BY KAVITA CHHIBBER

When he was introduced last year at a Georgia Interethnic Coalition dinner, at a sold out event, the emcee commented that Dr Jagdish Sheth’s resume was almost 35 pages long! 

Dr. Sheth is an academician with formidable credentials, having been the Robert E. Brooker Professor of Marketing at the University of Southern California, the Walter H. Stellner Distinguished Professor of Marketing at the University of Illinois, and having served on the faculty of Columbia University, and at M.I.T, not to mention the numerous awards and accolades that have come his way.

He has published more than 200 books and research papers in different areas of marketing. His book The Theory of Buyer Behavior (1969) with John A. Howard is considered a classic in the field and another Clients for Life with Andrew Sobel (2000) was a runaway best seller. 

Dr Sheth is currently the Charles Kellstadt Professor of marketing at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, a consultant to several governments, large corporations and start-ups. Known for his many philanthropic activities along with wife Madhu, Dr Sheth carries his fame lightly and makes marketing and economics seem anything but dry and crusty. Life has been exciting for the little Gujarati boy, the youngest of six children who left a life of luxury in war-ravaged Burma in 1940, back to his home town of Kutch, to one of uncertainty and hardship.

Dr Sheth who says his first love is history, was recently honored with two prestigious awards, the AMA/Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator Award and the Charles Coolidge Parker Research award. He is the first person of Indian origin to win both awards. Only five people have won both awards in the same year. Dr Sheth is one of them.

The annual AMA/Irwin/McGraw award sponsored by Richard D. Irwin Co., was first presented in 1985. It is designed to be the highest honor a marketing educator can receive. According to the AMA (American Marketing Association) “Recipients must be universally acknowledged as long-standing leaders in marketing education and he or she must have made extensive contributions to marketing education and the marketing discipline in general.

Thee Parlin Award, considered the most distinguished award in marketing research was established in 1945, by the Philadelphia chapter of the AMA and the Wharton School in association with Curtis Publishing Company in honor of Charles Coolidge Parlin, considered by business historians as the "father" of marketing research.

The award is given annually to a person who has distinguished himself in the marketing research field. “It recognizes distinguished academics and practitioners who have demonstrated outstanding leadership and sustained influence on the evolving profession of marketing research. Specific criteria include the following: 
New concepts, methods, and models for measurement and analysis used to achieve a better understanding of markets and customers.Creative integration of existing methodologies resulting in a more widespread use of marketing research. Demonstrated leadership resulting in the effective use of marketing research and market-based knowledge.”

Dr Sheth said that the awards given to him have now paved the way for other Indian Americans to follow suit. “ If you take a grain of wheat and make a loaf of bread, the value added is twenty percent. If you take a rough diamond and polish it, the value added is 40-60 times, but if you take a human being and help him fulfill his potential, the value added is infinite.”

Dr Sheth added the greatest thing about this country is that a refugee who came here as a struggling immigrant, was given the opportunity to not only exploit his potential to the fullest, but to be recognized for his achievements and his contribution in all aspects of being an educator and in market research.