Indians outshine Gates on Fortune list
The Indian middle- class is on 7th spot in the list of ‘Top 50 people who matter now’, ahead of Gates, Dell.
By TNN |
NEW DELHI: The Great Indian Middle Class is finally getting its due. Here’s how: This 300-million-strong population has been featured at the seventh spot in the list of ‘Top 50 People Who Matter Now’ — ahead of corporate czars and market swingers like Bill Gates, Michael Dell, Richard Branson and Fed chief Ben Bernanke.
But topping the list — which appears in the latest July issue of Fortune group’s Business 2.0 magazine — is the faceless consumer the world over. “They’ve long said the customer is always right. But they never really meant it. Now they have no choice,” the magazine said.
The list boasts of another Indian name with venture capitalist Vinod Khosla grabbing the 33rd position. But the most surprising inclusion in the list was the emerging middle class spread across India, China, Russia and Brazil. “This emerging class is looking forward to enjoying a more comfortable way of life,” it said. These newly affluent consumers also have the money to spend — estimated at over $1 trillion a year, it added.
Among those who have been placed above the emerging middle class are Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page (at second position), Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs (3), News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch (4), Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs (5) and Genentech’s product development president Susan Desmond-Hellmann (6).
The middle class outscored a host of Who’s Who in the global arena, most notable among them being Microsoft founder Bill Gates, US Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, Intel’s Paul Otellini, Dell’s Michael Dell and Toyota’s Fujio Cho.
Interestingly, Arun Sarin and Steve Ballmer — who head the largest mobile operator Vodafone and Microsoft respectively — do not even figure in this elite league of people who matter.
Rather, they have been pushed into the bunch of “10 People Who Don’t Matter”.
But topping the list — which appears in the latest July issue of Fortune group’s Business 2.0 magazine — is the faceless consumer the world over. “They’ve long said the customer is always right. But they never really meant it. Now they have no choice,” the magazine said.
The list boasts of another Indian name with venture capitalist Vinod Khosla grabbing the 33rd position. But the most surprising inclusion in the list was the emerging middle class spread across India, China, Russia and Brazil. “This emerging class is looking forward to enjoying a more comfortable way of life,” it said. These newly affluent consumers also have the money to spend — estimated at over $1 trillion a year, it added.
Among those who have been placed above the emerging middle class are Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page (at second position), Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs (3), News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch (4), Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs (5) and Genentech’s product development president Susan Desmond-Hellmann (6).
The middle class outscored a host of Who’s Who in the global arena, most notable among them being Microsoft founder Bill Gates, US Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, Intel’s Paul Otellini, Dell’s Michael Dell and Toyota’s Fujio Cho.
Interestingly, Arun Sarin and Steve Ballmer — who head the largest mobile operator Vodafone and Microsoft respectively — do not even figure in this elite league of people who matter.
ADVERTISEMENT
Rather, they have been pushed into the bunch of “10 People Who Don’t Matter”.
| NAME | COMPANY | RANK |
| The consumer | | 1 |
| Sergey Brin & Larry Page | Google | 2 |
| Paul Jacobs | Qualcomm | 3 |
| Rupert Murdoch | News Corp | 4 |
| Steve Jobs | Apple Computer | 5 |
| Middle Class | India, China, Russia, Brazil | 7 |
| Fujio Cho | Toyota | 8 |
| Ben Bernanke | Federal Reserve Board | 20 |
| Bill Gates | Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | 21 |
| Vinod Khosla | Khosla Ventures | 33 |
Download
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
