Cornell trustee Ratan Tata '59, B.Arch. '62, chief executive officer of Tata Sons Ltd., the holding company of the India-based conglomerate the Tata Group, was honored in the March 26 edition of Barron's magazine as one of the world's 30 most respected CEOs.

Tata, who studied architecture at Cornell, appeared on the Dow Jones financial publication's CEO list for the first time in the ranking's three-year history.

"Riding the elephant" was how Barron's described Tata's rise from working at a blast furnace at Tata Steel at age 26 to becoming CEO in 1991.

"Ratan Tata, 69, is the face of India, Inc., overseeing an empire that includes everything from fine tea to IT," the section on Tata reads.