Meet our Participants

Adwait is a happy-go-lucky person who worships all things mechanical. After college, he started out as someone primarily interested in technology, with no real liking for management studies or managerial roles. However, things changed with time and Adwait now proudly leads AROL APAC team after receiving a diploma in management He is an avid traveller who loves nature, driving, Indian classical music, animals and most importantly, his family of 4.

Anish Bafna took over as CEO and Managing Director of Healthium Medtech in 2018, when he returned to India with the dream of creating the country’s most trusted medtech company. Under Anish’s leadership, Healthium has undergone a transformational journey and emerged as India’s foremost medtech company, with a presence in 80 countries across the globe and 500 districts in India. Anish, with the Healthium team, has pursued the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ agenda by promoting indigenous technology and innovation. Under his aegis, Healthium owns 64 patents in India and the US, including some that are under application.

Anish’s career has spanned 27 years and multiple countries, with a strong focus on the healthcare and devices sectors. In his last assignment, he was President-Japan for Baxter International. Anish, along with his family, has lived in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Japan before relocating to India. He has a proven track record of building sustainable and profitable businesses with a strong focus on continuous business improvement. Anish plays tennis, is an avid reader and likes to delve into history.

Antony is an alumnus of NLS Bangalore and the Founder and CEO of Rainmaker. Antony has always been passionate about training, particularly with respect to business integrity and ethical conduct. His areas of expertise include prevention of sexual harassment, anti-corruption practices, corporate governance, data privacy and protection, and codes of conduct. It is this passion for learning, training and ethical practices that led him to set up Rainmaker.

Archana Jahagirdar is the founder and managing partner of Rukam Capital, an early-stage consumer-focused VC fund. She has led investments across a range of sectors, including beauty and personal care, food and beverage, nutraceuticals and home and kitchen, on top of being an active angel investor. Archana has over 25 years of work experience. Prior to starting Rukam Capital, she helped several individuals source deals for about a year. Archana is regularly invited to speak at different forums on early-stage investing and is among a handful of female founders of homegrown venture capital funds. She is passionate about working with start-ups and is also interested in the development of entrepreneurship in India. Complementing Archana’s transactional skills is her ability to help portfolio companies scale and deepen relationships with other Tier 1 funds. She graduated from St Stephen's College, Delhi University with a bachelor's and a master's degree in English literature.

Arun Bewoor began his career as a management trainee at WIMCO (Swedish Match) and later worked as an advertising manager. He was Regional Sales Manager at Richardson Hindustan, acquired by Procter & Gamble in 1985. He served as General Sales Manager and Vice President. He was Marketing Manager in Hong Kong from 1987-88. Between 1989 and his retirement in 2007, he was Managing Director and Vice President-South Asia at International Flavours and Fragrances (formerly Bush Boake Allen). Arun was President of the Tamil Nadu Chapter of the American Chamber of Commerce, the Madras Management Association and the Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was also Chairman of the CII (South) Environment and Education Committees. He currently serves as independent director on several Boards, including the IMA India Advisory Board.

Ashish Mehrotra is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Northern Arc. He also serve as the Non-Executive Chairperson of Pragati Finserv, the microfinance subsidiary of Northern Arc Group, and is a Board member at Northern Arc Investment Managers, which houses the firm’s alternate-investment fund and portfolio management service.

Ashish has over 25 years of experience across retail and commercial banking, wealth management and insurance. In his last role, he was the MD and CEO of Niva Bupa Health Insurance (previously Max Bupa Health Insurance). Prior to that, Ashish spent over 20 years at Citibank. He was previously a Managing Director and also the Retail Bank Head for Citibank India. Ashish holds a master’s degree in business administration.

Balfour Manuel is the Managing Director of Blue Dart and has been instrumental in the company success since its inception. Before this, he was the company’s CEO. Balfour carries with him three decades of rich experience and a wealth of knowledge about the express industry. He is a Committee Member of the Express Industry Council of India (EICI) and the Indian Merchants’ Chambers (IMC). Under his leadership, Blue Dart remains one of India’s most innovative and awarded express logistics companies.

Bhanu Patel is presently the Chairman of Oerlikon Textile India (OTIPL). Previously, he was the company’s Managing Director and before that, its CFO. Mr Patel has been with the Swiss-based Oerlikon Group for 29 years. OTIL is part of the Group’s polymer-procession solution segment. With its Barmag, Neumag and Nonwoven product brands, Oerlikon is the world leader in product categories ranging from melt to yarn. Prior to this, Mr Patel worked for 11 years with the Modi Xerox Group in its finance and accounting functions. He holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and general law. Mr Patel is a member of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and holds a few independent directorships in private and listed companies.

Biren Ghose has been associated with Technicolor India as its Country Head and Executive Committee member for more than 13 years. Under his leadership, the India studio has become the single largest hub for high end animation, VFX, games and computer graphics (AVGC)in the world. The studio works on the world’s most coveted movies, episodes, games and ads in the creative content sector.

Biren has been a thought leader and industry evangelist, and has been prominently featured in all major content markets and events across the globe for over 22 years. He is a futurist and strategist who has been recognised by the government and industry as a mentor and visionary. Biren continues to ‘invent’ transformation initiatives that help catapult growth for talent, service exports, start-ups and innovation. He believes talent development in the digital arts will create socio-economic development for India, and actively campaigns for greater diversity in the creative arts sector.

On a personal level, Biren has received the National Order of Merit, a knighthood conferred on him by the President of France for his contribution to the media arts. He has also been awarded the Global Asian of the Year 2021, presented by ET and AsiaOne. Biren is generous with his time and is well known for his creativity, hospitality and good humor. He is a prolific networker and has built a wide industry connect being active on social media, a sought-after public speaker and an active participant in various community forums. Biren is multi-faceted and has a passion for art, music, photography, wine and spirits.

Deepak Shanbhag, COO at Property Solutions India (PSIPL), has over two decades of experience in the services industry and has led large integrated facility management enterprises in India and the APAC region. He has achieved excellence in developing tailor-made solutions and generating long-term value for clients. Established in 2000, PSIPL is part of the renowned Kalpataru Group, one of India’s largest indigenous companies in the integrated facility management services (IFMS) segment. With over 13,000 employees, PSIPL represents a differentiated approach to facilities management in India. Its offerings include solutions related to technical and soft services, business support, and other specialised services.

Deepesh Nanda is the CEO for GE Gas Power Systems in South Asia. Based in India, he is responsible for GE’s business in India, Bangladesh, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. Mr Nanda has more than two decades of experience in the energy sector. Before starting his stint with GE, he served as Tyco Sanmar’s Vice President and Business Manager from 2005 to 2010, and headed Flowserve’s regional office from 2000 to 2005. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical and production engineering from Annamalai University, Chidambaram, and an MBA from the OUBS, Milton Keynes, UK. Mr Nanda continues to play a significant role in developing growth strategies and finding solutions to bring electricity to the far-flung geographies of South Asia. His experience in building infrastructure projects impacts the everyday lives of people and helps in the next phase of energy transformation for the region.

