The key resource person for the occasion was Mr. Sandeep Sharma, who is an industry expert in the areas of supply chain management, business/operational and service excellence in diversified sectors like telecom & manufacturing. He has more than 20 years of experience and also holds a Six Sigma black belt.

Mr. Sharma enlightened the students about the fundamentals of quality, including the three major excellences. He talked about internal & external customers, standardisation of processes and versions of a process. He also mentioned key measurement tools like KPI (key performance indicators) and SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound) qualities.

Mr. Sharma briefly talked about the business excellence framework; operational excellence and process excellence (PEX); and also discussed about the role of benchmarking, automation, digitisation vs digitalisation, data visualisation, audit and assessment. At last he held forth on the types of training methods & the role of Six Sigma.

After this fruitful discussion he also took a round of questions from the students. Mr. Sharma patiently answered all the questions, explaining each fully to the satisfaction of the students.

At the end of the session, Prof. (Dr.) Vidya Sekhri, Director (Management), ITS Ghaziabad put on record her concluding remarks and presented a digital plaque to the guest as a token of gratitude and remembrance.

Mr Shiv Kumar Pandey delivered an exciting online session from Dubai. He is serving as major Accounts Manager, Graphic International Centre LLC Dubai, UAE and he is also an Alumni of I.T.S. PGDM Batch 2008-2010.

In the beginning of session, the speaker gave a brief about his company and the various roles which are managing sales and marketing of document solution. He shared information about the major accounts and his working at government segments across UAE through a team of sales professional. He also mentioned the growth prospects of UAE since 1971, GDP progress (421 Billion) and the population to GDP ratio. He focused on the industry functioning in UAE and the future scope like Expo 2020 (extended to 2021)as big business opportunities. He also highlighted about the work culture where Indian population is more as migrants in UAE. Dubai is a leading global business destination with an ease of doing business.

Mr Pandey has also shared about the industry insights and sales as an integral function. He talked about the products and services that are differentiated into IT & Non-IT products. He also stressed about the solutions which comprises of mixture of IT product, services, software & hardware. He also highlighted the difference between business models of B2B & B2C. In the connection of B2B &B2C, he explained about direct and indirect distribution channels with examples.

Further, he emphasized about the marketing mix of his company.He marked few skills that were key traits for a successful sales management process.

Towards the end of the session, students asked a few questions related to the subject. Prof. (Dr.) Vidya Sekhri (Director- Management) shared her words of wisdom and presented a virtual plaque to the guest as a token of gratitude and remembrance.   Dr. V.N. Bajpai, Prof Durba Roy, Dr D.K. Pandey, Dr Sanjeev Tandon and Dr. Garima Srivastav attended this enriching session.

It was an MUN based activity conducted in 2 Rounds. Round 1 was conducted through Google form and was based on International Business quiz and Round 2 was a Model United Nation summit. 6 selected participants from round 1 participated in round 2 and asked to team up with any 1 audience. One team represented one country. First, Welcome note by one of the team members tells the summit about the steps taken by the country to handle Covid – 19 situation and how they will be reviving their economy. And then, was a panel discussion between the participants regarding the same where each participant shown their zeal & enthusiastically participated in panel discussion. It was really an overall fun activity which helped students not only for enhancing knowledge and garnish their skills but as well as it also helps in killing boredom due to busy schedule.

Final Winners of the activity were: Argneshu Gupta & Dr. Saloni Gupta at 1st position, Tushar Sharma & Koushiki Basu at 2nd position and Mamta & Anuj Kumar Srivastava at 3rd position.

for PGDM (2019-21) batch students on 13th January, 2021. Dr Vidya Shekri, Director (Management) extended a warm welcome to the expert Mr. Satya N. Gupta (Satyen), NGNguru, Chair, India IPv6 Council, Secretary General, ITU-APT Foundation of India, Co-Chair, Rural Digital Initiative & Infrastructure Committee, BIF and Secretary General, NGN Forum to mark the beginning of the session and highlighted the need of innovation and startups as key driving forces of the knowledge-based society and economy like India.

