Rakesh Khurana
Encyclopedia
Rakesh Khurana is the Marvin Bower Professor of Leadership Development in organizational behavior at Harvard Business School
. He is also the co-Master of Cabot House
at Harvard University
. Rakesh received his degrees in organizational behavior from Harvard's Ph.D.
program in 1998, A.M
(Sociology) from Harvard in 1997, and his bachelor's degree from Cornell University
in 1990. He worked for three years as a founding team member of Cambridge Technology Partners
before starting graduate school in 1994. After finishing his doctorate, Rakesh taught at the MIT Sloan School of Management
. In 2000, Rakesh accepted an appointment at the Harvard Business School. His research focuses on managerial labor markets and the processes by which elites are selected and socialized.
He has researched and written articles and books on executive labor markets, the institutional and intellectual history of business schools, and the conceptual foundations for leadership as an academic field. He is the author of the book, Searching for a Corporate Savior: The Irrational Quest for Charismatic CEOs and related academic and managerial articles on the pitfalls of charismatic leadership. His work in this area is regularly featured by the general media, and he has also published opinion-editorials in some of these outlets.
In 2007 he published his second book From Higher Aims to Hired Hands: The Social Transformation of American Business Schools and the Unfulfilled Promise of Management as a Profession (Princeton University Press). It addresses development of American business education. The book received the Max Weber prize from the American Sociological Association's Organizations, Occupations, and Work Section. It also was the Winner of the 2009 Gold Medal Axiom Business Book Award in Career, Jenkins Group, Inc. and the Winner of the 2007 Best Professional/Scholarly Publishing Book in Business, Finance and Management, Association of American Publishers and the Finalist for the George R. Terry Award from the Academy of Management.
He is known for interviewing GE CEO Jack Welch at a Harvard Business School forum.
He and Nitin Nohria
are working with the World Economic Forum
and the Aspen Institute
to create a business oath, like the MBA Oath
, that might be used globally. In an Harvard Business Review
piece published in October 2008, Khurana and Nohria linked the connection between professionalism of a profession and the profession's ability to deliver value to society. Nohria and Khurana also are the co-editors of the Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice (2010), Harvard Business School Press.
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...
. He is also the co-Master of Cabot House
Cabot House
Cabot House is one of twelve undergraduate residential Houses at Harvard University. Cabot House derives from the merger in 1970 of South and East House, which took the name South House , until the name was changed and the House reincorporated in 1984 to honor Harvard benefactors Thomas Cabot and...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. Rakesh received his degrees in organizational behavior from Harvard's Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
program in 1998, A.M
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
(Sociology) from Harvard in 1997, and his bachelor's degree from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in 1990. He worked for three years as a founding team member of Cambridge Technology Partners
Cambridge Technology Partners
Cambridge Technology Partners was founded by John J. Donovan in 1991 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA as a division of Cambridge Technology Group, is a leading consulting firm with focus on solving complex business problems with technology based solutions.Today, the headquarters are based in Nyon...
before starting graduate school in 1994. After finishing his doctorate, Rakesh taught at the MIT Sloan School of Management
MIT Sloan School of Management
The MIT Sloan School of Management is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in Cambridge, Massachusetts....
. In 2000, Rakesh accepted an appointment at the Harvard Business School. His research focuses on managerial labor markets and the processes by which elites are selected and socialized.
He has researched and written articles and books on executive labor markets, the institutional and intellectual history of business schools, and the conceptual foundations for leadership as an academic field. He is the author of the book, Searching for a Corporate Savior: The Irrational Quest for Charismatic CEOs and related academic and managerial articles on the pitfalls of charismatic leadership. His work in this area is regularly featured by the general media, and he has also published opinion-editorials in some of these outlets.
In 2007 he published his second book From Higher Aims to Hired Hands: The Social Transformation of American Business Schools and the Unfulfilled Promise of Management as a Profession (Princeton University Press). It addresses development of American business education. The book received the Max Weber prize from the American Sociological Association's Organizations, Occupations, and Work Section. It also was the Winner of the 2009 Gold Medal Axiom Business Book Award in Career, Jenkins Group, Inc. and the Winner of the 2007 Best Professional/Scholarly Publishing Book in Business, Finance and Management, Association of American Publishers and the Finalist for the George R. Terry Award from the Academy of Management.
He is known for interviewing GE CEO Jack Welch at a Harvard Business School forum.
He and Nitin Nohria
Nitin Nohria
Nitin Nohria is the 10th and the current dean of Harvard Business School. He is also the George F. Baker Professor of Business Administration, co-chair of the HBS Leadership Initiative and sits on the executive committee of the University's interfaculty initiative on advanced leadership.Over the...
are working with the World Economic Forum
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum is a Swiss non-profit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland....
and the Aspen Institute
Aspen Institute
The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1950 as the Aspen Institute of Humanistic Studies. The organization is dedicated to "fostering enlightened leadership, the appreciation of timeless ideas and values, and open-minded dialogue on contemporary issues." The...
to create a business oath, like the MBA Oath
MBA Oath
MBA Oath is a voluntary student-led pledge that asks graduating MBAs to commit towards the creation of value "responsibly and ethically." As of January 2010, the initiative is driven by a coalition of MBA students, graduates and advisors, including nearly 2,000 student and alumni signers from over...
, that might be used globally. In an Harvard Business Review
Harvard Business Review
Harvard Business Review is a general management magazine published since 1922 by Harvard Business School Publishing, owned by the Harvard Business School. A monthly research-based magazine written for business practitioners, it claims a high ranking business readership among academics, executives,...
piece published in October 2008, Khurana and Nohria linked the connection between professionalism of a profession and the profession's ability to deliver value to society. Nohria and Khurana also are the co-editors of the Handbook of Leadership Theory and Practice (2010), Harvard Business School Press.