Meeting with Government of Haryana Aviation Officials – 30th November 2016

AmCham’s Aviation Committee members met with officials from the Government of Haryana on 30th November. The meeting was chaired by Dr. Mahavir Singh, IAS, Principal Secretary, Haryana Aviation Government and Palash Roy Chowdhury, Country Manager Pratt & Whitney, UTC Company and Chairman of AmCham’s Aviation Committee.

The principal secretary shared with members a presentation on the scope of development of the Hisar Aerocity and interacted with members on the thoughts/inputs/recommendations and requested members to consider the proposed development of the Aerocity and partner with the government where it seemed promising.

HR Breakfast Meeting with Ms. Susan Schmit, SVP HR, Rockwell Automation – 29th November 2016

AmCham organized a talk by Ms. Susan Schmitt, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Rockwell Automation, on 29th November 2016 in New Delhi. She made a presentation on ‘Global Business Scenario and Emerging Role of HR’ and covered global forces – long term disruptions like the age of urbanization, accelerating technological change, challenges of an aging world and greater global connections, and advocated for role of HR leadership in reducing confusion, talent decisions and doing things that make a difference. While scouting talent, a suitable model that comprised skills, knowledge, experience, education, information processing capacity, temperament and accepting role requirements, was the need of the hour. 

The session was chaired by Mr. Vivek Vasishtha, Chairman, AmCham’s Northern Region Council and Country Leader – Government and Regulatory Affairs, IBM India Pvt. Ltd.

Direct Line Webinar on Smart Cities Projects and Investments in Western India – 29th November 2016

The Direct Line Webinar on ‘Smart Cities Projects and Investments in Western India,’ an initiative of the U.S. Consulate General, Mumbai, was supported by AmCham India and saw an interesting attendance of company representatives from India as well as U.S. on Tuesday, 29th November 2016.

The webinar commenced with welcome remarks by Mr. Thomas Vajda, Consul General, U.S. Consulate General, Mumbai, followed by brief remarks by Mr. Gregory Taevs, Principal Commercial Officer, U.S. Consulate, who shared information on the mission of the Foreign Commercial Services as well their initiatives and programs to support U.S, companies.

The session proceeded with a presentation on smart cities by Mr. Pratap Padode, Founder and Director, Smart Cities Council India, as well as a talk by Mr. Lakshmi Narayan Rao, Digital Transformation Officer, Cisco Systems India Pvt. Ltd. who shared experiences of Cisco’s successes and challenges in smart cities projects. The discussion also addressed how companies can approach navigating the commercial landscape and what strategies can help win projects supporting Western India’s rapid economic development.

The Q&A session that followed was moderated by Mr. David Moo, Vice Consul for Economics, and addressed queries on solar, waste management, energy projects, energy efficiency, electricity distribution, safe city initiatives and institutional partnerships. The webinar concluded with concluding remarks by U.S. Consul General Mr. Thomas Vajda.

Partnering For Change: Gender Equality & Technology – 29th November 2016

On the occasion of International Women’s Human Rights Day on 29th November and the “16 Days of Global Activism Against GBV”, AmCham India, in partnership with USAID organized an event on ‘Partnering for Change: Gender Equality & Technology’ on Tuesday, 29th November 2016 in Mumbai. The event was a part of an ongoing series of events being organized by AmCham India with an overarching theme of ‘CSR in India.’ The event was well attended by leading NGOs and AmCham member companies and was sponsored by Lubrizol Advanced Materials India Pvt. Ltd.

The morning commenced with opening remarks by Ms. Imrana Khera, Innovation and Partnership – Mumbai Lead, USAID India followed with welcome remarks by U.S. Consul General Mr. Thomas Vajda, U.S. Consulate General, Mumbai.

The session began with voices from the field with experiences of 3 young women from Dharavi Diary and Swasth on the impact of technology on their lives. A session on innovation and showcase presentations by Science for Society, Dharavi Diary, Sneha, Iesha Learning, Swayam Shikshan Prayog, Impact Guru, Mann Deshi Bank and Saathipads, which illustrated the theme of women empowerment, closing the digital divide and imbibing awareness of gender equality from the root.

There were insightful presentations by Samhita and Dasra which focused on leveraging technology for collaborative platforms. A panel discussion on CSR perspectives and lessons learned was moderated by Ms. Imrana Khera. The panel included Mr. Mahesh Shetty, Manager, Tech Mahindra Foundation and leaders of AmCham member companies, Mr. Deepak Jolly, Vice – President, Venturing and Emerging Brands (VEB) at Coca-Cola India and South West Asia, Coca-Cola India Pvt. Ltd and Ms. Neha Kapoor-Bharadwaj, Vice President India Lead Global Environment, Social and Governance, Bank of America, N.A.

The event concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr. Anant Pant, Associate Head Supply Chain – South Asia, Lubrizol Advanced Materials India Pvt. Ltd.

Eastern Region Executive Committee Meeting – 25th November 2016

AMCHAM’s Eastern Region held an executive committee meeting on 25th November chaired by Mr. K.P. Sengupta, Chairman – Eastern Region, AMCHAM.

Mr. Sengupta informed the EC that he would be seeking clarification on points related to the process of election for EC membership from the Delhi Secretariat. He informed members that the date for the NEB meeting had not been finalized. He would also be speaking to the Delhi Secretariat for clarification on meetings to be scheduled.

Mr. Debdas Sen, Vice Chairman – Eastern Region, AMCHAM, updated members on the USIBC delegation to Kolkata for the BGBS 2017 meet. Forthcoming events were discussed and finalized. Mr. Ranjan Nandi, Vice President and Managing Director India Operation Richard Design Services, Inc. (RDS) was inducted to the executive committee as there was a vacancy due to the departure of Ms. Britta Lieck-Milde.

Meeting with Mr. Bharat Lal, Resident Commissioner, Gujarat – 23rd November 2016

Ms. Ranjana Khanna, Director General, AMCHAM and Ms. Madhvi Kataria, Deputy Executive Director, AMCHAM, met with Mr. Bharat Lal, Resident Commissioner, Government of Gujarat, on 23rd November 2016, in his office, to discuss AMCHAM’s participation in Vibrant Gujarat. Mr. Bharat Lal gave the detailed program from 9th to 11th January 2017. He requested AMCHAM members to register on vibrantgujarat.com for participation.