- Admitted to ICAEW: 2000
- Joined Council: 2023
- Election Constituency: South Asia
Biography
Vishesh is the Chief Executive Officer of Grant Thornton Bharat LLP, a firm he co-founded in 2001, which has since then grown with nearly 10,000 employees in more than 20 locations in India. He became the youngest member to be elected to the Global Board of Governors of Grant Thornton the ultimate decision-making authority in the organisation, from 1 January 2016 until 31 December 2021.
Although Vishesh belongs to the third generation of a multi-generational family business associated with accounting and consulting, he considers himself to be a first-generation entrepreneur. His grandfather co-founded the CA firm Walker, Chandiok and Co, was one of the longest tenured ICAEW member in practice in India.
He is a member of the National Council at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Chair - Regional Committee on Economic Policy and Development, Northern Region and a member of the Young President's Organisation (YPO) Delhi Chapter (including being a past Chapter Chair). He also sits on the Board of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Amritsar and the US India Business Council (USIBC) Indian Advisory Board.
He holds an active interest in business, ownership and governance related issues and is one of India's leading commentators on the subjects of family business and governance. His firm works with the Government of India on some of its key policies and programmes and is a market leader in sustainable livelihoods both with food and agriculture processing and micro, small and medium enterprises.
In the past, Vishesh has had the honour of working with the former Indian Ambassador to the United States, the late Shri Naresh Chandra, one of the architects of India's corporate governance code. Vishesh worked with the Ambassador on defining a country-wide action plan for accounting and auditing for India on behalf of the World Bank; most of the recommendations made in the report have been adopted over the last decade including the Companies Act 2013. Vishesh is a big advocate for a radical simplification of regulation and a move toward self-attestation, as ways to enable true ease of doing business in India.
Declaration of Interests
Membership of, or interests in, formal bodies or groups, including other professional bodies
- Confederation of Indian Industry
- British Business Group
- US-India Business Council
- Young President's Organisation
- Indian Institute of Management, Amritsar
Membership of ICAEW Council, ICAEW Boards and other ICAEW Committees
- ICAEW Council
Partnerships, Directorships or beneficial interests in companies
- Grant Thornton Protec Consultants Private Limited
- Grant Thornton Advisory Private Limited
- VC Consultants Group Unlimited
- Ashish Finstock Private Limited
- Unravel Business Services Private Limited (formally known as Chandiok's Adaptive Learning Solutions Private Limited)
- Walker Hotels Private Limited
- PVR INOX Limited
Professional or social relationships with individuals who have business relationships or who compete with ICAEW
None
Any other matters you feel should be identified
None
