Eminent Jury Panel

V V Ranganathan
Industry Expert & Governance Advisor,
Independent Director on multiple leading Company Boards
(Brigade Enterprises, Bharati Axa Life Insurance, formerly
with Indus Towers & BirlaNu), Bharti Airtel Foundation, NHAI,
Former Senior Partner EY – Country Leader for Strategic Growth Markets

Ranga, as he is affectionately called, is a Finance Professional, an Entrepreneur and an Author. Formerly, he was a Senior Partner with E&Y for many years and led several initiatives of the firm including co – founding & steering the Marquee Global Program – The World Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, both in India and Monaco.

He has co – founded many ventures with young talents which are at various stages of growth. Some of his ventures are social enterprises. He is also involved with large foundations that run hundreds of schools all over India as well leading a focused program on supporting economically weak but academically strong students.

He was recently awarded ‘Sankara Ratna Award’ in recognition of his immense contributions towards the good work supporting the social missions of The Medical Research Foundation & The Vision Research Foundation that run the famous Eye Hospital Sankara Nethralaya.

Ram Ramasundar
Management Advisor & Industry Veteran,
Formerly – MD Blue River Capital; Sr ED DLF Hotel,
President & CFO Ranbaxy, MD & CEO Electrolux Kelvinator, ED PepsiCo

Ramsundar is a Finance & Governance Professional. He has over 4 decades of experience in organizations such as HUL (as CFO), PepsiCo India (as Director – Operations), Electrolux (as MD/CEO), Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited (as President & CFO) , DLF Hotels (as Senior Executive Director) and Jindal ITF Limited (as Group Director – Finance & Strategy), Blue River Capital (as MD), Unilever Exports (UK) and PepsiCo (USA & Greece). After his super-annuation from Jindal ITF Limited, he has been associated with Blue River Capital (a Mauritius registered Private Equity Firm) as Managing Director for the last four years and involved in managing the operations of the portfolio companies and administration of the private equity fund. Prior to this, he has also worked at Unilever Exports (UK) and PepsiCo ((USA and Greece).

He is a commerce graduate (Madras University), Chartered Accountant, Company Secretary and a Management Graduate ( Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad), having qualified with distinction and merit rank. He has interests in Music, Sports and Books and has written articles and commentaries. His wife, Geetha is a post graduate and currently a home maker. He has one daughter, Sadhana, who graduated in Economics from Grinnell College, IOWA, USA and is currently working with KFC (Yum! Group) in Dallas, USA.

T Chandrasekar
CFO – Birlasoft and Formerly – CFO,
Greaves Electric Mobility; VP Finance & CFO,
India/South Asia – IBM

Chandrasekar (Chandru) Thyagarajan has over 34 years of experience in automobile, financial services and IT industries, in varied areas like financial planning, statutory and management accounting, costing of products & services, business controls, financial risk management, procurement, administration, resource and capacity management, strategy, etc. Chandru was with IBM for over 20 years and held several finance and operations leadership positions including that of CFO, IBM India/ South Asia Domestic Business, COO for Global Business Services, IBM Growth Markets based in Singapore, CFO for IBM Daksh Business Process Services and finance lead for IBM’s global delivery missions located in India. Post the IBM tenure, he joined Birlasoft as the CFO for 2+ years and then moved to Greaves Electric Mobility. He is now back with Birlasoft as the CFO. He has worked for almost 12 years in several Indian companies in the automobile, financial services and IT industries. He loves challenges and enjoys working with high performance teams.

S Y Siddiqui
Former Executive Advisor, Chief Mentor
and COO (F&A, HR, IT, Legal)
at Maruti Suzuki India

Joined Maruti Suzuki as Head of HR in Sept. 2003 and had an enriching career of 20 years. Held key positions @ Maruti Suzuki:

• DVM HR
• Executive Director, HR
• Corporate HR Head for Suzuki Group Companies in India;
• Chief Operating Officer HR/ FIN/ IT/Legal;

Also served in the Strategic Role as Chief Mentor from 2014-2018. Retired in July 2023 as Executive Advisor & Head of Realty Business.