Devindra Sharma currently works as the Director of Sales and Customer Service at Camfil India. In his present role, Devindra is responsible for managing sales and overall customer experience across South Asia for the organisation. He specialises in building winning teams and sales strategies and has over two decades of experience in B2B sales.

Dev Punj joined Chimes Aviation Academy as Vice President of New Business Development in March 2021. He is part of the team responsible for the development of a greenfield facility at Neemuch Airfield in Madhya Pradesh, which, once set up, will make Chimes Aviation the largest private-sector flying school in India. After Neemuch, Dev looks forward to leading the effort to set up a third operating base to further build Chimes Aviation’s capacity to train pilots for leading Indian and international airlines. He also serves as a director for a private equity firm, Chimes Private Limited. Dev has been highly involved in funding rounds for investee companies led by Chimes and has also made multiple personal angel investments. While he is sector-agnostic in receiving ideas, his focus lies in the logistics and consumer discretionary sectors in particular. Dev is an alumnus of Kodaikanal International School, Tamil Nadu, and holds a bachelor’s degree in management information studies and technology innovation management from Drexel University in the United States.

Dilip Bhatia is CEO at Roadstar Investment Managers. He handles managing the day-to-day affairs of the company and its subsidiaries, in India and overseas. He also oversees the operations, P&L management as well as the overall conduct of the business.

After having spent close to 20 years in the industry, 10 of which were as HR head, Dr Prasanth Nair has decided to pursue an entrepreneurial journey with the objective of making a difference to the larger eco-system by leveraging his knowledge, experience and perspective.

Ganesh Krishnan is the CEO and Director of Transworld Terminals, a subsidiary of Transworld Group, headquartered in Singapore. With over 30 years of rich experience in shipping and logistics, he leads multiple pan-India business verticals for Transworld. Ganesh holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and has a master’s degree from Indian Institute of Foreign Trade.

Gaurav Maheshwari is the Managing Director of Signode, India and the Group President of Signode, Asia Pacific. He has over 25 years of experience across several functions and an established track record of success. Gaurav’s experience includes change management, brand positioning, cost optimisation, supply-chain efficiencies, M&A, and enabling the organisation through technology, simplification and restructuring. His leadership approach is based on trust and he instils confidence in his people.

G Giridhara Gopal is the Director and Chief Executive of Addison & Co and the Director of LM Vanmoppes Diamond Tools India. He has been with Addison since 2018. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the College of Engineering, Chennai and a CMA from the Institute of Cost Accounts, India.

Harold D’Souza has worked in the executive search industry since 1998, when it was still developing into an important part of the corporate world. He has been part of the evolution of the executive search industry in India and has contributed to its current stature and positioning. Before co-founding WalkWater, he was responsible for building the technology industry practice in India for Accord Group India and DHR International. His has previously worked with E&Y and PSS. His key expertise is building revenue and profit-generating search business from scratch; and developing long-standing relationships with leaders across industry sectors with a special focus on Indian business houses and entrepreneur-driven companies.

Mr D’Souza also leads CEO and leadership searches, especially in technology and related sectors. He also works closely with many start-ups and founders. Mr D’Souza is a firm believer in the power of instinct in both one’s personal and professional life. He is also an avid foodie, loves to cook and travel, and is a keen squash player. He is also a non-fiction book lover and owns a diverse collection of books at his home in Bangalore.

Jay Desai has 33 years of management consulting experience in India and has built UC into an established Indian strategy consulting firm, having conducted 1025+ cases. Prior to founding UC more than 28 years ago, Jay worked with Arthur Andersen & Co (Andersen Consulting) in Mumbai from 1989 to 1994. He holds an AMP degree from Harvard Business School, an MBA from Willamette University, a master’s degree in biology from Purdue University, and a bachelor’s degree in life sciences from the University of Mumbai. He has also attended several executive education programmes over the years at Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan School, The Wharton School and INSEAD. Jay also conducts case study-based ‘Adaptive Leadership Strategy Workshops’ for corporate clients as a Facilitator for his organisation, Lead Adaptive.

Jay is also the Founder of Strat Lancer, India’s first digital platform for strategy consulting with over 2,400+ independent consultants registered on the platform since 2018. Triggered by the terror attacks in Mumbai in November 2008, Jay authored a book, ‘Accountability: Angst, Awareness, Action,’ which focuses on India's complex governance systems using a systems-thinking lens. As a result, Harvard University’s South Asia Initiative organised a ‘Best of Harvard in India’ roundtable series on ‘Accountability & Governance in 2012.’ He has conducted guest lectures at The Wharton School, at the Judge School (University of Cambridge), the Owen School (Vanderbilt University) and at Ashoka University. He has also spoken at many international conferences and at a TEDx conference in Mumbai. He is empanelled as a Facilitator at Harvard Business Publishing, a subsidiary of Harvard Business School. The 175-year-old Willamette University, Oregon, USA, conferred upon Jay, the Distinguished Alumni Citation Award for 2017. Jay is a student of Indian Classical Music and has been playing the Sarod for 30 years, and regularly performs at private concerts.

Kavita oversees all aspects of Dell’s India CoE operations and works closely with the leadership council, India leadership team and other functional leaders in developing strategy and executing on the India site vision. Kavita comes with over 22 years of experience and has been with Dell for the last 18 years, working across imaging sales, ANZ small and medium business, India commercial and consumer sales, APJC customer care and, most recently, as a CSG India Consumer Services India leader. A business management graduate from Delhi, Kavita is driven by continuous learning and is passionate about building more diverse, equitable and inclusive teams. Outside of work, she enjoys reading, doing jigsaw puzzles, rifle shooting and spending quality time with her daughter Sara, who recently turned 16.

Kiron D Shah is the Founder and the Managing Director of the Velankani Group, which has interests in diverse businesses. He conceptualised and built a technology park in Electronics City, Bangalore, with a land area of 22 acres and a built-up area of about 1 million square feet, which received an award for being India’s first IGBC Platinum-Rated landscape project. Under the Indian government's ambitious 'Make in India' programme, he has also established an advanced 4.0 electronics manufacturing facility in Electronics City, with highs level of robotic automation and process control. Under Mr Sha’s leadership, the Velankani Group has made a foray into hospitality business and owns and operates a 5-star hotel and a resto-bar in Bangalore, besides operating 4-star hotels in Bangalore and Goa.

Mr Shah was the first Chairman of the Electronics City Industries Township Authority (ELCITA), which is responsible for municipal services in the Electronics City township, including maintenance, safety, traffic management and regulation, granting buildings related approvals, trade licenses and other services. He continues to serve as a Member of the Executive Committee of ELCITA. He also serves as the Honorary Consul of Lithuania and has served in various positions on the YPO and WPO in the South Asia region.

