Press Release, 16-12-2011, IIM Kashipur Samanvaya 2011 - first edition of the HR Summit of IIM Kashipur, was held

on December 15th 2011. The event witnessed a congregation of eminent industry personalities in the field of HR, academia and students onto a platform to put forward and discuss their views on 'Aligning Employee goals with corporate vision'. The discussion revolved around on how to ensure employee engagement and motivate employees to align their respective roles with the Mission, Vision & Goal of the organization.Mr Aquil Busrai, CEO-Aquil Busrai Consulting and Former HR Director of IBM, delivered the Keynote address. Dr Devi Singh, Mentor Director-IIM Kashipur and Director-IIM Lucknow, Prof. Roshan Raina, Dean-IIM Lucknow and Prof Manoj Anand, Convenor-IIM Kashipur Taskforce, addressed the gathering. Veteran HR professionals from Dabur, Tata Motors, HP, Videocon, IDBI, APC, Titan, IGL, to name a few, constituted the audience. Opening the event, Prof. Raina was enthusiastic about Samanvaya being the first step towards a symbiotic collaboration between the IIM Kashipur and industries. Dr Devi Singh insisted that industry interaction is an integral component of business education. He asserted that IIM Kashipur will continue hosting upscale event like these. Mr Aquil Busrai, in his keynote address, shared his views that Attraction, Retention and Training (ART) as the key ways to improve employee engagement and align their goals with the corporate vision. He said, Industries have a regular practice of visiting business schools during the harvest season, which is at the end of 2 years. Instead Mr Busrai put forth the idea of 'Take My 40 Hours' as an initiative by the industry persona to spend 40 hours in an year, an equivalent of 5 working days, on a business school campus to give the required inputs to nurture the future leaders. On this Mr Vikas Jindal, Sr. VP-Kumaon Garhwal Chamber of Commerce (KGGCCI), acknowledged the idea and offered his support. Mr Busrai quoted, IIM Kashipur is now a great place to start with since such practices are best built into the system during the nascent stages of development. Talking of retention, he shared an instance where 30% of employees leaving a company gave the reason of poor growth prospects, while a same fraction of people staying with company said its for higher growth prospects. Therefore, he remarked, The onus lies with the managers to make employees aware of the opportunities. Further emphasizing on age old dilemma on why to train in an industry with high attrition rate, he said, Training is the only way to attract the best talent. He pointed out, that in crisis situations, It is hiring that helps rather than firing and quality people are essential in order to overcome any crisis. The keynote address was followed by corporate luncheon, buzzing with an electrifying level of interaction amongst the guests. Thereafter, in the panel discussion that ensued had Mr R S Yadav, VP-HR, IGL and Mr Atul Asawa, VP, Flexituff as the panellists who shared their insights and experiences on employee engagement. Mr Yadav said, Employees at the bottom of the pyramid should be equally motivated. Further adding to this, Mr Asawa asserted, An employee should understand and respect the role assigned. Thereafter, employee should put in their best efforts in order to achieve the goals. He wished the students of first

batch of IIM Kashipur a wonderful time in creating culture and paving way for generations to come. Many guests expressed their delight while attending the event, first of its kind in the region, and affirmed that this first step will go a long way in benefitting the industries, especially of Uttarakhand and UP.