Ranked 58thThe first session was taken by Mr Justine James, assistant professor, department of MBA, AIMIT, on August 24, 2020 on the topic ‘Market dynamics in the post COVID era’. Mr James began the presentation by highlighting the prioritisation of various commodities and sectors in the post COVID era. He also mentioned that the major concern for logistics companies in these times would be on how to improve profitability and competitiveness of the supply chain.
Quoting the research of Ivanov and Dolgui (2020), the speaker explained that sustainable practices (sustainability) and agility are the key ways to improve supply chain management. Mr James also reminded the participants about the significance of the12th goal of sustainable development (2030 Sustainable Development Agenda) inthe post COVID era, i.e.‘responsible consumption and production’ and explainedthe relevance of closed loop supply chain management and sustainable practices in manufacturing. He concluded the session by stating that the COVID pandemic would accelerate the process of deglobalisation and reshoring.
In the second session on August 25, 2020, Mr Ravi Kudtarkar, assistant professor, department of MBA, AIMIT, spoke about the‘Opportunities for India to progress in a post pandemic world – a logistics and supply chain perspective’. Mr Kudtarkar commenced the session by discussing the business scenario in sectors of automobiles, pharmaceutical and consumer goods. He articulated on how there was a transformation in the conduct of business from the start of the pandemic till date.
Mr Kudtarkar listed out case studies from firms belonging to small scale industry sector, large scale industry sector and public sector so as to explain how these firms were adaptable and agile to meet the need of the time. In continuation to the discussion, the ‘Spiral of prosperity’ model was explained and applied in the context of Indian economy. This model explained the path ahead to recuperate the Indian economy situation post pandemic.The session concluded by discoursing on the impact of China on the global supply chain. The deliberation led to many new frameworks that can be implemented in the public-policy formation.
In the final session on August 26, 2020, Mr Jeevan Lawrence, assistant professor, department of MBA, AIMIT, spoke about the ‘Trends in retail and manufacturing industries during COVID’. He explained how manufacturers and retailers have responded to the current crisis and also the roadmap for these industries in the future. Few case studies on best practices by manufacturing and retail organisations were discussed during the session. The information shared was based on primary data collected from industry experts in manufacturing and retail organizations.The session ended with a note of thanks by the Dean, Dr Rowena Wright.