Mr. Satyen shared Blue ocean strategy as the simultaneous pursuit of differentiation and low cost to open up a new market space and create new demand. It is about creating and capturing uncontested market space, thereby making the competition irrelevant. He focused on the concepts of Value innovation and technological innovation and explained the ways of creating new demand and attracting non customers. He shared that Value innovation is created in the region where a company’s actions favorably affect both its cost structure and its value proposition to buyers.  Cost savings are made by eliminating and reducing the factors an industry competes on.  Buyer value is lifted by raising and creating elements the industry has never offered.  Over time, costs are reduced further as scale economies kick in due to the high sales volumes that superior value generates.

He discussed a case of Blue Town as a successful innovation model with a vision to connect rural areas of the world.

It was great to have such deeper insights on one of the most impressing areas related to innovation and startup by the expert. At the end, Dr V N Bajpai proposed a vote of thanks to     Mr. Satyen for sparing his valuable time and enriching the participants with his words of wisdom.

Dr. Feza Tabassum Azmi is a renowned Professor at Faculty of Management Studies & Research, Aligarh Muslim University. She is the author of the book on Strategic Human Resource Management published by Cambridge University Press, University of Cambridge (UK).

The guest was welcomed by Director Management, Dr. (Prof) Vidya Sekhri, who enlightened the students with her words of wisdom. In the beginning of the session, Dr. Feza highlighted the tremendous change taking place in the organization and the emerging need for flexible organizational structures. She elaborated the rise of the gig economy and how the focus on flexible project-based work is gaining popularity. Businesses today are looking for agility and responsiveness and for that they have to quickly respond to the challenges posed by the dynamic and turbulent environment. She explained the contemporary organization designs like Hyperarchy which paves way for a fluid, team based, cross functional collaborative work arrangement. She also highlighted the fact that there will be no innovation or free thinking if there will be too much of hierarchy. She also talked about the concept of Velcro organization which is based on easy fastening and unfastening of Velcro hooks by quoting examples of FORD & General Motors. She further discussed about the virtual organization/communities as- HUB & SPOKE design.

It was a very insightful session and students participated enthusiastically as they raised a number of queries which were addressed by Dr. Feza. At the end, a virtual plaque was presented to Dr. Feza as a token of gratitude and remembrance.

The activity is in Two Rounds. The first round of the activity “QUICK WITS” was conducted on 26th December, 2020  by floating Google form to the participants throw mail in which 3 section (puzzle, sequence jumbling & pictorial) were there containing 5 question each. Which has to be done in exactly 15 minute or before and the result of first round was declared on same day 02nd January 2021.

The second round of the activity “QUICK WITS" was basically a Panel Discussion round which checked the ability of the students that how much they are confident and able to communicate on public forum with their best of knowledge. There were total 12 participants divided in 3 groups of four members each with separate moderator from Finvest club only. The participant spoke on the respective topics allotted to them by the club.

The activity started sharp at 4.10 PM with the kind words of club coordinator where he motivated and enlightened the participants and audience. We had Dr. Anurag B. Singh as the judge of the competition. Out of the 12 participants top 3 performers of the activity were awarded with Appreciation Certificates and rest others were given the Participation Certificate.

The Activity is conducted by Finvest Club members of PGDM 2020-22 under the guidance & supervision of Finvest club coordinator Dr. Anurag B. Singh & the senior member of batch 2019-21.            

The prize winners at first position are from PGDM, KOUSHIKI BASU Second position hold by ANUJ KUMAR SRIVASTAVA and third position by SHUBHAM RATHOR.

Dr. Vidya Sekhri, Director-Management and Dr. Anurag B Singh, Faculty Coordinator- of Finvest  Club felicitated the event by distributing Prizes to all the winners of the activity.

