Advisory Committee
An Advisory Committee has been formed comprising of eminent corporate leaders and sector experts which will approve the most promising projects and provide key insight to the programme on an annual basis.
The members of the Advisory Committee for the HSBC Skills for Life programme in partnership with Swades are given below:
Anu Aga | Ex-Chairperson, Thermax limited
Anu Aga is on the Board of Thermax Limited, the leading Indian player in energy and environment management. She retired as Chairperson of the company in October 2004.
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Anu Aga
Ex-Chairperson, Thermax limited Anu Aga is on the Board of Thermax Limited, the leading Indian player in energy and environment management. She retired as Chairperson of the company in October 2004. She has done her BA in Economics and holds a post graduate degree in medical and psychiatric social work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). She was selected for the Fullbright Scholarship for social workers to study in the U.S.
Ms. Aga has been very active in various national and local associations like Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and had served as the Chairperson of CII's Western Region. She has written extensively and given talks on the subjects of corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, role of women and education.
Ms. Aga is the Chairperson of the Thermax Social Initiative Foundation (TSIF) which runs the CSR activities of Thermax. She is also closely associated with the Teach for India Initiative which attempts bridging the inequity gap in education. She is keenly involved in the causes of communal harmony and human rights, especially women and children.
Arun Kumar | Chairman & CEO, KPMG in India
Arun M. Kumar, Chairman and CEO, KPMG in India is an accomplished global executive with experience spanning multiple sectors from high technology to Government and many geographies from Silicon Valley to India.
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Arun Kumar
Chairman & CEO, KPMG in India
Arun M. Kumar, Chairman and CEO, KPMG in India is an accomplished global executive with experience spanning multiple sectors from high technology to Government and many geographies from Silicon Valley to India.
President Obama nominated Kumar to the role of Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Global Markets and Director General of the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service. In that role, he led an organization with offices in 78 countries and all 50 states of the U.S., focused on enhancing trade and investment.
Arun was one of the top commercial diplomats for the U.S., advocating for better market access for U.S. exporters worldwide. He traveled to more than thirty countries around the world, engaging with senior Government and business leaders.
Before his tenure in public service, Kumar was a Partner and member of the Board of Directors at KPMG, LLP (US). He led the firm’s West Coast Management Consulting practice serving major global clients as well as emerging Silicon Valley ventures while creating thought leadership to advance business practices in financial management. He also founded and led KPMG’s US-India practice.
Previously, Kumar was a Silicon Valley entrepreneur, founding CEO and CFO of three technology ventures. Over the years, he has been a mentor and advisor to a number of new ventures in Silicon Valley and India.
Kumar has been a member of advisory councils at Stanford University and the University of California, Santa Cruz. An early Charter Member of TiE Silicon Valley, he also served on its Board, apart from being on the Board of Directors of the U.S. India Business Council.
Kumar has authored a book of poetry, Plain Truths (2010), and co-edited a book, Kerala’s Economy: Crouching Tiger, Sacred Cows (2007).
Kumar received his Master’s degree in Management from the Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Bachelor’s degree in Physics from the University of Kerala, India. He started his career in India as a member of TAS, the central management cadre of the Tata Group.
Rati Forbes | Director, Forbes Marshall Ltd.
Rati Forbes is a Director of the Forbes Marshall Group and heads the Forbes Foundation. She has been recognized for her social initiatives both within the company and in the wider world.
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Rati Forbes
Director, Forbes Marshall Ltd. Rati Forbes is a Director of the Forbes Marshall Group and heads the Forbes Foundation. She has been recognized for her social initiatives both within the company and in the wider world. She chaired Confederation of Indian Industry’s western region cell for social development, whose main objective is to sensitize corporate entities to their social responsibilities. She also serves on the boards of several foundations and nonprofits across India.
Rati graduated in Psychology (Honours) and Sociology from the University of Mumbai and has also taken special courses in human resources, organizational behaviour and strategic philanthropy. Rati also holds a Masters in Sustainability Management and Leadership from Cambridge University.
Richard Rekhy | CEO, KPMG
Richard Rekhy is the Chief Executive Officer of KPMG in India. He has over 28 years of multi layered, multi sectoral, top-of-the-pyramid post qualification experience behind him.
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Richard Rekhy
CEO, KPMG Richard Rekhy is the Chief Executive Officer of KPMG in India. He has over 28 years of multi layered, multi sectoral, top-of-the-pyramid post qualification experience behind him.
Richard was appointed as the Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Head of the Advisory practice in November 2009 and held the position of the Chief Operating Officer for KPMG in India from June 2006 to November 2009. Richard served as the Head of the Risk Advisory Services Practice in KPMG in India from April 2004 till June 2006.
Richard has serviced clients across sectors including advertising, oil and gas, industrial and consumer markets and specifically in the pharmaceuticals, technology, manufacturing and retail domains. He comes with real time extensive experience coupled with detailed understanding of corporate governance, enterprise risk management, internal audit and business processes re- engineering.
