Anil Ambani – A successful entrepreneur

Anil Dhirubhai Ambani – Bachelor of Science from the University of Bombay (now the University of Mumbai) and MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, born June 4, 1959; he is the second and youngest son of Dhirubhai Ambani, a famous Indian business tycoon. His mother is Kokilaben Ambani; he is married to Tina Ambani who is an Indian actress and has two children, Jai Anmol and Jai Anshul.

He joined Reliance in 1983 as co-chief executive officer and prior to the split of the Reliance group; he was Vice President and General Manager of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). After the Reliance split, he incorporated Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), of which he is Chairman and includes companies such as Reliance Communication, Reliance Capital, Reliance Energy, Reliance Natural Resources Ltd. He is a man of courage and conviction; he believed; “It is hope in this broader sense that enabled my father to build, from scratch, one of the largest modern companies in India. His was a company driven by hard work, initiative, self-confidence but, above all, the ability, as he used to say, “to dream with your eyes wide open”.

He is Chairman of the Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology, Gandhinagar; and member of the Wharton Board of Supervisors; the Wharton School, USA; Board of Governors, Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad; Board of Governors, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur; Executive Board, Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad.

It raised $3 billion from the highly anticipated Reliance Power Initial Public Offering in less than 15 months, which is the largest in Indian history. As of October 6, 2007, his total net worth is US$42 billion and his personal interest in Reliance Communication is 66%. Forbes magazine listed him as the sixth richest man in the world after his brother Mukesh Ambani. Given that his wealth tripled in just one year in percentage terms, he was the fastest growing individual billionaire in the world.

And his success mantra is: “I think you have to work with people, and when I talk about managing relationships, don’t think of the derogatory term ‘managed relationships’. It is a matter of sharing emotions and feelings. The common denominator of everything cannot be money, and should not be money.”

He has been awarded several prizes and awards such as: –

or “Businessman of the Year 1997” by Business India.
or “MTV Youth Icon of the Year” in September 2003.
o “2004 CEO of the Year” at the Platts Global Energy Awards.
o “Entrepreneur of the Decade Award” from the Bombay Management Association.
o “Entrepreneur of the Year 2006” by The Times of India.
o “Best Role Model” in the group made by India Today magazine in August 2006.
o “First Wharton Indian Alumni Award” from the Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF).
or “Millennium Leaders in Business and Finance” by Asiaweek magazine.