Chanda Kochhar Born On: November 17, 1961Born In: Jodhpur, RajasthanCareer: MD, CEO, ICICI Bank

In India's male dominated banking sphere, Chanda Kochhar carved a niche for herself. This was no easy task. In her career which extends to over three decades of experience, she remained strong willed and alert. Her determination to make it to the top only grew from year to year. Kochhar's career growth can be traced along with the expansion of the bank over the past several years. She never stuttered in her growth and was one of the few who kept up with the aggressive development run of ICICI bank. It was her sharp strategic planning which made the ICICI bank the 'Best Retail Bank in India' for five consecutive years. As per Forbes, It's no wonder then that she has been ranked 20th amongst the most powerful women in business and in the world. Read on to find out more about how Chanda Kochhar made it to the top of the corporate pile.

Early LifeChanda Kochhar was born in Jodhpur in Rajasthan on November 17, 1961, but was raised in Jaipur in Rajasthan. She then joined Jai Hind College in Mumbai for a Bachelor of Arts degree. After completing her graduation in 1982, she pursued cost accountancy (ICWAI). Later, she did her Master's degree in management studies from the esteemed Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies in Mumbai from where she received a Wockhardt Gold Medal for Excellence in Management Studies. In the same year, she won the J.N Bose gold medal for Cost Accountancy.

CareerIn 1984, after her masters, Chanda Kochhar joined 'The Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India Limited' or ICICI Limited as a management trainee. In her initial years in ICICI, she handled project appraisal and monitoring and various projects in Petrochemicals, Textile and Cement and Paper. In 1994, she became the Assistant General Manager and was promoted to the post of Deputy General Manager in 1996. She headed the Infrastructure Industry Group of ICICI. In 1999, she was promoted as the General Manager and became the head of ICICI's 'Major Client Group' which handled relationships with the top 200 clients of the organisation. In 1999, she started handling the Strategy and E-commerce divisions of ICICI. Under Kochhar's leadership, ICICI began its retail business in 2000 and in the next five years, became the biggest retail financer in India. In 2001, she became the executive director of ICICI bank. In April 2006, she was appointed as the Deputy Managing Director of ICICI bank and managed the corporate and retail banking business of ICICI bank. From October 2007 to April 2009, she was the Chief Finance Officer (CFO), Joint Managing Director (JMD), and the official spokesperson of ICICI. She was also the head of the Corporate Center of ICICI bank, the director of the ICICI group of companies, Chairperson of ICICI Bank Eurasia Limited Liability Company and ICICI Investment Management Company Limited. Chanda Kochhar also held the positions of Vice-Chairperson of ICICI Bank UK and ICICI Bank Canada and the position of Director of ICICI International Limited and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Limited. In May 2009, she was appointed as the Managing Director and the Chief Operating Officer of ICICI bank for a term of five years.

Contributions Chanda Kochhar was a part of the core team when ICICI decided to set the ICICI Bank 1993. In 2000, when the organisation decided to develop its wings, she decided to keep the bank open for twelve hours in a day when other banks were open for four to seven hours a day. She was also one of the bankers who came up with electronic banking and installed 2000 ATM machines all over India. Under Kochhar's leadership, ICICI was awarded the 'Best Retail Bank in India' in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005. In 2002, the bank was given the 'Excellence in Retail Banking Award'.

Legacy Chanda Kochhar is one amongst the two women who is the head of an Indian domestic bank. Joining the ICICI bank as a management trainee, she was instrumental in making ICICI bank the largest retail financer in India. She is an inspiration to women all over the world.

Awards And Accolades 'Retail Banker of the Year' (Asia - Pacific region) by The Asian Banker, 2004'Business Woman of the Year' by The Economic Times, 2005'Rising Star Award' for Global Awards by Retail Banker International, 2006 Featured in the list of '30 Most Powerful Woman Leaders' in business for 8 consecutive years from 2002 to 2010'Transformational Business Leader of the Year' by All India Management Association, 2010Ranked 10th in the Fortune's List of 'Most Powerful Women in Business', 2010Ranked 92nd in the Forbes List of 'Most Powerful Women' in the world, 2010'Outstanding Woman Business Leader of the Year' award by CNBC TV18, 2010'Ranked 11th in the List of 'Top 50 Woman in World Business' by the Financial Times, 2010Padma Vibhushan, 2011

