Events

Naina Lal Kidwai is Chairperson - Rothschild & Co India, and Senior Advisor at private equity firms Advent , TPG , and Venture Advisor Lightspeed Venture Partners, India and is a Non-Executive Director on the boards of several global and Indian companies. She was President of FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry) in 2013 , being the first woman to be elected in its 86 years history . She was appointed CEO of HSBC bank in India in 2006 being the first woman to head a bank in India, and retired in December 2015 as Executive Director on the board of HSBC Asia Pacific and Chairman HSBC India . 

She repeatedly ranked in the Fortune global list of Top Women in Business and is the recipient of several awards and honours including the prestigious Padma Shri in 2007 for her contribution to Trade and industry. 

Her interests in Water, Sanitation and the environment and empowerment of women are reflected in her current engagements as Chair of FICCI’s Water Mission and Founder and Chair of the India Sanitation Coalition . She has authored 3 books including the bestsellers “30 women in Power: Their Voices, Their Stories” and “Survive Or Sink: An Action Agenda for Sanitation, Water, Pollution, and Green Finance”.

Rajkamal Vempati is the Group Head & Head Human Resources at Axis Bank. Rajkamal is a member of the Management Committee and a passionate advocate of sustaining a human workplace & creating an inclusive culture geared for the future. Her team of HR professionals at Axis Group is focused on nurturing distinctive career experiences that matter to the people and wherein they thrive. Axis Bank has been recognized externally as an employer of choice for its Diversity, Equity & Inclusion efforts and its Giga Opportunities program has been widely lauded. She is also the Co- chairperson of FICCI HR Committee. She graduated in Science from Himachal Pradesh University and holds an MBA from XLRI Jamshedpur. She is a recipient of “Distinguished Alumnus Award” from XLRI, Jamshedpur and she has also been honored with Honoris Causa, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). by Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies.

Prior to Axis Bank, she was heading Human Resources for ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company. Rajkamal was a consultant with Hewitt Associates, part of the HR Leadership Program at GE Capital and has worked with ICICI Prudential Life Insurance across diverse roles.

Personally, having experienced the drop out from career due to long distance marriage and re-entering the workforce subsequently with a young daughter, she is super passionate about mentoring and coaching female executives so that they remain in motion in careers of their choice. Her favourite pastime is planning for holidays and itineraries with her family and friends.

Udayan Dutt is a seasoned HR leader with over 25 years of global experience spanning consumer goods, telecommunications, technology, and consulting sectors, including distinguished tenures at Unilever and Reckitt. He brings a unique blend of strategic HR leadership, boardroom influence, and transformation expertise, with a proven track record in HR Business Partnering, Centers of Excellence, and Shared Services. His accomplishments include steering Remuneration Committees, driving enterprise-wide transformations, and aligning people strategies with long-term business objectives.

As President – Group Human Resources at RPG Enterprises, Udayan champions the organization’s cultural ethos through its core values: Hello Happiness, Unleash Talent, Outperformance, and Touching Lives. He is passionate about building a simple, agile, and best-in-class employee experience ecosystem that fosters engagement and excellence.

Prior to RPG, Udayan served as Vice President – HR for Global Functions at Reckitt, where he led organizational redesigns across Finance, Legal, IT&D, R&D, and Strategy. Earlier, he spent a decade at Unilever, excelling in HR Generalist and Reward CoE leadership roles.

Beyond work, Udayan is deeply committed to fitness and well-being and enjoys exploring collectibles and music. He lives in Mumbai.

Mr. Ayush Gupta is a 1992 batch Electrical Engineer from IIT Roorkee, MBA in Operations Management & P G Diploma in Human Resources Management. He has over 33 years of varied and rich experience in the field of Human Resource Management, Projects, Operations and Maintenance in Oil & Gas Sector and Process Industry.

Mr. Gupta is working with GAIL since last 27 years. He is among the youngest Directors to be on the Board of GAIL India Ltd. He is a strong proponent & practitioner of sustainable business practices and ensuing highest standards of safety in plant & pipeline operations. He has taken several initiatives to promote gender equality & women empowerment.

During his tenure at GAIL, Mr. Ayush Gupta had been instrumental in introducing various initiatives, such as Spandan (Monthly Wellness Hour dedicated towards enhancing employees’ physical, mental and emotional well-being), Ojas (young employees engagement & development platform), Abha (for educating, mentoring and hand-holding of spouses of GAIL employees for their entrepreneurial ventures), Samanvay (Care, Connect & Commit – to establish a periodic two way communication in the organization), Mentoring Journey – Saarthi (a unique approach towards development of young talent), e-Learning Courses, etc.

He is a recipient of the prestigious Chevening Rolls Royce Science, Innovation, Policy & Leadership Fellowship from UK Government in 2013, Winner of the National Corrosion Awareness Award 2004, Emerging HRD Thinkers Award in 2011, HR Leader of the Year Award-2024 by Governance Now and recognized as Top 50 HR Thought Leaders of 2024 by Economic Times HR World. He is author & co-editor of the book titled ‘Natural Gas Markets in India’ published by Springer International and has to his credit several awards for papers published and presented at national and international forums.

