The partnership will provide a fillip to IIMB’s sustained studies in the area of inclusion
JULY 01, 2016: Mphasis, an IT services and solutions provider, today announced the Mphasis Chair for Digital Accessibility & Inclusion in partnership with the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB).
Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, whose research interest is in the area of organizational diversity management and forms of social inclusion and has a published body of work in the area in international journals, is the Digital Accessibility & Inclusion Research Chair at IIMB.
“We all have different degrees of abilities and different types of abilities. So, when we refer to this group called persons with disabilities, we are not looking at some ‘other’; we are looking at us,” observed Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, adding that the partnership with Mphasis would certainly provide a fillip to sustained studies in the area of social inclusion.
Dr. Mukta Kulkarni has published papers in international journals such as the Academy of Management Journal, Human Resource Management, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and The Leadership Quarterly. Her co-authored paper on radical change has been recognized as the Best Paper for year 2007 in the Academy of Management Journal. Her co-authored paper on overqualification has been recognized as the Outstanding Paper in the 2016 Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence.
According to the recent World Report on Disability published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Bank, 15% of the world’s population has a disability, which is approximately one in seven people. Understanding the technology needs of PwD and providing workable solutions is the key.
The Mphasis Chair for Digital Accessibility & Inclusion will focus on:
- Building technology to help Persons with Disabilities (PwD) overcome accessibility barriers
- Promoting research around disability and advocating digital accessibility solutions
- Publishing global best practices in the area of accessibility for PwD with a large focus on digital accessibility
- Structuring and crafting strategic roadmap for organizational policy makers, researchers, practitioners and students to address critical gaps in research and development in digital accessibility
“We are glad to partner with Indian Institute of Management Bangalore in an effort to make a meaningful difference in the lives of people with disability. We believe the partnership with IIMB is well timed and offers perfect collaboration of IIMB’s expertise in the area of research and talent,” said Ganesh Ayyar, Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director, Mphasis.
“We are really excited about the partnership with Mphasis. As an institute, IIMB wants to be inclusive in all aspects especially with regard to students with disabilities, whose needs we proactively address. In a sense, IIMB meets the requirements of students with disabilities in a holistic manner. The Research Chair is yet another step forward in making a difference in the area of inclusion,” said Professor R Srinivasan, Director Incharge, IIM Bangalore.
Technology as an enabler of right to access for PwD
At an industry wide roundtable organized in Bengaluru by National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) in partnership with Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJ&E) and NASSCOM Foundation, Mphasis and IIMB reaffirmed their commitment in the area of digital accessibility. The event provided a platform for the ecosystem including the government, policy makers, industry representatives and corporates to join hands and discuss the importance of accessibility in all spheres of life, especially Information and Communications Technology, for ensuring a barrier free and independent life for people with disabilities.
The roundtable discussion was intended to sensitize companies about ways to make their own websites, products and service offerings accessible for persons with disabilities. Chief Information Officers and Chief Technology Officers from leading corporates and start-ups attended the discussion along with few government representatives. Som Mittal, Former President and Chairman, NASSCOM, Professor Ishwar Murthy, Dean, Faculty, IIM Bangalore, Ganesh Ayyar, CEO & Executive Director, Mphasis, Javed Abidi, Honorary Director of NCPEDP discussed various elements of the need for Information Accessibility.
“Why can’t companies make digital accessibility a part of their business strategy, instead of talking of accessibility as a matter of the heart and keeping it in the CSR area?” asked Ganesh Ayyar, going on to explain Mphasis’s long-term vision in this area.
At the round table, Javed Abidi, Honorary Director - NCPEDP, said: “Today ICT has a significant impact across different sectors of activities in all countries of the world. It is therefore essential that all segments of the population including people with disabilities have access to ICT in education, cultural activities, e-government activities, healthcare, etc. The ICT application systems need to be designed and developed keeping in mind the needs of people with different types of disabilities to ensure that approximately 15% of the world’s population (1 billion people) are not left out of this digital evolution.”
Ganesh Ayyar, Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director, Mphasis, and Prof. Ishwar Murthy, Dean Faculty, IIM Bangalore exchange the MoU between Mphasis & IIMB for the setting up of a Research Chair in Digital Accessibility & Inclusion
Prof. R. Srinivasan, Director Incharge, IIMB, Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, faculty member, IIMB & Meenu Bhambhani, Head-CSR, Mphasis. Mphasis has set up a Research Chair on Digital Accessibility & Inclusion at IIMB with Dr. Mukta Kulkarni at the helm.