Born to a humble family from Gorakhpur, MP, Kishorilal Ramraika holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He received a gold medal for his diligence and academic achievement. A visionary entrepreneur, he dreamt of being a world leader in the field of automotive electronic components manufacturing and established Star Engineers in 1988. Mr Ramraika is the company’s Founder Chairman and thrives on the constant impetus he receives from his loving and most supportive better-half. Starting with only 4 employees, Star now has more than 1,200. Mr Ramraika is an inspiring leader with sterling qualities. His success story fired the imagination of many entrepreneurs, business leaders and progressive companies that are part of the Star ecosystem. He has been instrumental in forging new alliances and global joint ventures.

KP Balaraj was a co-founder and managing director of private equity firm, WestBridge Capital, which he co-led for nearly 20 years. He went on to establish KPB Family Trust, a family office investment company. He has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree in business management from Brigham Young University, Hawaii.

Srinivas is a professional with over 28 Years of experience in the automotive industry and is an active contributor to several initiatives in the industry. He has worked extensively on new joint ventures, bringing global technology to India in the automotive space as well as in the areas of emissions, fuel efficiency and vehicle thermal management.

In his current role, Srinivas has overseen the transformation of the business from a single-product to a multi-product company and also led the company’s foray into the defence sector, having established a relationship with an Israeli company and secured a multi-crore business deal with the Indian Army.

Manu is the Founder and CEO at NuTaste, a taste and nutrition solutions provider. He has 25 years of experience in the food business, including agricultural commodities. Manu holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Hindu College, University of Delhi and an MBA degree in international business from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade. Trekking in the mountains is a passion and a hobby for him, besides spending time over the weekends with non-profits in the space of education, development, nutrition and poverty alleviation. Manu lives in Gurgaon, on the outskirts of New Delhi, with his wife and two daughters.

Mayur Pabari is an entrepreneur having more than 8 years of experience in building digital products and tech startups. He is also a blockchain evangelist and a firm believer of the idea that decentralised systems can help define a new path for the progress of humanity. He has founded smartSense solutions and Foster. smartSense solutions is a product design and engineering company, offering services in blockchain, data science, IoT and cloud technology.

Mayur joined Fristam Pumps in Hamburg, Germany in 2009 as a Sales and Business Development Manager for India. He is now the Managing Director of Fristam Pumps India (100% subsidiary of Fristam Pumpen GmbH, Germany). Fristam Pumps is a hygienic pump manufacturing company and has the most comprehensive product range under the EHEDG and 3A certification. The factory in Pune produces pumps for PAN India and SEA countries. Some prominent customers include Amul, Coca-Cola, Unilever, Nestle, Dabur, Sun Pharma, Reliance Life Science, Pfizer, Lupin,t to name a few. Prior to joining Fristam Pumps, Mayur was the Supply Chain Manager at Siemens AG in Munich for 4 years. During his 9-year span in Germany, he assisted Fristam in forming a 100% subsidiary in India and establishing a new state-of-the-art manufacturing setup, which is now helping the company to achieve its goal of being a market leader in hygienic pumping solutions in India and SEA. Mayur has an MSc (majoring in operations management) from the Technical University of Berlin, Germany, for which he was awarded a scholarship from Siemens AG. He completed his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Pune University. Mayur currently lives in Pune with his wife and an 8-year-old daughter. He enjoys travelling, playing badminton and has a keen interest in motorsports.

Meena is a seasoned professional with more than 24 years of experience in the entire gamut of the corporate affairs function with large, diversified companies of repute in the automotive, renewable energy and construction sectors. She is experienced in managing challenging business environments and resolving complex issues with endurance, determination and persistence. She holds a bachelor’s degree in humanities from Delhi University and has been working with CAMFIL India as Head of Corporate & Government Affairs for the past 3.5 years.

In her current role, she is responsible for initiating and maintaining strategic relationships with high-level government officials and industry stakeholders for business growth and stability. She represents the organisation before the Central and State administrative agencies, regulators, industrial and secretarial bodies, embassies and business chambers to steer policy making in the field of clean air.

Mohammed Asif is Senior Vice President-Application Systems at TSYS Noida. He has around two decades of experience working in diverse roles in the technology industry, both in India and abroad. He worked in Europe and the UAE for 10 years before moving back to India in 2010. Asif has a thorough and deep understanding of the payment ecosystem, from both a business and a technology perspective. For the past 10 years, he has been working in senior technology leadership roles and is currently heads TSYS’ application development and delivery centres in Noida, Mumbai and Hyderabad, with more than 1,200 IT professionals on board. He is in charge of driving the engineering culture and creating an ecosystem of learning, performance, empowerment and accountability. Asif is responsible for creating an environment of operational excellence that can deliver state-of-the-art software and services to internal customer teams in the US and EU.

In 2004, Asif relocated from Cyprus to Dubai, with the responsibility of setting up an application development and support centre to serve more than 40 regional clients in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. He helped the region attain 70% growth in 6 years of operations, and to achieve the highest client satisfaction scores. In 2016, he won TSYS’ President’s Circle award for outstanding performance. This is the company’ highest recognition for modelling corporate values and outstanding performance in service to customers and fellow team members. Asif was also awarded membership of the International Who's Who Historical Society for the years 2006-2007 for his contribution to the business community during his role at CTL in Dubai Internet City. He holds a BSc in mathematics and multiple certifications in Leadership Experience Training and Enterprise Leadership, as well as in the areas of computer science and technology. Besides his dedication to technology and a keen interest in the fintech industry, Asif is passionate about photography, travelling (preferably road-tripping) and giving back to society.

As Chief Executive Officer of Columbia Pacific Communities, Mohit is proud of the culture that he is nurturing and the team that he has the privilege of leading in pursuit of a mission that is noble and worthy. Working for India’s largest and most preferred creator and operator of senior living communities, Columbia Pacific Communities has given him the opportunity to work with domain experts from real estate, hospitality and healthcare, with the objective of creating communities designed around the philosophy of positive ageing. The company’s philosophy of unconditional love, respect and care serves as the driving force for these communities and their relationship with their residents.

Mosur Saisekar (Sai) is the Country Head and Designated Partner of Legato Health Technologies, the global capability centre (GCC) of the US-based health insurance major Elevance Health. In this role, Sai manages Legato’s India operations and provides strategic direction and leadership in driving the organisation’s growth objectives. He leads a team of more than 17,500 associates spread across Legato’s offices in Bangalore, Gurugram and Hyderabad, delivering services in the areas of technology, digital, AI, operations and support functions.

