Dr Arun Kumar

Arun Kumar is a Senior Lecturer in Management (Public Services) at King's Business School. He researches the histories and practices of philanthropic foundations and nonprofit management as part of global development. He also has a strong interest in the history of management of management studies as a field of knowledge and its links with global poverty, inequality, and social inclusion.

Areas of Expertise:

• Nonprofit management
• Philanthropic foundations
• Global development
• Poverty and inequalities
• History of management education

His interdisciplinary research has been published in journals such as the Academy of Management Learning & Education, Business & Society, Development & Change, Economy & Society, Enterprise & Society, and Journal of Business Ethics, among others. His book Philanthropy and the Development of Modern India: In the name of Nation (Oxford University Press, 2021) tracked the historical role of Indian elites' philanthropy in shaping development and modernity in twentieth century India. Arun is currently editing a special issue on management education and inequalities for the Academy of Management Learning & Education.

Arun began his professional career consulting with leading NGOs, independent think tanks, donor agencies, and philanthropic foundations on questions of governance, accountability, and inclusion in key public services and public welfare schemes. After working for seven years in the nonprofit development sector, he returned to academia for his doctoral studies. He joined King's College London in 2022, having previously taught at the University of York and University of Essex.

Are you currently accepting new PhD students?

Yes

Selected Publications:

Kumar A, Bapuji H and Mir R (2022) “Educate, agitate, organize”: Inequality and Ethics in the writings of Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar. Journal of Business Ethics 178(1): 1-14

Brooks S and Kumar A (2022, published online first) Why the super-rich will not be saving the world?: Philanthropy and “privatization creep” in global development. Business and Society.

Kumar A (2021) Philanthropy and the Development of Modern India: In the Name of Nation. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press (also licensed for publication by OUP India)

Kumar A and Brooks S (2021) Bridges, platforms, and satellites: theorizing the power of global philanthropy in international development. Economy and Society 50(2): 322-345

Cooke B and Kumar A (2020) US philanthropy’s shaping of management education in the 20th century: Towards a periodization of history. Academy of Management Learning and Education 19(1): 21-39

Kumar A (2019) From Henley to Harvard, at Hyderabad?: (Post- and neo-) colonialism in management education in India. Enterprise and Society 20(2): 366-400