NICOM: A glimpse of Day 3

The plenary session of the day was on the theme “Information Security Threats & India’s Readiness”. The keynote address was delivered by Mr. Pavan Duggal, Cyber Law Expert and Supreme Court Advocate and Prof. Liliana Moga from University of Galati, Romania.

Mr. Pavan Duggal spoke about the wide gamut of Indian Cyber cases and the new corporate security mechanisms. .”We don’t think of Cyber Law as a proactive plan” said Mr Duggal. He threw light on the crises faced in India due to absence of cyber laws and the factors that lead to India becoming the 12th nation in the world to enforce cyber law. He elaborated on the intricacies of the law and the subsequent amendments to the law that now covers all kinds of communication devices , such as mobile phone, smart phones and PDAs, that can transmit audio and video information. He further commented “There is no law for right to privacy”. Prof. Liliana Moga gave a critical analysis of cyber laws in Romania which is still in the nascent stage and the directions where there is scope for enhancements to cover the lacunae.

The Chief Guest for the valedictory session was Prof. Manas Chatterjee from University of New York, USA. From his vast teaching experience he expressed his opinion about the state of management education in India, “Management education in India is not going the right way, there should be emphasis to bring ‘indianness’ in the curriculum as management style that works in the developed nations will not work in the developing nations”, he said. This was followed by a talk by Mr. Larry Lemanski, Texas A&M University, USA who spoke on the importance of managing internal conflicts and maintaining global peace in times of turbulence.

Overall out of the 227 abstracts and 160 full papers received, around 100 papers, of which around 10 from foreign delegates, were shortlisted and presented in 24 concurrent sessions across three days of NICOM. NICOM saw the participation of the brightest minds from the industry and academia who came together and brainstormed about how best to lead an organization through turbulent times and addressed a wide gamut of challenges faced by businesses globally during recessionary business environment were addressed.

NICOM: Day 2 Snapshot

Session 1:

The speaker for the first session was Mr. Kartikeya V. Sarabhai, the founder and the director of the Centre for Environment Education (CEE). Mr. Sarabhai shared his vast experience with the audience and related to the fact that in nature, we don’t have the concept of waste, its a human concept. Mr. Sarabhai gave examples on how a billion dollar drug was derived from a snake’s venom, how Cuba innovated in times of turbulence, how Kutch developed innovatively after the earthquake of 2001 and even on how BRTS was successful in traffic management in the city of Ahmedabad. “Innovation takes a geometric path rather than linear path”, quoted Mr. Sarabhai. He further addressed the students as to how Nature brings innovation and how to foster that innovation. “The world is running out of resources and we need to think creatively”, he said. He ended with a note of suggestion to students asking them to think creatively and foster innovation.

Session 2:

The speakers for the second session were Professor Neculita from the University of Galati, Romania, Mr. Darma Mahadea from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa and Professor R J Mody from the Institute of Management, Nirma University. Professor R J Mody shared his views on public interest theory, capture theory and on different types of regulations in United States and India. “Developing countries do not need charity, they want to trade”, said Prof. Mody. Professor Neculita gave some valuable insights into the evolution of European economy from the global crisis perspective. Prof. Mahadea shared his experience of how the South African economy evolved and transformed during the times of turbulence while fighting against issues like joblessness, illness, unemployment and inflation. The day ended with the management students of IMNU gaining valuable knowledge from startling speakers as how to manage effectively and efficiently during the times of turbulence.

The track sessions during the day covered variety of themes such as “Emergence of Indian Multinational Companies", “Supply Chain Management Integration”, “Relevance of Corporate Social Responsibility during the Turbulent Time”, “World Economy Evolution from the Global Crisis Perspective”, “Value Based Pricing to Survive in Turbulence”. More than 50 papers were presented during the five parallel track sessions by academic scholars, practising professionals and management students.

mIMNUrma

The name ‘mIMNUrma’ is derived from the combination of the words ‘Minerva’, who, in ancient Roman mythology was the god for all wisdom and knowledge along with ‘Institute of Management, Nirma University’.