BOARD POSITIONS:

• Was Special Invitee on the Board of Maruti Suzuki since 2006
• Was Part Time Director on The Board of Suzuki Motorcycles from 2007 till Sept. 2023

A Post Graduate in HRM, Dr. Siddiqui has a career track of around 44 years in the HR & Business Roles of good Indian Corporates as well as MNCs such as:

• Escorts Limited
• DCM Group – DCM Toyota Limited; DCM Daewoo Motors Limited and DCM Benetton India Limited

• New Holland Tractors India (FIAT GROUP)
• Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.

Presently, engaged with HR & Business Consulting in select Companies – Private Sector & PSUs since Sept.2023.

KEY POSITIONS:

• Chairman of AIMA HR Committee
• Ex- Chairman of CII North HR & IR Committee
• Also Member of CII National Committee on Leadership & HR; Member of CII National Committee on Industrial Relations;
• Chairman of Strategic Mentoring Board, Manav Rachna University
• Trustee of Dr. Pritam Singh Foundation
• Member of Advisory Board of Jaipuria Institute of Management New Delhi

Widely traveled abroad, Dr. Siddiqui has handled global and multi culture HR issues in highly competitive business environment in India & Europe. He has the unique experience of working in Multi Cultures & Multi Nationalities.

Handled a broad Management & Leadership role from quite an early part of career. Was inducted at the Company Board level at Maruti since 2006.

Passionate about cricket, Mr. Siddiqui played cricket at the North Zone Inter Varsity level from 1974 to 79 representing Jamia University, New Delhi.

Urs-Ulrich Katzenstein
Interim Director IT Transformation
& Formerly – MD, Metro GBS
and Head, IT Bell Foods Switzerland

Urs-Ulrich Katzenstein, former MD Metro Global Business Services, India, and Head of IT, Bell Food Switzerland, is an international, operational and result orientated leader in General Management & Internal Audit with extensive experience in Import/Export, Wholesale (Cash & Carry) and Shared Services business (+20 years). Equipped with short & long term vision and a strong customer focus (internal & external), used to managing teams up to 700 people with full budget and P&L OpCo. Skilled at developing new approaches and building highly motivated teams, he is used to working in a multicultural environment with professional experience in different countries and with people from different backgrounds. I value teamwork, combined with an entrepreneurial spirit as well as to reach goals with a positive attitude.

Raghav Rao
CEO, Strelitzia Consulting & Formerly
– COO, Kriscore Capital; COO, Deutsche Bank;
CAO, Lazard, Dir. Fidelity Investments

Raghav Rao, an accomplished senior banker with over 25 years of experience in the Banking & Financial services, across the competency landscape of Investment Banking, Global In-House Center (Captive), KPO’s, has led organisations through strong leadership, effective governance, seamless execution and achieved sustained growth in value and size, in an ever evolving global regulatory environment. He has set up greenfield sites, platforms and teams, research & analytic hubs, incubating new ideas and backing it up with enhanced delivery teams, and driving rapid growth through innovation. A CA with a rich and diverse professional background, Raghav has worked with renowned organizations, such as Ford Motors, General Motors, HSBC Investment Banking, Fidelity Investments and Lazard. Most recently, he served as COO and member of the board in Deutsche Bank, managing 17,000+ employees and revenues of US$700 mn across technology, operations, financial control and Risk at 4 locations.

