The Quarterly Synopsis

Legendary editor-in-chief of Wikileaks JulianAssange 4 posts 291 followers[22.09.2017] From the confines of the Ecuadorian embassy in London, legendary hacker, freedom of speechactivist and editor-in-chief of Wikileaks, Julian Assange was interviewed by the veteran journalist ShekharGupta through a video conference in front of a packed YPO audience in Mumbai. Shekhar Gupta and Julianengaged in an ignited debate on journalism ethics and methods of reporting. Their discussion on thegeo-political struggle around the world and how information can be used to change the course of historyreaffirmed that journalism is the fourth and strongest pillar of our democratic society.The audience got a rare chance to see Julian up-close, interact with him candidly and understand theambitions that have kept the fire in him alive, even through the extreme physical and psychological plight ofbeing confined to a space of 300 square feet, all for the purpose of finding the truth.

In the board room with SanjivMehta 5 posts 291 followers[26.09.2017] YPO Members got a chance to visit the Hindustan Unilever’s corporate headquarters and get an‘in the board room’ view (with none other than HUL CEO Sanjiv Mehta) of the current state of Indian economyfrom the perspective of the largest FMCG player in India. Mr Mehta also shed light on how HUL has grown inIndia and the talent creation and training machinery that is HUL, the members also got a deep understanding ofthe man himself and his journey within the organization. The session and presentation was followed by a visit tothe facilities of the HUL product pipeline.

India’s Apollo Moment with TeamIndus 6 posts 291 followers[29.09.2017] Team Indus is a for-profit organization headquartered in Bangalore, and led by Rahul Narayan. Theteam of professionals from various backgrounds in science, technology, finance and media are the only Indianteam attempting to win the Google Lunar X Prize (GLXP) announced in 2007. The mission, often referred to as\"Moon 2.0\", is a challenge that calls for participating teams to design and land a spacecraft on the Moon. Thecraft is required to travel more than 500 meters (1,600 ft) on the lunar surface and send feedback to Earth. Thedeadline of the competition, which initially attracted entries from over 30 teams from 17 countries, is 31st March2018. The prize - USD 20 million! Rahul and Sheelika of Team Indus excited the imagination of YPO membersand their kids with the mission’s goals and the frugal science being deployed by the team of retired ISROengineers and young college graduates aiming to get India a win.

Fireside Chat with VijayShekharSharma 7 posts 291 followers[06.10.2017] YPO hosted a discussion with PayTM founder Vijay Shekar Sharma in an intimate Fireside chatwith our own Sasha Mirchandani. Vijay spoke candidly about the opportunities and challenges in building ahigh growth VC funded business. He also discussed 197’s (PayTM’s parent) multiple near death experiencesand how he overcame these challenges to be listed in the Forbes list as the youngest Indian billionaire!Elaborating on new ways of inspiring the team and building new business models, while being true to his rootsthroughout, he left members with ideas on the different paths that can be taken to create wealth.

The Real MamtaBanerjee 8 posts 291 followers[01.11.2017] The enigmatic Mamata Banerjee had an engaging conversation with Sajjan Jindal in front of apacked audience at the Ballroom of the Taj Mahal Palace. The discussion abundantly demonstrated theindustrial, technological and cultural transformation that West Bengal has experienced over the past few yearsand how it has become a game changer. Mamata Banerjee, or more popularly known as ‘didi’, said she doesnot consider herself special in any way; she doesn’t believe in VIP treatment and often travels around in herown small car without security. She said she gets her strength and energy from being spontaneous. Sheemphasized on the role of punctuality in achieving goals, and highlighted the importance of struggle. She alsodiscussed the ordeals she faced during the tenure of the previous state government, and how she overcamethem.The Q&A session began with a question regarding her interactions with various political leaders. She wiselyresponded that speech is severe and silence is golden. When asked about how West Bengal’s brainpower wasbeing utilized, she stated that young entrepreneurs are the future of the country. She also candidly answeredmore personal questions like her take on exercising and its importance. The evening gave members a glimpseinto the real Mamta Banerjee.

KaranJohar & AliaBhatt on the “The Business of Pleasure” 9 posts 291 followers[04.11.2017] The YPO chapter saw a riveting discussion on “The Business of Pleasure”, graced by twoindividuals who are icons in their own right, Karan Johar and Alia Bhatt. The show was hosted by renownedfilm-critic and talk-show host Rajeev Masand. The engaging discussion witnessed Karan and Alia share theiropinions, insights, ideas and experiences around the entertainment business. The Q&A threw light on how filmsand content at large is conceptualized and churned out by the industry. The talk comprehensively covered allbases of the film-making process, right from pre-production to the box-office.The discussion began with looking back at the year for Bollywood in terms of the business generated andprogressed to talking about OTT platforms serving as disruptors, to other interesting topics like how filmmakersare trying to keep up with evolving tastes of the audiences. In addition to this, Karan also shed light on howtheatre foot-falls are being impacted today, and the strategies adopted by production houses to flourish in thecurrent economic scenario. Alia, on the other hand, spoke about choices of films, longer shelf-life for maleartists, amongst other topics.The wonderful session was closed with a fun rapid fire and the winners took home a gift hamper of the show'Koffee with Karan'.

Be ‘Legendary’ in the bedroom with Dr Jessica O’Reilly 10 posts 291 followers[09.12.2017] YPO hosted a session for members and spouses on the rooftop of the Four Seasons Hotel withDr. Jessica on how to be ‘Legendary’ in the bedroom. The event was definitely ‘out of the comfort zone’ for ourmembers as she gave a lot of tips on how to ensure that chemistry, play and intimacy stays in the marriage.Initially, husbands and wives were separated into 2 groups and later combined together for the talk. Thesession was followed by aphrodisiac foods like oysters and chocolates!

