Chairman interacts with the Industry Stalwarts at Stoneham, Massachusetts, USA
22-Feb-2020
The Sahyadri family rejoices at the opportunity our Chairman Mr. Manjunath Bhandary had, alongwith the Alumni Mr. Mohammed Anwar, to discuss the initiatives of Sahyadri in the lines of innovation and entrepreneurship with Dr. Gururaj “Desh” Deshpande, President & Chairman, Sparta Group LLC and Mr. Raj Melville, Executive Director, Deshpande Foundation.
Sahyadri had its initial learning from Deshpande Foundation's initiative "The Sandbox Startup" and it was indeed a noteworthy occasion to have had the opportunity to share the outcomes with the visionaries of Deshpande Foundation.
The discussion brought in a lot of learning that shall be implemented in the strategies of the institute and life lessons that shall be an example for all the teachers. The meeting continued for an hour and was possible only because of the Humility and Patience listening from the Stalwarts of the Industry.
Deshpande Foundation is a non-governmental organization founded in 1996 in the United States by Dr. Gururaj (Desh) and Jaishree Deshpande to accelerate the creation of sustainable and scalable enterprises that have significant social and economic impact.
The Foundation has embarked on large-scale projects in the United States and India such as:
• Entrepreneurship for All
• The Hubli Sandbox in Hubli, Karnataka, India
• The Deshpande Center for Social Entrepreneurship in Hubli, Karnataka
• The MIT Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation in Boston, Massachusetts
• The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE), in both the US and across India
• The Indo US Collaboration for Engineering Education (IUCEE)
Besides, the Foundation runs numerous programs in its Indian wing. To name a few:
• LEAD - Leader's Accelerating Development Program - Offers students an opportunity to make a change in their world; Program works with students who have big ideas for a better India, and wants them to see that vision transform into reality.
• Deshpande Fellowship Program
• Deshpande Education trust - nurtures innovative ideas and inspires entrepreneurial acumen in youth.
About Dr. Gururaj “Desh” Deshpande:
(President & Chairman, Sparta Group LLC)
Dr. Gururaj Deshpande is an Indian American venture capitalist and entrepreneur, who is best known for co-founding the Chelmsford, MA-based internet equipment manufacturer Sycamore Networks, the Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation at MIT and the Deshpande Foundation.
Presently, Dr. Deshpande is the Chairman of A123Systems, Sycamore Networks, Tejas Networks, HiveFire, Sandstone Capital, Sparta Group, and sits on the Board of Airvana. He is a Life Member of the MIT Corporation, the Board of Trustees of MIT and sits on the board of the MIT School of Engineering Dean's Advisory Council (DAC).
In July 2010, Deshpande was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Co-Chairmanship of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
About Mr. Raj Melville:
(Executive Director, Deshpande Foundation)
As Executive Director, Mr. Raj develops the Foundation’s strategy and efforts to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation. He has launched the Deshpande Symposium, an international network of over 100 universities and colleges sharing best practices in innovation and entrepreneurship. He founded the Forum for Social Entrepreneurs and has spoken at numerous panels on social entrepreneurship and continues to mentor several startups.
