The Gurgaon-based School of Inspired Leadership (SOIL) hosted the 7th Annual Inspired Leadership Conference (ILC) on October 9 and 10. The theme of this year’s ILC was “Inspired Leadership for Digital India”, and eminent business leaders, thinkers, young professionals and students discussed the leadership challenges and opportunities around Digital India.
The conference saw a series of dynamic discussions and knowledge-sharing sessions. TV Mohandas Pai, Chairman of the Manipal Global Foundation; Osama Manzar, Founder of the Digital Empowerment Foundation and Member, Working Group, Internet Governance Forum, Ministry of Communication and IT; Puneet Bhatia, Director of Emerging Technologies and Digital Practice, KPMG; Pratik Kumar, CEO of Wipro Infrastructure Engineering; Subroto Gupta, Digital Transformation and Innovation Leader at Genpact , Vinnie Jauhri , Director of Education Advocacy Microsoft Corporation; Vishnu Karthik, Associate Director of The Heritage School, and other senior leaders participated in the event.
Transforming disruptions
The first day of the conference started with the inaugural address by Mohandas Pai, which was on leadership challenges and opportunities. He walked the audience through the history of disruptions that have transformed the world, and how Digital India is poised to transform the nation. This was followed by a research paper presentation by SOIL students, Bhavishya Raghuraman and Alka Dixit, on the topic “Digital India - Winning Strategies across Business and Social Sector”.
The second half of the conference saw an open space session facilitated by Anil Sachdev, Founder and CEO of SOIL, in which the participants listed their questions in a market-place format and focused groups around issues they care the most about. The day concluded with the closing circle, where participants shared their insights and learning.
Digital divide
In his keynote address on Day 2, Manzar spoke about the digital divide and how the human connect and the Digital India initiative can bridge the gap. Shriram, Vigneshwar G and Rethina Kumar, students of SOIL, presented a white paper on the impact of Digital India on education. A panel discussion on Leveraging Digital India for Social Sector- Education, E-Governance, Healthcare and Impacting Rural India witnessed a conversation between Kumar Abhishek, Founder of ToneTag and SOIL alumni; Dr Vinnie Jauhri, Microsoft; Vishnu Karthik, Heritage Group of Schools; Anirban Mukerji, Qualcomm, and Dr. Vimarsh Raina, Bharat Stem Cell.
Later in the day, Swami Nikhilanandaji spoke on “Tuning within: Energy behind all things Physical & Digital”. The highlight of the day was a special theatrical and dance performance by the students of SOIL and Delhi University.
Following this came an enlightening presentation on smart cities by Sunil Jain, Senior Vice-President Efkon India. Ashish Sonal CEO, Orkash, shared his insights on Big Data. The valedictory address was delivered by Pratik Kumar, CEO Wipro Infrastructure Engineering.
Conscious practices
Speaking on the occasion, Mohandas Pai said: “Educational institutes are accepting digital with open arms. It is humbling to see the disruption brought by Digital India to society. Very soon, India will become a digital global power with the kind of progress it is making. Disruptive technology has penetrated the rural sector and is working towards the elimination of middlemen by bringing profit directly to the manufacturer of the product.”
“SOIL is bent upon stimulating innovation in society with the help of its students. We encourage students to create an impact with the effort they are putting in every day at work and study. The biggest source of nourishment for a start-up comes from a business model that manifests conscious practices. Therefore it’s really important to focus on conscious thinking and progressing with development in society,” said Sachdev.