The virtual summit was graced by the presence of three guests of honour:

·            Mr. Amanjot Malhotra, Director of Product Management at LCX, Gurgaon

·            Mr. Atul Tripathi, Data Scientist Ex-National Security Council Secretariat (Prime Minister’s Office) Advisor IISER, Mohali, Delhi, India

·            Dr. Sindhu Bhaskar, Chairman and CEO of EST Group EST Global Inc(Cambridge Innovation Center, MIT, USA) (Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States).

The session commenced with the welcome address by Prof.(Dr.) Vidya Sekhri, Director (Management).

The first speaker Mr.Amanjot Malhotra started the session by giving a brief presentation on Introduction of Blockchain and Its Use Cases.He explained how  blockchain has evolved over the years and why blockchain technology is the future.He mentioned that blockchain was introduced after the financial crisis of 2008 and since then,it is experiencing exponential growth.

He then explained the working of blockchain in a simplified way and highlighted that it is basically a network in which a millions of nodes are present to validate the transaction and depends on a decentralised entity making it a safe,transparent and tamper proof  technology.He described some of the services provided by the blockchain like money services,payroll and insurance, and many more, and also explained how the blockchain concept can be implemented for a liquid democracy, what advantages blockchain technology can bring to supply chains,how problems of document manipulation can be fixed with blockchain technology and how the blockchain is related with IoT(The Internet of Things).

The next speaker, Mr. Atul Tripathi (Data Scientist Ex-National Security Council Secretariat (Prime Minister’s Office) Advisor IISER, Mohali) carried forward the blockchain discussion towards the Career Path and Opportunities in Block Chain and Data Analytics for management students.He emphasised the importance of  maths, statistics, programming and communication skills for a data scientist. He motivated the students to get certifications for technical and non-technical courses in Blockchain. Before ending he effectively answered the queries of the students regarding the opportunities in the field of data analytics and Blockchain.

Dr. Sindhu Bhaskar (Chairman and CEO of EST Group , EST Global Inc.( Cambridge Innovation Center , MIT , USA) (Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States)enlightened the students on “Contemporary Issues and Challenges in Fintech Application in India” and also talked about emerging Fintech (Finance + Technology) & different faces of Indian Fintech where he spoke about payment and settlements, lending, supply chain & higher technology. He also talked about trends in Indian fintech where he explained Box Banking, P2P Lending, Financial Inclusion, AI and IOT based Security.

Towards the end of each session, Q/A round was held in which the guest speakers answered all the questions of the students and cleared all their doubts regarding blockchain technologies.

The summit was attended by around 400 management students of I.T.S School of Management,Ghaziabad. It was truly an enlightening session for all the participants.At the end of each session,Dr.Vidya Sekhri, Director (Management) ITS presented a virtual plaque as a token of gratitude and remembrance to the guest speakers and thanked them for sharing such valuable insights on the blockchain technology and fintech.

(Thursday) for PGDM (2020-2022). During this COVID-19 period in order to keep the logical thinking balance along with the fun factor of the students, the club conceptualized this event. This event has been an innovative general information quiz. There were 5 questions and the time allotted to answer these questions was 10 minutes. When the event was publicized, we could receive an overwhelming response from the students.

The participants were highly enthusiastic and passionate to win. The rapid fire questions were asked with the 6 teams one-by-one. They were given hints as per the guidelines of the event. The event was conceptualized under the guidance of Dr. D.K. Pandey and Dr. Sanjeev Tandon and the members of the Statesman Club. We got overwhelming response from the students. 30 participants enrolled for the event.

It was a great evening and the teams were very actively replying the questions. The event required presence of mind, time management, logical thinking and general knowledge. The event came to an end at 8:10 pm. It was a great experience and much required change for all the students during this lockdown period. The event ended happily with much of learning for each participant.

Result of the Event -: 1st position (TEAM LEADER & TEAM) - Anuj Kumar Srivastava (The Inclusives)

The invited Speaker for the occasion was Dr. V. K. Arora , CEO of Indira Gandhi Technical University for women IGDTUW - Anveshan Foundation. He is also a trainer in entrepreneurship, strategic management and the functional areas of management.

