I was cold and drenched on my way to Dean Jain’s home, but the smile that he greeted me with suddenly made me feel very warm and comfortable. He helped me with my jacket and guided me to his make-shift office at home.
While I settled behind an ebony desk with a pile of freshly arrived letters, mostly invitations, and an impressive collection of books, Dean Jain himself returned with a cup of tea and cookies. I surely couldn’t have asked for more from a person of his stature and was struck by his modesty.
His office was tastefully done in beige tapestry and decorated with souvenirs gifted to him from across the world, including an honorary doctorate degree awarded by the Princess of Thailand, his erstwhile student. Amongst the others pictures, I couldn’t help but notice a very old photograph of a much younger him. “This picture was taken by a peer at UT Dallas after I had just arrived in the US”, explained Dean Jain. “I had seldom worn a tie in India, and I bought this one (pointing at the picture) for 50 cents from a garage sale in Dallas”, he chuckled with genuine humility.
Dean Jain has very vivid memories of his youth and deep down, he still is the same person he was back then. He was brought-up in Tezpur in Assam, a disconnected Indian state with a “chicken neck connection”, as described by him, with the Indian mainland since it is squeezed between Bangladesh and Bhutan. He studied at a government school in Tezpur, his hometown, where the medium of instruction was Hindi. He went to Darrang College for his Undergrad and majored in mathematics primarily because rather than fancy laboratories, it just required a paper and pencil. He secured highest marks in the state for his undergrad and graduation, and was therefore appointed as a professor at Guwahati University in Assam on the condition that he completes his PhD within 5 years. In the meantime, he wrote a letter to a professor at Berkley for procuring the professor’s research paper, but through a series of events his letter landed-up with another professor at UT Dallas. Impressed with his academic credentials, he was offered a full funding to pursue his PhD at UT Dallas and thus he came to the US in 1983.
He acknowledged that those who have known him since his early days in his home town wonder how all these years of “living abroad” and a successful career have had no impact on his simple ways. With an extraordinary gleam in his eyes, a melodious softness in his voice and a remarkable humbleness in all his ways, he still is an epitome of a young, modest sobriety only with grayer hair.
Equally surprising was the discovery that he doesn’t wear a watch, or own a laptop, and has never learnt to drive a car. Yet he has never missed a single class in his 25 years at Kellogg. He doesn’t even carry any notes, or paper to refer to while teaching a class. “For me teaching is worship, and every student is a manifestation of God”, he spoke from his heart. I asked him if he maintained a diary for his meetings, and he laughed, “I try to remember everything! Day, date, appointments, occasions, everything”. He could tell me about his schedule upto nine months from then as if reading from a mental calendar and could also recall ‘who said what in which class’. I was curious to learn the trick from him, so he confided “Interest and Involvement in my work”. He added, “My father was blind, and he taught me that if you do things in life as if you are completely blind, you can never go wrong.”
“I have never asked what’s in it for me while taking-on any job”, Dean Jain said. He has never negotiated for his compensation or perks, and has considered every task as an opportunity to learn something new. He also believes that its better to be trusted than liked. Perhaps that was the reason, as aptly noticed by Henry Bienen, Northwestern’s President, why Dean Jacobs trusted Dean Jain immensely, and ended the typical two-year rolling term for an Associate Dean to appoint Dean Jain as the permanent Associate Dean and his permanent ally throughout his tenure.
“The five years that I spent with Dean Jacobs in an administrative role were my best time at Kellogg”, he said. This also provided him with the training to carry forward the Dean’s baton. As a Dean, he had a very disarming personality, and was always available, approachable and accessible for everyone. He neither believed in a ‘close door’ policy nor an ‘open door’ policy, instead he propagated a ‘NO DOOR’ policy and was very transparent in his dealings. At times, he was criticized for not being assertive or aggressive but he has always been a firm believer of “soft gestures create hard impressions”.
Yet he was able to leave an indelible impression on Kellogg! During his eight years in Dean’s office, he immensely enhanced the school’s global presence and reputation. Kellogg partnered with more than 30 premier institutions worldwide and was proclaimed as the best B-school by all notable publications for consecutive years. Dean Jain also strengthened the school’s alumni network by creating a full fledged database and visiting alumni clubs all over the world. Miami campus is another big feather in his cap.
“My only regret is that I couldn’t complete the new campus”, he paused. “In 2007, I started the capital campaign for $250mn towards the school’s expansion and new building but as luck would have it, we found ourselves in the midst of a financial crisis by 2008”, he sighed with disappointment. To add to this, was his father’s demise and personal surgery!
