Jean Riboud | |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 November 1919 Lyons, France |
| Died | 20 October 1985 (aged 65) Neuilly-sur-Seine, Paris, France |
| Occupation(s) | Corporate executive Socialist |
| Years active | 1939–1985 |
| Known for | Schlumberger |
| Spouse | Krishna Roy |
| Children | Christophe |
| Awards | Padma Bhushan |
Jean Riboud (15 November 1919 – 20 October 1985) was a French socialist, corporate executive and the chairman of Schlumberger, [1] the largest oilfield services company in the world. [2] He was a member of the French Resistance during World War II and suffered incarceration in Buchenwald concentration camp of the Nazis. [3] His contributions were reported in making Schlumberger into the market leader in oilfield services sector. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan, in 1986, for his contributions to society. [4]
If you want to innovate, to change an enterprise or a society, it takes people willing to do what's not expected
Jean Riboud. [5]
Riboud, born on 15 November 1919 in the French city of Lyons to a banker, graduated from Ecole des Sciences Politiques, Paris in 1939. [6] He was involved with politics from his student years and was a supporter of the Popular Front coalition government of Leon Blum. Later, he started his career as a lieutenant in the French Army and after serving the army for a while, he joined the French Resistance. It was during this period he was captured by the Nazis and was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp where spent two years, suffering from tuberculosis, [7] before escaping from there with help from the communists. [8] When the war ended, he pursued a career in banking by joining Andre Istel and Company, a private investment banking firm owned by a friend of his father, and this gave him an opportunity to visit United States in 1946 for opening an office of his bank in New York. [6] There, he met Marcel Schlumberger, one of the founders of the Schlumberger group, and on his invitation, Riboud joined Schlumberger as the founder's assistant in 1951. [3] He continued in the company even after the death of Marcel Schlumberger in 1953 and rose in ranks to become the head of Europe operations [9] and later, as the chief executive of the company in 1965. [10] Seven years later, he became the chairman of the group, in 1972. [3]
Under his leadership, Schlumberger grew to become the largest oilfield services company in the world with interests in other sectors such as semiconductors. [1] He expanded the company business by acquisitions, too; the taking over of Fairchild Camera and Instrument was one such acquisition. [11] By the time he relinquished his position to his successor, Michel Vaillaud, in 1985, the company had a net profit of US$I.2 billion on a revenue of US$6.4 billion [12] and had presence in over 100 countries, controlling the operations of 70 percent of the world's oil wells. [13] At that time, the company employed 80,000 people, held US$10.9 billion in assets [10] and was considered by many as the best managed company in the world. [13]
Riboud married Krishna Roy, historian, art collector, the great-grandniece of Rabindranath Tagore, niece of Soumendranath Tagore, and the great-granddaughter of Dwijendranath Tagore, in 1949, and the couple had a son, Christophe. [8] It is reported that the Riboud couple had an extensive friendship circle, which included political figures like François Mitterrand, Indira Gandhi and Ne Win and art personalities such as Yves Tanguy, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Isamu Noguchi, M. F. Hussain, Joan Miró and Max Ernst. They also had an art collection, parts of which were later donated by Krishna Riboud to the Musee Guimet. where a separate gallery of the Jean and Krishna Riboud collection is being maintained. [8] Towards the later days of his life, he was afflicted with cancer and handed over his responsibilities to Vaillaud in September 1985. [10] A month later, on 20 October 1985, he died at his Neuilly-sur-Seine home, survived by his wife, son and three grandchildren. [14] The Government of India honored him with the civilian award of the Padma Bhushan in 1986. [4] The story of his life has been documented in the book The Art of Corporate Success: The Story of Schlumberger, written by Ken Auletta, [15] as well as in his autobiography, Jean Riboud, published in 1989. [16]
Marc Riboud was a French photographer, best known for his extensive reports on the Far East: The Three Banners of China, Face of North Vietnam, Visions of China, and In China.
Neuilly-sur-Seine, also known simply as Neuilly, is a commune in the department of Hauts-de-Seine in France, just west of Paris. Immediately adjacent to the city, the area is composed of mostly select residential neighbourhoods, as well as many corporate headquarters and a handful of foreign embassies. It is the wealthiest and most expensive suburb of Paris.
Schlumberger Limited, doing business as SLB, is an oilfield services company. Schlumberger has four principal executive offices located in Paris, Houston, London, and The Hague.
Alain Daniélou was a French historian, Indologist, intellectual, musicologist, translator, writer, and notable Western convert to and expert on the Shaivite sect of Hinduism.
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Dhirendra Nath Ganguly, better known as Dhiren Ganguly or D.G, was a Dadasaheb Phalke Award-winning and Padma Bhushan recipient film entrepreneur/actor/director of Bengali Cinema. He had set up a number of film production companies: Indo British Film company, British Dominion Films, Lotus Film Company. Later, he directed films for New Theatres. He produced many movies in the comedy genre. He was born in Calcutta and died in the same city.
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Kala Bhavana is the fine arts faculty of Visva-Bharati University, in Shantiniketan, India. It is an institution of education and research in visual arts, founded in 1919, it was established by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
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Pandit Dr. S. Ballesh Bhajantri is an Internationally celebrated Indian classical Hindustani shehnai player. He is a disciple of shehnai player Ustad Bismillah Khan, he is an expert in benares gharana shehnai playing, and a patiala gharana hindustani vocalist, ghazal singer, Indian playback singer and musician, Ballesh is credited with popularizing the shehnai, a reeded woodwind instrument. While the shehnai had long held importance as a folk instrument played in traditional ceremonies in India, Ballesh is credited with elevating its status and bringing it back to the centre stage. He plays often for Prasar Bharati's All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan.
R. Nagarathnamma (1926–2012) was an Indian theatre personality and the founder of Stree Nataka Mandali, an all-women theatre group based in Bengaluru. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, she was honored by the Government of India, in 2012, with the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri.
Lothar Lutze was a German scholar, writer, translator, Indologist and the Emeritus Professor of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at the Heidelberg University. He is known for his research on Hindi literature and Indian culture, which prompted many to classify him under Heidelberg Indologists. He is a recipient of the Tagore Award and the Dr. George Grierson Award of the Central Hindi Directorate of the Government of India. The Government of India honored him again the fourth highest civilian award of the Padma Shri, in 2006, for his contributions to Indian literature.
Satya Pal Wahi was an Indian corporate executive, army officer, technocrat, writer and a former chairman of public sector enterprises such as Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) and Cement Corporation of India (CCI). He was a member the Corps of EME and held the rank of a colonel. A recipient of the degree of Doctor of Science from three Indian universities, Wahi also received honors such as the Petrotech Lifetime Achievement Award, the Indian Geophysical Union Silver jubilee Award and the Giants international Award. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honour of the Padma Bhushan, in 1988, for his contributions to society.
Krishna Riboud was an Indian historian and art collector, specializing in Indian and Chinese antiquities and textiles.
Riboud is a French surname. Notable people surnamed Riboud include:
Pierre Schlumberger was an American businessman. He was the chief executive of Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield services company.
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