Sai has over 30 years of experience in the financial sector, including managing and leading information technology, investment management and back-office operations. Prior to joining Legato, he was the Senior Vice President and Country Executive of Northern Operating Services. Sai has also held leadership roles at State Street Global Advisors, Spectrum Fund Global Administration and IBM Global Services. Throughout his career, he has developed a wealth of experience scaling large organisations while building strong operational processes, leveraging innovative technologies and developing a talented workforce. He holds an MBA in finance and strategy from FW Olin School of Management at Babson College, Wellesley.

Shekhar currently works as President at Times Innovative Media (a Times Group Company). He also sits as a Member on the Boards of TIM Delhi Airport Advertising (a subsidiary that operates the marketing rights of Delhi Airport) and TIM Global (a wholly-owned subsidiary in Mauritius). Shekhar joined the Times Group in May 2008 and has over 30 years of experience in business growth and strategy, corporate finance, investor relations, advisory services, M&A and supply chain management. Prior to this, Shekhar has worked with Alghanim Industries, Bharti Group, Coca-Cola, Timex Watches, Sundaram Fasteners and Tata Motors. Apart from being a qualified Chartered Accountant and an MBA (Marketing & Finance) from FMS, Delhi, Shekhar is an alumnus of Harvard Business School.

Orville Jameson D'souza is on the Board of XLHealth India, a 100% subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group, and leads its Optum Insight Payer and Home and Community Care businesses. Managing a distinct entity, Orville provides leadership for the risk and quality segments, along with technology and enabled services supporting the HouseCalls Programme, which is one of its flagship offerings. He has management, HR and law degrees from reputed institutes such as IIM – Bangalore, SSW Roshni Nilaya and SDM Law, and 22 years of cumulative industry experience. He is also an alumnus of the prestigious IMPM.

Pankaj Garg has more than 3 decades of experience across various industry sectors and has been in the pharmaceutical industry for over 15 years. During his career span, he has extensively worked on strategic finance, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, fund-raising, business strategies, business development and supply chain operations.

In 2015, Pankaj successfully conducted the 100% strategic sale and post-merger integration of Medreich with Meiji Holding, Japan, a USD 14 billion corporation listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange. This was the first 100% acquisition by a Japanese pharmaceutical company in India. He has since spearheaded the Medreich Group as Group CEO and Managing Director and has grown the business substantially in the past 6 years. Medreich is a CMO/CDMO organisation selling pharmaceutical formulations in more than 60 countries, including India, and works with top MNCs as well as key regional players.

Prakash Raman is Managing Director of Silox India (formerly Transpek Silox), a global Leader in Sodium Formaldehyde Sulphoxylate (under the registered trademark Safolite) and Zinc Formaldehyde Sulphoxylate (Safolin), serving 65 countries across 5 continents. He has 30 years of experience across various leadership roles with global multinationals like Solvay, DuPont and Asian Paints. He has extensive international experience, having worked in Asia, North America and Europe and has managed multicultural teams. Mr Raman has held P&L responsibilities for large global businesses, handling such products as sulfone polymers, hydrogen peroxide, specialty polymers and lithium-ion batteries. Previously, he was a member of the Board and Chairman of the JV Board of Companies. There, he handled country management, business development, sales and marketing, strategic HR, integration, mergers and acquisition, project management, new business incubation, M&A and plant operations. He has also previously led the formation and development of Solvay’s alternative energy lithium-ion battery business. Mr Raman is certified in Six Sigma (black belt) and is an environment auditor. He served as the Co-Chairman of the National Chemical Committee, Chairman of FICCI’s Chemical Innovation Committee, as a Member of the Executive Committee of the Indian Chemical Council and as a Member of CII’s Executive Committee of Chemicals. A chemical engineer, he holds an MBA in marketing and finance.

Prashanth Kumar is a seasoned hotelier with over 23 years of global experience across the United States, India, New Zealand, Switzerland and Dubai. Prashanth's top Gallup strengths are futuristic, ideation, activator, connectedness and realtor. He has experience in brand creation, concept and schematic design, and hospitality expertise in luxury, midscale, economy as well as multi-unit operations. His international experience makes it easy for him to take on brand building and make it relevant to emerging markets. He is an alumni of prestigious hotel schools such as Cornell University, Glion Graduate School, Swiss Hotel Management School and IHM. Accor Plus is Accor's subscription-based loyalty programme across 20 countries and over 1,000 hotels. Accor Plus is the Asia-Pacific loyalty subscription programme of Accor, a world-leading augmented hospitality group. Today, Accor Plus is Asia-Pacific's most expansive travel, dining and lifestyle programme.

Praveen Vashishta has worked for the insurance, financial services and risk management industries for over 38 years. He is the co-founder and executive chairman of Howden India, the insurance broking arm of the UK-based Howden Group Holdings. Praveen has served on the Boards of several companies, including the international Board of the Howden Broking Group in the UK. He worked as the CEO of Zurich Insurance Group in India before joining Howden in 2003. He was a management trainee of the General Insurance Corporation of India’s 1983 class. Praveen is a member of the managing committee of the Bombay Chambers of Commerce & Industry, the oldest industry chamber in India. He is an alumnus of the University of Delhi and the Wharton Business School.

After graduating with a degree in engineering, Priyank started his career as a design engineer. He went on to receive an MBA from the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad and has since been assisting CEOs in corporate strategy, fundraising, M&A and key project management. He is currently the Chief of Staff to the CEO of Exotel, Shivakumar Ganesan. In his free time, Priyank enjoys reading, watching documentaries and going for long drives.

Pulin Shroff owns the Janpro franchise in India. Based out of Atlanta, Georgia, Janpro is a leading provider of facility management services in 16 countries worldwide and has been expanding rapidly in India over the last 7 years. Being an avid trekker, marathoner and IronMan gives Pulin the drive to grow the Janpro business in India and develop its franchise network.

Looking at the ongoing macroeconomic changes in India and the government’s thrust on Swachh Bharat, Janpro’s process-based cleaning will be the business of the future.In a span of 7 years, Janpro has spread its network to 32 cities in India with a manpower strength of over 6,500e. Pulin holds an MBA in marketing. He loves to read, play the guitar and travel to different destinations (with a backpack).

Rahul Bhasin is the Managing Partner of Baring Private Equity Partners India and a Senior Partner and Global Board Member of Baring Private Equity Partners (BPEP) International. He is and has been a member of investment committees and advisory boards internationally, including for Barings and ING group entities. Rahul was part of a group of three executive global Board members that led the MBO of Barings globally. He has chaired the Boards of several listed and unlisted companies in India and abroad. Rahul previously served as the Chairman of Mphasis Limited and oversaw its transformation from a loss-making start-up to a fast-growing, profitable company. He was responsible for introducing several managerial, hygiene, productivity and growth drivers followed-by a roll-up strategy. The company now enjoys a market cap in excess of USD 6 billion.

