Kumar Mangalam Birla, the man featured on this issue's cover, is just 38 but he is almost always considered as being

in the same league as people like N.R. Narayana Murthy, Deepak Parekh or Ratan Tata, men who are 20, 22 and 29 years older than him, respectively. Perhaps that is because Kumar Birla has already been at the helm of one of India's largest and most successful conglomerates now for nearly 10 years, since his father's premature demise in 1995. And, of course, because of his achievements during this period. Under Kumar's charge, the Aditya Birla Group has changed and grown dramatically and much of it has been possible because of one young man's ability to lead and manage in a manner that belies his age. It is no surprise, therefore, that Birla makes it to this year's Business Today Young Super Performers trio in the CEO category.

Type Diversified company / Listed Companies.

HeadquartersMumbai,In dia

Key people Kumar Mangalam Birla (Chairman) Industry Metals and several others. Products Aluminum, Copper, Cement, Fertilizer, Textile, Fiber, etc. Revenue $24 billion Employees100,000+

Aditya Birla Group is in the league of Fortune 500 belonging to 25 different nationalities Website http://www.adityabirla.com/

Type Diversified company / Listed Companies. HeadquartersMumbai,In dia Key people Kumar Mangalam Birla (Chairman) Industry Metals and several others. Products Aluminum, Copper, Cement, Fertilizer, Textile, Fiber, etc. Revenue $24 billion

Employees100,000+ Aditya Birla Group is in the league of Fortune 500 belonging to 25 different nationalities

Website http://www.adityabirla.com/ 1986-The Birla Growth Fund is set up.(finance)(to finance industrial equipment, plant and machinery and consumer durables, as well as for stock market operations)

1987 -Thai Acrylic Fibre is incorporated (to produce fibre and tow.)

1988 -joint venture with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (to set up a three-million-tonne refinery, Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL), at Mangalore, Karnataka.)

1994 -Alexandria Carbon Black is established.( the Group's first joint venture with the Egyptian government)

1995-joint venture with AT&T (USA). (telecommunications)

1998-The Group forms a 50:50 joint venture company with Tembec Inc. of Canada, (to supply pulp for the Group's VSF operations.)

Grasim acquires Dharani Cement and Shree Digvijay Cement (to consolidate the group's leadership position in cement.)

1999- joint venture with financial services major Sun Life of Canada.

2000 -Indian Rayon acquires Madura Garments.

The Group forays into e-business through a strategic alliance of its software arm, Birla Software and Consultancy Services (BCSS), with Lawson Software (USA).

'Gyanodaya', the Institute of Management Learning of the Adiya Birla Group, is inaugurated.

Hindalco acquires Indal

2001 -Indian Rayon acquires a stake in PSI Data Systems, (in one of the largest cash transactions in the Indian technology sector.)

2002-Indal acquires a controlling stake in Anapurna Foils Ltd (AFL), to augment its position in the foil and packaging sectors. Subsequently AFL is merged with Indal.

2003-The Group acquires the Mount Gordon Copper mines in Australia, another strategic step in becoming a globally competitive copper player.

Liaoning Birla Carbon, the Group's first carbon black company in China, is incorporated.

Indian Rayon acquires Trans Works, a leading Indian ITES / BPO company.

Birla Copper acquires the Nifty Copper Mines in Australia, as part of a strategic plan to make the company an integrated copper producer, and source raw material for its copper smelter at Dahej, Gujarat.

Indian Rayon formally launches its insulators joint venture with NGK Insulators Ltd., Japan, christening it as "Birla NGK Insulators Private Limited.

2005-The Aditya Birla Group signs a framework agreement to acquire St Anne Nackawic Pulp Mill, Canada.

2006-Hindalco in a joint venture with Almex USA Inc.

TransWorks Information Services announces success of bid to acquire Minacs Worldwide

Grasim Industries Limited, India; Thai Rayon Public Company Limited, Thailand and P.T. Indo Bharat Rayon, Indonesia form a JV with Hubei Jing Wei Chemical Fibre Company, China, for VSF

No.1 in viscose staple fibre Among the world's top 15 BPO companies and among India's top four

The second largest player in viscose filament yarn The second largest in the chlor-alkali sector Among the top five mobile telephony companies

A leading player in life insurance and asset management Among the top three supermarket chains in the retail business A metals powerhouse, among the world's most costefficient aluminium and copper producers Hindalco-Novelis is the largest aluminium rolling company. It is one of the three biggest producers of primary aluminium in Asia