Richard was recently appointed as the Chairman of Enactus India, which is an international non-profit organisation. Richard is also a member of the EMA and Global Board for KPMG International.
Richard is an articulate and eloquent speaker, contributing at several public forums while providing thought leadership through articles in leading newspapers and magazines on diverse topics - corporate governance/risk management, leadership and the economy.
Prior to joining KPMG, Richard was a Partner and held leadership positions at Ernst & Young, Arthur Andersen and Ratan S. Mama & Co.
Ronnie Screwvala | Founder, Swades Foundation
Ronnie Screwvala is a first generation entrepreneur who pioneered Cable TV in India, built one of the largest toothbrush manufacturing operations and went on to create a Media & Entertainment conglomerate – UTV
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Ronnie Screwvala
Founder, Swades Foundation Ronnie Screwvala is a first generation entrepreneur who pioneered Cable TV in India, built one of the largest toothbrush manufacturing operations and went on to create a Media & Entertainment conglomerate – UTV – spanning Television, Broadcasting, Digital, Mobile and Motion Pictures, which he divested to The Walt Disney Company in 2012
Demonstrating an innate ability to merge creativity with commerce, Newsweek termed him the Jack Warner of India, Esquire rated him one of the 75 most influential people of the 21st Century and Fortune as Asia’s 25 most powerful.
Onto his second innings, Ronnie is driven by his interest in championing Entrepreneurship – authored a book on Entrepreneurship titled Dream With Your Eyes Open, and is also focused to build his next set of ground up businesses in high growth and impact sectors. These include U Sports focused on Kabaddi, Moto Sports and Football; U Education under the brand UpGrad that zeroes in on Online Education – in Higher Studies, Post-Graduation and Specialization courses; and U Digital under the brand Arre to target the core 15-34 age group in all things digital for the 21st century.
Ronnie is also passionate about Social Welfare and is active along with his wife Zarina as Founder Trustees of The Swades Foundation, which operates with the single minded focus of empowering one million lives in Rural India every 5-6 years through a unique 360 degree model with verticals in Water, Sanitation, Health, Nutrition, Community Mobilization, Education, and most importantly Agriculture & Livelihood, to lift them out of poverty permanently.
Sanjiv Mehta | MD & CEO, Hindustan Unilever Limited
Mr. Mehta joined Unilever in October 1992. He has led several Unilever businesses across South Asia, South East Asia and Middle East. He was appointed Chairman and Managing Director of Unilever Bangladesh in 2002.
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Sanjiv Mehta
MD & CEO, Hindustan Unilever Limited Mr. Mehta joined Unilever in October 1992. He has led several Unilever businesses across South Asia, South East Asia and Middle East. He was appointed Chairman and Managing Director of Unilever Bangladesh in 2002. In 2007, he was appointed as Chairman and CEO of Unilever Philippines. In 2008, he took up responsibility as the Chairman of Unilever North Africa and Middle East, leading a multi country organisation spanning 20 countries in the region. During his tenure as the head of various Unilever Companies, the business achieved significant success accelerating both growth and profitability. Importantly, he has been instrumental in building leadership talent and substantially strengthening organisational capabilities.
Before joining Unilever, Mr. Mehta worked for Union Carbide India. He is a Commerce graduate and a Chartered Accountant. He has also completed Advanced Management Program from Harvard Business School.
K Satish Reddy | Chairman, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories
Satish Reddy is Chairman of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, an integrated pharma company operating in 26 countries.
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K Satish Reddy
Chairman, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Satish Reddy is Chairman of Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, an integrated pharma company operating in 26 countries. He also Chairs the Life Sciences Skill Development Council under National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), a national level organization, working in partnership with various stakeholders groups, to serve and address the skill shortfalls in the Life Sciences Sector in India. He was appointed as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the National Safety Council by the Government of India. He played an active role in shaping industry policy as a member of the Drugs Technical Advisory Board of India and as President of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance, a premier industry association of leading & large research-based Indian Companies.
Satish is passionate about Corporate Social Responsibility. He is Chairman of Dr. Reddy’s Foundation, helping the less privileged create sustainable livelihoods. He is a Trustee of the Naandi Foundation, working for child rights and education, safe drinking water, agriculture export marketing. He is also a Director of Dr. Reddy’s Institute of Life Sciences, engaged in pioneering innovative research.
Satish holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from Osmania University, India, and an M.S. in Medicinal Chemistry from Purdue University, USA.
Surendra Rosha | CEO, HSBC India
(Chair of the Advisory Committee for HSBC Skills for Life)
Surendra Rosha has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer for HSBC India, effective from November 2018.
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Surendra Rosha
CEO, HSBC India (Chair of the Advisory Committee for HSBC Skills for Life) Surendra Rosha has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer for HSBC India, effective from November 2018.