Rahul has been on multiple government advisory bodies and forums. Prior to Baring, he managed propriety and third-party capital as part of the global Asset Allocation Committee at Citibank, overseeing a portfolio of USD 83 billion. He was the youngest Independent Treasurer in the history of Citibank worldwide. Rahul holds an MBA from IIM-Ahmedabad. He has been a guest lecturer/visiting faculty at Harvard Business School, Wharton, ISB, IIM Ahmedabad and Ashoka university

Rahul Saikia is the CEO of Rising Pharmaceutical India and Head of Global M&A and Integration at Rising Pharmaceuticals Inc. He previously served as the Chief Strategy Officer of FDC. Prior to his industry roles, Rahul spent 16 years in investment banking, focusing on healthcare, financial services and infrastructure at PwC Corporate Finance, ENAM Securities and ANZ Investment Bank. He is a chartered accountant by qualification and completed his articleship with PwC.

As Managing Director, Rajeev Singh heads BenQ’s operations for the Indian sub-continent. He has been associated with BenQ for over 10 years now. With over 25 years of work experience, Mr Singh has previously worked with Motorola, heading its high-end phones business for India and South West Asia; with Samsung as Head of its IT Volume business for India; with Canon as Head of its India Printing business; and with Philips. Currently based in Gurgaon, he has worked out of Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore in some of his earlier stints. Mr Singh holds a master’s degree in business administration from Narsi Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai and is an electrical engineer from Maulana Azad Institute of Technology, Bhopal. He loves to travel and has a penchant for electronic gadgets and automobiles. Mr Singh is married to Anjali, whom he has known since they were 10 years old, and they have two sons, Rohan and Aryan.

Rajesh is the Managing Director of Indian Oiltanking. Prior to joining the company in 2016, he worked with Shell for 20 years. He has an MBA from the Booth School at the University of Chicago and a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. Rajesh has extensive experience in the downstream oil industry, and across business functions such as sales, marketing, strategy, operations and business development, in India, Europe, Singapore and Indonesia. His role at Indian Oiltanking is currently focused on turning around the company to ensure sustained and profitable future growth. Rajesh’s interests include golf, running, reading and travel.

Rajesh Mittal is President of the Isuzu Engineering Business Centre India, Deputy President of Isuzu Motors India, and an executive Board member on both companies. Isuzu Motors has a global presence in more than 150 countries and has a world-class manufacturing setup for light-duty pick-up cars and commercial vehicles in Sri City near Chennai.

Rishi Verma currently serves as the Managing Director at Tenneco Clean Air (CA) India. He is responsible for driving operational excellence and profitable growth of the CA division, serving major OEMs in the light vehicle, commercial vehicle, and off-highway automotive segments. With over 20 years of rich automotive experience, he specialises in strategy development and deployment, project and change management, and strategic account management. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Roorkee.

Sachin Kamath is an experienced global asset manager with a stellar track record in managing multi-million-dollar investments across geographies and asset classes. At Kitara Capital International, he is currently focused on identifying top-performing, high-growth emerging blue- chip companies of tomorrow that are based in developing economies and can compete globally. Mr Kamath is one of the founding members of Kitara Capital International. He started his career in 1985 at ICICI Limited, India with a team that responsible for managing leasing operations. The work involved evaluation, documentation, accounting and interacting with various promoters to negotiate and structure leasing deals. In 1989, after becoming a chartered accountant, he joined Paradigm Investments as an investment manager in Mumbai. His previous experience includes stints with BOI Mutual Fund, Dalal Street Journal Group, Paradigm Agro Products and JV Gokal Group.

With restrictions in moving capital both in and out of India and in order to get international exposure to global equities and various asset classes, Mr Kamath took up the role of Chief Investment Officer at Ajit Khimji Group, one of the most reputed business houses in the Sultanate of Oman. He set up, headed and managed the investment division of the group for over a decade, which involved the turnover of assets worth over USD 450 million. With a goal of building a platform of HNI investors, adequately supported by professionals, that would continuously provide high return investment opportunities, Mr Kamath, alongside the Ajit Khimji group, seeded the concept of Kitara Capital.

Sagar Hemade is the Vice President- Global for Commercial Trucks and Off highway (CTOH), where he is responsible for the profitable growth and operational performance of Tenneco Clean Air’s businesses in key market segments. He also leads the growing Clean Air Division’s businesses in India. Sagar has spent more than 22 years in various leadership positions with Tenneco, most recently as Vice President and General Manager, Tenneco India. In this role, he managed all aspects of the company’s Clean Air and Ride Performance businesses. During this time, he achieved year-on-year growth and helped develop and execute the strategy to address BSVI regulations for Tenneco’s Clean Air business in both the LV and CTOH segments.

Prior to joining Tenneco, Sagar worked with Delphi and began his career in production and product engineering for various automotive component companies in India. He holds a bachelor’s degree in production engineering from Walchand Institute of Technology, Solapur, and an MBA from Washington University Olin Business School, St Louis and IIT, Mumbai.

Sahil Dharia is the founder and chief executive of Soothe Healthcare, India's fastest-growing personal hygiene company. A driving force behind Soothe, he is focused on product innovation, customer centricity, and driving for results and integrity—core values that make the brand a thoroughbred, professionally managed FMCG company. Soothe is engaged in the manufacturing, distribution, and marketing of the feminine hygiene brand Paree. In the short span of 5 years, the company has expanded its portfolio to include baby and adult hygiene products, which are now available across 350,000 general trade stores, supermarkets, hypermarkets, and e-commerce marketplaces across India.
With over 18 years of global experience in setting up and scaling businesses and leading multinational businesses in financial services and FMCG, Sahil worked on the buy-side at UBS Investment Bank in New York and led the high-visibility derivatives desk at Reuters in New York. Sahil was one of the youngest Global Heads of Operations at Thomson Reuters, where he was awarded the Global CEO's Award of Excellence for successfully leading strategic change management (M&A) programmes. He also serves on various national committees at FICCI and CII and is a charter member of the TiE Start-up Community. In addition, Sahil is passionate about building thought leaders and is a visiting faculty member at various educational institutions. He studied economics at the Zicklin School of Business in New York and launched his first business at the age of 19.

Sameer is Managing Director & CEO at Multiplier Brand Solutions, which specialises in managed services, field force marketing services, enterprise technology solutions and retail solutions. Multiplier is made up of a young team of professionals in the space of HR services, technology and data solutions, sales and marketing. Founded in 2016, Multiplier has grown by 200% since its inception. Under Sameer's leadership, it has been awarded several marketing and HR awards.

Sameer has worked with clients like Marico, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, P&G, Motorola, LG, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, Panasonic, TVS and TTSL. A marketing professional since 1996, he has over 25 years of experience. Sameer comes with specialised knowledge and experience in all the core areas of Below the Line advertising and marketing such as experiential marketing, trade marketing, field marketing services, brand and product promotions, retail merchandising, event management, corporate seminar, response management and database management, and enterprise tech solutions.

