Management guru Bala Balachandran, 84, passes away after brief illness

The Chairman and Dean (Emeritus) of Great Lakes Institute was also a J L Kellogg distinguished professor; in 1960s he helped recruit the first set of faculty members to IIM Bangalore

Bala V Balachandran, 84, founder, chairman and dean (emeritus) of Great Lakes Institute of Management passed away at Chicago after a brief illness.

He was also a J L Kellogg distinguished professor of accounting and information management (emeritus in service), Northwestern University. Born in Pudukottai, Bala, also known as ‘Uncle Bala’ completed his collegiate education at the Annamalai University, Chidambaram. He served in the Indian Army briefly before departing to the US to pursue his Doctoral studies.

He helped recruit the first set of faculty members to IIM Bangalore in the late 1960s and also set up the management department at the