Friday, May 16, 2008

Friday, May 02, 2008

The IBC poster


That's the poster for the conference. The poster's going live all over Chicago today evening.
The poster gives a lot of information about the conference.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Update on Keynote speakers

The last few days saw the addition of another Keynote speaker for the Annual TATA India Business Conference - Mr. O.P. Bhatt, Chairman of the State Bank of India - the largest bank in India and the second largest bank in the world (measured in terms number of branch offices). His bank in right in the middle of the economic explosion that is seen India, especially among the middle class population, and we all expect his speech to enlighten the audience in that regard.

As of today, the keynote speakers' list stands as follows:

Dr. Arun Shourie, former Disinvestment Minister of India
Dr. Sam Pitroda, Chairman - Knowledge Commission of India
Mr. O.P. Bhatt, Chairman - State Bank of India
Mr. B. Muthuraman, Managing Director - Tata Steel
Mr. Luis Miranda, President and CEO - IDFC Private Equity

Profiles of the Keynote speakers and updates on panels (and panelists) to follow in the next few days!

Monday, April 14, 2008

The week ahead

With only a month to go before the conference, the IBC committee has a lot of items in their To-Do list that they want to have completed by the end of this week. It is a busy week, and one that could potentially impact the conference in a big way. I'll update on each of those initiatives, as and when the committee brings them to closure and wants to make the news public.

We've got the five panels we wanted to have - which is amazing news. The panels are lined up as follows:
India - China: Twins or not!
India Looking Abroad: A Grand Vision
Entrepreneurship in India: Challenging the Status Quo!
Growth Capital: Fueling the expansion
Media and Entertainment in India: The Future is now

In the nest few days, we will present detailed information on these panels and names of panelists under each topic. That though, is only after we have met the Key-Note speakers!

The biggest development off late has been the confirmation of few eminent personalities to participate in the Media & Entertainment Panel. From the moment we decided to accommodate a panel on this topic, things have really moved into top gear, with something or the other happening every other day. There have also been news about all the other panels, which we will cover during our discussion on the panels.

With almost everything on board, we are set to move into the next part of the process - to bring the conference to everyone. The marketing team is busy devising numerous ways to reach out to everyone possible, and you should hear from us very very soon. The Website is going to be up in a few days and ticket sales will also begin shortly.

Clearly, we are into the action end of this adventure.

BTW - please drop in at the Bhangra-Blast this Saturday for some dhol and desi-khana.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

What's in Store

The theme of this year's India Business Conference is "India: A Winning Contender?"

The big question here is "Can India win in an open competition against heavy-weights amongst emerging economies like China and South-East Asia? Is India finally a winning contender in an integrated world economy?" The conference aims to analyze the progress India has made in the last few decades and tie them against the strengths and weaknesses of the Social, Political and Economic settings of India. During the conference, the keynotes and panel discussions will aim at discussing the challenges that India faces, and how the country can overcome these obstacles and grow into a true global economic leader.

Key Note Speakers:

Mr. Luis Miranda Opening Keynote - President and CEO of IDFC Private Equity; Director of Emerging Market Private Equity Association; Ex Partner at Chrys Capital
Mr. Arun Shourie - Member of Bharatiya Janata Party; ex-member of Rajya Sabha; held office of the Minister of Disinvestment, Communication and Information Technology. Recepient of Padma Bhushan award.
Dr. Sam Pitroda - Chairman of India's National Knowledge Commission; Chairman & CEO of World-Tel Limited; Founder and CEO - C-SAM; Served as an advisor to the United Nations
Mr. Muthuraman - CEO Tata Steel

Panel Discussions:

Panel discussions are being planned around "India-China: Differences and Similarities", "Indian Firms Doing Business Abroad", "Entrepreneurship in India", "Providing Capital for Growth", and "Media and Entertainment in India".

The panel discussions are a work under progress. We have a lot happening and keep an eye on the blog as we confirm Panels in the next few days.