With over 31 years of experience, Sanjay specialises in solution-selling to enterprise companies that have a positive impact on their business outcomes, enhance their employee experience, execute new business development growth and expand the market. Sanjay has played a significant role in management initiatives to drive business growth year-on-year by communicating a clear, strategic sales vision and effectively training and coaching sales team for various IT-related products and services in the Indian, African, South-East Asian and North American markets.

Sanjay has extensive experience in providing a wide range of IT solutions, including hardware, peripherals, attendance-recording devices, packaged software, networking products, turnkey solutions and consulting (from concept selling to product selling). He has over 18 years of experience in HR tech platform solutions on AI, ML, robotic/video interviews, blockchain and various services (like payroll processing, tax filing and compliance services.) He likes mentoring team members and has a passion for teaching management related subjects such as sales, marketing and human resources.

Saral is a highly qualified and experienced medical professional with over 20 years of experience in clinical research and drug safety. She has served as a Director on the Boards of companies for the past 14 years. Saral played a pivotal and positive role in setting up and managing two reputable Indian CROs. The first was Lotus Labs, where she worked until 2010, and the second is Norwich Clinical Services, where she now serves as CEO and Managing Director. Saral has experience and expertise within the CRO segment spanning a number of areas, including biostudies, first-inhuman studies, Phase III clinical trials, pharmacovigilance, and medical and regulatory affairs. She has a deep understanding of the regulatory and business environment in India, coupled with a strong commitment to compliance and an unswerving attention to quality.

Satish Rao is the Chairman and Managing Director of Firmenich India, which is a key strategic country for Firmenich, the world’s largest privately-owned fragrance and taste company, headquartered in Geneva. He joined Firmenich in 2016. Spearheading the India business, he has taken Firmenich to a leadership position, supporting and growing the business with consumer goods companies as valued customers. Satish is a proven business leader in both consumer-facing and B2B industries, with a solid background in sales, marketing and general management. He also serves as Vice President of the Swiss Indian Chamber of Commerce - West chapter. Satish devotes his time to social and philanthropic causes. He is also an avid golfer and has recently authored a best-selling book on leadership virtues, ‘Can I Fly?’

Dr Sharmila Amin has over 25 years of experience in global freight forwarding, with a focus on projects in the oil-and-gas logistics businesses. She is an experienced industry veteran with a proven track record in expanding and consolidating logistics operations in emerging markets. She has executed multiple projects in the power generation, petrochemical, fertiliser, automobile, oil and gas and other core industry sectors. Dr Amin began her career in 1986 with the then-famous firm AFL and has since grown in stature by leaps and bounds. Over the years, she has gained a firm foothold in the industry, understanding all of its nuances. She has been Managing Director (South Asia and India) at Bertling Logistics since 2013. Dr Amin previously held similar positions with global MNCs, where she restructured businesses and transformed them into profitable entities, enforcing compliance protocols, implementing new processes and mentoring teams to attain business objectives. In an industry that is largely male-dominated, she has risen to this level by virtue of her commitment and dedication. Dr Amin is the only woman in the project logistics business as well as one of the most successful businesswomen in the Indian logistics industry. She also serves on the boards of several listed companies, including India’s first private oil and gas company, HOEC (Hindustan Oil Exploration). After assuming charge of Germany-based Bertling Logistics, Dr Amin has taken the company to greater heights. Today, Bertling is one of the top-ranking companies within its category in the South Asia-India region.

Shashi is a business professional with over 30 years of experience in the industrial, government, and consumer sectors. He has always been passionate about working for the betterment of people and the environment. In his professional capacity, Shashi has been associated with companies like Sandvik, 3M and DuPont. At Camfil, he has taken on the crucial role of leading the clean air revolution in India. Shashi has been instrumental in leading educational programmes for clean air across all industry segments, from oil and gas to pharmaceuticals. Under his leadership, Camfil India has been able to drive the air filtration market standards closer to global levels by continuously working with various government bodies to upgrade the air filtration market. He is also a resource leader at the ISHA Leadership Academy.

Sashi currently serves as the Managing Director of Camfil India and is responsible for leading the air filter and clean air solution business in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Since WHO’s announcement about the short-range aerosol transmission of coronavirus in indoor spaces, Shashi and his team at Camfil have been working round-the-clock to help organisations understand the risks of and possible mitigation strategies for the airborne virus. Shashi, along with his team at Camfil, has been working relentlessly with major industry segments, including oil and gas, pharma, hospitals, airports, railways and manufacturing, driven by the ideology: ‘Clean Air: A Human Right’. A strong promoter of sustainable development, he is also associated with the India Green Building Council as an industry expert. Sashi’s long professional experience has helped him develop the most energy-efficient air filtration solutions in the market. Because of his significant work in Indian air filtration, Shashi is invited to CII's 'India CEO Forum for Clean Air'.

Sheenam Ohrie joined Broadridge Financial Solutions India as its Chief Operating Officer in September 2021 and was appointed Managing Director, Broadridge India, in April 2022. Sheenam is responsible for driving the company’s India strategy, which includes leading India Centres of Excellence across technology, innovation, professional consulting and managed services and operations. Sheenam brings over 2 decades of rich experience in engineering, global delivery, product management and executive leadership roles. She is a versatile and strategic leader with a proven record of conceptualising and delivering technology solutions for her customers.

Prior to joining Broadridge, Sheenam was the Vice President of Dell Digital Services and an APJ CIO leader at Dell Technologies. In her previous stints, she led strategic business and technology roles at Finacle, EdgeVerve (an Infosys company), SAP and Oracle. She is an ICF-certified ACC and PCC executive coach and a certified lean and design thinking coach.

Sheenam was named a Zinnov 2020 Confluence Next Generation Women Leader, a Community Business 2020 D&I Business Leader, one of the Top 20 Women Catalysts in Indian IT by SME Channels (2019), and Woman Icon of the Year at the UBS Forums #GIWL Awards 2019. Sheenam recently received the Karnataka Woman Leader of the year 2021 award from the World Woman Leadership Congress.

Shivam Puri brings the edge and discipline that come with 20 years of sales and marketing experience in the diverse Indian FMCG sector to the world of healthcare. An alumnus of IIT-BHU and IIM-Lucknow, he has had successful stints across leading companies like Jubilant FoodWorks, Hindustan Unilever and ITC. Under his able leadership, Cipla Health looks to rapidly scale up and transform healthcare in India, both by pushing the boundaries to consistently innovate and by offering world-class wellness products that make a difference to the lives of consumers every day. In his spare time, Shivam runs marathons and plays the drums. As a doting dad, he loves spending time with his two boys.

Shiv Gupta is the Founder and CEO of Sanctum Wealth, which was created through the acquisition of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Indian Private Banking business in 2016. Over a 25-year career, Shiv has held several leadership positions in wealth management across Asia and the Middle East. Immediately prior to founding Sanctum Wealth, he was Head of India and Co-Head of the Middle East (Coutts) for the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Private Banking Division. Shiv holds a Bachelor’s degree in economics from Hindu College, Delhi University. He is also a graduate of the Harvard Business School’s General Management Programme (GMP).

