Indian Business Leaders Converge at HBS

The annual India Conference, to be held at Harvard Business School on March 16, 2008, expects to draw huge crowds this year, with top Indian business leaders speaking about India’s growing importance in the world business arena. The India Conference will be showcasing 10 panel discussions, in fields ranging from Healthcare, Infrastructure, Macroeconomics, Retail, Social Enterprise, Entrepreneurship, Venture Capital/Private Equity, Media & Entertainment and Energy.

“The India Conference is appropriately themed ‘India @60 – Charging Ahead'”, says Sohil Parekh (OC), one of the conference organizers. He adds, “Our primary objective is to showcase the amazing progress India has made, but the conference has now become a much awaited annual event for business people in and around Boston and the East Coast of America. It’s an amazing opportunity for HBS students who want to know more about the India success story and are keen to network with Indian business leaders.”

And it is turning out to be quite an event. Some of the featured speakers will be Indian business leaders like Analjit Singh (Max India), Karan Johar (Bollywood personality), Ravi Venkatesan (Microsoft), Sumant Sinha (Aditya Birla Retail), Ratan Jalan (Apollo), Sanjay Reddy (GVK Group), Ron Somers (US-India Business Council), Sharad Devarajan (Virgin Comics), Vivek Paul (Texas Pacific Group), Bhaskar Das (Times Group), Arvind Sharma (Leo Burnett), Rajesh Sawhney (Reliance Entertainment), and many more.

The India conference is organized by the South Asian Business Association (SABA). “Indian students are one of the biggest student groups here at HBS. That just goes to show how Indians are making a mark at the world-level”, says Sid Patodia (OC), one of the organizers of the event. On occasion of the conference, Ravi Venkatesan, Chairman Microsoft India, also an alumnus of HBS, says, “Its exhilarating to interact with bright and passionate young minds and get them excited about the amazing opportunities unfolding in India.”

The agenda and registration details for the India Conference can be found at www.hbsindiaconference.com.