Rosha is a member of the Asia Pacific Executive Committee, underlining the importance of the India business to HSBC.
Prior to taking on this role, he was the Head of HSBC’s Financial Institutions Group (FIG) for Asia-Pacific, leading HSBC’s origination effort across the integrated FIG franchise in Asia-Pacific.
Rosha joined HSBC’s India operations in 1991 and since held several senior positions within the Global Banking and Markets business including Head of Global Markets in Indonesia in 2005 and Head of Institutional Sales, Asia Pacific in 2007.
Rosha holds a Master’s Degree in Business Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. Outside of work his interests include golf, reading and spending time with his family.
Subramaniam Ramadorai, CBE | Former Vice Chairman, Tata Consultancy Services
Mr. Ramadorai has been in public service since February 2011 having recently completed a 5 year term in the area of Skill Development.
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Subramaniam Ramadorai, CBE
Former Vice Chairman, Tata Consultancy Services Mr. Ramadorai has been in public service since February 2011 having recently completed a 5 year term in the area of Skill Development. During his tenure as the Chairman of National Skill Development Agency (NSDA) and the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) his approach was to standardize the skilling effort, ensure quality and commonality of outcomes by leveraging technology and create an inclusive environment to co-operate, collaborate & co-exist. He strongly believes that empowering youth with the right skills can define the future of the country. Mr. Ramadorai is currently the Chairman of the Advisory Board at Tata STRIVE, which is the Tata Group’s CSR skill development initiative that aims to address the pressing national need of skilling youth for employment, entrepreneurship and community enterprise.
In addition to the above positions, he continues to be Chairman of AirAsia (India), Tata Advanced Systems Limited and Tata Technologies Limited. Recently, in March 2016, he retired as the Chairman of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE Limited) after having served for a period of 6 years on the board. He continues to be an Independent Director on the Boards of Hindustan Unilever Limited, Asian Paints Limited and Piramal Enterprises Limited.
Mr. Ramadorai took over as the CEO of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) in 1996 when the company’s revenues were at $ 155 million and since then led the company through some of its most exciting phases, including its going public in 2004. In October 2009, he retired as CEO, leaving a $ 6 billion global IT services company to his successor. He was then appointed as the Vice Chairman and held office until he retired in October 2014, after an association of over 4 decades with the company.
Given his keen passion to work for the social sector and community initiatives, he also serves as the Chairman on the Council of Management at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) and the Chairman of the Governing Board at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). He is also the President of the Society for Rehabilitation of Crippled Children (SRCC) – which is building a super speciality children’s hospital in Mumbai.
In recognition of Ramadorai’s commitment and dedication to the IT industry he was awarded the Padma Bhushan (India's third highest civilian honour) in January 2006. In April 2009, he was awarded the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for his contribution to the Indo-British economic relations. In 2016, he was also awarded The Economic Times - Lifetime Achievement Award for his glorious contribution to Tata Consultancy Services.
His academic credentials include a Bachelors degree in Physics from Delhi University (India), a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electronics and Telecommunications from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (India) and a Masters degree in Computer Science from the University of California – UCLA (USA). In 1993, Ramadorai attended the Sloan School of Management’s highly acclaimed Senior Executive Development Program.
Ramadorai is a well recognized global leader and technocrat who has participated in the Indian IT journey from a mere idea in 1960’s to a mature industry today. Ramadorai captured this exciting journey in a wonderfully personalized book titled 'The TCS Story...and beyond' which was published in 2011 and remained on top of the charts for several months.
Among his many interests, Ramadorai is also passionate about photography and Indian classical music.
Sunil Sood | Managing Director & CEO, Vodafone India
Sunil Sood is the Managing Director and CEO for Vodafone India with effect from April 1, 2015.
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Sunil Sood
Managing Director & CEO, Vodafone India Sunil Sood is the Managing Director and CEO for Vodafone India with effect from April 1, 2015.
Prior to this new role, Sunil was the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Vodafone India. Being part of the senior leadership team at Vodafone India, Sunil was responsible for the day to day operations and the P&L management for all circles in the country. He also spearheaded the new business development initiative of Mobile Commerce for the organization.
Sunil also served as the Director - Business Operations for Vodafone India before becoming COO. Sunil started his Telecom sojourn in the summer of 2000 as Vice President, Sales & Marketing for Hutch in Delhi. He soon became a Business head and led the Gujarat, Kolkata and Chennai operations.
Prior to joining telecom, Sunil has had a long career with Pepsi in various roles within India and abroad (CEO for Pepsi in Bangladesh). Sunil has also spent 4 years in Nigeria where he was working to establish the market for Nestles milk and infant formulae in the country.
Sunil did his schooling from St. Columbus School, Delhi and followed it up with a B Tech from IIT – Delhi and PGDM from IIM - Kolkata. He is also an alumnus of Harvard Business School (AMP).