Ajay Harinath Singh Greatest Brand Leader 2018-2019

40 under 40
Dr. Karan Thakur
Transforming Healthcare sector through Digital Innovation
Dr. Thakur, VP Operations & Public Affairs, at the prestigious Indraprastha Apollo
Hospitals, has been a driving force behind establishing it as a premier multi-specialty
tertiary acute care facility famed for its excellent healthcare delivery in the entire
SAARC region
With an invaluable experience of 15 years
in the healthcare sector, Dr. Thakur
has been leading the way by imparting
excellence and innovation in the healthcare
industry. His analytical and strategic ideology and
a great deal of knowledge of the industry have
aided him on his journey. An erudite medical
entrepreneur, Dr. Thakur is a qualified dental
surgeon with a master in healthcare management
from the well-known Manchester Business
School, University of Manchester. He also received
executive management training from the reputed
Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.
“Arogya Darpan group of
publications conferred on him the
‘National Healthcare Leadership
Award 2016”
Multifaceted Strategist Ensuring
Operational Growth
A visionary leader having great interpersonal
skills, Dr. Thakur leads a large team of highly
skilled medical professionals and is responsible
for the management of health policy, health
communications, operations and healthcare
systems. Dr. Thakur has assumed different roles
ranging from handling the outpatient services to
managing project and growth strategy. He was
also instrumental in extending the footprints of
Indraprastha Apollo in North India by successfully
managing the acquisition of land and getting the
Noida and Amritsar projects approved. Working
as the service line leader for transplant surgery,
he successfully led the group to strengthen its
position as the most trusted centre for solid
organ transplants around the world.
An efficient healthcare administrator, public
speaker, opinion writer and medical policy expert,
Dr. Thakur effortlessly manages all these roles.
He leads a diverse team of more than 1500
professionals to ensure a smooth functioning
of this over 700-bed hospital’s operations. His
sharp business acumen and immense experience
provided him with a deep understanding of
organizational behavior and lent an edge on
managing performance, change management and
leadership development to infuse effectiveness in
the organization.
Contribution to Society
Dr. Thakur has also contributed to the society
through his writings and speaking assignments to
the country’s first news data-journalism initiative,
Health Analytics. It is initiating more data-driven
journalism in India. He launched another initiative,
Books4Humanity, to make books and learning
resources more accessible to deprived children of
the society. In addition, he co-founded ‘Gift A Life’
initiative for creating mass awareness on organ
donation in India and is a part of the NATHEALTH
sub-committee on organ donation. He also came
out with an initiative on mental health awareness
known as Health Collective, which curates
information through crowd sourcing and subject
experts.
As an acknowledgment to his contribution to
the healthcare industry, Arogya Darpan group
of publications conferred on him the ‘National
Healthcare Leadership Award 2016’.
146 | india’s greatest leaders 2019-20 |