Dr Saundarya Rajesh is a social entrepreneur who has won several accolades and awards such as #100Women Achiever, #Web Wonder Women, Winds of Change 2019 Award, Women Transforming India Award, Golden Aviator Award, Asia’s most Innovative Diversity & Inclusive Leaders Award and so on. Dr Saundarya irrevocably changed the game for the Indian Women Professionals, by introducing the concept of “Career Intentionality” and “Career Re-entry” to Corporate India. Dr Saundarya’s work in the space of gender diversity & inclusion in the workplace, is unparalleled in India. An inspiring speaker, an author, and a very sought-after D&I strategist, Dr Saundarya’s vision is to see young girls from underprivileged families create empowering white-collar careers for themselves. This she influences through Project Puthri, an initiative that instils “Career Intentionality” in the minds of 10,000 under-privileged girl children. Her book, The 99 Day Diversity Challenge book published by SAGE has won several acclaims from industry leaders and has been designed to develop diversity and inclusion mind set in any organization or even individual within the proverbial 99 days. 

A post graduate in Statistics (IIT, Bombay) and also in Management (IIM, Ahmedabad), Anita has reinvented herself almost every decade. Her early years were spent in advertising, market research and marketing consultancy. For the next two decades, she along with her sports broadcaster husband Harsha ran a highly successful motivational series called The Winning Way—Learnings from sport for managers. The series translated into a book by the same name, which sold over 1,25,000 copies and started a new genre in motivational speaking. Anita went on to set up Bizpunditz, India’s first video learning library for managers which was eventually sold to an edtech company. A mother of two sons, Anita is a yoga and Sudoku enthusiast and an amateur keyboard player.

Zehn Kashyap, identifies as she/her and is a student of Grade 10 at Vasant Valley School, New Delhi. She represents the growing population of students worldwide who have special needs.

Not letting her challenges define her; she has evolved into a staunch believer in the power of different-ness. She frequently uses her voice to speak up and speak out for those less privileged than her. Zehn is today, an internationally published writer, award winning speaker and an advocate for de-stigmatizing disability. She has advocated for and driven numerous programs for causes around different-ness, mental health and diversity in international and national forums including CBSE Board, Girl Up Global Leadership Summit 2021 and 2022, Lady Gaga’s Born this Way Foundation, People Matters and TribesforGOOD, Neuro Aid Foundation and PHD Chambers of Commerce and Industry AND Ashoka University

Zehns audiobook – L’(Extra)ordinaire ©, is an ode to the power of different-ness and tribute to the value of kindness and empathy. She hopes to encourage others to look beyond their different-ness and enjoy small victories in everyday life.

Her story of rising above her disability and not letting it define her, is exemplary and inspiring for all.

B.E., M.B.A graduate having 11+ years of experience in Business Development and Proposals. Currently associated with KBR as Associate Specialist – Proposals. Vast experience in working with leading companies in renewable & non-renewable energy sectors and Oil & Gas sector and has been into BD and proposals role from day 1 of her career handling various clients.   

Rekha Manola 

Talent Evangelist bringing 12 years of experience,passionate about finding and engaging diverse, dynamic talent and integrating them with right opportunities. An ally and advocator  for under representative groups who is working towards building platform for equitable and inclusive hiring. 

Core member of HP DEI council partnering to build a safe culture of belonging for everyone..I believe a small act of kindness, empathy and compassion can creat value and a positive impact at individual, society and community level.. 

Ms. Shreya, provides leadership in HR Function at Saint Gobain for its largest investments in India at World Glass Complex, Sriperumbudur which houses

• Three Float Glass plants with a cumulative capacity to manufacture 2000+tons of International Quality Float glass daily.
• A state-of-the-art Mirror Processing Line for eco-friendly mirrors
• 2 Magnetron Coating Plants
• A state of the art UPVC Window Manufacturing Line

Shreya comes with 6 years of experience with Saint-Gobain India PvtLtd wherein she joined as a Management Trainee in 2016 after completing her Masters in Social Work from Madras School of Social Work. Shreya is passionate about Human Resources andhas championed key initiativesat Saint-Gobain viz key member in the implementation of 2 brown field projects, establishing a new Businesscalled Homes & Hospitality in Sriperumbudur, Leader of the People Development Pillarand drivingSkill Development improvementsat Saint-Gobain. She shares key interest in connecting with people and driving people initiatives for large scale operations.