Shivakumar, also known as Shivku, is the co-founder of Exotel, the emerging market's first and largest full-stack customer engagement platform. Before Exotel, Shivku had two successful stints: at Yahoo! as a Product Manager and as Vice President of products and technology at Flipkart. Despite these defining roles at top organisations, Shivku’s entrepreneurial itch persisted and drove him to launch Roopit, a medium-agnostic C2C marketplace, in 2010. While setting up Roopit, he realised a significant market need gap – the lack of an affordable, easy-to-deploy communication solution. He thus made it his mission to start Exotel as a cloud telephony platform for businesses in 2011.

A decade later, after what’s was a remarkable journey, Exotel raised USD 100 million in funding, merged with Ameyo, an omnichannel contact centre platform, and acquired Cogno AI, a conversational AI platform. Shivku is now devoting his energies to establishing Exotel as the first unified customer engagement stack from an emerging market to provide enterprises with all the channels and tools necessary to engage with customers under one roof.

Shyam Visamsetty is Managing Director at Navtech, a tech consulting company with a focus on the media and entertainment, fintech and automotive sectors. He loves providing solutions to society’s core problems using technology. Shyam is a member of CNCF/Linux Foundation and loves connecting with innovative entrepreneurs. Apart from work, he loves spending time with his daughter, music, running and spreading health awareness.

Sridhar Dharmarajan has over 30 years of experience in successfully creating, growing, transforming and dramatically improving P&Ls and businesses. He successfully started, built and established multiple MNCs and start-ups in India over three decades in the technology domain. Sridhar excels at integrating insights towards a purposeful future of the business and provides a platform for people to accomplish their goals. He is known for taking on challenging assignments and utilising deep experience in the automotive, aerospace, defence and machinery sectors to drive innovative customer solutions and outperform the competition.

Srikanth is a seasoned senior executive with the leadership insights to strategically plan and build a team of highly-engaged employees, as well as to direct and control business functions to identify and capture market opportunities. He has a proven track record of over 30 years in business leadership roles in multinational and Indian companies of repute. In addition to P&L ownership, Srikanth led multiple functional roles, such as sales management, business development and strategy, and product management and operations of large manufacturing facilities. He has the ability to identify and build long-term strategic partnerships with customers, channel partners, suppliers and consultants to support business growth.

Srikanth is a firm believer in process-oriented and sustainable operations. Bold in taking on challenges while remaining humble, he has demonstrated expertise in accelerating profitable business growth through empowered and engaged employees. Srikanth is proficient in implementing and managing organisational changes to drive performance excellence. He is also skilled at identifying and mentoring talent.

Sri has over 25 years of experience, including over a decade at Dell International, where he served as COO, CFO, CHRO and Chief of Shared Services. Prior to joining Natsoft, Sri was VP and CFO at ADP (a 12,000+ people back-office), where he managed Finance and Procurement. On the academic front, Sri is a Chartered Accountant and a Cost and Management Accountant.

Sunil Kondala is the MD of Samriddhi, a company specialising in the provision of clean fuels. Under his leadership, Samriddhi has become one of the largest private ALPG players in India and a symbol of the highest level of standards/benchmarks in the industry. He is also the Founder & CEO of NetZero Energies, specialising in the provision of clean, effective and efficient industrial energy solutions. Earlier, Mr Kondala was an Investor and Director at Enlightiks, a firm specialising in advanced clinical care analytics, which was later acquired by Practo. His stint with MIT’s JPAL (Jamal Abdul Lateef Poverty Action Lab) laid the foundations for his goals of providing a comprehensive Energy-As-A-Service (EaaS) platform for customers, and of develop energy benchmarks across industries with the singular objective of helping reduce emissions at the least possible price. His experience of working with government agencies and the industry to establish an Emissions Trading Platform at JPAL gave him a ring-side view of the various problems facing those seeking to reduce emissions in the most economical manner. His major goal today is to provide the right energy platforms and solutions to help India achieve its net-zero goals in the least amount of time.

Around a decade ago, S Venkataraman (or Venkat as he is more commonly known) co-founded Practus, a company with the mission of disrupting the consulting space, which pioneered the concept of ROI with its unique implementation-based model. Today, Practus serves clients from its offices in India, New York and Dubai and has worked with over 700 organisations (from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies) to deliver measurable ROIs of 5-10x through its Office of CFO, performance improvement and business transformation services.

Over the last 25 years, Venkat has been at the core of business and financial transformations for over 500 clients globally. A qualified chartered accountant, cost and management accountant and practising risk manager, he started his career with PwC, where he worked for 8 years. He was appointed CFO of Aon's Indian subsidiary when he was just 28 years old. Venkat has actively partnered with PE/VC funds, start-ups, family-managed businesses and enterprise clients to improve business performance and fast-track transformation journeys. While pursuing his passion of problem-solving for businesses, Venkat also actively mentors young professionals both within and outside of Practus, providing valuable career tips and guidance.

Tarun is the Chairman and Founder of Universal Business School, India’s first Green B-School. He has previously served as Managing Director of Thomson Reuters, South Asia. He was Global Head of Treasury, leading a USD 2 billion business across 136 countries in New York, and served on the Reuters Innovation & Venture Board, London. He is a TEDx speaker and was awarded the Education Evangelist of India by Great Places to Study. Tarun holds an MBA from SPJIMR and has completed programmes in executive education at the Michigan, Tuck and IE business schools.

Tushar Sighat is an industry veteran with three decades of rich experience spanning the ICT sector. As Managing Director and CEO, he plays a strategic role in driving D-Link’s growth while strengthening its position as a leader in the networking industry. Under his dynamic leadership, D-Link has continued to soar to new heights of success and grow manifold. Tushar joined D-Link as the CEO in 2011 and played a crucial role in overcoming the turbulent phase following its demerger. Under his leadership, the company was successful in winning back the confidence of customers, partners, and employees. He is also the Chairman of D-Link’s subsidiary, TeamF1 Networks. Industry bodies across the globe have taken note of his exemplary leadership capabilities and he has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the prestigious ‘CEO of the Year’ award at the CMO-Asia-World Brand Congress. His immense understanding of business across various industry segments, along with his effective leadership, superb management skills, a consultative approach and strategic planning, makes him an excellent strategist. He holds a bachelor’s in engineering, specialising in electronics and telecom.

Uday Punj’s 40 years of rich experience span industries (construction, broadband, manufacturing, and technology services) and countries (including extensive work in the Middle East). His leadership skills focus on execution capabilities with varied market knowledge, clear and focused strategic and operational expertise, and a practical and efficient approach towards running projects, resulting in successful execution and value creation in his businesses. Uday has many successful turnkey projects and new business initiatives to his credit. An alumnus of Modern School, New Delhi, and Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University, he has attended several executive education programmes at The Wharton School, the Graduate School of Business at the University of Chicago, and Harvard Business School.