He reflected on his almost 25 years with Kellogg, and attributed his success to those who he worked with – his colleagues, students, staff, and most importantly, Dean Jacobs. “The school was like my home, and the affection of those around me made me look forward to each day I have spent here. As a Dean, the support that I received from my staff was remarkable”, he said.
He recounted the milestones in his career as the most memorable moments. In Winter1990, he was the first professor ever to receive a TCE of 6.8 (on a scale of 7) in the Marketing Research course and from then on, he was nominated for the Best Professor Award for five consecutive years. However, he could never win it because unlike other professors, he was never teaching the same sections and therefore, didn’t have a critical mass to vote for him. “I was always the bridesmaid, but never the bride”, he joked. He believes that his record-breaking TCE ratings caught Dean Jacobs’ eye, and eventually helped him become Dean Jacobs’s trusted confidant. But that wasn’t all. The other important landmarks in his career were – he became the (youngest) Full Professor at Kellogg in 1992, the Associate Dean in 1996 and finally the Dean in 2001.
I was curious to know how INSEAD happened, and he elaborated, “I visited INSEAD as a speaker in 1989 while I was on my way (to get married) in India”, he smiled. “Recently I felt I wasn’t making the best use of my time here at Kellogg. So when INSEAD contacted me I thought to myself that not everyone gets a chance to do it once, whereas I can now do it all over again. I had also been approached by the Marketing departments at Harvard, MIT and other top B-schools off-late but I found this most interesting”, he added.
Elaborating on the support that he received from his family with regard to the acceptance of this offer, he said, “I never like to start a story that I cannot complete, so I consulted my wife even before exploring it further. My wife was extremely supportive. My children are already taking French lessons”, he told.
Dean Jain has managed to maintain a strictly vegetarian dietary habit, and he doesn’t consume alcohol. Wouldn’t it be tough in France, I enquired? “I believe in my principles, and am always myself. I never pretend, or succumb to the social pressure, as a result the others find it easy to accept me the way I am, and get attuned”, he explained.
He hopes to continue his engagement as a Director with John Deere, Northern Trust and Reliance Industries amongst others. He has also been involved with many prestigious companies, to name a few, Nestle, Honeywell, American Express, Microsoft, Boeing, Sony, US Cellular, Philips Electronics, AT&T, Hyatt etc, and would try to maintain some of these commitments. Each year, he receives invitations to be the keynote speaker at zillions of conferences around the world that he looks forward to attending. Infact not many may know that he has been the only person, other than Jeff Immelt, to receive a standing ovation during a keynote address at GE in Chicago.
Despite the relocation and other professional commitments, he plans to ensure that his community service initiatives, that he is very passionate about, don’t receive a setback. Currently, he heads a team to build ‘School of Entrepreneurship and Management’ at the Asian University for Women in Chittagong, Bangladesh to provide education to women from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, Vietnam, Iran, Palestine, among others. “My father was posted in Chittagong in the early 50’s”, he sighed and then continued, “Mothers can influence the child greatly so what better than educating the to-be mothers!” He is also involved with other non-profit organizations in India such as Asha that supports tuberculosis patients, and Pratham that provides education to the underprivileged children.
When I asked him to tell the readers something that they don’t know about him, he replied, “My family and I are Tsunami survivors!” I gave him an astonished look as he continued, “We were a few yards from the beach when Tsunami struck. We saw the fishing boats, beach chairs, and just about everything, get swept away and fall into a lagoon that we were standing by. Fortunately, not even a single drop of water splashed on us.”
I was sure that the readers would like to benefit from Dean Jain’s experience and prudence, so I asked him for his parting advice. He encapsulated his wisdom in a few lines, “There is no substitute to hard-work. You must work selflessly, with passion, and without thinking about the credit.” He pauses to add a quote from a previous chairman of coca cola, “There is no limit to what you can achieve and how high you can go in life if you don’t mind who gets the credit. Just believe in yourself, and remember, someone is watching you at all times. Last but not the least, the challenge ahead of you is never greater than the force behind you… and Dipak Jain is always behind each of you.”
Finally, I asked him to help me trace the origin of the popular saying that ‘the Kellogg experience is incomplete without Dean Jain’s hug.’ He explained, “It’s a way of expressing my affection, my respect, my gratitude!” “A gentleman at INSEAD initially referred to it as ‘crossing the line of intimacy’ but now hugs me every time he meets me”, he chuckled, and joked, “I was told not to hug the students during the Graduation Ceremony at Kellogg because it had increased the length of the ceremony, (pauses and rises-up) but I sure can give you a hug.” He hugged, and completed my Kellogg experience.
