He was an alchemist. He worked with missionary zeal to get Indian businesses to uncover the immense possibilities at the bottom of the pyramid. This not only because of the latent business opportunities, but because of his conviction — that’s how the poor could be uplifted. And that’s how businesses could win the legitimacy and trust that they deserved. His contention, that business interests and the interests of society could be intertwined, has been a powerful message. Doing business and doing good did not have to be two distinct initiatives.

His cutting-edge ideas and wisdom have a timeless relevance. In early December last year, we had Prof Prahalad talk to our senior management team, during the course of which I spent considerable time with him. In one of our conversations, he said, if you want to be focused on the next practice, you have to worry about weak signals. You must look at the periphery. You must see what the outliers are doing, connect the dots and see a new pattern.

Think about creating the future for yourself as running a 400-metre marathon at a time. This calls for urgency, speed and stamina — all at one go. And these, he said, are the watchwords for management.

He also pointed out how the basic drivers of structural change are going to be connectivity, inclusive growth, sustainability and global markets. And therefore, there is emerging a new logic for global management. He called it “20 hubs and no spokes”. I remember him saying — if you do not start with a legacy mindset, you can innovate like crazy. Do not worry about the learning curve, worry about the forgetting curve. Forgetting may be more difficult than learning.

Today, if one were to carve out the equivalent of a Mount Rushmore for management thinkers, I am sure, Prof Prahalad would have to belong there. He will always remain on top of the pyramid. We are deeply saddened by his sudden demise.