COLLOQUIUM GLOBAL, brainchild of Mr. Mansoor Soomro, an alumnus of the Institute of Business Management (IoBM) with distinguished corporate experiences, held an event “Seven Conversations” at IoBM on January 25, 2017. “Colloquium’s 7Conversations distills the best of learning experiences in executive education. It is based on leadership challenges shared by leaders from different industries and backgrounds.” It was largely attended by IoBM students, faculty and management.
Invited to the event were seven distinguished speakers from their respective fields such as Professor Atta-ur-Rahman, Chairman, UN Committee on Science, Technology and Innovation; Mr. Mahmood Virani, Director, Aga Khan University; Mr. Kabeer Naqvi, COO, U Microfinance Bank; Ms. Uzma Alkarim, Head of Gender Sensitivity Department, GEO TV; Mr. Sarfaraz A. Rehman, Ex-CEO, Engro Foods Limited; Mr. Wusat Ullah Khan, Co-Host, Zara Hat Kay, Dawn News and Dr. Asher Hasan, Founder and CEO, Naya Jeevan.
The speakers delivered a presentation covering a specific topic which were: “Disruptive Innovation” by Professor Atta-ur-Rehman, “Careers of the future” by Mr. Mahmood Virani, “Fortune at the bottom of the pyramid” by Mr. Kabeer Naqvi, “Prevention of harassment at workplace” by Ms. Uzma Alkarim, “Living authentic life” by Mr. Sarfaraz A. Rehman, “Media at crossroads” by Mr. Wusat Ullah Khan and “Burgers and Bun-kebabs” by Dr. Asher Hasan.
While delivering the Welcome Address, Mr. Talib Karim, Rector, IoBM said he was impressed by the lineup of distinguished guests speaking at this occasion. He was confident that these talks would become a learning experience for the students. He especially applauded the works and efforts of Professor Dr. Atta-ur-Rehman in the field of organic chemistry and as the Chairman of the Higher Education Commission (HEC) Pakistan from 2002 to 2008.
During his talk, Professor Dr. Atta-ur-Rehman emphasized on the role of technology in evolving large-scale manufacturing, health sciences and research. Dr. Wusat Ullah Khan elucidated upon the importance of media freedom while focusing on the need for the electronic media of Pakistan to create a national action plan to safeguard Pakistan’s interests. Ms. Uzma AlKarim informed the audience about the reality of workplace harassment, the process of filing a harassment complaint and the challenges faced by working women in this regard. Mr. Sarfaraz Rehman accentuated that parents must teach their children to follow a simplistic way of life to reduce the demands and stress of life. Mr. Mahmood Virani explained that the fresh graduates and the youth of Pakistan must become life-long learners to adapt themselves to changing professions. Mr. Kabeer Naqvi presented a brief overview of Pakistan’s commercial and microfinance banking sector and the evolution of telecommunication-based branchless banking in Pakistan. Dr. Asher Hasan could not attend the event but did send a short video debating over the need for the elite and the less-privileged sector of Pakistan to work in unison to create a better future.