Summit 2014

Key address was followed by a panel discussion on Implementing Sustainability from Board Room to Shop Floor. Speakers Mr. Amit Saha (Chief Sustainability Officer, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages), Dr. G.C.Datta Roy (CEO, Development Environergy Services Ltd.), Brig. Rajiv Williams(CSR Head, Jindal Stainless Steel Ltd.), Mr. Niranjan Khatri (General Manager, ITC WelcomEnviron), Mr. Rupam Raja (Partner, Environmental Resources Management) shared their thoughts gave deep insights to the students which highlighted the theme of the Summit beautifully.

Dr. Roy said, ‘The greatest lesson I learnt on Sustainability is – Waste Not! Reduce ecological footprint from various activities.’ Through his presentation, Brig. Rajiv Williams laid emphasis on Sustainability as an important pillar which is favored in business environment. Mr. Rupam Raja added, ‘In India, millions of legal and illegal transactions take place every day. Many of them are not on paper and do not follow sustainability guidelines. We should think of concrete steps to ensure Sustainable Practices’. According to Mr. Niranjan Khatri, ‘we need to stare at nature very closely as it will help us find many answers. It is important to be grateful to nature for what have been given to us. At ITC, good practices are regularly incorporated from this point of view.’ Mr. Amit Saha laid emphasis on large companies having a responsible behavior related to sustainability practices.’

Sitting through the next panel discussion Sustainability and Entrepreneurship: Turn Ideas into Projects, and Projects into Successful Businesses was also an amazing experience not only for the students and budding entrepreneurs but also for the faculty. Panelists included Ms. Prachi Pratap (Founder, NGO Express), Ms. Sujata Sahu (Founder, 17000ft), Mr. Abhishek Sinha (Founder, EKO) and Mr. Subhi Qureshi (Founder, ZMQ).  The discussion kicked off with Mr. Subhi Qureshi’s thought provoking disclaimer that there is a huge disconnect between Connectivity and Development. It is not necessary to be connected for being developed. It is necessary to embed technology in all walks of life. She also emphasized that empowering one woman is equivalent to empowering an entire family. To this Ms. Prachi Pratap added ‘We all need positive impatience to bring positive changes into lives of people’ to which Mr. Abhishek Sinha agreed as he shared his methodology of encouraging the young managers for embarking the journey of Entrepreneurship and bringing changes to the society. Ms. Sujata Sahu laid emphasis on the importance of looking at the right problem, at the right time using the right medium. She introduced the concept of Volunteerism wherein, anyone who visits Ladakh should also volunteer to impart education. She summarized the discussion and left the dice with a statement ‘when the little hammer hits you on the head, go for it – the solutions will come up.

Once again, through the deliberations and the discussions that the Summit facilitated, the audience (including MBA Students, Faculty, Staff, Alumni and Industry Practitioners) were left more sensitized towards the growing need of Sustainability and with answers to many pressing concerns of mankind.

– MBA taught beyond Classrooms

On February 21, 2014, on the occasion of the birth anniversary of the late Founder, Sri R.K. Shrivastava, FIIB celebrated its 20th Founder’s Day, by making the day truly memorable for the underprivileged children staying near the campus.

As a tradition at FIIB (Fortune Institute of International Business), every year on the occasion of Founder’s Day, on February 21, underprivileged children from the nearby localities and villages are invited to the campus to spend the day with FIIB-ians. This is a part of the initiatives of the Jaagriti student club – The social conscience club of FIIB. The Jaagriti Movement strives to adopt children deprived of a good life and help them restart their lives with a new hope.

This year, students interacted with underprivileged kids in a day long activity which included dance, music and painting competition to wholesome meals. The kids enjoyed the day, happily coloring their imaginations on paper and showcasing their talent by singing and dancing to the tunes of popular Bollywood numbers. FIIB-ians interacted with them trying to make their time at FIIB an enjoyable and memorable one. They also entertained them by putting on their dancing shoes once in a while. To not forget the health aspect, a health camp was organised for the kids to help them with basic check ups.

After the fun and frolic in the student lounge, the guests at FIIB were treated to the fresh food that waited for them in the cafeteria. It was heart warming to see FIIB-ians running from pole to pillar to make sure that their guests were comfortable and they successfully played good hosts and served food that lit up the faces of the young kids.

Attended by Management and Staff Members, the little rendezvous in the lounge was a perfect end to the memorable day of celebrating the Founder’s Birthday. Ms Radhika Shrivastava, Executive Director, FIIB also handed our guests with a goodie bag that entailed items of necessity like school shoes to each kid who joined us on 21st.

It was encouraging to see how the students managed the excitement (as well as the occasional chaos) in the lounge by making the day a memorable one for the kids. It was truly an experience of management for them that no one can teach them in a classroom.