Fortune Top 100, Top 500 lists need no introduction. Companies all over the globe recognize the significance of the list especially for the bragging rights it provides. Every company worth its salt which finds a place in the Fortune list flaunts the same in every marketing collateral and corporate communications. So, it was both surprising and extremely heartening to find out that an Indian company has broken into the Fortune Top 100 list.
Yes, Indian Oil Corporation has managed to break into the Fortune Top 100 albeit marginally with a rank of 98
Fortune Top 100 lists carry a lot of weight and an Indian company in the that list is indeed heartening. Surprising because I didn’t think that an Indian company wouldn’t have made it to the list already. But then, it has happened finally and IOC now is in a elite company.
The recent update to Fortune Top 100, 500 lists has many more pleasant additions as far as Indian companies are concerned. Apart from IOC which jumped to 98th position from 125, Reliance Industries took the 134th spot up from its previous 175 . Bharat Petroleum, State Bank Of India, Hindustan Petroleum, Tata Motors, ONGC and Tata Steel are other Indian companies in the Top 500 list. A total of 8 Indian companies are there in the Fortune Top 500 list and the number has remained unchanged from last year.
Companies in the Fortune lists present some interesting trends,
Oil Is Worth Its Weight In Gold Or More 5 out of 8 Indian companies are state-run entities and 4 out of 8 companies are oil companies. Even at a global stage, representation of oil companies is sizable and the likes of BP, China National Petroleum feature in the Top 10. Fortune lists are largely based on annual revenues and oil companies are traditionally state/nation operated so that could explain the pattern
China Is A Force To Reckon With If you had any doubts that the Chinese Dragon is out for world domination here is another indication. As many as 61 Chinese companies are there in the Fortune Top 500 lists. I won’t really contrast this with India but China’s dominance at the global economic stage is unquestionable
Overall, the improved positioning of leading Indian companies in the Fortune Top 500 lists is a good news. This bears a testimony to the fact that the included companies have managed to maintain their growth momentum even as some of the global companies seem to have lost their way.
But I still feel that with only 8 companies, the participation of Indian companies in the Fortune Top 500 list is a tad low.
Hopefully, the representation of Indian companies will increase going forward especially with the likes of Tata Motors and Tata Steel expanding by acquiring international businesses.
What are your thoughts on the positioning of Indian companies in the Fortune Top 500 lists? Fairly represented or we could do more? I for one would like to see more private companies making the cut in the next list.
