International Fellowships Program

We get to speak to Rita Soni, CEO of NASSCOM Foundation, the social development arm of NASSCOM, India's premier Information Research industry body. Previously, she was with the American India Foundation heading Communications & Advocacy for the India operations, and prior to that a founding team member of the International Fellowships Program at Ford Foundation. In this interview, we understand NF's work in a new light and as well take aim at many witches like CSR as a publicity gimmick, the need of project management DNA in such initiatives, open source s/w, industry volunteerism, youth participation and a lot more, in this interview. Join in.

There are many big issues to be targeted and companies should have a big appetite for them, especially because there's so much the industry can bring in as a special touch - entrepreneurship or using business models etc. Our vision is to highlight that innovation can facilitate productivity, transparency and reach. Market technology and reach for Indian devices; knowledge networks, disability-sensitive employment, e-governance etc are top our list. I think the CIOs and CTOs can help a lot in making India a more inclusive place and in addressing the bottom-of-the-pyramid successfully.