Ramananda Sengupta
The first time I heard about The Indus Entrepreneurs, or TiE, was way back in September 2000 in San Jose, California, when I met Silicon Valley legend Kanwal Rekhi, one of the organization’s co-founders and its first president.
During that brief meeting, I recall being struck by his strong belief that the more fortunate among us should give back to society, and the way his eyes lit up when he spoke of TiE.
Officially formed way back in 1995 by Rekhi and a few other Silicon Valley giants with South Asian roots, (hence the ‘Indus’ in the name), the outfit had a simple purpose: To encourage and nurture the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Today, TiE has evolved into the world’s largest non-profit network for entrepreneurs. According to their website, they now have some 13,000 members, ‘including over 2,500 charter members in 57 chapters across 14 countries.’
Among the chapters, the one in Delhi NCR is perhaps among the oldest and largest. Their 11th annual conference, being held at the city’s Taj Palace Hotel September 30 to October 1, is billed as the largest entrepreneurial conclave in India.
‘TiECon Delhi 2011, will bring together some of the finest thought leaders; celebrated entrepreneurs; aspiring young entrepreneurs; country’s top private bankers,” says Geetika Dayal, Executive Director, TiE Delhi NCR.
“In addition,” she adds, “the Summit hopes to bring together another 100 plus entrepreneurs and high achievers from diverse fields who share their inspirational stories with over 1500 attendees in interactive sessions over two days. The attendees, both men and women, will have an opportunity to learn about entrepreneurial opportunities in Education and Training, CleanTech, Infrastructure, Internet, Retail, Telecom, Agriculture and Social sector. The conference will be packed with groundbreaking presentations, interactive breakout sessions, live demonstrations, and opportunities for networking that will be of interest to all entrepreneurs across sectors (irrespective of their size) and TiE Young Entrepreneurs…”
This year, D Shivakumar, Managing Director of Nokia India, India’s largest multinational, will deliver the First CK Prahalad Memorial Lecture at TieCon Delhi 2011 on the opening day.
Coimbatore Krishnarao Prahalad, Distinguished University Professor of Corporate Strategy at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business in the University of Michigan, and more famous as the father of the concepts of Core competency and BoP - Bottom of the pyramid, passed away in April 2010.
Others expected to address the two day session include:
1. Ronnie Screwvala, MD & Founder-CEO, UTV, India’s most well known entertainment company
2. Amitabh Kant, the man responsible for executing the prestigious Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor at an investment of US$ 90 billion.
3. Rajan Anandan, MD of world’s biggest entrepreneurial success story, Google India and an active Angel investor in his personal capacity,
4. Nithya Shanti - an inspirational speaker, writer, happiness coach, integral healer, educator and modern day sage will speak on ‘Happiness Habits -Breakthrough Ideas for Leaders.`
A set of special networking lounges will allow TIECon attendees from Early Stage Companies (founded less than 5 years ago) and Growth Stage Companies (operational for over 5 years) to network with peers, investors, potential mentors and service providers.
Senior TiE Charter members--Deep Kalra, Founder & CEO, MakeMyTrip.com, the Internet/eCommerce start up that recently listed on Nasdaq, and Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Vice-Chairman, Naukri.com, the man whose web portals help Indians find a job,match and now even a house,online, will hold special sessions for Early Stage Companies.
The interactive session with attendees from Growth Stage Companies will be led by Alok Mittal, Senior TiE Charter Member, an active angel investor and Managing Director, Cannan Partners.
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