Adi Burjorji Godrej (born 3 April 1942) is an Indian billionaire businessman and head of the Godrej family, chairman of the Godrej Group. , he has a net worth of US$3.8 billion. In October 2024, Adi and Nadir Godrej were ranked 21st on Forbes list of India’s 100 richest tycoons, with a net worth of $11.2 billion.

Early life

Godrej completed his schooling at St. Xavier's High School and then St. Xavier's College,

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

for two years. He earned an undergraduate degree from HL College and an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

from the

MIT Sloan School of Management The MIT Sloan School of Management (branded as MIT Sloan) is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT Sloan offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree progra ...

, where he was a member of the Pi Lambda Phi fraternity and a member of

Tau Beta Pi The Tau Beta Pi Association (commonly Tau Beta Pi, , or TBP) is the oldest engineering honor society and the second oldest collegiate honor society in the United States. It honors engineering students in American universities who have shown a ...

Career

After his return to India, he joined the family business. He modernized the management structure, implemented process improvements and improved the company during the

License Raj The Licence Raj or Permit Raj (''rāj'', meaning "rule" in Hindi) is a term coined by Indian independence activist and statesman C. Rajagopalachari for the system of strict government control and regulation of the Indian economy. This economi ...

. He heads the group alongside his brother, managing director of Godrej Industries and chairman of Godrej Agrovet, Nadir Godrej, and his cousin, Godrej & Boyce managing director and chairman, Jamshyd Godrej. In 2021 he announced his plans to step down as chairman of Godrej Industries, the holding company of the Godrej Group. He would continue as chairman of the Godrej Group and chairman emeritus of GIL. Godrej Consumer Products has grown into a strong emerging market FMCG player based on a 3X3 approach to international expansion — building a presence in three emerging markets (Asia, Africa, Latin America) across three categories (home care, personal wash, and hair care).

Beyond Godrej

He has been president of several Indian trade and industrial bodies and associations. He was the chairman of the

Indian School of Business The Indian School of Business (ISB) is a private business school with campuses in Hyderabad and Mohali, India. It offers various post-graduate management programs. History The Indian School of Business (ISB) was started in 1996 by a bunch of b ...

from April 2011 to April 2018 and was elected as the president of the

Confederation of Indian Industry The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is a Non-governmental organization, non-governmental business and industry organisation and advocacy group headquartered in New Delhi, India, founded in 1895. CII is a membership-based organisation. ...

(CII) for the year 2012–13. He has been a member of the dean's advisory council of the

, and chairman of the board of governors of the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies. Twenty-five per cent of the shares of the Godrej holding company are held in trusts that include the Pirojsha Godrej Foundation, the Soonabai Pirojsha Godrej Foundation, and the Godrej Memorial Trust. Through these trusts, the Group supports healthcare, education, and

environmental sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

initiatives such as The Mangroves, Teach for India, WWF, and the Godrej Memorial Hospital.

Personal life

He was married to socialite and philanthropist Parmeshwar Godrej until her death in October 2016 and has three children. They live in

Malabar Hill Malabar Hill is amongst the most affluent residential areas in Mumbai. It is home to several business tycoons and film personalities. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, had built and lived in a bungalow, called South Court, in Malab ...

South Mumbai South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahalaxmi (Western side), Byculla ...

. For his contribution to the Indian industry Adi has been the recipient of several awards and recognitions including the Rajiv Gandhi Award 2002.

References

External links

Profile at Godrej Group
{{DEFAULTSORT:Godrej, Adi Businesspeople from Mumbai Parsi people from Mumbai Indian billionaires MIT Sloan School of Management alumni Living people 1942 births Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in trade and industry Cathedral and John Connon School alumni 20th-century Indian businesspeople Godrej family