Publisher Craig Kaminer’s conversation with Surendralal Karsanbhai (known as Lal), Emerson’s newly appointed CEO, began with business. Quickly, the discussion turned to listening to LP records, squeezing a run into a hectic schedule, and raising six-year-old twins. Find out what else you might have in common with this luminary of the international business scene below:

“Known as Lal, he was born outside of the United States and comes from a multiethnic family. His father is Indian, his mother is Portuguese, and he didn’t learn to speak English until age 10. “I’m grateful for my upbringing -- it afforded me opportunities to live all over the world and experience new cultures as my father was transferred to different countries for work.” Lal came to the United States to attend university -- first a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Michigan (Go Blue!) and then an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis…

According to Lal, Emerson is proud to be part of St. Louis’s strong business community. “As a leader of a St. Louis-based company, I’m dedicated to continuing the work Emerson has been driving for years to positively impact the places where we live and work -- especially in our hometown of St. Louis. We feel an immense responsibility to do our part to strengthen our communities and be a good corporate citizen. This means not only taking care of the employees we have in St. Louis, but also taking care of our neighbors -- and we do that through volunteering, corporate giving, and several programs in the areas of health and human services, education, culture and arts, and civic needs…

On a local level, Lal stays home a lot. “Believe it or not, with two six-year-olds running around our house, we don’t go out to restaurants much! But on the rare occasion when we have, one of my recent favorite spots has been iNDO in Tower Grove.””

The full conversation between Craig and Lal is featured in our online issue.

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