Think outside the ‘bottle’ with HarshMariwala 11 posts 291 followers[23.11.2017] Mr Mariwala hosted YPO members at the Marico board room to share his entrepreneurial journeyand how he charted his path from a commodity family business to a branded FMCG product company. Hespoke about many of his early successes and failures and how it all helped in shaping his growth. He alsoshared how he made Human Resources and Talent as the core of the company's IP.He gave a lot of insight into how he successfully transitioned to the role of becoming the Chairman of a wellfunctioning board and empowered management.

Ummeed, Truly Legendary 12 posts 291 followers[03.12.2017] This year, on World Disability Day, 40 members and families of the YPO Bombay Chapter took upthe task of painting a 70-foot-long mural on a wall in Ummeed, (a non-profit organization with the objective ofhelping children with developmental disabilities) as well as sprucing up their 10 consulting rooms. Within threehours, under the able and efficient direction of the students of Akanksha, (an NGO that runs 20 municipalschools in Mumbai and Pune, with a mission to provide high-quality education to children from low-incomecommunities, enabling them to maximize their potential and transform their lives) the plain white walls weretransformed into a magical space bursting with colour, that will provide joy to Ummeed’s kids for years tocome.A true understanding of compassion and empathy can only be gained through experience. The entire eventwas planned, managed and led by the Akanksha students, demonstrating the power of student leadership. Itwas a unique experience for all to work alongside and learn from young adults from a very differentbackground. Overall it was a fun morning, not only for the kids, but for the adults too who felt refreshed andrejuvenated by the paints and the colours!

Mastering the Rockefeller Habits with VerneHarnish 13 posts 291 followers[08.12.2017] YPO hosted a day long workshop with Verne Harnish on “Mastering the Rockefeller habits” andhow to create growth in your organization. He gave tools around the People, Strategy, Execution and Cashcontinuum. The day was full of interesting case studies and examples that were very relevant as regards theYPO members’ issues. YPO members got the opportunity to bring their team members along for this eventwhich helped in achieving a maximum ‘take home’. It was a non-stop learning event with a lot of additionalreading material and worksheets to utilize at their place of work.

Building a Family Owned Luxury Powerhouse with ErmenegildoZegna 14 posts 291 followers[09.12.2017] Mr. Ermenegildo Zegna, CEO of the Zegna group for two decades addressed the BombayChapter YPO at the luxurious Dining Room of the Four Seasons hotel. He spoke about the advantages ofkeeping a family business private. He traced the origins of his company as well as the changes it has faced. Hetackled the issue of heading a family business with honesty and humour. His most useful trick, he said, was tojuggle the three hats of CEO, owner and the head of the family. The key was to be wearing the ‘correct hat’while making decisions. In his experience he had found that if the business did well, the family stayed happy.He answered questions about succession planning, his favourite market for Zegna and the challenges ofretaining talent in an extremely competitive environment, amongst others. This candid discussion was followedby a delicious Christmas dinner, which rounded off an extremely enjoyable evening.

Salute the Legendary IndianNavy 15 posts 291 followers[15.12.2017] True to their theme for the year ‘Be Legendary’, YPO Bombay organized a memorable eveningwith the officers, crew and families of the Western Naval Command in Mumbai. In an “only in YPO” experience,a group of YPO’ers were welcomed into the Naval Dockyard behind the doors of Lion Gate. Many of us havegrown up in Mumbai, and driven past Lion Gate many a time but had no idea of the vast complex that laybehind the doors. Members were first treated to a tour and an explanation of a functioning submarine. To gointo the narrow confines of the submarine and understand the environment in which 90 officers and crewmembers undertake missions that could be as long as 45 days, realize that there is extra space for only twobathrooms to be shared by the entire crew who use disposable clothes that get replaced every four days inorder to preserve water, gave us a further appreciation into the dedication of our navy. This was followed by avisit to a battleship where the group was provided with an inspirational talk by the commander into the abilitiesof the battleship and the passion of it’s crew. The group was then led to INS Viraat, a Centaur class aircraftcarrier that was the flagship of the Indian Navy for many decades before her decommissioning earlier this year.Vice Admiral Girish Luthra gave the group a presentation and discussion on the Indian Navy and the maritimechallenges and opportunities that lay ahead. This was followed by a superbly arranged dinner under the starson the deck of the INS Viraat along with Naval officers and their spouses, with the Navy band playing in thebackground. A truly spectacular end to a legendary evening.

Fireside Chat with HenryKravis 16 posts 291 followers[05.01.2018] A very intimate setting at the Taj Rendezvous was organized to ring in Henry Kravis’s birthday overa candid fireside chat moderated by the ever well prepared and able Manish Chokhani. The event saw all thePrivate Equity suits also present with their repertoire of questions which Henry answered very insightfully. It wasgreat to hear his and KKR’s journey as a rare Private Equity firm that has transformed itself over the years frompioneering the leveraged buyout (hostile takeover of RJR Nabisco) to a diversified Financial Services andpublicly listed powerhouse. Themes that kept repeating themselves in Henry’s comments were “out of the boxthinking”, “risk taking”, “diversity in points of view” and “team work/collective responsibility”. He complimentedhis India team led by Sanjay Nayar that epitomize these values. Overall a great way to spend a Friday evening.