26

London Business Matters

Two minute interview

TWo MINUTE INTERVIEW

Professor Poonam Kumar, chairperson, Mega Ace Consultancy
how do you think that transport system of london can be improved? The economic growth of any city is closely linked with its transport system. London is a unique city. It has been one of the most popular destinations for international business for several decades as well as a hub for art and culture. To enable London to regain its past glory it is important that the citys infrastructure improves. The 2010 Transport Strategy for London provides the key goals and roadmap to achieve this objective including the oysterising of the rail and river network. What should be londons response to the ongoing terrorist threat? The approach has to be one of firmness and zero tolerance against the perpetrators of such crimes. Londoners must seek to bring about greater value integration particularly among the youth and international diaspora. The openness of UK society is immensely admirable; however it is important that anti-social elements are not allowed to take advantage of this openness. What piece of red tape causes most problems for your company and why? None, in my experience the UK is an open and vibrant country and London is ideally located to facilitate easy connectivity across the world. In fact, it is these factors that had been my key considerations when I decided to set up my international office here. What do the 2012 Olympics mean to you and your business? The Olympics will mean a lot for the UK economy. Apart from its tourism potential, the Games will also be a chance to create a sense of positive energy and growth for the otherwise stagnant economy. I believe that the positive impact will be felt not only in London but also in the rest of UK and Europe in general.

London must re-emerge as the global centrestage of innovation and technology development
if you were the Mayor of london for the day which one thing would you change? It is a difficult task to manage the affairs of a large and legendary city like London but Boris is doing a great job. One day is too short a tenure but my focus would be on bringing about youth empowerment and development. It is also important to focus on value integration within society particularly among the international diaspora in the city. What is the biggest challenge that london faces? I feel that bringing about greater social value integration within London is critical and the biggest challenge the city faces today. It is important for London to revive its position as the hub of global economic activity. This can be done through a concerted effort of all stakeholders. It calls for the unified approach, eliminating duplication and combining the efforts of various agencies which will enable the city to utilize its limited resources to achieve the common goal of reviving economic growth and creating jobs for all seeking employment opportunities. In this direction, London must re-emerge as the global centre-stage of innovation and technology development. The involvement of youth in bringing about this shift in development paradigm is also imperative. This objective can be achieved through promoting business incubation, vocational training ensuring gainful employment for the next generation of Londoners.

Who are you? I am a business management expert working with global high technology companies helping them build global partnerships. The focus of my work is to enable these companies to forge cross-border synergies, particularly in rapidly growing economies, helping them to capitalise on the growth opportunities. What is your connection with the london Chamber of Commerce? I am a member of the LCCI Council and on the Committee of the Asian Business Association. What was your first job in london? I built up an executive training partnership with the Securities Institute of London conducting the International Capital Market Qualification (ICMQ ) Examination to India for the first time in the late 1990s. I realised that as India was integrating itself with the global economy, there was a need to align it globally through knowledge-sharing and capability-building programmes. My efforts generated a lot of interest and participation from the leading financial sector companies in the country. This training partnership was the beginning of my long association with London. Since then I have worked on regeneration programmes supported by the London Development Agency for the Asian diaspora and have worked with the Commonwealth Secretariat and DFID. I was also the international development director of a healthcare technology company and set up the international office of my consulting firm Mega Ace Consultancy in 2003. Which one business achievement over the last 12 months are you most proud of, and why? It gives me a great sense of accomplishment to be able to work with high technology British and European organisations who are seeking to develop crossborder partnerships with companies

in emerging economies. Clean energy, healthcare technology and education are areas of such global cooperation. We help these global organisations to build innovative solutions for new and high growth emerging markets like India. Through our work, we bring about the convergence of socio-economic and cultural aspects that global enterprises need for managing business in emerging economies if there is one thing i hate about my job its the fact that I travel quite frequently on business and hate the thought of having to spend too much time at the airports and on f lights.

if you were advising a young entrepreneur which business person would you suggest as a model? Bill Gates. He has succeeded in transforming the technology space making the personal computer accessible and userfriendly for millions around the world. His spirit of enterprise and willingness to give back to society is evidenced by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 1994 which is the largest private foundation in the world focusing on creating sustainable models of philanthropic work.

Bill and Melinda Gates

Photo: Kjetil Ree