Thank you to all the participants for your support and enthusiastic participation. Here are some wonderful words shared by some of our participants. We are overwhelmed and rearing to keep going!
Do share your thoughts, comments & feedback here.
Look forward to meeting you all at FORTESS FEST II.
SRILATHA N K
I did tick on the few boxes provided on the Feedback form but then that did not cut it for me..
When Karthik first suggested I attend this fest I was initially hesitant to attend and wondered what a Chartered Accountant would do amidst stalwarts and technocrats.
To make it easy on myself I approached it with the curiosity of a cinephile about to embark on a sci-fi journey.
Your introductory speech was reminiscent of SPB’s voice in the intro song of Rajnikant’s movies setting the tone for the event.
Mr. Ananthakrishnan’s speech on innovation skillfully laid the groundwork, to a masterful plot setter in a compelling narrative.
The fireside chat with Mr. Mahalingam served as a nostalgic interlude, evoking reflections similar to a poignant flashback scene before the intermission.
Post intermission discussion by Mr. Lakshminarayanan, Mr. Sudheer, and Mr. Chandrashekar added depth to the topic/plot akin to powerful cameo performances by PAN Indian superstars actors enhancing the storyline.
And like the climax of a movie, Mr. Ravi’s discussion on real-world AI and technology applications felt like the unraveling of the plot, simplifying complex terms for someone like me. I am sure it left the participants feeling hopeful and optimistic
Amidst this intellectual spectacle, a shout out to Ms. Chandini for her seamless organization, eloquent communication at various stages of regsitration and also compering the event ..it was like the most essential sprinkle of popcorn and nachos during a riveting cinematic experience.
Thank you PRK for the opportunity to attend this enlightening event.
The foundation’s thoughts and vision truly inspiring and phenomenal.
PRADIP KUMAR, CARECENTRA
I wanted to write this mail thanking all of you for a wonderful session that was so well organised. The collective wisdom inside the hall was exhilarating and I consider myself truly lucky to have been part of this event. I am so impressed by the seniors who have taken all the effort to focus their energies constructively in giving back to the society. In this connection I would like to offer our Healthcare platform (www.carecentra.com) for the benefit of the senior care that Mr. PRK was talking about. We would like to join Fortess in its noble vision.
Thanks again for this wonderful session though it was only a half day program it was really thought provoking to hear the wisdom the seniors had to share.
DINANATH KHOLKAR Independent Advisor | Former SVP, TCS
Some glimpses of FORTESS Fest at Chennai, where some of the top leaders who shaped up the Indian IT industry through Tata Consultancy Services, Cognizant and various industry bodies like nasscom Cii CSI, IEEE shared their experiences
Sharing some of my experiences / intersect with the speakers of the event today
Chandrasekaran Ramakrishnan was my first project leader, when I joined TCS in the Oracle group at Nirmal. He later went to start the TCS SFO office and then became one of the founding members of Cognizant
Lakshmi Narayanan was the TCS RM at Zurich when I went for my first overseas assignment at HP France, Paris. Lakshmi along with N. G Subramaniam (then RM Geneva) provided management oversight for our HP France projects.
On my return from Paris, I spent four years at TCS Seepz and did a few projects under the leadership of PRK PR Krishnan, who has been my friend and mentor over the years. PRK always cherishes the HP Cadport team, which undoubtedly was one of the best.
Met Ananth Krishnan when he was part of the strategic think tank and I was at TRDDC. Over the years, all the roles I took up had a strong leverage of Tata Consultancy Services – Research and I have valued the friendship of Ananth and some of the discussions that helped shaped the thought leadership we took to the customers.
Maha was CFO during the financial crisis and I was managing a few Wall Street customers. He was a great support during the first large BPS deal post the acquisition of #TCSeServe. Maha was always there as a mentor and guide as I managed the TCS eServe acquisition under BFSI BPS. He recollected both these during his session today
Vijaya Deepti P H, a fellow alumni from Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI) and someone who was always there to provide me with guidance during various stages of my career. That we both have been recognised as Distinguished alumni by VJTI makes it more special
Got to know Ravi Viswanathan first when the Wall Street customer i was managing was expanding in Chennai and Ravi was the centre head. Since then we always had an intersect and it was always fun working with him
Sudheer Warrier mentioned about increasing the component of annuity in his business, something which we did considerably through the BPS growth we had in the utilities business
I got to know Vinod Krishnan during one of my trips to Chennai and we have been in touch since then. Good to see how he is driving the growth for his company.
