- Keynote speaker Professor Arvind Panagariya upbeat about India’s economy
- Dialogue examined new business models in India and emerging markets, and strategies for business acceleration
- Insights on the potential of Indian companies as global innovation players, and other innovation trends that have implications for India
The Singapore Management University (SMU) hosted the Third Singapore-India Business Dialogue (SIBD) themed “Business Model Innovation and Acceleration” on 9 July 2015 at its Mochtar Riady Auditorium.
The keynote speaker was Professor Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, India, who specially travelled from India to Singapore to deliver his address on “The Changing Economic Landscape in India” for the event.
Professor Panagariya was appointed by India Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the newly-formed organisation, headed by Mr Modi, which replaced the 65-year-old Planning Commission earlier this year. The policy think-tank aims to involve the states in economic policy-making in India, provide strategic and technical advice to the central and state governments, and facilitate good governance.
An eminent economist, Professor Panagariya was the youngest ever Chief Economist at the Asian Development Bank, and had previously worked in various capacities at the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. This was Professor Panagariya’s maiden official visit to Singapore following his appointment on NITI Aayog.
Attended by some 200 guests from the academic, public and corporate sectors, the audience heard insights from a panel of experts hailing from India and Singapore, which examined innovative business models, and highlighted core business strategies to transform challenges into opportunities in India and other emerging markets. While there has been optimism arising from socio-economic policy announcements and changes in India in the last one year since Mr Modi’s election, business acceleration had yet to move as quickly as the promised economic growth.
Touching on how the economic landscape in India had evolved in the last few decades, Professor Panagariya said that India's economic growth will be sustainable at 8 to 10 per cent per annum over the longer term. He was upbeat on the Indian economy, while sharing realistic views and analyses of the current state from local, regional and international perspectives.
[Photo: Professor Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India Aayog, India, delivering his keynote address on “The Changing Economic Landscape in India”.]
Professor Rajendra Srivastava, SMU’s Provost and Deputy President, shared that SIBD 2015 aimed to examine the new business models that are beginning to emerge in India which reflect new and different ways of doing business in the country. He also highlighted the potential of Indian companies as global innovation players, and other innovation trends that have implications for India.
[Photo: Professor Rajendra Srivastava, SMU Provost and Deputy President, in his welcome remarks, shared that SMU’s India Initiatives had been generating insights on India and connecting leaders of Singapore and India in various fields.]
He said that as SMU builds its global reputation as a leading university in business and management, the most valuable contributions that SMU offers its academic and corporate partners are Asian insights and management capabilities in its Areas of Excellence. Last year’s dialogue focused on Finance and Financial Markets, while this year’s theme centred on Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
He added that SMU’s India Initiatives has been generating fresh, timely, and forward-looking management insights with respect to India through developing case studies and executive programmes focusing on Asia, and organising forums and high-level dialogue sessions like the SIBD. It has also been working to connect businesses, academia and policy leaders of the two nations to further strengthen the bilateral relationship between India and Singapore.
Two panel discussions were held at this year’s SIBD, with the first on “Business Model Innovations in India and Emerging Markets”, and the second on “Strategies for Business Acceleration”.
The panel addressed how the government and corporate sectors can invent new business models and adopt a more radical approach to doing business. The eminent speakers included senior executives as follows:
[Photo: Panel Discussion 1 on “Business Model Innovations in India and Emerging Markets” (left to right)
- Mr Badrinath Ramanathan, Partner and Head, FIG and Strategy & Corporate Finance Practices, Southeast Asia, McKinsey & Company
- Mr Girija Pande, Executive Chairman, Apex Avalon Consulting Pte Ltd
- Moderator: Professor Philip Charles Zerrillo, Dean, Postgraduate Professional Programmes, SMU
- Mr K V Rao, Resident Director, ASEAN, Tata Sons
- Mr Neal Cross, Managing Director and Chief Innovation Officer, DBS Bank]
[Photo: Panel Discussion 2 on “Strategies for Business Acceleration” (left to right)
- Moderator: Professor Rajendra Srivastava, Provost and Deputy President, SMU
- Mr Vinay Dixit, Vice President for Strategy, Major Appliances, Asia Pacific, Electrolux
- Mrs Archana Bhaskar, Head, HR Talent and Development, Downstream Businesses, Royal Dutch Shell
- Mr Zulkifli Bin Baharudin, Managing Director, Global Business Integrators Pte Ltd; and Member, Board of Trustees, SMU
- Professor Srinivas K Reddy, Professor of Marketing, and Director, Centre of Marketing Excellence, Lee Kong Chian School of Business, SMU]
The audience were treated to interesting insights and were clearly intrigued by the panellists’ views such as innovation in India and emerging markets are being fuelled by unmet ”survival” needs and that innovators ”are selling passion”. One panellist concluded that we should expect an “explosion” in growth, not merely “acceleration”, and it is “an unprecedented world”.
[Photo: (right to left) Keynote speaker Professor Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India Aayog, India, passionately exchanging his views with the audience. Beside him is Professor Rajendra Srivastava, SMU Provost and Deputy President, who moderated the question-and-answer session.]
The panel fielded a stream of interesting questions from the enthusiastic guests in areas such as world trade, India’s domestic policies, and helping youths in both rural and urban communities.
[Photo: (left to right) SMU President Professor Arnoud De Meyer, presenting a token of appreciation to the keynote speaker, Professor Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India Aayog, India.]
[Featured Photo: (right to left) Keynote speaker Professor Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairman, National Institution for Transforming India Aayog, India, sharing his insights at the question-and-answer session moderated by Professor Rajendra Srivastava, SMU Provost and Deputy President.]
