The value of different perspectives

Esha Mendiratta joins Vlerick as Professor of International Business

Formerly Assistant Professor at the University of Groningen, Esha Mendiratta has recently been appointed as Assistant Professor of International Business. She teaches on the full-time, online and executive MBA programmes. “After spending more than six years at a traditional university, I wanted to teach and work with executives. After all they are the people I study. Being able to have a dialogue with them will help me to ask better questions in my research and provide useful answers that will improve my work”, she says when asked why she decided to join our ranks. What are her areas of expertise? What else attracted her to Vlerick and what makes her tick?

web-insights-esha-mendiratta
  • Assistant Professor of International Business
  • Formerly an Assistant Professor at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands
  • Specialised in the antecedents and consequences of the composition of boards and top management teams, diversity and sustainability
  • Avid yoga practitioner, tennis enthusiast and committed to giving something back

Team composition, diversity and sustainability

Esha’s research focuses on the antecedents and consequences of the composition of boards and top management teams, i.e. the factors that influence that composition and its consequences, both for the team in question and the firm. Diversity and sustainability are key concepts in her line of research.

“Team effectiveness is critical to business performance – financial or otherwise, such as in terms of sustainability”, she says. “A lot of research on top management team composition focuses on single-attribute diversity measures, for example either gender, cultural, functional or age diversity. I deliberately take into account the multi-dimensional nature of diversity to examine how these different forms of diversity interact to improve the effectiveness of boards and top management teams.”

And her approach is original in another way as well. Unfortunately, despite India being the largest country in the world, research is skewed towards American and European companies and entrepreneurs. But not so Esha’s research, which also looks at Indian companies whenever possible.

Not just men versus women

Firms are under a lot of pressure to increase gender diversity at the top. The business case for gender diversity is clear, or so it is claimed by the endless stream of reports produced by large consulting firms: hiring women is good for all sorts of business outcomes, from financial performance to sustainability.

One of the most exciting papers Esha has been working on recently examines the nuances behind these broad-brush claims. “We studied how the alignment of gender and human capital profile impacts the board’s effectiveness and business performance in a sample of American companies”, she says. “What happens when the women who are hired on the board of directors also have different skills, different functional and different educational backgrounds than the men in these teams? We demonstrated that when this is the case any theoretical benefits arising from diversity are unlikely to materialise. Why? Because then the board splits into factions and subgroups along so-called faultlines. The stronger the alignment between gender and human capital profile, the stronger these faultlines. The question then becomes whether and how CEOs can integrate perspectives of women and take advantage of the differences they bring.” It seems focusing on gender diversity alone is insufficient and even counterproductive. “What we suggest is that policy makers and firms move beyond the simplistic rhetoric of men versus women and instead consider the diversity of boards and top management teams from a multi-dimensional perspective, taking into account the interaction between the CEO and these teams”, she concludes.

Put your money where your mouth is

Climate change, the environment and the wider challenges of sustainability are other hot topics, of interest to academics and the public alike. “Many companies make bold claims about their sustainability-related initiatives and targets, but few motivate their CEOs to actually achieve them, while providing strong incentives to improve financial performance. One of the papers I’m working on analyses CEO compensation in European companies to understand which boards are more likely to include environmental key performance indicators in their CEO pay. I believe that initiatives taken by different corporate governance actors, such as institutional investors, other owners and corporate boards can complement government policies to address sustainability challenges. Research like this helps us to understand the constraints and opportunities for corporate governance actors to achieve this.”

I needn’t have worried

For her research on sustainability and CEO compensation, Esha worked together with professors Xavier Baeten and Kerstin Fehre. The picture they painted of Vlerick as a warm and supportive environment struck a chord and when a position opened up, she didn’t hesitate. “To be honest, when I first visited the School for my interview, I was a little apprehensive and wondered if I would fit in because I didn’t see anyone who looked like me”, she recalls. “I was brave enough to discuss this with the team and the answers I got were authentic, confirming the image I had formed of the School from working with Kerstin and Xavier. And my experience so far has shown that I needn’t have worried. People go out of their way to help me – an external solid-state disc for my laptop, flexible working arrangements because I’m still living in Amsterdam for the time being, colleagues letting me observe their classes and giving me advice on what works and what doesn’t … The School seems to genuinely care about my success and well-being, which is quite unique.”

The proof is in the practice

She hasn't set any long-term goals but tries to find personal meaning and fulfilment in her daily work, enjoying what each day brings, whether it's a big paper being accepted or an email from a student remembering a lesson she taught years ago. As for her teaching, she knows exactly what she wants to achieve: “I can teach all the theories and frameworks in the world about managing diversity or international business and explain at length what factors need to be considered to make good decisions, but what really matters is whether someone is able to apply these theories and frameworks in their job, when they have to deal with deadlines and stress. That’s why I use a practice-based learning approach. I also want to help my students think critically, understand complex issues and come up with a workable solution.” Her eyes light up as she adds: “You know, every now and then a student will look at you and you’ll see that they’ve just realised there’s another angle to consider, one that makes a dent in their convictions. Enabling my students to examine and question their own biases and beliefs is what really makes me tick.”

Career switch

This is also why, after starting her career in consultancy, she decided to change direction and join academia. “My partner jokingly says it’s because I hate making money, but joking aside, I like to understand things and phenomena more deeply and look at issues from different perspectives, and I was never going to get the opportunity to do that in consulting because there you move from project to project.”

“Don’t get me wrong”, she continues. “I began working in consulting straight out of university and it was a huge privilege. Growing up in India I never saw a woman pursuing a career. This job opened up a whole new world for me. It gave me tremendous opportunities, took me to places I never thought I would go to – places like Iceland, Uruguay and Sydney. It has challenged me in ways I never thought possible and has helped me grow both professionally and personally, for which I’m very grateful. But research and teaching just give me great meaning and a lot of joy. So I’m glad I made the switch.”

Giving something back

She pauses for a moment, then adds thoughtfully: “I grew up in India with what was then, you could say, inadequate education and infrastructure. Things have changed a lot in the last 25 years, but when I was at school, India was a different world. Nevertheless, I lived there until I was in my early to mid-20s. And now, through my teaching and research, I hope to give something back to the country of my birth in return for the opportunities it has given me to become the person I am today.”

Despite being passionate about her work, Esha also has interests outside of academia. She is an avid yoga practitioner and absolutely loves tennis. Whenever there’s a major tournament, you’ll find her glued to the television, day or night. She doesn’t have a personal motto, but a quote from Maya Angelou, the award-winning American author and civil rights activist, has stuck with her: “She said that her mission in life was not merely to survive, but to thrive, and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humour and some style. I hope that I can also live my life that way.”

Profile 

  • Assistant Professor of International Business at Vlerick Business School
  • Assistant Professor at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands
  • PhD in International Business at the University of New South Wales, Australia
  • Strategic consultant to multinational companies and other clients seeking expansion into emerging markets
  • Master in Financial Sector Management at SOAS University of London, UK
  • Bachelor in Economics at Delhi University, India

Get in touch!

Esha Mendiratta

Esha Mendiratta

Associate Professor of International Business