Bhubaneswar: Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar (XIMB) organised the 5th edition of the Annual Business Excellence Summit from 30th September to 1st October 2023. The theme for this year’s summit was “Navigating the Unknown”.
The first day started with the inauguration ceremony, which was presided over by vice-chancellor Fr. Antony R. Uvari, deputy registrar and chief financial officer Fr. V. Arockia Das, and Associate Dean – Student Affairs Prof. Arijit Mitra, and the keynote speaker, Sameer Sathpathy.
The welcome address was delivered by VC Rev. Father Antony R. Uvari, who also declared the Business Excellence Summit 2023 open. Prof. Arijit Mitra delivered a thought-provoking speech, and CFO Father Arockia Das took the opportunity to introduce the keynote speaker.
Sameer Sathpathy, Chief Executive – Personal Care at ITC, and an esteemed alumnus of XIM Bhubaneswar took the center stage to deliver a powerful speech to the young leaders and motivated the students to search beyond the ordinary, conquer the unchartered territories of the world and pushed the students to be resilient in the discomfort that lies before all of us. He also left the audience with a message, “Some say that challenge is a burden, but actually, challenge is an inspiration to do better.”
Pravin Srinivasan, Country Sales Leader, CISCO, an esteemed alumnus of XIM Bhubaneswar guided us through the topic “Selling Technology to Business” where he shared insights into traditional B2B selling process in the IT industry with an impactful quote “The only way a salesperson is successful in an IT industry is by making their customers successful.”
Neeraj Das, Group Head Insurance, Adani Group, an esteemed alumnus of XIM, Bhubaneswar walked us through the types of risk, risk management, and shared his thoughts on the hierarchy of risk. The speaker as well as the audience kept the session quite interactive and discussed risk framework and categories. He ended his speech by quoting, “Risk is not a function, risk is not a department. It is part of every organization, institution, and a part of every decision.”
Vinay Choletti, Head of Payment, Tata Digital, delivered a speech on the topic “Evolution of Fintech in an Uncertain World”. He highlighted the major obstacle faced while developing a digital payment system by quoting “The problem is not transforming payments. The problem is equipping people with the minimal amount of money that they can spend digitally”.
Ramesh VS, Head of Corporate Business Excellence, Godrej & Boyce, an esteemed alumnus of XIM Bhubaneswar spoke about his organization and its various businesses and quoted that “Business today is at its simplest place”. He shared his views and insight about the global chip shortage and its impact and reflected his thoughts on the topic “Anxious: The Illusion of Control” and learnings from Mahabharata.
Ayaskant Sarangi, CHRO, Wipro Enterprise, an esteemed XIM Bhubaneswar alumnus, initiated his discussion by delving into the distinction between knowledge and skill. He actively engaged with the audience and elucidated the essence of uncertainty, emphasizing its relevance in decision making in group dynamics. He concluded with a powerful message on self-love, underscoring the significance of mental well-being beyond corporate achievements by stating “Life is much bigger than corporate, if you love yourself, everyone else will love you”.
The second day of the event was presided over by esteemed XIMB faculty Prof. Shridhar Kumar Dash, and the speaker,Chittaranjan Mohanty, Founder of Samvi Hifresh, and an esteemed alumni of XIM Bhubaneswar took the center stage to deliver a compelling speech to the young leaders and shared his views on Navigating Life’s Uncertainties, Building a Valuable Toolkit and Leveraging Networking Opportunities. He ended the talk with the message of how failure requires fortitude and quoted, “If the ship has to cross the sea, it has to leave the shore, your zone of comfort has to be left.”
Abhishek Asthana, co-founder of Hood and founder of Ginger Monkey, shared his life experiences and professional career along with insights into his academic journey from engineering to MBA. He mentioned the importance of learning and diligence in the MBA and corporate world. He then took us through his entrepreneurial journey with interesting incidents that he experienced in Shark Tank and the pitches he made to investors. He also shared an exciting story about the origin of his Twitter handle ‘@GabbbarSingh’ and how it helped him in networking. He left us with an insightful quote “People follow you for your opinions, your lens through which you see the world”.
Reena Rathi, Head of Mobile Business Development, Amazon and an accomplished alumnus of XIM Bhubaneswar, shared her professional journey and her insights on “Thriving With Innovation”.While delving into the power of innovation to drive businesses, she reflected that the purpose of innovation should be customer-centric because often customers do not know what they want. She reiterated the fact that innovations need not be necessarily disruptive, rather they are continuous and iterative modifications that are aimed at improving the lives of the consumers. The talk drew to a close with an insightful quote to summarize the role curiosity plays in fostering innovation-” Today questions are the new answers”.
Jane Saquria Kumar, Partner, PWC and an esteemed alumnus of XIM Bhubaneswar took us through “M & A in Uncharted Waters: Insights for successful navigation”. She reflected on her life as an investment banker and shared tips on balancing work life. She took us through key trends in India, the process of organic expansion, and a career in investment banking. She gave us insights on the process of IPO, challenges faced during and after IPO, raising money, and working with private equity firms. She left us with a significant quote – “M and A is a very important strategic decision that an organization makes in its life, you don’t make too many M and A, it is a very critical tool in the arsenal of any organization.”
In an insightful talk, Tushar Sahu, Director of Engineering at Google, ventured into the realm of “The New Age of AI and Technology Career Options.” He discussed the practical utility of Generative AI and its contributions to automation and augmentation intelligence (ANI) to the broader landscape of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). Mr. Sahu concluded by highlighting the growing significance of AGI and its potential transformative influence across various industries. Moreover, he emphasized on the evolving transition from Artificial Narrow Ints diverse sectors, including finance, manufacturing, media, entertainment, retail, and consumer packaged goods.
The final speaker of the day was Mrs. Jagriti Kumar, Sports Medicine Franchise Lead at Smith & Nephew, captivated her audience with an enlightening discourse on the Business Excellence Framework. Mrs. Kumar emphasized on the need for businesses to cater to customer needs while maintaining a commitment to profitability and societal responsibility quoting “What gets measured gets done”. Illustrating her points with tangible success, she shared a pivotal example from Smith & Nephew’s journey that involved their strategic entry into General Surgery. Amid the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, she extolled adaptability and agility as linchpins for organizational resilience during crises. Furthermore, she expounded on strategies for differentiation in competitive markets and fostering employee engagement, emphasizing the roles of referrals and customer feedback mechanisms in fostering growth. She also highlighted a critical sales insight – 60% of sales hinge on the seller’s persona, advocating for personal brand building and leadership development. In her parting words, Kumar left the audience with a resonating adage: “When we are seeking to listen to people with an open mind, then we are looking for a solution”
The closing ceremony was a momentous occasion filled with gratitude. Kamlesh Sahu, the Cultural Secretary of XIM Bhubaneswar, extended heartfelt thanks to the eminent speakers, faculty, the BES core team, and all the committees of the institution. General Secretary Anurag Mohapatra expressed appreciation to the Vice Chancellor- Fr. Antony R. Uvari, CFO & Deputy Registrar- Fr. Arockia Das, Dean- Dr. Biswa Swarup Misra, speakers, and faculty for their continuous support that made the event a resounding success, with special mention to the Functional and Interest Committees of the institution for conducting exhilarating campus events. He thanked all the media partners for their covering and amplifying the reach of the flagship event. The event concluded successfully with students taking away key learnings acquired during the two fruitful days of Business Excellence Summit 2023.
