British Academy elects LBS professor as Fellow

Professor Rajesh Chandy has been recognised for his groundbreaking research 

Rajesh Chandy, Professor of Marketing at London Business School (LBS), has been elected a Fellow of the British Academy for his work in humanities and social sciences. 

Professor Chandy was chosen for his research, which covers innovation, marketing strategy, business in developing countries, entrepreneurship and the impact of business on poverty and inequity. 

He joins 75 other academics in the largest cohort of new Fellows elected to join the academy – the UK’s national body for humanities and social sciences – in its 116-year history. 

Fifty-two Fellows were selected from UK universities, with a further 20 'Corresponding Fellows' chosen from higher education institutes in the US, Australia, the Netherlands, Germany, Hungary, Italy and France.

Commenting on the new Fellows, Professor Sir David Cannadine, President of the British Academy, said: “I’m delighted to welcome this year’s exceptionally talented new Fellows to the Academy. Including historians and economists, neuroscientists and legal theorists, they bring a vast range of expertise, insights and experience to our most distinguished fellowship.

“The election of the largest cohort of Fellows in our history means the British Academy is better placed than ever to help tackle the challenges we all face today. Whether it’s social integration or the ageing society, the future of democracy or climate change, Brexit or the rise of artificial intelligence, the insights of the humanities and social sciences are essential as we navigate our way through an uncertain present into what we hope will be an exciting future.”

The new Fellows join a community of more than 1,400 leading minds that make up the UK’s national academy for humanities and social sciences. Existing Fellows include classicist Dame Mary Beard, the historian Sir Simon Schama and philosopher Baroness Onora O’Neill. Sir Winston Churchill, C.S Lewis, Seamus Heaney and Beatrice Webb were once Fellows of the academy.

At LBS, Professor Chandy is Tony and Maureen Wheeler Chair in Entrepreneurship and Academic Director, Wheeler Institute for Business and Development.