days, stepped down in December 2008 but stayed on as chairman. The company brought in new top executives from the worlds of finance and insurance. SKS also began transferring more loans off its books, selling highly rated pools of loans to banks, which then assumed most of the associated risk of borrower default. That freed SKS to push out more and bigger loans. In December 2009, SKS launched a massive sales drive. The "Incentives Galore" program ran through February 2010 — just one month before the company filed its IPO prospectus." She noted that Akula tried to stop this. "In spring 2011, Akula began circulating a plan to spend $10 million to train financial counselors who would make sure clients weren't getting into too much debt and used their loans productively, according to people with firsthand knowledge of the proposal. The plan was never adopted." </ref> Akula addresses the controversy in his book, Micro-Meltdown: The Inside Story of the Rise, Fall, and Resurgence of the World's Most Valuable Microlender. Awards and recognition Akula has received several awards for his work with SKS. Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People of the Year in 2006. Social Entrepreneur of the Year in India, 2006. Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in India (Start-up, 2006) Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in India (Business Transformation, 2010) India Today, India's 50 Most Powerful People, 2009. Forbes India, Person of the Year nominee, 2009. Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Award, 2010. World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leader award, 2008. Echoing Green Poverty Alleviation Economic Development - 1998 Fellow Karmaveer Puraskaar Noble Laureates, 2006–2007. References External links SKS Microfinance website Indian microfinance people Indian development specialists McKinsey & Company people Living people People from Medak district Businesspeople from Andhra Pradesh 21st-century Indian businesspeople 1968 births IndusInd Bank