Dr. Himanshi Tiwari 

Dr. Himanshi Tiwari is Faculty of OB, HRM, Diversity & Inclusion at BIMTECH, Greater NOIDA.  She also heads RAINBOW Centre for Women Career Counselling & Guidance at BIMTECH (Co-funded by Erasmus+Grant for the capacity building of higher education by the European Union). She is a keen promoter of SDG 5 with specific reference to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Education and work life. Her PhD on the topic, “Career anchors in decision–making by non-working educated urban women to join workforce: A study of National Capital Region”, received wide accolades and was further instrumental in opening 3 Centre's for Women Career Counselling and guidance in 3 leading Universities/ HEIs of India. She has been a visiting faculty with University of Lucknow, Lucknow for teaching courses in MHRM & IR, Department of Social Work.  

She has received Most Influential Women in Academics 2021 Award by Education Ninja and Academy of Management Professionals. She has keen interest in Hindi Literature, debating, politics, music and mythology. Sahitya and Aadhyatm are the two words that define her. Communication is her live wire and addressing and kindling young minds for positivity is her driving force to be in teaching profession. 

Dr. Sajeet Pradhan? 

Dr Sajeet Pradhan is an Associate Professor in the area of Organizational Behaviour & Human Resource Management at IIM Trichy. He has completed his Ph.D. from IIT, Kharagpur. He holds an MBA degree in HR from Kiit University. He is also UGC-NET qualified. Dr. Sajeet has more than seventeen years of experience in teaching, training, and consulting. He is a well-known behavioural trainer having rich experience of more than 4000 training hours in various organizations like IOCL, L & T, TAFE, RailTel, BEML, Exim Bank, IDBI, NHPC, GAIL, Petronet LNG Ltd, Indian Defense personnel, ORG MARG AC NIELSEN, KIIT University, and DAV schools. He has trained government officers and corporate executives from more than 50 countries. Sajeet has been a visiting faculty to leading institutions like IIM Indore, IIM Rohtak and IIT Kharagpur. He has authored 30 ABDC/ABS articles having 1200 plus citations. 

Dr Shiji Lyndon 

Dr. Shiji Lyndon is a faculty in OB & HRM area at K J Somaiya Institute of Management (KJSIM), Mumbai. She has a Ph.D. in leadership from SJMSOM, IIT Bombay. She is certified in Mixed Methods Research from St. Gallen University, Switzerland. She is a gold medallist and rank holder in graduation and post-graduation from the M S University of Baroda.  

She is a Professionally Certified Coach (PCC) from International Coaching Federation (ICF). She has facilitated more than 500 hours of client coaching for employees from various organizations such as Schindler India Pvt. Ltd, IBM, Axis bank, SAS etc. She is a certified HOGAN assessment practitioner and also certified in Talent Assessment by AON Hewitt. She has conducted various training programs for prestigious organizations such as INS HAMLA (India Navy), Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), New India Insurance, Power Grid, Department of Atomic Energy, to name a few. She is an Associate Editor of Journal – Business Perspectives and Research (published by SAGE) and is a reviewer of several leading journals. Shiji is the Chairperson of Centre for Diversity Management and Inclusion (CDMI) at KJSIM. CDMI was started in 2015 with the objective of creating sensitization through training and workshops to the issues of acknowledging, valuing and managing diversity through inclusive strategies and mindset. CDMI also carries out applied research in the area of diversity management and inclusion. 

