The KPMG Indian Business Practice (IBP), headed by Jay Patel, has been operating for 15 years and acts as a single national point for all business matters Indian Australian
A recent networking dinner was organised by KPMG Australia’s India Business Practice (IBP) for the Indian diaspora business and professionals. It was held on the sidelines of the recently concluded ICC T20 World Cup.
Some 100 invited guests heard on this occasion from a panel of international Indian diaspora leaders, entrepreneurs and sports guru on how migrant Indians can – and should – get more involved in local business and politics. The panel included Indra Nooyi (former Chairman & CEO, PepsiCo, and Member of the Board, Amazon), Rangaswami (Founder of Indiaspora), Jennifer Westacott (Chief Executive, Business Council of Australia) and Vab Goel (Founding Partner of NTTVC) had plenty of stories to share.
The KPMG Indian Business Practice (IBP), headed by Jay Patel, has been operating for 15 years and acts as a single national point for all business matters Indian Australian. In his opening remarks, Patel spoke about the ‘duality’ of those present and how that can be harnessed for positive change and progress as the diaspora grows. He further spoke about how KPMG as an organisation has enjoyed the celebration of Diwali over the past few weeks. But on a bilateral level, Patel emphasised the scale of opportunity that has now sprung up, and how the relationship can be built on shared values.
Rangaswami, founder of Indiaspora spoke on the manner in which the Indian diaspora is emerging as a major force in the United States. Acknowledging the corporate leaders of Indian origin in the US, he emphasised that to be a diaspora of influence, the migrant community needs to be involved in politics. “We had set ourselves a target of seeing Indian Americans as 1% of the US Congress,” he recounted. “We achieved it in three cycles.”
KPMG’s India forum was an inspiring forum for Indian Australians to hear from high-achieving global leaders, and to plan their own corporate ambitions
Indra Nooyi spoke about her experiences as a corporate leader. Acknowledging that we will always be hyphenated citizens, she urged the local Indian diaspora to seize the opportunities presented to them. She raised the point that Indians are adept at interacting with diverse community groups having grown up in a diverse culture themselves. This experience comes in handy when they are at CEO levels, of large multinationals. “In Australia, Indians have not reached the top levels as many have done in the United States,” she said. “For this, it is important to be viewed as part of the mainstream.” She recalled how leaders of both the United States and India, referred to her as “one of our own”.
It was interesting to note that both Rangaswami and Nooyi, while urging their listeners on towards greater achievement in their adopted land, advocated different paths – by emphasising their heritage in one case, and by assimilating better in the other case.
A special drop-in guest was cricket great and sports commentator Sunil Gavaskar, who spoke with passion about his time as a cricketer, his commentary days and his work for charity Heart2Heart foundation.
“My third innings is for my charity Heart 2 Heart, which works to saving the lives of children born with congenital heart defects by providing free paediatric cardiac surgery to the family,” he said. “The relief on the faces of the families when the children come through is something which keeps me going,” he added.
KPMG’s India forum was an inspiring forum for Indian Australians to hear from high-achieving global leaders and to plan their own corporate ambitions.
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