The Chimes Group is a multi-industry venture set up in 2006 to identify and establish niche investments in growing industries, or "verticals," with the aim of creating serious value for stakeholders. Uday plays the role of Managing Director at Chimes on a full-time basis. The Chimes Aviation Academy is India's largest "best-in-class pilot training academy," offering comprehensive training for professional pilots. Launched in June 2008, it has achieved many milestones: it has the largest private-sector operating fleet, 100+ resident students, an experienced faculty, ISO 9001:2008 certification, and is an Indian DGCA CAR 145 approved establishment. Incorporated in 2004, Petro IT offers asset life-cycle management solutions for the energy sector, providing best-in-class software solutions. It creates value by supporting the buildout, maintenance, and operations of assets in oil, gas, and power projects. Petro IT has its SDC in Gurgaon, supported by regional offices in the Middle East, South East Asia, Europe, and America. The company has a reputable client list, comprising leading O&G owners, including Chevron, Exxon Mobil, the ADNOC Group, Pertamina Indonesia, Petronas Malaysia, GAIL, and CAIRN India.

Vidur Bhogilal, Chairman of CIGNEX, has over 25 years of professional experience in strategic restructuring, M&A, corporate governance, finance, administration and legal. He plays a critical role in creating sustainable value for the organisation through successful mergers, acquisitions and joint-venture partnerships. Vidur has managed several successful M&A and restructuring deals in India, the US and the UK, and has played a key role in tax recoveries,Forex management, financial planning and control and fundraising. Before CIGNEX, Vidur worked for organisations such as JP Morgan Stanley and Arthur Anderson. Vidur is a gold medalist and a rank holder Chartered Accountant (CA) and Cost Accountant (ICWA) from India. Besides being a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) from the US, he is also a law graduate.

Vijaya Raghavan is a business leader with diverse experience in business development, marketing and HR. His specialties are new market entry and strategy. Vijaya is a thinker, dreamer, storyteller and wine aficionado. He loves music, enjoys helping others and is a father of one.

Vikas Kulkarni is the Managing Director of Bostik India. Bostik, part of the Arkema group, is a leading adhesives and sealant company offering sealing and bonding solutions to construction, hygiene, packaging, automotive and electronic markets, with a presence in 50 countries. Vikas is a pragmatic business leader with a flair for strategic thinking, adept at organisational restructuring, driving change and running start-ups. He is passionate about talent and people.

Vikas has over 25 years of experience working in both large Indian companies and global MNCs, in the fields of advanced materials, specialty chemicals, building materials and polymers. He has served such diverse industries as automobiles, infrastructure, construction, energy and packaging. Apart from running P&L, he is a growth accelerator and has led business transformations and turnarounds. He holds a degree in mechanical engineering and an MBA in marketing. His leisure activities include Indian classical music, travelling, reading and sports.

Vinod Hayagriv started his career in 1975 and is currently the Managing Director and Director of the C Krishniah Chetty Group. A gemologist by profession, he holds qualifications from the Gemological Institute of America, Santa Monica and Hong Kong. He is a commerce graduate from St Joseph’s College of Commerce, Bangalore, and has also studied at the Administrative Staff College, Hyderabad. Vindo is a well-known personality in the world of gems and jewellery, both in India and internationally. A holistic thinker and an industry thought leader, he been invited to several strategy and policy discussions, including with the Central government.

In 2009, Vinod was unanimously elected Chairman of the All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation in 2009 (now the All India Gems and Jewellery Domestic Trade Council). He served as a Director on the Board of the World Diamond Council, representing the retail diamond sector in India. He has also previously been a Director on The Gems and Jewellery Sector Skills Council, Chairman of the Legal Committee of the All India Gems & Jewellery Trade Federation, and a Member of the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council. He was also one of the founding members of the Young Presidents Organisation, Bangalore Chapter. Vinod is a Permanent Trustee on the Board of Rashtreeya Sikshana Samiti Trust, which runs educational institutions enrolling over 20,000 students. Earlier, he served as a Rotractor, a Round Tabler and a member of several niche groups, including ones focused on book collecting, book reading, art collecting, history and vintage cars.

Vinod travels extensively for business and public service. He has been a golfer for the last 40 years. With his creative mind and strong focus on ethical practises, Vinod desires to serve a larger purpose in the society.

Vishwadeep Bajaj is CEO and Founder of ValueFirst. Over the last thirty years, Vish has spent time at organisations including Siemens, Telcon Europe, 0800Freedom and Bionics. He holds a degree in general management from the MIT Sloan School of Management. Vish loves to talk about quantum physics and spirituality.

Vishwesh’s (Vish) international career of over 35 years has combined high-level executive roles in the technology sector with partner-level roles in professional services firms, based in Australia, the ASEAN countries and India. Vish was born in Kampala, Uganda, but had to leave suddenly with his family as displaced persons when he was a child and resettled in Adelaide. He graduated from the University of South Australia with a bachelor’s degree in business management and went on to complete graduate programmes at the Australian Graduate School of Management and the Wharton School. Early in his career, Vish worked at IBM in Malaysia and Singapore as ASEAN Head of Sales and Operations of the Software Division, and in India as Vice President of Software and Services Division Tata IBM, where he established the India Software Laboratories in Gurgaon. He moved back to Melbourne as CIO at Telstra and lead technology strategy, architecture, operations and services across all business units.

In 2008, Vish joined PwC Australia as a Senior Partner and later took on the role of ICT Transformation Partner, working with companies such as Western Power, BHP and Linfox, then with Mitsui and Tabcorp as SAP Platform Lead. He moved to India in late 2018 as Digital & Technology Leader at KPMG, and is currently KPMG India’s Markets Global Leader Partner, working with telco clients in India, Australia, Vietnam and the Middle East.

Vish is a strategically focused executive, accustomed to working in complex environments both in Australia and internationally. His 13 years as a professional services consultant and partner have provided him with extensive experience in relationship-building and stakeholder engagement. Vish is commercially-oriented and has built practises and businesses from a low base; for example, he grew PwC Australia’s technology team from a staff of 25 to 200 over two years. He has substantial experience leading significant change and restructuring businesses, and this has been central to his KPMG India role. He has an informed understanding of trade and investment between India and Australia and, to a lesser extent, in the Middle East. He has built and sustained strong, high-level business and personal networks.

Vivek Venkatachalam is CEO of Raychem RPG (RRL), a JV between TE and RPG Group that has a global footprint. Prior to joining RRL, he led Oiltanking GmbH’s operations in the Middle East and India, and before that, he was a member of GE India's senior leadership team. Vivek likes outdoor activities and has interests in trekking, biking and running.