Prof AS Girish 

Prof AS Girish is an Associate Professor & Dean External Programmes and Placements at XIME Kochi. He is a Human Resources Management professional into the 43rd year of career. Four decades plus experience covering all domains of Human resources management such as Industrial Relations, Corporate HR functions and Human resources function in greenfield projects.  He left the industry as, Advisor and Head(HR) of Apollo Tyres Ltd, India. He has an MSW(PM, IR & LW) from Loyola College of Social Sciences, Thiruvananthapuram, University of Kerala. Additionally qualified in Law-LLB from the University of Kerala. He is very active in professional bodies and rose to the level of National Vice President (2014-2016) in National Institute of Personnel Management (NIPM). He has held the key positions such as Chairman - ISTD Kochi chapter, Convener - CII-HR panel Kerala and Facilitator - CII -HRD Forum, Chennai. He is a Fellow of NIPM and was awarded as the Manager of the year recognition from Kerala Management Association. He is also a Certified Master Trainer in Responsible Business Conduct(RBC) by the International Labour Organisation(ILO), Geneva. 

Operations, Technical and Plant management experience in World Class Manufacturing Plants in India and overseas. Trained, Adapted, practicing and influencer of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, DMAIC, Digital, Industry 4.0, Quality & HSE practices. 
 
Currently Head of Technical for all the Glass manufacturing plants of Saint Gobain in India located at Chennai, Gujarat & Rajasthan 
Also Head of DTI - India (International Technical Directorate). Focused on creating Deep technical expertise for Global technical requirements. 

 Vice President – Learning & Research, Avtar Group 

Nandini Murali, PhD is a certified life coach, a suicide prevention and mental health activist, author and a communications, and gender and diversity professional. She has a doctorate in Gender Studies, two postgraduate degrees each in English and Psychology, a diploma in journalism and advanced degrees in teaching English as a Foreign Language from the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), Hyderabad, India. She has written five books, including fiction and nonfiction and is currently working on two other books. Her collection of poetry on love, loss and longing can be found at www.wildlfowerpoetry.com. 

Capt Savita Singh,  Ex Indian Airforce pilot. She got commissioned into flying stream in June 1996. Completed 10 years in Airforce and was Short Service Comisdion Officer so retired as Squadron Leader. Did management course of 6 months from IIIM A. Joined Pawan Hans Helicopter Ltd and flew Twin Engine helicopter in all parts of Country, including Andaman, Lakdhadweep and entire North East. Cleared to fly all Vvip/ Vip, so flew all state heads. Was a management pilot in Pawan Hans Helicopter Ltd,  Left Pawan Hans in July 2018. 

Joined Aryan Avaition for 2 months and then joined J&k Govt , flew Governor for 4 years . At present with a corporate company in Mumbai.  Total of 6000hrs of flying experience in last 25 years. A mother of twin daughters who completed their 12th std this year. 

I narrate stories with or without technology for corporate, celebrity and social sector clients fromalmost2 decades. These stories changebusiness volumes, bring cultural changes at workplace and sometimes win awards too. It has been a privilege to successfully deliveracross domains like Experiential Marketing, Digital, Television, Media Relations, Human Resources and Academia. Currently I pursue happiness by including diverse viewpoints of stakeholders&their equity tocreatea culture of belongingfor various organisations through policies, branding & programs.

Shiva is a Distinguished Alumni of NIT Trichy, who has 30+ Years of Experience in IT industry (Alumni of Microsoft, Adobe, NTT Data, Wipro)

WinVinaya Foundation (WVF) has trained 500+ candidates and has placed 250+ in inclusive MNCs, MSMEs (https://winvinayafoundation.org/performance-reports/) . WVF launched India’s First Digital Learning Platform designed for Persons with Disabilities – WinVinaya Academy in April 2020 and 250+ beneficiaries already learnt from it. ?WinVinaya Academy has courses in IT, Banking, MS Office and more in English and Indian Sign Language medium?.WVF caters to persons across diverse disabilities - 12 out of 21 recognized disabilities coming from 12 different states in India.? 50% Employees of WinVinaya are PWDs?

Manju Bharadwaj is the Chief people Officer for Straive and is responsible for strategizing, leading, and implementing Straive’ s people programs. She is a specialist with a demonstrated history of working with different aspects of Talent Strategy and Change management. 

