ASB honoured to be selected as a candidate for the University of Oxford Chancellor election – My Statement of Interest

It is my utmost honour to have been on the shortlist of candidates selected for the University of Oxford Chancellor election that has been declared today. My best wishes to all the other candidates who are part of the process, may the best person win.

I am sharing below my “Statement of Interest” which captures the essence of why I feel I will be able to bring the required profoundness to the role. My humble request to all who will be voting in this election is to look at my “Statement of Interest” and select me as one of your top 5 choices at this stage if you feel my candidature can be worthy of consideration.

Ankur Shiv Bhandari Statement of Interest.

The key theme of my application and suitability for the role of the Chancellor of the University of Oxford is “AMPLE”.

University of Oxford has been a temple of learning, research, and a beacon of history over many centuries. As the University looks at the next 100 years, it is important to ensure there are “AMPLE” opportunities for maintaining and further building successful distinction at a local, national, and global level in:

1. Interdisciplinary Innovation

2. Cross-cultural Collaboration

3. Research Excellence

4. Individual learning

5. Continuance of Tradition

6. Academic Freedom

7. Diversity and Inclusion

8. Community Partnership

9. Benefit to Society

10. Sustainability

I believe my candidature provides “AMPLE” depth and strength to support the above:

A – Academic Curiosity: I have led my life gaining Academic qualifications across the world and then building professional competence based on that foundation. I have then used this knowledge to build both Academic and professional capability of individuals and organisations in both Academic and commercial settings in more than 50 countries. I hold a bachelor’s degree from India, an MBA from the United Kingdom, a Post Graduate Diploma in Academic practice and am in the process of obtaining a master’s degree in Law. I have worked with world’s leading organisations as both an employee and a consultant and have built a global business training individuals and organisations on “Excellence with Intent”. In Academia, I have taught both Graduate and Post Graduate students and have been involved in upholding the standards of Research Excellence through my work. My research on the “Role of Intent” is continuously progressing and the outputs include my TEDx talk on the subject and regular sharing of thoughts through the mouthpiece “Intentonomics”

M – Multi-cultural Appreciation and Approach: Having had the opportunity to live and work in multiple countries and to interact with people across almost every commercially active continent in the world gives me a deep appreciation of the distinction and synergies between different cultures. I pride myself on being able to assimilate different viewpoints and build consensus from those. My desire to understand a wide array of cultures has also led me to try and learn new and distinct languages including Chinese-Mandarin, Arabic, Spanish and Russian. This adds to the three languages I am already fluent in which include English, Hindi, and Punjabi. This will allow me to further ensure collaboration with global partners towards enhancing the reputation of the university.

P – Political Understanding: Having had the honour of being elected as the first ever Asian / Indian origin Mayor of Bracknell Forest, Berkshire in 2022-23 provided me with a deep insight into the inner workings of the political establishment. I believe it is important to have this understanding to anticipate and plan for potential impacts to the university.

L – Led by The Lord: All my efforts and my actions are inspired by an extremely strong appreciation of a divine power bigger than me or any living being. It might be Lord Shiva for me and another representation for someone from another faith. This reflects in all my actions and will continue to guide me. An instance where The Lord provided me with an opportunity to bring different faiths together was when during my Mayoral year, the Mayoral service was the first ever combined Christian- Hindu service. I was also blessed to have been able to play a role in bringing the first ever Hindu Temple and the first ever Islamic centre to Bracknell Forest and to have facilitated the start of discussions for the first Sikh Gurudwara. I believe The University of Oxford’s motto “Dominus Illuminatio Mea” already lives within me.

E- Evaluation Focus: I have a strong belief that if any effort is undertaken, a robust evaluation allows course-correction if required and lays the foundation for future success. One of the first teachings/learnings in my professional career was that “Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions”. If elected, I will continue to live by this principle.

It will the honour of my life to be able to serve as the Chancellor of Oxford University and I feel I am best suited for the role and to play a part in furthering the goals of this beloved institution. I hereby submit my candidature for your kind attention and reference.

Ankur Shiv Bhandari

For comparison, you can look at the Statement of Interest of other candidates here: https://www.ox.ac.uk/about/organisation/university-officers/chancellor/chancellor-election/candidate-statements