9 Indian-origin CEOs leading global companies: Where they studied
Sundar Pichai and Satya Nadella
Indian-origin leaders have risen to helm some of the world's most influential corporations—from Google to Chanel—leveraging rigorous Indian education and global experiences to drive innovation and growth.
Their journeys spotlight the power of strong academic foundations in shaping visionary leadership.
These nine executives exemplify this trend. Each brings a unique story of engineering prowess, business acumen, and cultural adaptability. Their careers illustrate how education at both Indian and international institutions can fuel extraordinary global impact.
Sundar Pichai
Born June 10, 1972 in Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
Son of Lakshmi (stenographer) and Regunatha Pichai (electrical engineer). Raised in Chennai, he attended IIT Kharagpur (B.Tech Metallurgy), Stanford (M.S.), and Wharton (MBA). Now CEO of Google (since 2015) & Alphabet (since 2019), residing in California.
Satya Nadella
Born August 19, 1967 in Hyderabad to Prabhavati (Sanskrit lecturer) and Bukkapuram Nadella Yugandhar (IAS officer). Alumnus of Hyderabad Public School and Manipal Institute (B.E.),
followed by an M.S. at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and MBA from Chicago Booth. CEO & Chairman of Microsoft, currently based in Redmond, USA.
Shantanu Narayen
Born May 27, 1963 in Hyderabad to a plastics-business father and literature-professor mother. Studied Electronics Engineering at Osmania University, followed by an M.S. in Computer Science (Bowling Green State) and MBA from UC Berkeley Haas. CEO & Chairman of Adobe since 2007, living in California.
Ajay Banga
Born November 10, 1959 in Khadki, Pune into an Indian Army family; father Lt-Gen Harbhajan Banga. Studied at Delhi University (B.A. Economics) and IIM Ahmedabad (MBA). Former CEO of MasterCard, now President of World Bank (since June 2023), based in Washington, D.C.
Arvind Krishna
Born November 23, 1962 in West Godavari, Andhra Pradesh. Son of parents with military-related background . Trained at IIT Kanpur (B.Tech) and University of Illinois (Ph.D.
EE). Joined IBM in 1990, now CEO (since 2020) and Chairman (since 2021), living in New York metro area.
George Kurian
Born 1967 in Kottayam, Kerala. Studied B.S.E.E. at Princeton and M.S. E.E./C.S. at Stanford. Joined NetApp in 2011 and became CEO in June 2015, now leading enterprise data systems from Silicon Valley.
Nikesh Arora
Born February 9, 1968 in Ghaziabad; son of an Indian Air Force officer. Studied at The Air Force School (Subroto Park), IIT-BHU (B.Tech EE), Boston College and Northeastern (MBA).
CEO & Chairman of Palo Alto Networks since June 2018, based in California.
Leena Nair
Born June 11, 1969 in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. Obtained B.E. in Electronics from Walchand College and gold-medalist MBA from XLRI Jamshedpur. Previously CHRO at Unilever, now CEO of Chanel since January 2022, residing in Paris.
Ravi Kumar S
Born in India (Mumbai region); educational credentials include B.E. from Shivaji University and MBA from Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar. Served as President at Infosys (2016–2022), became CEO of Cognizant in January 2023, currently based in New Jersey area.
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