IIM Indore Alumni Who Are Changing the Game
By Abhishek Agrawal · Indore.online
IIM Indore, founded 1996 — India’s 6th IIM, NIRF rank 8 in management (2025), 193-acre campus. Average placement package: ₹20-25 LPA. Highest: ₹30-40 LPA. But the real story isn’t the numbers. It’s the people who came from these classrooms and quietly built something extraordinary. Let me tell you about a few of them.
🏆 The Distinguished Alumni — IIM Indore’s Hall of Pride
Rajat Shikhar — DealShare Co-Founder & CPO
Batch: PGP 2003-05 | IIM Indore Distinguished Alumni Award 2022
Co-founder and Chief Product Officer at DealShare — India’s social commerce startup disrupting value retail for Bharat. DealShare uses WhatsApp-native group buying and community-driven commerce to serve Tier-2/3 consumers. The platform raised over $160M+ in funding. Rajat’s product vision combines deep consumer insight with tech execution. The kind of founder who didn’t go from IIM to McKinsey — he went from IIM to build something India-first.
Arindam Paul — Atomberg’s Champion of Change
IIM Indore Distinguished Alumni Award recipient
Pioneered D2C sales strategy at Atomberg — made them a market leader on Amazon and Flipkart before executing offline expansion to 25,000 counters across 400 cities. Recognized as “Champion of Change” by the Prime Minister of India. Represented India at global UN events on climate change. Now mentors founders of brands like Zouk, Oziva, Urban Company, MCaffeine — essentially building India’s next generation of D2C brands. Leads 350+ professionals. A builder of builders.
Nishant Upadhyay — Global Finance, Connecticut, USA
Batch: PGP 1998-2000 | IIM Indore Distinguished Alumni Award recipient
Head of Global Fixed Income and Liquid Alternatives, State of Connecticut Retirement Plans & Trust Funds, USA. 30+ year career spanning global macroeconomics, fixed income, asset allocation. From Indore → IIM Indore → managing billions of dollars in pension funds in the United States. The international reach of IIM Indore’s alumni network — this is the proof.
Pranav Agarwal — Dubai Web3 Fund Leader
IIM Indore alumnus | IIM Indore Distinguished Alumni Award recipient
Based in Dubai. Head of Foundership Ventures — a Web3 startup fund. Former CFO & Director at Essar Group’s US mining business. Independent Director on the Board of Jetking Infotrain (India’s first Bitcoin treasury strategy company). LinkedIn Top Voice in Web3. From Indore → IIM → Dubai → building the infrastructure for Web3 startups globally. A 15+ year finance career that pivoted into the future of tech.
Avinash & Siddharth Sethi — InfoBeans Technologies
IIM Indore EPGM Batch 2005-07 | IIM Indore Distinguished Alumni Award recipients
Co-founders of InfoBeans Technologies — Indore-based global IT services company. Avinash as CFO, Siddharth on the product side. Together they built a company that serves global clients from Indore itself — proving you don’t have to relocate to build a world-class tech business. InfoBeans is listed on Indian stock exchanges. A homegrown success story that inspires every IIM Indore student to think “why not Indore?”
📊 Why IIM Indore Produces These People
The Ecosystem
- IPM (Integrated Program in Management): 5-year undergrad-to-MBA program — entry after Class 12, via IPMAT. One of India’s most competitive management programs
- Alumni Association: Active network — reunions, mentorship programs, industry connect, guest lectures back to campus
- IIEC (IIM Indore Incubation Centre): Startup support — funding, mentorship, network for IIM-backed ventures
- International exposure: Exchange programs with global universities
The Indore Advantage They All Share
Every alumni story shares one thread: IIM Indore gave them the network AND the Indore grounding. The city’s work-life balance, the faculty accessibility, the smaller cohort sizes that create genuine peer relationships — these aren’t marketing claims. They’re what alumni consistently talk about when asked why IIM Indore specifically.
“Main IIM Indore mein isliye aaya kyunki yeh ‘smaller’ tha. Par yahaan jo network mila, jo faculty connect mila, jo batchmate connection bana — woh same ‘big IIM’ energy deta hai. Aur Indore ka lifestyle — poha-jalebi subah, serious work din mein — kuch balance tha jo baaki cities mein nahi mila.”
— IIM Indore alumnus, current startup founder
🔗 IIM Indore Distinguished Alumni Award Profiles →
🔗 IIM Indore Official Website →
#IIMIndore #IIMIndoreAlumni #IndoreProud #ManagementIndia #StartupIndia #DilSeIndori #IndoreBusiness #Changemakers
Editorial Note: Alumni profiles sourced from IIM Indore’s official Distinguished Alumni Award page (iimidr.ac.in), Getmyuni.com IIM Indore alumni article, and public sources. — Editor, Indore.online
