Thiam
was born on July 29, 1962 in Côte d’Ivoire. He is a descent of two prominent
African families both on his mother’s and father’s side. His father was an
Ivorian cabinet minister after the country’s independence. An uncle was a prime
minister of Senegal.
Thiam was an achiever in
his own right early on. He was the first Ivorian to pass the entrance exam of
the École Polytechnique in Paris in 1982. Thiam graduated from École
Polytechnique in 1984 and from École National Supérieure de Mines de Paris in
1986 where he finished on top of his class.
He
was awarded as scholarship in 1986 to study for an MBA at INSEAD and joined the
“McKinsey Fellows Programme’ in Paris. In 1988 he earned his MBA from INSEAD
and was on the Dean’s list. Thiam worked for McKinsey & Co. until 1994.
He
was personally requested by the new President in Ivory to become the CEO of the
National Bureau of Technical Studies and Development (BNETD) in 1994. Aside
from his role at BNETD he formally joined the cabinet and was appointed
Minister of Planning and Development in 1998. During his stint in the
government he initiated many applauded projects and also promoted
privatization.
His
government service came to an end in 1999 after a military coup. Thiam was
abroad and returned to the country where he was promptly arrested and detained
for several weeks. He was later released and offered a government post which he
decline. Thiam left the country in early 2000 and returned to the private
sector.
After
working for several companies he joined Prudential plc in 2007 and became CEO
in 2009. Thiam became the first black person to head a FTSE 100 listed company.
Being only human Thiam has had his missteps. In April 2013 he became the first
FTSE chief executive to be censured
by the watchdog, FSA because Prudential failed to inform the regulator of a
planned bid.
Due
to improved profits and share prices his pay and position have not been
affected.
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