Prof Arun A Elias has assumed charge as the new Director of Goa Institute of Management (GIM), succeeding Prof Ajit Parulekar, who served as Director since 2017.
Prof. Elias brings more than three decades of academic experience and around 15 years of senior leadership experience across India, New Zealand and Fiji. He has been associated with the School of Management at Victoria University of Wellington for 27 years.
International academic leadership
Before joining GIM, Prof. Elias served as Dean of the College of Business, Hospitality and Tourism Studies at Fiji National University. He has also held the position of Associate Dean (International and Accreditation) at Victoria University of Wellington and several Director-level roles at Victoria Business School.
Prof. Elias holds an M.Tech in Industrial Engineering & Management from IIT Kharagpur and a PhD in Management from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
He has also been involved in the international accreditation ecosystem as a mentor and peer review panellist for AACSB, EFMD/EQUIS and AMBA/BGA.
His academic work includes more than 100 publications covering books, international peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters and peer-reviewed international conference papers.
Focus on research and global accreditation
Prof Arun A Elias said the institute had built a strong academic foundation with a focus on management education, research and international engagement.
He said his priorities would include research with real-world impact, innovation in learning and teaching, and socially responsible engagement with stakeholders.
GIM would work towards becoming an internationally renowned business school with triple-crown accreditation, he added.
GIM enters next phase
Goa Institute of Management Chairman Ashank Desai said Prof. Elias brings academic leadership, international experience, research strength and extensive engagement with the global accreditation ecosystem.
Desai said Elias’s experience and international networks would support GIM as it strengthens its academic and international foundations and moves into its next phase as a university.
Desai also acknowledged the contribution of Prof. Ajit Parulekar, who has been associated with GIM for 26 years. During his tenure as Director, Parulekar guided the institute through institutional transformation, including efforts to strengthen its academic and international standing and advance its journey towards becoming a university.
GIM’s academic footprint
Established in 1993, GIM offers four full-time PGDM programmes approved by AICTE, including specialisations in Healthcare Management, Big Data Analytics, and Banking, Insurance & Financial Services. The programmes are accredited by the National Board of Accreditation (NBA).
The institute also offers a PGDM (Hybrid) programme for working professionals, Fellow Programmes in Management, Management Development Programmes and an International Double Degree in Analytics in collaboration with Nova School of Business and Economics, Portugal.
The Association of Indian Universities recognises GIM’s PGDM as equivalent to an MBA degree.
GIM has received accreditation from the Association of MBAs (AMBA) and Business Graduates Association (BGA). The institute also has more than 85 full-time faculty members and a network of over 6,500 alumni.
GIM’s PGDM-Hybrid programme was ranked among the top seven Executive MBA programmes in India and 30th in the Asia Pacific region in the QS Executive MBA Rankings 2025. The institute was ranked 43rd in the Management category of the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2025.