Leadership By Design

Fempower and Dr. K.C.G. Verghese, Higher Education and Leadership Management (HELM) Centre, HITS organized a Two-day Workshop on (LEADERSHIP BY DESIGN)W on 8 and 9 September 2021. The event was organized for 50 staff members comprising women faculty from HITS, KCG College of Technology and Hindustan College of Arts and Science.

The inaugural session of (Leadership by Design)W commenced with the Welcome Address by Dr. S. N. Sridhara, Vice Chancellor, HITS who extended a warm and cordial welcome to chief guest Dr. Anne Mary Fernandez, Former Registrar, University of Madras, on behalf of the Management, staff and students of Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science. He reinstated the objectives of Hindustan Fempower and also highlighted the importance of education for women as a part of Higher Education Leadership Programme.

A brief introduction of the (LEADERSHIP BY DESIGN) W was given by the Convenor, Dr. Sherine, Head, Languages and Rankings, HITS. She enunciated the aims of the sessions of Two-day Workshop. Ms. Nisha Nujumudeen, AP, SLAAS, Coordinator of the event introduced and invited the eminent chief guest Dr. Anne Mary Fernandez, Former Registrar, University of Madras, to deliver her speech on the inaugural day. Dr. Anne Mary Fernandez gave her views and ideas on Leadership and its attributes of 4Ls’ on the physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual scales.

Key points addressed:

Homo Sapiens are born leaders.
How are leaders designed?
Creating Legacies.
Importance of physical capabilities.
Tweaking Physical Design – Begin, Harness, Inculcate, Develop.
Developing mental/cognitive capabilities.
Emotion capabilities.
Develop Resilience.
Set a Compass of Spirit with values.
Be clear about the power of personality.
Understand ‘Leadership is a role’ and leave a legacy.

OVERVIEW OF THE WORKSHOP

DAY 1

Session 1 – “Leader in You”

Resource Person: Ms. Shaan Katari, Advocate India – Barrister at Law (Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn UK).

Highlights: Active Listening, Art of Diplomacy and Communication, a group activity was given to the participants to assess decision making abilities. There were activities given to emphasis the importance of VUCA – Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity. VUCA creates a platform to describe how people can handle the difficult and different situations, under which they can manage risks, make decisions, plan forward and accept the changes. There was practical session to promote communication among participants with emphasis on stress, intonation and modulation.

Session 2 – “Branding Hindustan”

Resource Person: Mr. Sameer, Director, Brand Muni.

Highlights: The significance of a brand to a product, the role of communication as a stakeholder and as an ambassador was insisted. The session was, indeed, an interactive one. Participants were made to give a tag line to brand Hindustan. The participants were:

Able to understand the importance of branding
Able to give suitable brand name
Able to identify the role of communication as a stakeholder

Session 3 – “Research in You”

Resource Person: Dr. Rita John, Professor, Physics, University of Madras.

Highlights: Featured the modules of Basics of Applying for Research Funded Projects, and how to write effective proposal. Highlighted how women are lagging behind in research and informed the participants the sources to obtain multiple research projects scholarship for women. Participants were trained how to

Identify a research problem
Define Objectives
Methodology to be adopted – Qualitative or /Quantitative
Planning – Duration (Time limit), Budgeting

OVERVIEW OF THE WORKSHOP

DAY 2

Session 1 – Fire Side Chat: “Health and Empowerment of Women”

Resource Person: Dr. Susan Marthandan, Director Hindustan College of Arts and Science.
Moderator: Ms. Nisha Nujumudeen, AP, Economics, HITS.
Highlights: The Fire Side Chat focused on

Health issues faced by woman
Their Medical condition
Facts about diabetes
Breast Cancer – symptoms, risk factors, diagnosis
COVID 19 – How women faced it

Outcome: Participants identified health issues, came to know details about breast cancer, and realized how to take care of their health.

Session 2 – “Striking a Chord with Emotional Balance”

Resource Person: Dr. S. N. Sridhara, Vice Chancellor, HITS.
Highlights: Various Competency Quotients including Intelligence Quotient (IQ), Emotional Quotient (EQ), Social/Spiritual Quotient (SQ) and Adversity/ Adaptability Quotient (AQ) with suitable exemplification were addressed. A pyramid illustration of the quotients was demonstrated to make participants understand that the emotional quotient for the working women which is need of the hour. A questionnaire was distributed to the participants to assess their emotional and social skills which made the session very lively. Outcome: According to the scores got by the individual participant,

Emotional and social skills were analysed.
Category of belonging was identified.

Session 3 – “Fine Dining” Resource Person: Mrs. Hemalatha Sreeram, Faculty, School of Management, HITS.

Highlights:

ABC’s (Appearance, Behaviour & Communication) has to be considered
Importance of dining etiquette was discussed.
Good table manners were taught which will act for social interaction for the rest of our lives
The Art of a Mannerly Business Meal was insisted.
Proper manners and behaviour in a formal dining situation.
To create an impression by following proper table manners.
Imbibing these manners are essential for their professional success.

Session 4 – “Me and My Hashtag”

Resource Person: Ms. Lakshmi Krishnamoorthy, Head - Corporate Communications, Aspire Systems.
Highlights: Participants were allowed to explore the social media in the Lab followed by a lecture on the usage of social media and brand building.

Outcome: The participants learnt to

Use hashtag effectively.
Keep hashtag short and memorable.
Use it specifically will give a better result.
Use it only to add value to the post.
Use hashtags on twitter, facebook, linkedin, pinterest and Instagram.
Design it with a strategy.