Reflecting on Prahalad
Reflecting on Drucker

Peter Drucker liked to ask all kinds of penetrating questions, but in the end, none cut to the core as much as this: “What do you want to be remembered for?”

Among those who surely could have answered with great conviction was C.K. Prahalad, who passed away last week at the age of 68 following a brief illness. Although I didn’t know Prahalad well, my interactions with him left a strong impression: He was a man as gracious and good-humored as he was stimulating and smart.

Among management scholars and practitioners, Prahalad was a giant. An expert on corporate strategy, he advised major companies across the globe. With Gary Hamel, he coined the term “core competencies.” Perhaps his most lasting legacy will be his pioneering work in identifying the poorest of the poor as an untapped market worth as much as $13 trillion. Underlying this insight was Prahalad’s deeply held belief that every business must have a social purpose as it produces a profit.