Business Leadership and Sustainability

LEAD India, in collaboration with LEAD International facilitated an intensive learning program on ‘Leadership and Sustainability' for senior mid career managers from the Standard Chartered (SC) Bank across the globe. LEAD and SC co-designed a customized learning module for a selected group of employees recognized as ‘High Performers’ by the bank. The event was organized between 4 to 11^th December 2011

As the technical advisor and knowledge partner for the learning journey, LEAD collaborated with Covenant of Community Development (CCD, Madurai) the Department of Forest & Environment, Lakshadweep Administration and Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) and local community in Agatti Island, Lakshadweep to provide real life learning avenue for the SC team.

The team was thus given an opportunity for a first hand experiential exposure and learning about the multiple dimensions and complexities of sustainable development.

To achieve this, the high caliber management team was exposed to a real life challenges faced by Women SHGs who are struggling their ways to ensure a secured living for their next generation.

Agatti community, which dwells in a context of high risk disaster prone geography, dependence on natural resources for livelihood and several other socio-economic challenges, engaged in an intensive consultative process with the SC team about their life, their context and their concerns.

The SC team was taken through a process where they gained insights on the strengths, challenges and potential. The bankers were also encouraged to have multiple stakeholder consultations to build a comprehensive perspective on the existing problems and through technical support extended by LEAD- offer sustainable solutions to the livelihood challenges faced by Agatti Community.

The process thus works on a twin pronged strategy where on one hand the bank professionals were introduced to the complexities of development on the other hand the local communizes had a rare opportunity to benefit from the technical & management inputs of an expert team.

As a fall out of the week long process, Standard Chartered team brought forth a set of recommendations for the SHGs for strengthening their ongoing initiatives towards securing sustainable livelihoods. The bank also made a small seed funding for the SHGs to support some of their recommendations.

SC, LEAD and CCD shall have a continued engagement in Agatti and  to handhold the community towarads local institution building and self reliance and also in exposing the rather enterprising women groups towards livelihood solutions that are economically viable, technically green and environmentally sustainable.