He is Chairman of GAIL Mangalore Petrochemicals Ltd and a Director on the Boards of GAIL Gas Ltd, ONGC Tripura Power Company Ltd & China Gas Holdings Ltd.

He is an Executive Committee member of SCOPE (Standing Conference of Public Enterprises), Member on the Board of Governors of Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology & Indian Institute of Petroleum & Energy, Director on the Board of IFTDO (International Federation of Training & Development Organizations), Member, HR Core Committee of All India Management Association (AIMA), Member, CII National Committee on Industrial Relations and Member, IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity) Labour Rights Advisory Board.

Anil Sachdev is the Founder and CEO of Grow Talent Company Limited and the School of Inspired Leadership-SOIL. Grow Talent was created in July 2000 and became the leader in the strategic HR consulting industry by 2006.It enabled large number of Global and local firms to achieve breakthrough performance by realising the potential of their people and creating a talent advantage.

In October 2008, Anil and the other co-founders of Grow Talent entered the field of Education by creating SOIL- the School of Inspired Leadership. This innovative School has been co- created by a consortium of 32 leading firms and has focus on the five pillars of inspired leadership: Compassion, Diversity, Ethics, Mindfulness and Sustainability. In 2019, Soil has launched its second campus in Manesar- the SOIL School of Business Design that is offering the first of its kind two years full time MBA that combines the disciplines of liberal arts, design thinking and management education.

Anil’s experience in India and across the world covers areas such as talent management, strategic change and organizational transformation. Recognised as a thought leader in leadership development and Organizational transformation, Anil has done pioneering work with leading global and local firms. He has spoken at national and global conferences all over the world and has written contributory pieces for leading publications. He has been adjunct Faculty to leading business schools such as Indian School of Business, Kelly School of Business, Indiana University, GMI, Flint Michigan, Antioch University, Seattle, Ohio University and University of New Brunswick, Canada. Anil began his career with Tata Motors in 1975 after completing his MBA from the University of Pune and joined Eicher in 1978 and worked in HR, operations and TQM. He is the Founder of Eicher Consultancy Services and was its CEO till 2001.

He is active in management circles and has held several public offices such a Chairman of National Committees on Leadership Development, Human Resources, Industrial relations of the Confederation Indian Industry. Anil is a member of the Academic Committee of CEDEP, the leading Leadership Institute of Europe, located at Fontainebleau. He is a member of the World Compassion Council, based in Seattle and a Trustee of the Chinmaya Mission. He serves on the Global Board of Shizenkan University in Tokyo.

A Management professional with more than 3 decades of experience in Public Sector, was Director (Human Resource) on the Board of Engineers India Limited (EIL), a Navaratna Public Sector under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, from October 2012 and Superannuated on 30.06.2016. At EIL, has taken several path breaking initiatives towards strategizing HR for diversifying & overseas scenario through effective Talent Management, Training & Development, Performance Management, Employee Communication, CSR & Brand building, with a view to take EIL to greater heights

Swati Patwardhan brings 20 years of extensive experience in human resources, specializing in organizational development, talent acquisition, and business partnering. Throughout her career, she has been instrumental in establishing robust people processes, talent management frameworks, and performance management systems, as well as spearheading talent acquisition initiatives across multiple geographies.

Swati has gained her expertise by working with leading corporate organizations, where she successfully managed diverse HR functions and implemented strategic initiatives that align with business goals. Her expertise in crafting and implementing HR policies has significantly contributed to enhancing organizational effectiveness and employee engagement.

Known for her strategic vision and empathetic leadership, Swati is passionate about creating a supportive and dynamic work environment. She excels in employee relations and in fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

Swati holds a Master’s degree in Industrial Psychology from SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai, and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Mumbai University. Furthering her professional development, she has earned certifications in Organizational Development from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and the Organizational Development Associates (ODA). Additionally, she is certified in Brain-Based Executive Coaching through the NeuroLeadership Institute (NLI).

With a strong commitment to professional growth, diversity, and inclusion, Swati stays abreast of the latest HR trends and practices, aiming to optimize human capital and drive business success. Her strategic vision, combined with her hands-on approach, makes her a valuable asset to our organization.
 

Bhavna is a transformation and inclusion leader with extensive experience across Global HR Leadership and Management Consulting. She currently serves as Vice President – People at S&P Global, where she is the Global Head of People for the Enterprise Data Organization and Head of People for the India Region. An alumnus of MDI, Gurgaon and Loreto College, Kolkata, she has previously worked with organisations including PwC, Genpact, SHL and Grow Talent/Right Management. Bhavna is also an Advisory Board Member and Angel Investor with Eubrics and an Executive Coach, partnering with leaders and organisations on business transformation, talent, culture and future readiness.