Rohit Gupta
MD, RKG Stratedge LLP, and Former CFO
& Sr. Finance Leader, ZEE Entertainment
Brightstar, NIIT, Virgin Mobile, Airtel

Rohit Gupta brings over 25 years of leadership experience in finance, strategy, and investor relations across multinational and promoter-led organizations. A Commerce graduate from Delhi University and a Chartered Accountant, he is currently serving as CFO at Zee Entertainment Enterprises, where he oversees financial operations, treasury, mergers & acquisitions, and corporate governance. In his previous roles with companies such as ZEE Entgertainment, Bharti Airtel, Hutchison Max, Virgin Mobile India, and the Chaudhary Group, Rohit played a pivotal role in leading greenfield telecom rollouts and financial transformations. He is known for driving strategic finance initiatives and ensuring alignment between financial planning and business growth. His career reflects consistent excellence in delivering transformational performance across diverse industry contexts.

Daniel Wocial
Co-Founder & Managing Partner Helprise,
& Formerly – CEO, Adecco Grp, MD, COO,
Head Ops & Tech, Marsh Continental Europe,
Partner & Head GDC Warsaw Mercer Services
HR MD AXA, HR L&D, HP

Daniel Wocial is an accomplished leader in global business services and operational excellence. He currently serves as Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Helprise (since February 2022), where he spearheads strategy and operations for a consulting and outsourcing firm. Previously, Daniel held key leadership roles across Europe’s shared services sector. He was Cluster Head & CEO for Poland, Czechia & Slovakia at Adecco Group, driving performance for these markets from March 2021. Prior to Adecco, he led operational excellence initiatives as COO/Managing Director at Marsh Continental Europe, covering 34 countries, and earlier helmed Mercer’s Global Business Services (GOSS) in Warsaw. Daniel’s background includes leadership experience at AXA Direct Poland, HP GBS, and T-Mobile Polska. His academic credentials include a Master’s degree in Social Psychology, an EMBA from University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM) in partnership with Warsaw School of Economics, and postgraduate specialization in Insurance from the Academy of Finance in Warsaw. He is also a co-founder of the Association of Business Services Leaders and a contributor to the Knowledge Management Association, demonstrating his commitment to industry development and leadership excellence

Geeta Malhotra
Founder & CEO, Accuedge & Formerly
– Head GBS & Transformation, PMI
Head GBS, Avon, Partner IBM, VP Genpact

A seasoned transformational leader, Geeta has guided FTSE250 organizations through complex global business change—closely partnering with Excom and business leadership to deliver high-impact outcomes. She specializes in establishing Global Capability Centers (GCCs) and spearheading digital transformation via structured change frameworks and business process excellence. Driven by her passion for reinvention, Geeta earned a Post Graduate Diploma in Artificial Intelligence for Business from Oxford University, where her capstone project implemented an AI-enabled working capital solution for a BPO firm. She further deepened her credentials with a Postgraduate Certificate in Sustainable Business from the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Sustainability Leadership, developing carbon-reporting technology and a change-management plan for a global food-packaging leader. Her core expertise spans designing target operating models, scaling AI use cases, implementing cost-optimization strategies, and managing GCC delivery across finance, procurement, and supply chain. Geeta is also advancing carbon-reporting platforms as part of her sustainability mandate. Complementing her analytical acumen is an entrepreneurial mindset, extensive industry network, and a commitment to holistic well-being through yoga, dance, and mindful practice.

Sudhir Banerjee
Welleness Leaderand & Formerly – SVP,
Country Head Teva Pharmaceutical India
& GBS Teva-India & Croatia, SVP & Head GBS,
ABB, & Sr Leader – Honeywell, GE, Eicher Motors

With over three decades of experience, Sudhir Banerjee is a leading expert in global business transformation, Lean Six Sigma, and Large-Scale Interaction Process (LSIP). He began his career at Eicher Mitsubishi, mastering total quality management and JIT manufacturing under Japanese mentorship. He then played a pivotal role in launching shared services for GE during its BPO startup phase, growing the team from 70 to over 12,500 members.At Honeywell and ABB, Sudhir led transformation across service verticals and helped establish ABB’s GBS hub in Bangalore. More recently, he served as Head of Teva India and its Global Business Services until April 2025. Today, Sudhir consults on organizational and individual transformation with an emphasis on holistic well-being and strategic change.