IT Management Initiatives

KshITij - IT Conclave 2011


Mrs. Nina Pahuja, CIO, Max Healthcare, took the audience through the journey the nation has seen in last two decades in the field of Information Technology. She explained how the advances that the IT revolution has brought about have pervaded all streams of life and work. With technologies like SaaS and Cloud computing, along with ERP and CRM, the nation is moving towards an integrated IT environment. She also emphasized that with greater data and technology at hand, there is a need for focussed market research and for keeping exhaustive information about the present as well as the prospective customers. She also cautioned that with the IT implementation in the companies, there is a greater need for effective change management as well. Only with a successful IT implementation of emergent technologies powered by proper change management, will India continue its unbridled ride on the superpower wave.

Atul Konwar, President, Mahindra Satyam, noted that instead of trying to control the technological waves that have been ushered in, the nation should try to ride on it and utilize its advantages as much as possible. He illustrated the changing demand supply landscape and remarked on the pace of change that IT has brought in the way we define success and failure. He particularly pointed out the way we have come to define the success of a movie on release from the ‘jubilee’ concept to the ‘weekend gross’ concept, from hard discs to satellite communication. He observed that in this dynamically changing scenario, IT should be used for long term relationship building with the customers on a personal level.

Kulbhushan Chand, Director Partner, Solution Center, Oracle, mentioned that it would be pertinent to figure out the value additions that  IT has undergone in last twenty years. He opined that the IT technologies should be utilized by the young and vibrant workforce of India to embark on innovative and entrepreneurial ventures. Adoption of innovative business models coupled with increased risk taking appetite and capabilities will enable us to think global and make us create the IBMs, the Apples and the Oracles of the world, without which India will not be a complete superpower.

Another distinguished speaker, Mr. VKM Reddy, Executive Vice Pesident, Supply Chain Management, Vodafone brooded on the revolution IT has brought about in the area of supply chain management through the availability of real time data. However, as he mentioned, information overload would not take the nation anywhere if it is not perfectly utilized. In order to achieve this perfect utilization, proper management of talented human resources is essential, which is not only the responsibility of the HR managers but also of the other people in the company.

Adding to the thoughts of the previous speaker, Mr. Ramesh Kumar S., Supply Chain Practice Lead, Bristlecone, said that high IT investments are required to drive the supply chain management towards excellence. He touched upon how the likes of Apple, Della and Toyota have used IT to drive corporate innovation in the area of SCM. He was of the view that with optimal leveraging of these IT investments in SCM, it would be possible to configure it in a way that would satisfy the needs of both the developed and the developing world.

Mr. D. Raveendran, Group General Manager, Head ICE, ONGC, highlighted the need of the emergence of public sector of India for it to become a superpower. He threw light on the IT technologies like ERP and e-enablement of SCM in ONGC and explained how these steps have simplified the process of procurement, reduced procurement cycle time and facilitated better negotiations for the company. However, he too remarked that any IT implementation cannot succeed without proper change management.

The last speaker among the distinguished guests, Mr. Daman Dev Sood, CIO and Head, Green IT Practice, Continuity and Resilience, focussed on Green IT and its role in power-riding India on a superpower road in a sustainable fashion. He tore apart the myths that have been built in the name of Green IT and drove home the point that a green product is the one, the whole ecosystem of which has been green, and not just the usage. He bore at length on the potential health hazards that incomplete compliance to WEEE standards has created. He talked about the unknowing children disposing of e-waste, thus risking themselves of an exposure to harmful chemicals, and even showed a video that portrayed the existing regretful situation of e-waste management in the country. His thoughts clearly showed the fact that India will become a complete superpower only when it adopts the human side of management.


Guest Lectures

Mr. Manish Jain, Senior Manager, Infosys Technologies conducted a Guest Lecture on "Synergy of Banking Industry with IT industry and consulting framework and opportunities used in this setup”. It helped students make informed career choices about a future in the industry.
The Past few years
Systems Society has been organizing workshops and lectures to keep the students apprised of what are the best practices in the IT industry today and what is required of future IT managers. Some over the years have been -
BPM (Business Process Management) Workshop, IBM (Seema P – BPM Architect) – 2009
Workshop was held focusing on importance of Modeling and BPM, ranging from creating a Business Process Diagram, setting up and running simulations to profile and dynamic analysis.
The agenda of the workshop was to provide an overview of BPM and the various IBM offerings available. It covered the WBM(Websphere Business Modeler) overview and the Business Process Modelling on Day 1. Day 2 helped students with Process model simulation and analysis, followed by some BPM demos finally culminating into a tutorial for INNOV8. The workshop was very helpful to students looking for a career in IT consulting and garnered good enthusiasm from both the students and the faculty.
ISI Emerging Markets ( Oct 2005 ) It witnessed the batches get a feel of the entire process of database creation in great detail. The whole 3 hour session was an absorbing one with specific queries of students being answered. 
 
Hewlett Packard – Roles in IT ( September 2005) The different roles a management graduate is expected to play in Systems domain were put across in a lucid manner. The presentation was attended and enjoyed by both the batches. It was directed specially towards the Second Year’s batch with the final Placements in mind. 
 
Satyam Computers – Career Growth in Industry (Aug 2005) A focus was provided on how the career progression of a Systems Specialist is when he joins the industry. Special attention was given to the branching out of careers in the domain and the session aimed to throw some light on careers in IT especially to the First Year’s batch.
Microsoft Presentation (2004) An interaction with the worlds leading Operating Systems Developer gave the students an opportunity to learn about the different facets of marketing IT products.


Various Stalwarts in their respective fields have come down to campus to give students educative lectures on the industry and the best practices.
Guest lecture on "The Business Value of Services Science Management and Engineering (SSME)"
Dr. Jim Spohrer, Director of the Almaden Services Research and founder of the first services research group in IBM Research came to campus accompanied by  Dr. Guruduth Banavar, Associate Director, IBM India Research Lab ; Mr Vikram Tiwathia, CII and Mr. Zaheer Travadi, IBM.
The team is visited FMS as the Services Innovation Cell (SIC) set up. With CII and IBM getting significant recognition and the top research executives were very keen to visit the institute and see the activities of the Cell as well as interact with the students.