Empowerment must be backed by knowledge, clear direction: Malavika Harita at IIMB’s 45th Foundation Day

NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 29: “Empowerment is a sociological, psychological and economic process, not a single one-time action”, said Chief Guest Malavika R Harita, Founder-CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi Focus and Distinguished Alumna of the school, during the Foundation Day Lecture at the 45th Foundation Day celebrations of Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB).

“True Empowerment needs change from within, not just lip service and smart media bytes. It has to work at several levels – personal, organizational, familial and societal. It is painful and long-drawn and needs willing participants on both sides, those who empower and those who are being empowered,” she explained.

Malavika was one of the first Gurukul Chevening Scholars chosen to study at the London School of Economics. She is on the Governing Council of Mount Carmel College and the Advisory Board of the NSRCEL, IIM Bangalore. Malavika was President of the IIMB Alumni Association and the Advertising Club Bangalore. She has been teaching at various post graduate institutes of management and communication for the last 25 years.

IIMB celebrated its 45th Foundation Day with a plethora of events and activities on campus. This year’s celebrations started on a unique note with a panel discussion on the evolution of the Post Graduate Programme in Management at IIMB, titled: ‘Raising the Flag’. The discussion was moderated by Dean, Alumni Relations and Development Professor K Kumar. The panellists were Professors A K Rao, S Jagadish, R Narayanaswamy, Rishikesha T Krishnan, Ganesh N Prabhu and Sourav Mukherji.

Earlier in the evening, Dean of Alumni Relations and Development Professor K Kumar introduced the Distinguished Alumni awardees. It was a proud moment for IIMB to be able to honour the three awardees for their significant professional excellence as well as their contribution to industry, academia and society. In keeping with the institute’s tradition, each recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award received a citation and his name engraved on the Wall of Fame at the institute.

In his acceptance speech, M V Rajamannar said it was a significant achievement for him to be recognized as a distinguished alumnus by IIMB. “The foundation of my career was built at IIMB and the school has been a rock for me throughout my professional life. It was a privilege to be guided by phenomenal professors who taught me about both critical thinking and creativity.”

IIMB Director Professor G Raghuram congratulated all associated with the institute for working towards accomplishing the vision and mission that IIMB has set for itself. “With the IIM Act coming into force, we could grant degrees to our two-year PGPs, starting this year. We are the first IIM to do so. We are also the first IIM whose Board independently selected and appointed the Chair. I thank the Central Government for this autonomy. I also thank the Government of Karnataka for full closure on the land in Anekal for our second campus and for granting permissions for construction, both on the existing campus and the new campus. The BMRDA and BBMP too have supported us by giving us all the necessary clearances.”