Campus News | SDMIMD

Annual Leadership Talk 2023

“Humans alone can define value and values. Hence, it is important to keep the human in the loop.” said Dr. Lee Schlenker Professor of Business Analytics and Principal Consultant, Business Analytics Institute, France. He was speaking on the topic “Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Good” at the 14th Edition of the Annual Leadership Talk (ALT) organized by Shri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara Institute for Management Development (SDMIMD) Mysore on its campus on February 8, 2023.

In his address to the students, Dr. Schlenker highlighted the use of AI for social good and ethical AI. He differentiated between Machine Learning and AI, spoke about what it means to be human and why it is important for humans to take the lead. While Machine Learning and AI have the end goal of improving decision making and proposing an optimal solution respectively, it is how we use it that matters. He said that in today’s world, the capacity for human agency is being challenged by machines. He urged the audience to not give in to conversational AI tools like ChatGPT and to use their ability to think and act independently.

Earlier, Dr. S.N. Prasad, Deputy Director, SDMIMD, welcomed the gathering. Dr. Neetu Ganapathy, Faculty of Business Communication and Information Systems moderated the Q&A session and presented a vote of thanks while Ms. Mahima compered the event. Dr. Sunil M.V., Head of Academic Administration, faculty members, students, staff and invited guests were present during the event.

Talk by Dr Christian Hitz

'Advancement in technology for social well-being is always a Wah Factor, and today it is Artificial Intelligence (AI); in the next few years, it will be much-evolved technology. Effective Data Management can best optimize these technological innovations' thus said Dr Christian Hitz, Senior Lecturer and Director of Studies in Data Science at Zurich University of Applied Sciences. Dr Christian delivered the invited talk on the topic 'Future of AI' at SDMIMD on February 7, 2023.. Dr Christian expressed that new business models are being developed for leveraging the power of AI. However efficient data management and governance frameworks are crucial in organisations for reducing the complexity involved in the decision-making process.

Prerana Invited Talk – Mr Vijay Kumar

‘Integrity, Situational Awareness, Financial Knowledge, Investing Experience, Credibility in the Market and Network with Financial Professionals, are the core qualities for a wealth manager. Often wealth management is linked to the financial stream, but it is a blended combination of finance and sales’ thus said Mr. Vijay Kumar, Alumnus of PGDM 2009-21 Batch and Independent Financial Advisor and Wealth Manager, on February 3, 2023 at SDMIMD.

Mr Vijay said that the with the increase in the global wealth the private wealth sector is showing significant growth. The role of private wealth manager is becoming more relevant and significant to navigate the complexities of financial markets for the individual investors.

The talk introduced the students on campus about this avenue and how they have to prepare themselves to enter this domain.

SDMIMD and Infosys MoU for Springboard Platform

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the academic partnership with SDM Institute for Management Development (SDMIMD) and Infosys Limited was handed over to Dr N.R. Parasuraman, Director, SDMIMD, by Sri. Sundar K.S., Associate Vice President, Infosys Limited, on Monday, February 6, 2023, at SDMIMD, Mysore. Dr Sunil M.V., Head - Academic Administration, SDMIMD, and Mr Biligiri Ranga, Lead, Infosys Limited, joined them.

Speaking on occasion after lunching the Microsite of SDMIMD on Infosys Springboard, Dr N.R. Parasuraman appreciated Infosys's effort to introduce Springboard under the CSR initiative, the digital literacy platform to support young India for academic and skill development. Further, he said that the rich content caters to the educational, skill development, and literacy needs of young minds to the skill development of a professional or entrepreneur, which has made the platform scalable to young India.

Mr Sundar presented the courses onboarded on the platform for the SDMIMD's ESG Modular Specialization and the seminar courses designed for the flagship program - Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM). Dr Sunil M.V., Head - Academic Administration, outlined the immediate plans for use in the current year at SDMIMD.

This was followed by the orientation of the Infosys Springboard to the students from the Mr Sundar K.S. and Mr Biligiri Ranga.

Budget Conclave 2023

SDMIMD organized Union Budget Conclave 2023- Post Budget analysis on February 2, 2023. The talks by CA Sri.Lakshminarasimha, CA; Sri.Ravikumar, CA, focussed on the recent amendments in taxation (Direct and GST) announced in UB 2023. Sri.Sameer Parekh, Founder Director, Greeshma Shares and Stocks Ltd provided numerous insights on the increased emphasis on infra spending and growth. Dr.S.N.Prasad, Deputy Director, SDMIMD, shared his perspective on Union Budget and its linkage with various macro economic factors.

Career Advancement talk for Rural Youth

'The opportunity, facility and avenues are abundant. Youths should be information literate to understand themselves and explore the future. Understanding capabilities and passion blended with zeal to achieve the goal is the key requirement,' thus said Dr S.N. Prasad, Deputy Director, SDMIMD, to the Final Year, Undergraduate students from Government First Grade College, Bharathi Nagara, Mandya District, on Saturday, February 4, 2023. The career advancement session was organized under the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA) initiative of the Central Government by SDMIMD for rural students. Dr Prasad gave an overview of the social initiatives of Shri Kshethra Dharmasthala and SDMIMD's role as part of the Vidhya Dhana, one of the philosophies of Dharmasthala.

Dr. L. Gandhi, Chairman - Admissions & Faculty - HR, gave the orientation on how to prepare for the admissions process for an MBA Program specifically and the need for continuous learning for young graduates.

Dr. Sunil M.V., Head - Academic Administration & Nodal Officer, UBA, SDMIMD, delivered the welcome address and coordinated the event.

74th Republic Day Celebration

'As we look to the future, we must acknowledge that our world is changing at an unprecedented pace. Technology is transforming the way we live, work and communicate. Climate change is altering our environment and economies. And the world is becoming more interconnected and interdependent. But with change comes opportunity. We must use this opportunity to build a new India with social inclusiveness' thus said Dr Sunil M.V., Head – Academic Administration, SDMIMD, during the 74th Republic Day celebration at SDM Institute for Management Development (SDMIMD), Mysore.

Dr Sunil called upon the young managers of the institute to be with society and the environment as the responsible manager. Further, he said, 'don't ask what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then do that. Because what the world needs is people who are alive.'

Dr S N Prasad, Deputy Director of the Institute and faculty members Dr M.R. Suresh and Prof. C.V. Sridhar addressed the students during the event. Patriotic songs and views on the importance of the day by the students; and the distribution of sweets with community breakfast marked the 74th Republic Day Celebration at SDMIMD. Faculty, staff and students participated in the national festival.

International Student Exchange Program 2023 – PGDM 2022-24

As part of the students exchange program 31 select students of PGDM 2022-24 batch will be visiting eight different international foreign universities for a whole term of study. During the program SDMIMD students will be studying with many international students and get taught by several faculty from different nationalities. The experience of having different pedagogy is invaluable for their growth. Besides the facility to do cases and projects with students of other nationalities and background affords cross-cultural understanding. Further, the evaluation technique used in these schools enables students to be on their toes and prove their mettle.

The foreign universities to which the selected students will go are as follows:

Montpellier Business School, France - 4
ESC Pau, France - 2
EAE Business School, Spain - 3
University of Bordeaux, France - 3
Heilbronn University, Germany - 3
UBI Business School, Belgium - 4
Porto Business School, Portugal - 4
Kennesaw State University, USA - 8