• Azim Premji honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award
• EOY Winners also announced in nine other Award Categories
• Distinguished eight-member Jury Panel, led by Uday Kotak, selects the winners
• The winners comprising unicorns and market disruptors have a revenue of over INR 1,28,000 crore (US$19 billion) and employ over 2,50,000 people worldwide
Mumbai, India, February 19, 2019 : Siddhartha Lal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Eicher Motors, was presented the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2018 Award by Devendra Fadnavis, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, who was the Chief Guest at the Awards Banquet. Over 500 business personalities attended the gala to celebrate the 20th edition of the EOY Awards in India. Siddhartha Lal has led an impressive transformation at Eicher Motors since he took over the reins in 2006, helping the company resurrect the Royal Enfield motorcycle brand in India and establishing it as a global brand icon.
Lal will now represent India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award (WEOY) in Monte Carlo from 6 – 8 June 2019. EOY is the only global business award program in the world and is celebrated across 60 countries. Now in its 20th year in India, it recognizes entrepreneurs for building a better India and accelerating growth and innovation. Awards were also announced for nine other Category Winners who represent both mature industries and unicorns, and are riding the wave of change and transforming India’s business landscape.
Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for putting the Indian information technology industry on the global map and for his laudable contributions to society as a philanthropist. He diversified Wipro from a vegetable oil company to a market-leading technology firm. Mr. Premji’s contributions towards building a just, equitable, humane and sustainable society are unparalleled. Through several philanthropic initiatives, he is committed to bringing about a change in the areas of public education, nutrition, local governance, and the upliftment of vulnerable groups in society.
EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2018 : Winners
- Siddhartha Lal
Managing Director and Chief Executive Office, Eicher Motors - Lifetime Achievement: Azim Premji
Category Winners
- Start-up: Byju Raveendran
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Think & Learn (BYJU’S) - Business Transformation: Kishore Biyani
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Future Group - Manufacturing: Nirmal K Minda
Chairman and Managing Director, Minda Industries - Services: Ritesh Agarwal
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Oravel Stays (OYO Hotels and Homes) - Financial Services: Sanjay Agarwal
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, AU Small Finance Bank - Consumer Products & Retail: Rajesh Mehra
Promoter and Director, Jaquar Group - Life Sciences & Healthcare: Binish Chudgar
Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Intas Pharmaceuticals - Entrepreneurial CEO: Bhaskar Bhat
Managing Director, Titan Company - Energy, Real Estate & Infrastructure: Atul Ruia
Chairman and Managing Director, The Phoenix Mills
The winners tell remarkable stories of the grit and determination of turning adversities into opportunities. Kishore Biyani, popularly known as the king of retail was conferred the Business Transformation category award for his visionary leadership and bold business journey of transforming the Indian retail industry. By constantly evolving, inventing and reinventing businesses, he has built brands that are household names and touch the lives of over 500 million customers.
Byju Raveendran of Think & Learn (BYJU’S) was conferred the Start-up category award. A favorite of the global investor community, he has delivered record growth of over 100% each year and is the rarest of rare unicorns to not only cross the billion dollar valuation, but also be profitable. Ritesh Agarwal of Oravel Stays (OYO Hotels and Homes) was conferred the Services category award.
He has had a laudable journey of disrupting large global players in the hospitality industry and has delivered annual growth of over 300% in the last 3 years. Adding rooms at a breakneck speed, he aims to be the world’s largest hotel chain by 2023. Bhaskar Bhat of Titan Company was honored as the Entrepreneurial CEO for creating markets where none existed and building some of the largest and most trustworthy brands made in India.
Rajiv Memani, Chairman, EY India, says, “In the 20-year journey of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Program in India, we have seen Indian entrepreneurs make an invaluable contribution to propelling our country forward. The winners of this year are no different. They come from both traditional and new-age businesses, but what is common to them is how they have transformed companies or their industries or even created new markets where none existed. Technology, boldness, innovation and global impact are at the core of their enterprise.”
A distinguished eight-member independent Jury Panel led by Uday Kotak, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Kotak Mahindra Bank selected the winners. The other Jury Members included Jalaj Dani, Co-Promoter, Asian Paints; Harsh Goenka, Chairman, RPG Enterprises; Rishad Premji, Chief Strategy Officer, Wipro; Meher Pudumjee, Chairperson, Thermax; Sameer Sain, Co-founder and Managing Partner, Everstone Group; Vijay Sankar, Deputy Chairman, The Sanmar Group and Kunal Shroff, Managing Partner, ChrysCapital Advisors.
The winners, comprising unicorns and market disruptors have a revenue INR 1,28,000 crore (~US$19 billion) and employ over 2,50,000 people worldwide. Says Farokh Balsara, Partner and EOY India Program Leader, “By sparking innovation and accelerating growth, entrepreneurs are truly emerging as the builders of a better India. They have taken challenges, and turned them into opportunities. Each of our winners are combining the power of ideas with disruptive technologies to build unique solutions, innovations and create several new possibilities that redefine how we live and work.”
Ashish Gumashta, CEO, Julius Baer, India, says, “Julius Baer upholds the spirit of entrepreneurship as one of its core pillars and we are delighted to partner in the EOY 2018 awards. It is truly inspirational to witness the power of ideas and innovation in creating lasting societal impact through the adoption of new technologies that have changed the way India operates. We congratulate the winners and finalists for their fantastic contribution towards building a stronger and better India.”
