L&T's Naik steps down as IIM-A chairman

L&T Group Executive Chairman A M Naik on Thursday stepped down from the post of chairman of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad's board of governors.

Confirming the move, Naik told Business Standard that with 21 companies in the group under his chairmanship, it had become difficult for him to do justice to his role at the premier business school "even for five more days".

According to institute sources, Naik would probably be the first such chairman to step down in the institute's history.

"I have done my job (at IIM-A).

I have got the best director in the world (for IIM-A). I have reconstituted the board and brought Harvard's senior professor (Srikant Datar) on the board. The institute is running well. I am supposed to continue for another two years, but it was not possible for me to do justice even for five more days," Naik said, who resigned from the post in a letter addressed to the ministry of human resources development.

In 2012, Naik took over from Vijaypat Singhania of Raymond Group as IIM-A chairman for a three-year term. He was re-appointed for another three years early this year. During his first tenure, Naik had been instrumental in bringing Harvard Law School's Ashish Nanda to IIM-A, as its first overseas director. Later, Naik also played a role in bringing another senior Harvard faculty Srikant Datar on IIM-A's board.

While IIM-A director Nanda could not be contacted, senior faculty members said the IIM-A board of governors had become more active under Naik. It was during Naik's tenure that the board saw rationalisation from 25 members to 15 members. Moreover, Naik is known to be one of the most vocal IIM chairmen on the draft IIM Bill brought out by MHRD in recent times.

Naik's ingenuity and persistence in tackling government bureaucracy, especially, with regards to the draft IIM Bill is believed to have helped him clinch a second term as IIM-A chairman.