Fortess Fest 1 – Simply Superb
This was the the day I was longing for after spending close to 27 years in TCS. Thank you FORTESS and PRK PR Krishnan for organizing “Fortess Fest 1”. A day well spent in listening to the Technocrats and Industry leaders, with additional bonus of meeting TCS old timers. The session topics and the conversations were highly relevant, engaging and insightful eliciting the nuances, challenges and the speakers perspectives with a plethora of take aways to the participants. Have attempted to summarise my key take- aways in this post.
It was heartening to know the noble purpose, vision, and focus areas of Fortess. With the energy, passion, enthusiasm and commitment of the members, ecosystem support, Fortess is well poised to achieve its purpose and create a long lasting impact to the society.
Ananth’s session on driving innovation emphasized on the importance of having a robust process starting with Purpose, developing foresights, creating a portfolio of opportunities, making choices and investments, creating new products and services, test and scale, learn and repeat. The examples from Nvidia, Apple, IT services and IBM resonated well with the participants.
Fireside chat with S.Mahalingam on the decision framework uncovered his trade secrets in managing financial risks during turbulent times. Am sure his perspectives on ABC and Relationship score card has key take-aways on metrics based management.
The panel discussion with IT stalwarts N.Lakshmi Narayanan, R.Chandrasekaran, Sudheer Warrier moderated by Vijaya Deepthi is a class apart emphasizing the role of leaders in scaling up from a startup to an Enterprise, leadership attributes, ingredients to build a resilient organization and much more.
In the final session, Ravi V explained “Customer Experience” with his unique stories in Supply chain and Logistics sector. The Gati Shakthi initiative of Govt of India is a eye opener for the audacious vision India is aspiring to achieve.
24 Feb 2024 is to be etched in our memory forever. Thank you PRK and Fortess.
Manoharan M,
A great event! Well designed and executed excellently.
– Our PRK’s mesmerizing presentation on Fortess with lot of details
– Our opening batsman Ananth made a good pitch about innovation in his own style.
– Our legendary Leader Maha excelled in injecting his financial acumen to all the participants. Great insights! Well engaged by Vinod, CEO, TCS Next
– Superb Panel for Biz Growth! Lakshmi, Chandra, Sudheer moderated well by Vijaya Deepti. Excellent coverage of many aspects of the topic.
– At the end our Dhoni..Ravi Viswanathan came to play winning shots. Entire hall was at their edge of their seat to enjoy his presentation. The hall was fully with AI fever!
Thanks to Chandini for an excellent contribution in making this event a great success with the support of the Organizing Committee!
Thanks to the Fortess Management for giving an opportunity like this!
T.S.Rangarajan
Fortess achieved a new milestone today by organising this excellent event complete with 200 plus registrations, sponsorships and great sessions. Surely it has come of age. Congratulations to PRK, Chandni, Rajanikanth, sponsors and speakers. The all women Taj Wellington Mews was an excellent choice. Well 👍✅
Srikumar Narayan
Happened to attend the FORTESS FEST-1 event on the 24th February 2024 , Chennai.AM not Ex-TCS -:)
At the event, I had an epiphany that transformed my entire outlook; the insightful discussions and innovative presentations sparked a sudden realization that reshaped my understanding and left me with a newfound sense of inspiration.
Amazing to see stalwarts and leaders ,, now united under the banner of an impactful organization – FORTESS, to channel their expertise and passion towards building another legacy of positive change for the greater public good.
Significant to the event was the security briefing to the audience on the safety protocol, mock drill, alarms etc by the venue partner, , Taj Wellington Mews, true to its brand , was a first of its kind and distinct as embodiment of women power.
Converting the aura into metrics, in typical Tech industry style, the leaders present carry a collective wisdom that impacted several enterprise market cap globally, worked through multiple tech and economic disruptions, enabling several employees by mentoring and leading by example accruing several billions of dollars for the country over years.
FORTESS, lead by PRK , started introduction setting the context for FORTESS with some wisdom pearls – words springing out of shear wisdom of building hard revenues and organization – hesitant to do one-off and capital intensive projects, no big bang, bottom up, cocoon in a corporate world .
Wishing Team FORTESS with their unwavering determination becomes a FORTESS propelling her towards another lasting legacy.
Please do write to generalmanager@fortess.org to share your feedback, comments or for any queries related to FORTESS FEST