In her welcome address, Dr. Vidya Sekhri, Director – Management, and President, IIC ITS, advised the students to stay dedicated and try to make most of the crisis instead of making excuses. She also emphasised that students must be courageous enough to take risks because every failure brings you one step closer to success.

Dr .V.K. Arora greeted the students by describing how a policy towards innovation helps in building a strong path for entrepreneurship and also justifies the role of the government and its support services. Dr Arora spoke about the various aspects of entrepreneurship like unemployment, GDP, VUCA environment etc. He discussed about the improved ranking of India since 2014 with regard to the ease of doing business and also threw some light on the vision of our Honourable Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, including the push towards an Atma-Nirbhar Bharat.

He emphasised upon the Triple Helix Model and the role of the incubation centres at different levels in the corporate world. He also advised students to think innovatively and encouraged them to visit the various government portals like those for Startup India etc. He also highlighted that "When there is problem, there is an opportunity"; in other words students need to work on the problem part and try to come up with different innovative ideas.

The session was very interactive and encouraging; students participated with zeal and raised a variety of queries at the end. The session concluded with the presentation of a virtual plaque by the Director (Management) as a token of gratitude to Dr. Arora. Dr Rajeev Johari, Convener, IIC ITS, praised Dr Arora for his insightful ideas and expressed the hope for similar interactions in future.

The inaugural session of the convention was graced by luminaries like Mr Satya Gupta, Chairman – India, IPV6 Council, who joined as the Chief Guest; Mr Anil Khaitan, Chairman, Sunil Health Ltd., and Former Chairman, PHDCCI; and Prof. (Dr.) Shailendra Singh, Director, IIM Ranchi. The latter two were participating in the capacity of Guests of Honour.

The session was opened by Director (Management) Prof. (Dr) Vidya Sekhri, who began by saying that during a time of global crisis, it is very significant that our country is emerging as Aatma Nirbhar Bharat. Referring to the fluctuating environment where economies have to encounter a variety of ups and downs, Dr Sekhri quoted Gautam Buddha, noting that becoming comfortable with impermanence is the true sign of an evolved individual. She explained that now more than ever before it was necessary that India takes the lead in the fight against Covid-19 by developing effective vaccines.

Next Dr Rajeev Johari, Convener of the Convention, provided an outline of the event. He pointed out that terms like Atma Nirbhar Bharat and Five Trillion Dollar economy had become commonplace even before the unfortunate onset of the pandemic. While the spread of Covid has definitely put the brakes on these and other initiatives for now, it is only a matter of time before efforts are resumed with new zest and vigour. Therefore it is essential to lay down the route map for the path ahead; that is one of the aims for this convention. Dr Johari went on to provide a snapshot of the participants and deliberations coming up in the rest of the day’s programme.

Mr Khaitan was the first to speak among the guests. He chose to concentrate on the area of healthcare technology. Quoting the examples of typewriters and mobiles, Mr Khaitan highlighted how lack of innovation can spell the death knell for products as well as businesses. He referred to cutting edge concepts like the use of artificial intelligence; blockchains as a means of data verification; advanced  social media; voice search as a means of responding to those needing care; artificial assistants like Siri, Cortana and Google Assistant; uses of virtual  reality; mobile applications; and video marketing as a tool for reaching out to the customer.

 Among the other speakers, Dr Singh spoke about how myriad innovations are helping to deal with newer challenges by a constantly evolving pandemic. The chief guest, Mr Satya Prakash focused on the modalities for innovation in India at the policy level. He drew attention to how digital infrastructure, which is the need of the hour, brings a whole new ball game compared to the traditional physical version. He illustrated his thoughts through his involvement in the efforts at setting up a digital backbone for the country. Coming to the necessity of creative innovation, he distinguished it as something which avoided the disruptive effect. In this connection he also threw some light on the Blue Ocean strategy used in the corporate world.

