Inside India: A Top Draw
Modules in Mumbai and Hyderabad

India is sparking interest around the world, as demonstrated by the high level of participation in IESE’s new Inside India executive education program. The five-day program was offered in February, in collaboration with the Indian School of Business and featured sessions in Hyderabad (at ISB’s campus) and Mumbai.

“We were thrilled with the response to the program and the level of the participants who applied to take part,” noted David MacManus, director of the Inside India program. The program was filled to its capacity of 40 participants, reflecting some 15 different nationalities.

“The program is designed to give participants a realistic picture of the opportunities and challenges of doing business in India, along with the opportunity to hear from key business leaders in the country,” said MacManus. “Participants were also guided by IESE’s faculty members, who have extensive expertise on the region.”

The original idea for the program came from two graduates of IESE’s Global Executive MBA program, Rajiv Seth and Jaime Ferrer-Dalmau, MacManus noted. IESE embraced the plan for the program and then worked with IESE faculty members, and in conjunction with the Indian School of Business, to fully develop the concept.

India is predicted to be the third largest economy worldwide by 2050 and in 2004, the country’s GDP rose 8.4 percent. India has grown to become one of the world’s key sources for offshore outsourcing, and is expected to eventually boast the world’s largest populations of workers and consumers. Leading the IESE program was IESE’s Prof. Rama Velamuri, the academic director, along with Prof. Pedro Videla.

Inside India started off in Hyderabad, with sessions providing an overview of the Indian economy and politics. The program featured visits to prominent companies in the country, including the headquarters of TATA Motors, TATA Steel and Cadbury’s Chocolates. Among the special speakers during the program were Gurcharan Das, an author and a management consultant and former CEO of Procter & Gamble India; Ravi Kant, managing director of Tata Motors Ltd.; Prahbu Chawla, editor of India Dr. Santrupt Misra, director on the Aditya Birla Management Corporation Limited Board; G.V. Prasad, CEO of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories and Dinesh Krishnaswamy is a co-founder and a member of the Board of Infosys Technologies Limited.