Salil Narvekar from XLRI Jamshedpur has secured a place among the 50 Most Employable MBA Graduates of the Class of 2026. His story is one of high performance, strategic ownership, and a rare ability to bridge the gap between technical operations and business strategy. An Institute Rank 4 holder and Chemical Engineer, he brings a proven track record of driving digital transformation. Scroll down to discover how Salil’s blend of analytical rigour and collaborative leadership creates high-impact value.
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The Ascent: From Digital Transformation to Global Procurement
Salil’s journey is defined by stepping up to complex challenges. Before XLRI, he spent nearly three years at Aarti Industries, reporting directly to the Head of Manufacturing Strategy and Excellence. Here, his most significant achievement was leading the implementation of Anaplan, a business planning software. As the single point of contact for Strategy and Manufacturing in the INR 1.5 Cr+ project, he collaborated with leaders across finance, supply chain, and IT, and liaised with a Big 4 implementation partner. He resolved over 600 defects, received multiple awards, and was entrusted with giving formal sign-offs on the company's behalf.
This experience in high-stakes project leadership led him to his summer internship at Haleon's Global Capability Center. He was entrusted with four distinct initiatives across the APAC region, working in procurement. His projects included carbon emission mapping of suppliers, pricing analysis for a major brokerage tender, releasing an RFP for a distributor in the Philippines, and shaping the ISC Logistics Category Strategy, demonstrating his versatility on a global scale.
The Inner Core: Accountability and Stakeholder Alignment
Salil’s core strengths are the invisible drivers of his success. First is his deep sense of responsibility. He takes full ownership of any task, ensuring he is accountable for the outcomes, an attitude that has earned him awards like 'Catalyst'. Second, he excels at stakeholder engagement, a skill honed by liaising with CXOs and colleagues from over 15 departments in his previous role. He builds trust, communicates transparently, and aligns diverse groups toward a common goal. Finally, he is highly organized, ensuring information is always ready for swift, informed decision-making.
His selfless nature was evident during the pandemic. Noticing low team morale in the virtual environment, he voluntarily organized weekly "Fun Time" sessions for his team. Despite his own critical deadlines, he planned and hosted over 30 sessions, researching new activities to include everyone. This initiative led to a 43% YoY improvement in the team's engagement score and inspired other teams to follow suit.
The Employable Edge in an AI-Augmented World
In today’s AI-augmented business world, Salil’s key trait is his learning agility. He does not just use new tools; he masters them to bridge critical gaps. When implementing Anaplan, he saw a communication gap between the technical experts and the business users. Despite not having a computer science background, he proactively obtained the Anaplan Model Builder Certification. This allowed him to speak both languages, bridge the technical and business teams, and devise creative solutions to previously unsolved problems.
Salil Narvekar is a holistic, future-ready leader who combines top-tier intellect (Institute Rank 4) with proven, hands-on project leadership. He has demonstrated his ability to manage complex digital transformations, navigate global procurement strategies, and, most importantly, build the human connections that make change stick. Managers can count on him to not only deliver results but to take full ownership, align every stakeholder, and learn whatever it takes to get the job done.
