What Makes Bengaluru the Silicon Valley of India?

This weekend Institute of Product Leadership inaugurated the newest cohort (3rd with CMR University and 5th overall) of our Executive MBA in Product Leadership program that is offered in collaboration with universities. CMR University is one of the host universities for the program. The inauguration ceremony was chaired by Honorable Vice Chancellor of CMR University, Dr. Joshi, with Dr. Mohan Das, Director of Ministry of Human Resources Development, Government of India, as the invited chief guest. Below is the text of my short speech. I shared the vision of the Institute, as part of which, I addressed the question of what makes Bengaluru the Silicon Valley of India.Respected dignitaries on the stage, respected faculty of CMR and IPL, alumni and students, colleagues and friends.

Good morning.

As we have come together here today, it is important to pause and look back on the journey of the last few years. Why are we here and how did we get here?

Embarking on something new and innovative, for the first time, as CMR and IPL did a few years ago to launch the Executive MBA in Product Leadership, required us to have a bold vision.

Doing something consistently for the second, third time and beyond, reinforces that vision.

I want to recognize the leadership and team at CMR university, for being forward thinking and creating this shared vision with IPL. I sincerely appreciate and thank hon’able VC Dr. Joshi sir and his team for their continuous support and guidance.

This program, Executive MBA in Product Leadership, is one of the first of its kind in the world – experiential, relevant, designed by the industry for the industry.

It is a tall claim, isn’t it? But it is one that is now validated. Last year in Mumbai the World Education Congress recognized IPL with an award of the Best Institute for Industry Collaboration. Few days back, Silicon India recognized us as the Institute of the year.

Awards and recognition are a byproduct of executing a vision with focus. What is that vision, which drives us on this journey every single day? I want to share it with you as you are now part of this vision.

We often hear that Bengaluru is the Silicon Valley of India. Would you say that is true? If you see all the company logos on the outside of buildings, it certainly feels like that.

We were at NASSCOM 10000 startups two days ago, where Prof. Nathan Gold who is visiting us from Silicon Valley, gave a talk. The energy of the startup entrepreneurs, investors, incubators, accelerators, is very much similar to Silicon Valley. We probably beat Silicon Valley in traffic.

But there is one big piece missing, a crucial piece. Silicon Valley has an amazing industry academia collaboration with universities like Stanford and UC Berkeley. They fuel the culture of entrepreneurship and a lot of innovation in the Valley.

CMR and IPL took a meaningful step towards bringing this technology industry and academia collaboration together with the launch of this program.

As you know very well, the business model of the Indian IT industry is rapidly changing. Phase 1 was outsourced R&D services. Phase 2 building products conceived in other parts of the world. Phase 3 building products for India and the rest of the world, from India. So this is truly an exciting time to be here right now. We are on the cusp of a radical shift.

This shift creates gaps in talent and skill sets. It also creates opportunities. It needs a new generation of product leaders. It needs you. It’s not just the logos outside the buildings, but the leadership, skillsets and mindsets of people inside these buildings that is going to make Bengaluru the Silicon Valley of India.

Now looking ahead, to the next 18 months of this journey, I am excited for this 3rd cohort of the CMR IPL program. I congratulate you for your commitment to transform yourselves into the next generation of product leaders that is going to shape this industry.

Thank you.