On 15th August, AMCHAM co-hosted a U.S. industry interaction with a visiting U.S. Congressional delegation that included Congressman Michael Waltz (R-FL), Co-Chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA), Co-Chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, Congressman Rich McCormick (R-GA), Congressman Ed Case (D-HI), Congresswoman Deborah Ross (D-NC), Congressman Shri Thanedar (D-MI) and Congresswoman Jasmine Crocket (D-TX).

Ms. Ranjana Khanna, Director General CEO, AMCHAM welcomed participants and the visiting Representatives, guests and Indian government officials from the Ministry of External Affairs. Mr. William L. Blair, Co-Chairman – Defense Committee, AMCHAM and Vice President and Regional Executive Asia & India Lockheed Martin delivered initial remarks and Mr. Salil Gupte, Vice Chairman, AMCHAM and President, Boeing India moderated the discussion. Members took the opportunity to share on-ground issues and highlighted the growing cooperation in economic collaboration, security cooperation, strategic unity and technological advancement. Discussions also covered the technology sector, energy, supply chain challenges, geospatial mapping for advanced industry solutions and industry technology, counterterrorism, defense and maritime security, healthcare and agriculture. Collaborations in critical and emerging technologies, research, space exploration, and cutting-edge technologies were also discussed.

AMCHAM’s HR Committee organized a virtual session ‘Learn from the Trailblazers: Culture, Work from Office and Best Practices’ on August 14^th. The goal of the session was to understand the different post COVID ‘work-modes’ available to employers, enablers of better work-life integration, wellbeing and performance, while not compromising on employees’ productivity. Panel 1 – ‘The Dilemma of Work-modes – Finding the Right Balance Between Employer Branding, Productivity, Performance & Well-being’ featured the following panelists: Ms. Priya Chakrabarti, Human Resources Director, Cargill and Ms. Sunanda Sehgal, Head HR, Corning India were the panellists with moderation by Mr. Samrat Sarkar, Co-Chair – HR Committee, AMCHAM and Director – Human Resources, Boston Scientific India. The panel focussed on how hybrid mode has continued to drive productivity especially in non-IT/ITES sectors, understanding frameworks/models to ascertain the most optimum work-mode and how organizations view driving engagement, belongingness, and performance in a hybrid world. The key takeaways included leveraging work modes, how to be the ‘employer of choice,’ designing role-based work modes, transparent processes, inclusive approach, importance of organizational internal culture, constructive role of leadership and emergence of well-being.

The second panel focused on the IT/ITES sector and was titled ‘WFO vs WFH – The World of Information Technology’ with panelists Mr. Sailesh Menezes, VP & HR Head – India, HPE and Ms. Rachna Bhanot, Chief of Staff to MD India South Asia, IBM India with moderation by Dr. Kiranmai Pendyala, Chairperson – HR Committee, AMCHAM and Human Resources Corporate Vice President, India Technology Center, UPS. The panel discussed pertinent points around the concept of flexibility and the basis for calculating the degree of flexibility offered to employees. The panel shared best practices on balancing the reach of technology and mental wellness. To build culture and engagement in a virtual world some best practices include changes in office layouts, building trust, no mandatory attendance policy, ensuring continuous communication, positive role of managers, creating a purpose for job, employee voluntarism and cultivating a culture of care.

AMCHAM’s Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Committee organized a hybrid committee meeting on August 11^th at the Genpact office, Gurugram. Ms. Komple Sharma, Director, AMCHAM, welcomed participants. Mr. Gaurav Ajmani, Chairman – Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Committee, AMCHAM and Associate General Counsel: Business Conduct & Ethics, Amazon Seller Services (P) Ltd. and Ms. Bhawna A. Ranganadhan, Co-Chairperson – Anti-Corruption & FCPA Compliance Committee, AMCHAM and Associate General Counsel, Legal and Compliance, Genpact gave opening remarks and set the scene for the meeting. The theme of the meeting was ‘Embracing the Evolution: Navigating Governance, Risk, Compliance, and Discovery Amidst Emerging Data Sources.’ Mr. Avigyan Das, Senior Managing Director – Technology, FTI Consulting and Mr. Rohit Dhingra, Managing Director – Risk Advisory & Investigations, FTI Consulting were the expert speakers. The interactive session covered fraud and triggers of investigation, shifts in the business landscape, pillars of investigation and challenges, data risks and governance, emerging data sources, technology, and threats. Members learnt the complexities of emerging data sources and how independent and supplementary resources, with relevant expertise and presence, could help the in-house team navigate these challenges. More than 20 members attended the meeting.

