Tidjane Thiam has the power

Only last year, there were calls for Tidjane Thiam to resign as chief executive of Prudential after a takeover bid for an insurance company went wrong and cost the company millions of pounds.

But Thiam, the first Black chief executive of a FTSE 100 company, felt no danger or pressure of losing his role, bouncing back to raise Prudential's profits by 33 percent in 2010. So it was no surprise that at Prudential's AGM, 99 percent of shareholders backed his re-election. And it also came as no surprise that Thiam has been named as the most influential Black person in Britain for the second consecutive year.

Thiam, who was also named as one of London's 1000 most influential people by the Evening Standard, came on top of the annual Powerlist, which was unveiled earlier this month.

While he gracefully accepted the title bestowed on him by the publishers of The Powerlist, it is one he would rather not have.

Speaking at the launch of the list, Thiam said,

I know this might sound shocking but I wish a list like this did not have to exist. It is a sign that we do not live in a perfect society.

Nevertheless, Thiam has achieved a lot despite living in a not-so-perfect society, beginning his career with consulting firm McKinsey & Company in 1986 serving insurance companies and banks in Paris, London and New York. He then became Chief Executive and subsequently Chairman of the National Bureau for Technical Studies and Development in the Ivory Coast as well as a cabinet member; the Secretary of Planning and Development.

Until November 2009, Thiam was a non-executive director of Arkema in France and his significant contribution to civil life for over two decades saw him awarded the Légion d'Honneur, France’s most prestigious award comparable to knighthood, in July.

Thiam has also chaired on the G20 High Level Panel for Infrastructure Investment until November of this year. Their recommendations to encourage and increase investment in emerging markets were presented to the G20 leaders last week.

Thiam is also a member of the Board of the Association of British Insurers, a member of the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum and a member of the Council of the Overseas Development Institute in London. It will be interesting to see what else there is for Thiam to conquer and achieve, though we won't be surprised if he succeeds in yet another challenge and continues to be an inspiration to the Black community.

Oksana Trofimenko

Picture: Tidjane Thiam