On November 28th, 2017 IIM Sirmaur organized its first Academia-Industry Meet (AIM 1.0). The event provided an opportunity to the PGP participants to interact and exchange ideas with the eminent personalities from the local industries in and around Sirmaur, Himachal Pradesh. A brainchild of the Director of the institution, Prof. (Dr.) Neelu Rohmetra, AIM was conceived to bridge the gap between the demand and supply of skill sets and competencies of future managers. Many stalwarts from local industries including Mr. Satish K. Goel (President, Himachal Pradesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry),Mr. Kailash Azad (Vice President, Himachal Pradesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry), Mr. S. Kundu (COO, Braza Tyres), Ms. Saumya Tyagi (Mediforce Healthcare), Mr. Arun Sharma (MD, Regency Power Group), Ms. Rimjhim Nabh (Head HR, Cadila Pharmaceuticals Ltd.), Mr. Nikunj Tyagi (Mankind Pharma Ltd.), Mr. Ajay Gupta (GM, NCL Industries) and Mr. Subhash Walia (GM, TATA Beverages), Mr. P. C. Bhandari (Himalya International), Mr. Gagandeep Singh (Mankind Pharma), Mr. Abhishek Khare (Mankind Pharma), Mr. Subhash Walia (Tata Beverages), Mr. Sekhar Garg (Zeon Life Sciences), Mr. Ajay Himanshu (Akorn India), Mr. Vishu Garg (Himalaya Oxygen), Mr. R.S Chauhan (Nanz Medscience Pharma Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. C.S Chauhan (Nanz Medscience Pharma Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. NPS Narang (Grand Riviera), Mr. Manoj Singhal (Almed Laboratries Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. JPS Kohli (Ambassador Cements Ltd.), Mr. Sanjay Goel (Aggarwal Rice Mills), Mr. Ram Lal Kachwa (Balaji Storage Batteries Ltd.), Mr. Naveen Agarwal (Valley Iron and Steel), Mr. R.P Tiwari (Jai Singh Thakur and Sons), Mr. Maninder Singh (Neste Wealth Management) and Mr. Pradeep Chauhan (Hotel Gurusurabhi) marked the event with their presence.
In her welcome address, Prof. (Dr.) Neelu Rohmetra thanked Mr. Satish K. Goel and Mr. Kailash Azad for their support and cooperation. Emphasizing upon the dual objectives of providing an exposure to the students as well as facilitating the local industries to strengthen their ties with an institute of national repute, the Director expressed an eager interest to organize similar events in the times to come. Highlighting the diversity of the institute, the Director noted that the third batch of the institute has students from across 22 states. She expressed her firm belief that the intellect and the exposure brought in by such a talented and diverse pool of future business leaders would be of immense help to the local industries. At the same time, she conveyed her steadfast belief that students should be well-connected to the grass-roots. Connect to the basics. Don't just think about money, she advised the students. Taking cues from the journey of her native state of Jammu and Kashmir, she said that challenges always bring with them, latent opportunities. Closing her address, she reiterated her strong belief that events such as AIM would help in reinforcing the ties between the local industries and IIM Sirmaur.
The Director's address was followed by a panel discussion on topics ranging from sustainable and efficient operations to emerging role of women entrepreneur. Mr. S. Kundu (COO, Braza Tyres) initiated the discussion by highlighting the importance of process optimization. Drawing from his industry experience of over 40 years, he said that achieving optimum utilization of physical, financial and human resources drives the productivity strategy of any company. For any industry, the production process should be smooth and (the) manpower (employed) should be optimized, he said.
Ms. Saumya Tyagi from Mediforce Healthcare conveyed her love for entrepreneurship and shared her experience of starting a new venture. She voiced her belief that women should try to break free from the gender roles assigned to them by the archaic norms of the society. We need to make the change happen by changing our mind-set, she said.
Mr. Arun Sharma (MD, Regency Power Group) said that management, as a field of study goes far beyond mere academics. It involves thinking and creativity, he said. Highlighting the importance of developing a holistic view, he said that future managers should think beyond their own state or country. You are not just Indian citizens, but global ones, he said.
Ms. Rimjhim Nabh (Head HR, Cadila Pharmaceuticals Ltd.), highlighted the importance of aligning theories learned in B-Schools with practice. She stated that joint courses and live projects were the need of the hour for premiere B-Schools. She also stressed upon the need to develop cross-functional competencies. B-School graduates should not develop a silo mentality, she said.
Mr. Nikunj Tyagi from Mankind Pharma Ltd. spoke on the reforms of the tax structure. He said that it takes time for the industry, the bureaucracy and individuals to adapt to a structural revamp. He was optimistic about the new tax regime and believed that it would help in unifying the nation. Reforming the tax structure is a good change and should be welcomed, he said.
The Summer and Final Placement brochures of batches 2017-19 and 2016-18, the third and second batches of IIM Sirmaur, respectively, were unveiled by Prof. (Dr.) Neelu Rohmetra, Prof. Vaneet Kashyap (Placement Chairman) and Prof. Rakesh V. (Placement Co-Chairman) in the presence of the dignitaries and the Placement Committee.
This was followed by closing address by Mr. Satish K. Goel (Director, Himachal Pradesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry) who said that this initiative by the institute would help in initiating constructive dialogue between the industry and the academia and pave the way for future collaborations. Our Chamber is open to you, we welcome you to attend our meetings, he said.
Prof. Rakesh V. drew the curtains on the event by delivering the vote of thanks and reiterating the importance of hosting an academia-industry meet.
Bilal Quraishi, a student attendee from IIM Sirmaur said that the event was a most opportune platform for the students of IIM Sirmaur to gain invaluable knowledge about the latest trends and developments in different sectors of the economy and appreciate the current and imminent issues that the industry faces with advancements in technology. Another student, Arushi Singh felt that the event would help local enterprises to tap into the resource pool of IIM Sirmaur.