On August 8th, AMCHAM’s Hyderabad Chapter organized a session on the restriction of import of laptops, tablets, etc., in line with the recent notice issued by the Government of India. The new regulations are set to take effect from November 1, 2023, allowing a grace period for compliance. Ms. Aisha Hussaini, Partner, EY, expertly led the session as the keynote speaker. She covered crucial aspects of the  Import License Notification, which was released on August 3, 2023, and provided insights into various exceptions to the import restrictions. Ms. Hussaini emphasized that until October 31, 2023, shipments could still be cleared without requiring the import license. Additionally, she shed light on the key issues pertaining to imports by SEZ/STP and EOU units, as well as the treatment required in case of debonding of such assets. The Q&A segment was conducted seamlessly, with all participants’ enquiries addressed effectively and comprehensively. The session concluded with a sense of clarity and preparedness for the upcoming changes in import regulations, ensuring that participants were well-informed and equipped to navigate the new requirements.

AMCHAM’s ICT Committee met on August 8th at the HPE office in Gurugram under the leadership of Ms. Bhawna Agarwal, Chairperson – ICT Committee, AMCHAM and Country Head, Strategy and Growth, HPE and Mr. Venkat Sitaram, Co-Chairman – ICT Committee, AMCHAM and Country Head and Senior Director, Enterprise, Dell. The committee discussed the Digital Person Data Protection Bill 2023 in detail, which is set to become an act and would affect all entities collecting personal data, and deliberated upon the upcoming phase dedicated to creating rules and regulations. The committee also examined ways to enhance the uptake of information technology solutions, stimulate demand, and fortify local design, development and production across software, hardware and services.

Mr. Amitesh Sinha, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, during his address, provided a complete overview on the strategic steps and initiatives taken by the government to promote and accelerate growth of the IT manufacturing sector in the country. The meeting concluded with some key strategic steps to be taken – formation of a Data Privacy Working Group, formation of a Make in India Working Group and submission of a strategic direction paper on licensing of imports. From the U.S. Embassy the following officials participated: Mr. Phil Cummings, Deputy Minister Counselor for EEST, Mr. Travis Coberly, First Secretary for EEST, Ms. Kavleen Chatwal, Economic and Political Specialist, Ms. Nazneen Akbari, Technology and Trade Specialist, and Mr. Sudhir Kesharwani, Senior Commercial Specialist.

On August 8^th, select AMCHAM Defense Committee members met with Mr. Anurag Bajpai, Joint Secretary (Defence Industries Cooperation), Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence, Government of India in New Delhi. Ms. Udaya Arun, Director, AMCHAM thanked the Joint Secretary and gave a backgrounder about the chamber. Mr. Alain Garcia, Chairman – Defense Committee, AMCHAM and Vice President, Global Business Development – India, Boeing Defense Space & Security gave a brief overview of the defense sector and invited others to provide inputs. Discussions took place over IC credits – proposal for consideration, WOS entity – not recognized as an Indian company and a note on third country sale model for products made in India by U.S. companies. Mr. Samit Ray, Co-Chairman – Defense Committee, AMCHAM and Regional Director Government Affairs & Public Policy, Raytheon Technologies Corporation shared challenges in obtaining an extension of OGEL license. Ms. Ashmita Sethi, Chairperson – Aviation Committee, AMCHAM and President & Country Head, Pratt & Whitney suggested having a proposal on addressing challenges regarding Indigenous Content (IC) credits and also volunteered to share data on taxation issues of MRO and SCOMET licenses. Mr. William L. Blair, Co-Chairman – Defense Committee, AMCHAM and Vice President and Regional Executive Asia & India Lockheed Martin, mentioned a need for better closure timelines. Mr. Adam Watson, Managing Director, BAE India shared about delays and long acquisition timelines while also highlighting BAE’s MSME partnerships in the country. The Joint Secretary reinforced that a private industry sharable document, ‘Roadmap for U.S. – India Defense Industrial Cooperation,’ was being worked upon and that the Ministry was keenly interested in looking for any technology that had a promising future i.e. had futuristic technology embedded in it. Mr. Gaurav Mehndiratta, Co-Chairman – Defense Committee, AMCHAM and Partner and Head – Aerospace & Defense, KPMG India shared more details with the JS and team on how the wholly owned subsidiary of companies are allowed to discharge offsets now, but are not yet recognized as an Indian company. The Joint secretary was presented with the AMCHAM-KPMG report ‘U.S. – India Defence Partnership: The Road Ahead.’