Priya Vaidyanathan 

IT Leader with dynamic 20+ years of experience in manufacturing industry enabling business by providing innovative & customer oriented digital solutions. 

Caterpillar India Private Limited: Aug 2001 to Dec 2016 

I started as System Engineer via campus hiring in Thiruvallur manufacturing plant. Handled several key digital as well as business transformations for Caterpillar India playing various roles from various locations (Chennai, Thiruvallur, Hosur & Bangalore). Responsible for spearheading Global IT Operations & Competency centers and enabling Engineering side of business with technology enabled solutions. Lead various transformation programs as certified 6 Sigma Black Belt and was chairperson for Women’s Initiative Network for Caterpillar Bangalore & Hosur locations. 

Valeo India Private Limited: Jan 2017 to Jul 2021 

As Regional Information Systems Manager, I was responsible for deployment and support of end to end digital solutions specifically Industry 4.0 solution across all India & ASEAN manufacturing plants. Enabled accelerated growth plan for the engineering community in India. Played the role of India Data Protection Officer. 

Saint Gobain India Private Limited: Jul 2021 till date 

I joined Saint Gobain India as the Head of Home & Hospitality business responsible for digitalizing end to end value chain of the business operations. I also lead the digital customer experience and employee experience platforms for regional businesses in India primarily focusing on Sales & Marketing and HR operations.  

Education Computer Science Engineer 

Personal Happily married to Chandramouli who is an independent retirement planning consultant and proud mother of 9 year old son.

Surekha, Heads Customer Service Operations for _VOIS, a captive global shared service arm of Vodafone. In her current role she leads operations based out of India and Egypt, for 3 markets – ie UK , Ireland business and New Zealand . She is a B2B specialist with an experience spanning 24 years. She specializes in setting up customer service for global and national green field ventures in the B2B space. Her earlier career stint includes organizations like Vodafone India, Tata Communications, Sify and Motorola Page point. She has been credited with setting up a strong customer centric culture in all her stints, thereby ensuring a First time right mindset across the organization. She has several Industry first’s to her credit, which makes her stand out as an SME in the B2B space. Her ability to perfectly blend people ,technology and a customer oriented approach has helped her bring the best in her teams. She has several industry accolades for leading various digital transformations in her professional journey. 

Umasanker Kandaswamy (He/Him/His)

Co Founder – Sr Vice President – Sales & Relationships

Umasanker Kandaswamy holds a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Madras, is an Electronics & Communication Engineer and has done an MDP from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. With over 25 years of experience in Recruitment Consulting, Umasanker is a prolific headhunter, with over 3500 closures in his career, comprising of top management, senior management and reporting-to-board positions.

Umasanker has spearheaded large mandate recruitment projects for a variety of industries. Sourcing of any kind comes naturally to Umasanker – he manages IT sourcing with as much versatility as Non-IT. Is currently managing the All India Marketing & Sales for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion consulting across sectors.

A popular problem faced by recruiters then (and now) is that candidates do attend interviews, but either do not accept the offer or do not join as agreed. To counter this, the team lead by Umasanker devised a robust data capturing mechanism called the “Dialogue Box”. This helped the team leverage both structured and unstructured data that emerged during candidate interactions. By employing data-driven profiling methods, the team was able to ensure a very high candidate selection rate and high interview-to-joining conversion. Today, this data analytics process, under Umasanker’s stewardship, has been scaled up using artificial intelligence and machine learning. Over the past 18 years, the team has profiled and researched over 15,00,000 resumes, drawing their career trajectories and analysing reasons for offer acceptance or decline. Research and Analytics has played a big role in our journey as a service provider of choice for talent requirements of discerning organizations.

Every year, Umasanker has, as a personal goal, been training young generation in the path of Leadership and has been invited by many colleges to be the Chief Guest to address the young graduates & post graduates. His passion for people is equalled only by his passion for music and cricket – Umasanker is a great singer and is a fast bowler.