The main programme of the day consisted of two panel discussions. The first one was chaired by Dr Sudhir Kochhar, Former ADG (IPR) and National Coordinator (NAIP), ICAR and focussed on sectors like agriculture, defence and manufacturing. The other discussants in this session included Mr Durgesh Sharma DG, Fibre Cement Products; Maj. Gen. Ravi Arora, CEO and Chief Editor, Indian Military Review; and Dr Nishikant Ojha, Advisor, Cyber, Aerospace and Counter Terrorism and eminent faculty, Defence and Paramilitary Forces.

After the Director (Management) welcomed the participants in the first panel discussion, Dr Kochar kicked off the session as the Session Chair by drawing on his long experience of work in the field of agriculture. Starting with the fact that agriculture is the bedrock of any economy, he described the major potential for startups in this area. On the one hand there was scope for individual R&D initiatives; on the other it was also possible to go in for public-private initiatives. Certain technologies were at the Proof of Concept stage, which need further scaling up. He also referred to his experiences as National Coordinator for agricultural projects involving 400 partner institutions.

The next speaker in the discussion was Dr Ojha, who brought his experience in counter terrorism along with significant diplomatic capabilities into play. He repeatedly stressed that India could not afford to depend only on foreign acquisitions alone for its military requirements at a time when there were significant security challenges in the neighbourhood. He also emphasised on the need to develop our own R&D capabilities. Continuing on the theme of India’s defensive expertise,  Maj. Gen. Ravi Arora provided a detailed breakdown of different case stories from Indian military experience.

Mr Sharma brought the discussion back to the fold of agriculture with detailed statistical information laying down the markers for the immediate future in this field. He also threw some light on the government and its role in public sector units. The session concluded with Dr Sekhri commending the participants for the in depth knowledge in their respective areas while presenting them individual mementos.

The post-lunch session had Mr Vishal Gandhi, Founder and CEO of BIORx Venture Advisors Pvt. Ltd.  taking over as the Chair with the attention shifting towards banking and technology. Mr Gandhi was joined by Mr Chanchal K. Gautam, AGM-NABARD, DDM Office, Ghaziabad; Mr Rajiv Ratna Shah, Director, MIDAS Lab, IIIT Delhi; Ms. Bhumika Sukhadia, Co-Founder, OPE Innovation Lab, Mumbai; and Mr Niteen Khemka, Co-Founder and CEO, Startup Spine, and mentor at NASSCOM and NITI Aayog.

Prof (Dr) Vidya Sekhri welcomed all the panelists with her thoughts on the future of technology. Mr. Gandhi then shared his view on a variety issues like Covid-19, disruptive challenges, and the opportunities afforded therein. He also spoke about the growth of pharmaceutical industry during the COVID-19 era with the production of Indian vaccines, PPE equipment, sanitisation efforts, need for thermal scanning and repurposing of drugs.

Mr Gautam next emphasised on the need for banking infrastructure with the five pillars of demand, demography, technology, and infrastructure & economy. These were explained through copious data, graphs and charts. Dr. Shah started by sharing a case study on “Suicidal Ideation Detection”. He also added some Research Work on “AI for social Good” empowering towards banking, policing, Bloomberg, Delhi Jal board and many more. He also elaborated about Information Retrieval System, Visual Speech Recognition, password prediction & cybercrimes.

One of the highlights of this discussion was the talk by Ms. Sukhadia, who shared her views on why businesses should “know their local”. She mentioned the significant role of design and innovation in the businesses, using an excellent example on the doodhwalas changing to milk delivery in glass bottles and then to plastic packets. She also talked about the 4 Ds, viz. - Discover, Define, Design, & Deliver. The session was completed by Mr Khemka, who elaborated on the role of MSMEs, government subsidies, tax exemptions, loans facility and incubation with regard to entrepreneurial activities.

Prof. (Dr.) Vidya Sekhri then enlightened the audience with her words of wisdom as she presented the virtual plaques as a token of gratitude and remembrance to all the panelists. Finally the Vote of Thanks was delivered by Dr.Indraneel Mandal as the day’s programme drew to a close. The diverse topics and animated discussions enthralled the students in particular and the audience in general as the Convention concluded fruitfully with much food for thought.