Timeline

1961 - Born in Jodhpur in Rajasthan. 1982 - Completed her graduation and pursued cost accountancy. 1984 - Joined 'The Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India Limited' or ICICI Limited.1994 - Became the Assistant General Manager of ICICI bank. 1996 - Became the Deputy General Manager.1999 - Took over as the General Manager and became the head of ICICI's 'Major Client Group'.2000 - ICICI began its retail business under Kochhar's leadership.2001 - Became the executive director of the ICICI bank.2006 - Appointed as the Deputy Managing Director of ICICI bank.2009 - Appointed as the Managing Director and the Chief Operating Officer of ICICI bank.2011 - Awarded Padma Vibhushan.

Shikha Sharma, Indian Business WomanShikha Sharma is the Managing director and chief operating officer of Axis Bank. She was responsible for the seeting up of various group ventures of ICICI.

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Shikha Sharma, Indian Business WomanShikha Sharma is a women entrepreneur who is at the helm of a private bank in India. She with her exceptional leadership qualities, made ICICI Prudential, the largest private insurance company in the country. She has left behind an inheritance which is followed by millions of women aspirants.

Early life of Shikha Sharma Shikha Sharma is a B.A. (Hons.) graduate. She also has a Post Graduate Diploma in Software Technology, from the National Centre for Software Technology, Mumbai and completed her Masters of Business Administration from the Indian Institute of Management - Ahmedabad.

Career of Shikha Sharma She began her career with ICICI, one of India`s largest financial services providers, in 1980. She has been instrumental in setting up various group businesses for the company, including. She has worked in various divisions of ICICI - project finance, corporate planning and resource rising. She was also involved in setting up ICICI Securities, then a joint venture between ICICI and JP Morgan. She also served as MD of ICICI Personal Financial Services, which was responsible for all retail-asset products.

She was appointed as Managing Director & CEO of Axis Bank on June 1st 2009. Mrs. Shikha Sharma serves as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at AXIS Bank Limited since June 1, 2009. She also served the Company Secretary and Compliance Officer at Financial Eyes (India) Ltd. Mrs. She has also been the Managing Director at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, Ltd. since September 2009. Previously, she served as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd. until April 2009. She also served as the Company Secretary at IO System Ltd. from April 2007 to May 2007. In 1992, she was involved in setting up ICICI Securities which is a joint venture between ICICI and JP Morgan. She was also responsible for setting up various group businesses for ICICI including investment banking and retail finance. In 1995, she moved to ICICI Securities and was later assigned to J.P. Morgan & Co. She rejoined ICICI in 1997 as the General Manager in charge of the strategic planning and development department and also set up the structured products group. She has been an Additional Director of Axis Bank Limited since June 1, 2009. Mrs. Sharma serves as a Director of ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company Limited. She serves as the Chairperson and Associate Director of Axis Asset Management Company Limited. Mrs. Sharma served as a Non Executive and Non Independent Director of Firstsource Solutions Ltd. until May 26, 2009. She served as a Director of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd. until April 2009. Mrs. Sharma served as an Independent Director of ACC Ltd. from December 13, 2006 to May 2009.

Personal Life of Shikha Sharma Shikha Sharma married Sanjay who was her batch mate at IIM-Ahmedabad.

(Last Updated on : 15/06/2012)

Naina Lal Kidwai (Rank 12)Country Head, HSBC India

Naina Lal Kidwai, a chartered accountant by profession is currently the Group General Manager and Country Head of HSBC India. Kidwai was the first Indian woman to graduate from Harvard Business School.

From 1982-1994 she worked at ANZ Grindlays, where her assignments included Head of the Investment Bank, Head of Global NRI Services and Head of the Western India, Retail Bank.

She is on the Governing Board of NCAER, Audit Advisory Board of the Comproller and Auditor General of India, and on the National Executive Committee of CII and FICCI.

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Image: Naina Lal Kidwai.Photographs: Reuters.Related News: Kidwai , Governing Board of NCAER , Head , FICCI , National Executive Committee of CII.