India Leaders for Social Sector (ILSS) is proud to be hosting the 8th edition of the ILSS Leadership Program at the TERI Gram campus in Gurugram from the 3rd to 9th April 2021.

The program saw the coming together of 20 senior leaders from diverse backgrounds in the corporate sector, from companies like Google, ITC, American Express, The Times Group, Accenture, HP, and many more. All members of the 8th cohort were looking to find meaningful opportunities in the social sector that can avail of their skills.

This cycle, the Program has a total of 16 speakers – organization and project leaders, practitioners, academicians and experts, thought leaders – that will address the Leadership Program cohort, sharing their stories and opening up dialogue that would be otherwise inaccessible.

Some of these luminaries include Prof. AK Shivakumar – Professor, Economist & Policy Advisor, Anshu Gupta – Founder, GOONJ, Mekhala Krishnamurthy –  Senior Fellow at Centre of Policy Research and Governance (CPRG) and Associate Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at Ashoka University, Urvashi Butalia – Feminist Writer, Publisher & Founder – Zubaan Books, Harsh Mander – Director, Centre for Equity Studies, Surabhi Bikhchandani – Partner (Executive Search), Quadrangle, and many others. There is also an extended reflection workshop led by Preeti Mann & Saurabh Mittal – Co-Founders, QYON.

‘Human capital is the most valuable asset in the social sector’, a quote by Sal Giambanco of Omidyar Networks, resonates strongly with ILSS Founder and CEO Anu Prasad. “We are proud of our strong network of students and alumni who are dedicating their time and efforts to study, learn and understand India’s development sector with the intent of paying it forward through their work and contribution”.

Anu also thanked TERI GRAM for being wonderful hosting partners for the program.

Participants were privy to knowledge and wisdom from voices across the sector. Harsh Mander, Director – Centre for Equity Studies, reminded the cohort why India’s social sector needs all the support it can get. In his address, he reflected: “A just and caring state can only exist in a just and caring society.”

Executive and life coach Preeti Mann and Saurabh Mittal, of Question Your Own Notions (QYON), spoke about the concepts behind their sessions, and the environment they hoped to create for the Leadership Program participants. “The idea is to help develop alignment and clarity so that participants can confidently make choices and feel in control. In our personal and professional lives, we all have decisions to make, relationships to nurture and dilemmas to solve. We do this by being informed by our goals, aspirations, contexts and values. Through our sessions, we hold space and time to reflect, introspect, discuss and evolve on our individual future paths and gain clarity.”

Given the recent resurgence of COVID cases across the country, strict precautionary measures were taken and all the state-mandated COVID protocols were followed to ensure a safe learning environment for participants, speakers, and staff. Only those with negative RT – PCR tests were allowed to enter the TERI Gram campus, and all participants were required to wear masks throughout the day. There were also strict measures to ensure social distancing at all times and creating outdoor learning spaces as much as possible. Participants and staff also remained on campus for the duration of the Program.