Consultancy Services. Nilekani's work has been recognized globally, and he has been awarded several prestigious honors, including the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian award, and the Nasscom Global Leadership Award, presented by Nasscom, a trade association of Indian Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing industry, in partnership with McKinsey & Company and KPMG.

● Early Life and Education

Nandan Nilekani was born on June 2, 1955, in Sirsi, Karnataka, India, to Durga Nilekani and Mohan Rao Nilekani, and spent his early years in Bangalore, where he attended Bishop Cotton Boys' School, and later moved to Pune, Maharashtra, to attend St. Vincent's High School. He then enrolled in the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay but later transferred to the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, where he earned a degree in electrical engineering, alongside his friends and future Infosys co-founders, Narayana Murthy and Kris Gopalakrishnan. During his time at IIT Kanpur, Nilekani was exposed to the works of Vikram Sarabhai, Homi Jehangir Bhabha, and Satish Dhawan, which inspired him to pursue a career in technology and entrepreneurship, and later collaborated with Tata Group, Wipro, and Hindustan Unilever.

● Career

Nandan Nilekani began his career in the technology industry at Patni Computer Systems, where he worked alongside Narayana Murthy and other future Infosys co-founders, including Kris Gopalakrishnan and S. D. Shibulal. In 1981, he co-founded Infosys with six other software professionals, including Narayana Murthy, Kris Gopalakrishnan, S. D. Shibulal, Ashok Arora, and K. Dinesh, with an initial investment of just $250, and later partnered with Microsoft, Oracle Corporation, and SAP SE. Under Nilekani's leadership, Infosys grew rapidly, and he became one of the most successful entrepreneurs in India, known for his vision and leadership, and was recognized by Forbes, Bloomberg, and The Economist. He served as the CEO of Infosys from 2002 to 2007 and later became the co-chairman of the company's board of directors, working closely with Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and JPMorgan Chase.

● Aadhaar and Public Service

In 2009, Nandan Nilekani was appointed as the Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) by the Government of India, led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance, with the task of implementing the Aadhaar project, a national identification system, in collaboration with National Informatics Centre, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and Tata Consultancy Services. During his tenure, Nilekani worked closely with various government agencies, including the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, to design and implement the Aadhaar system, which aimed to provide a unique identity to all residents of India, and partnered with World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and Asian Development Bank. The project was successful, and Aadhaar has become one of the largest biometric identification systems in the world, with over 1.2 billion registered users, and has been recognized by United Nations, World Health Organization, and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

● Awards and Recognition

Nandan Nilekani has received numerous awards and honors for his contributions to the technology industry and public service, including the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian award, and the Nasscom Global Leadership Award, presented by Nasscom, a trade association of Indian Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing industry, in partnership with McKinsey & Company and KPMG. He has also been recognized as one of the most influential people in the world by Time Magazine and has received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Global Corporate Citizenship, presented by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, in collaboration with Harvard University and Stanford University. Nilekani has also been awarded honorary doctorates by several prestigious institutions, including Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, and National Institute of Technology, Surathkal, and has been recognized by University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

● Personal Life

Nandan Nilekani is married to Rohini Nilekani, a philanthropist and author, and the couple has two children, Nihar Nilekani and Janhavi Nilekani. Nilekani is known for his simple and humble lifestyle, despite his immense success and wealth, and has been recognized by Forbes and Bloomberg as one of the most philanthropic individuals in India, and has partnered with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, and Rockefeller Foundation. He is also an avid reader and has a strong interest in history, economics, and philosophy, and has been influenced by the works of Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, and B.R. Ambedkar, and has collaborated with Indian Council of Historical Research, Indian Council of Social Science Research, and Indian Council of Philosophical Research.

● Philanthropy and Writing

Nandan Nilekani is a prolific philanthropist and has donated millions of dollars to various causes, including education, healthcare, and environmental conservation, through the Nandan Nilekani Philanthropies, in partnership with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, and Rockefeller Foundation. He has also written several books, including "Imagining India: The Idea of a Renewed Nation", which explores the possibilities of India's future, and "Rebooting India: Realizing a Billion Aspirations", which discusses the challenges and opportunities facing India in the 21st century, and has been recognized by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Economist. Nilekani's writing has been widely acclaimed, and he is considered one of the most influential thinkers and writers in India, and has been recognized by University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He continues to be involved in various philanthropic and literary pursuits, and remains a prominent figure in Indian public life, and has partnered with Tata Group, Wipro, and Hindustan Unilever. Category:Indian businesspeople