The institute provides a platform for budding MBA aspirants to compete with the very best in the country and to showcase the depth of their knowledge and awareness. A quiz is being hosted in this regard for future “MBA students” to test whether they have it in them to be great managers of the future.

‘mIMNUrma’ is a quiz conducted by India’s premier business school ‘Institute of Management, Nirma University’ for MBA aspirants. This quiz is open for all MBA aspirants that include students who are currently pursuing their undergraduate degrees or those who have passed their graduation and have appeared for CAT 2010. The quiz would be conducted on January 9, 2011 between 4:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Nirma International Conference on Management (NICOM) 2011 gets underway

The 14th Nirma International Conference on Management (NICOM) commenced today, at the Institute of Management, Nirma University. The three-day event is focused on the theme ‘Managing in Turbulent Times: Creativity, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Leadership & Learnings’. It is the perfect platform for the brightest minds from the industry and academia to come together and brainstorm about how best to lead an organization through turbulent times and address the wide gamut of challenges faced by businesses globally during recessionary business environment. The conference would see broad principles emerge that can help guide behaviour of managers on how to use lean times as opportunities for innovation, fresh thinking and growth.

The conference was inaugurated by Mr. Harsh C. Mariwala, Chairman and Director, Marico Limited and Dr. Rafiq Dossani, Director, Centre for South Asia, Stanford University and former CEO - India Operations, Jardine Fleming Investment Banking Group. The other dignitaries who also chaired the inaugural dais were Dr. Karsanbhai Patel, Founder of Nirma group, Shri Rakeshbhai Patel, Vice President, Nirma University and Dr. N. V. Vasani, Vice Chancellor, Nirma University.

Mr. Mariwala shared with the audience as to how he converted the business of Marico from being an unbranded player to a branded powerhouse. “People and Innovation have led Marico to what it is today”. He also said that it is important for the employees to be involved as it leads to commitment and is an important aid in innovation that is necessary in today’s competitive environment. Marico’s innovation focuses on product, staff functioning, finance and human resources. It also encourages its employees to take risks to innovate, as persistence is important for innovation and collaboration amongst departments. Marico also practices In-house facilitation to encourage and reinforce innovation amongst its employees. He summed up by saying that in the current scenario organizations need to “Apply conventional thinking that will lead to innovative solutions. Apply an open mind that will lead to wonderful solutions.”


Prof. Rafiq Dossani stressed on four goals of higher education namely; Quality, Access, Equity and Cost. He also quoted that, “By 2011 India will be the single largest producer of engineering graduates in the world”. This has been due to the increase in the number of engineering institutes as well as the increase in the disposable income of households. He also suggested that Indian institutes need to focus more on Group projects and Journal Writing in their curriculum to grow and compete with their American counterparts. He summed up by stating that the challenges faced by the current education system include the conflicting nature of the objectives of the stakeholders and the weak power of the government in the era of coalitions.

The inaugural ceremony was followed by a plenary session by Mr. Sanjay Verma, Professor, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad who enlightened the audience on the topic “Knowledge Management during Turbulence”. He stressed on the fact that one needs to think out of the box and be observative while seeking knowledge. He also said that “Each person has immense capability; the only thing that is required is to challenge oneself.” He talked about the challenge faced in bringing out the tacit knowledge residing in the minds of the people. He quoted that “We have to move from know what to know how”. He explained the importance of knowledge management in MNCs like Tata Steel, Infosys, ONGC and Mahindra etc.

The track sessions during the day covered variety of themes such as “Creativity & Innovations: "Technological Implications”, “Turbulence in Business and Society”, “Leadership during Turbulence”, “Learnings from the Downturn”, “Entrepreneurial Culture for Managing Turbulence” and “Functional and Cross-Functional Challenges during Turbulence”. More than 50 papers were presented during the five parallel track sessions by academic scholars, practising professionals and management students.