(L-R) Prof. R. Srinivasan, Director Incharge, IIMB; Prof. Ishwar Murthy, Dean Faculty, IIMB; Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, Research Chair, Digital Accessibility & Inclusion, IIMB; Prof. Vasanthi Srinivasan, Organizational Behaviour & Human Resources Management, IIMB; Dr. Rajluxmi V Murthy, Chairperson, Committee on Disability, IIMB; Dr. Meenu Bhambhani, VP and Head-CSR, Mphasis; Nipun OS, Program Manager, CSR, Mphasis and IIMB alumnus (PGP ’08), after signing of the MoU between the IT major and the institute.
The partnership will provide a fillip to IIMB’s sustained studies in the area of inclusion
JULY 01, 2016: Mphasis, an IT services and solutions provider, today announced the Mphasis Chair for Digital Accessibility & Inclusion in partnership with the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB).
Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, whose research interest is in the area of organizational diversity management and forms of social inclusion and has a published body of work in the area in international journals, is the Digital Accessibility & Inclusion Research Chair at IIMB.
“We all have different degrees of abilities and different types of abilities. So, when we refer to this group called persons with disabilities, we are not looking at some ‘other’; we are looking at us,” observed Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, adding that the partnership with Mphasis would certainly provide a fillip to sustained studies in the area of social inclusion.
Dr. Mukta Kulkarni has published papers in international journals such as the Academy of Management Journal, Human Resource Management, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and The Leadership Quarterly. Her co-authored paper on radical change has been recognized as the Best Paper for year 2007 in the Academy of Management Journal. Her co-authored paper on overqualification has been recognized as the Outstanding Paper in the 2016 Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence.
According to the recent World Report on Disability published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Bank, 15% of the world’s population has a disability, which is approximately one in seven people. Understanding the technology needs of PwD and providing workable solutions is the key.
The Mphasis Chair for Digital Accessibility & Inclusion will focus on:
- Building technology to help Persons with Disabilities (PwD) overcome accessibility barriers
- Promoting research around disability and advocating digital accessibility solutions
- Publishing global best practices in the area of accessibility for PwD with a large focus on digital accessibility
- Structuring and crafting strategic roadmap for organizational policy makers, researchers, practitioners and students to address critical gaps in research and development in digital accessibility
“We are glad to partner with Indian Institute of Management Bangalore in an effort to make a meaningful difference in the lives of people with disability. We believe the partnership with IIMB is well timed and offers perfect collaboration of IIMB’s expertise in the area of research and talent,” said Ganesh Ayyar, Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director, Mphasis.
“We are really excited about the partnership with Mphasis. As an institute, IIMB wants to be inclusive in all aspects especially with regard to students with disabilities, whose needs we proactively address. In a sense, IIMB meets the requirements of students with disabilities in a holistic manner. The Research Chair is yet another step forward in making a difference in the area of inclusion,” said Professor R Srinivasan, Director Incharge, IIM Bangalore.
Technology as an enabler of right to access for PwD
At an industry wide roundtable organized in Bengaluru by National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) in partnership with Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJ&E) and NASSCOM Foundation, Mphasis and IIMB reaffirmed their commitment in the area of digital accessibility. The event provided a platform for the ecosystem including the government, policy makers, industry representatives and corporates to join hands and discuss the importance of accessibility in all spheres of life, especially Information and Communications Technology, for ensuring a barrier free and independent life for people with disabilities.
The roundtable discussion was intended to sensitize companies about ways to make their own websites, products and service offerings accessible for persons with disabilities. Chief Information Officers and Chief Technology Officers from leading corporates and start-ups attended the discussion along with few government representatives. Som Mittal, Former President and Chairman, NASSCOM, Professor Ishwar Murthy, Dean, Faculty, IIM Bangalore, Ganesh Ayyar, CEO & Executive Director, Mphasis, Javed Abidi, Honorary Director of NCPEDP discussed various elements of the need for Information Accessibility.
“Why can’t companies make digital accessibility a part of their business strategy, instead of talking of accessibility as a matter of the heart and keeping it in the CSR area?” asked Ganesh Ayyar, going on to explain Mphasis’s long-term vision in this area.
At the round table, Javed Abidi, Honorary Director - NCPEDP, said: “Today ICT has a significant impact across different sectors of activities in all countries of the world. It is therefore essential that all segments of the population including people with disabilities have access to ICT in education, cultural activities, e-government activities, healthcare, etc. The ICT application systems need to be designed and developed keeping in mind the needs of people with different types of disabilities to ensure that approximately 15% of the world’s population (1 billion people) are not left out of this digital evolution.”
Ganesh Ayyar, Chief Executive Officer & Executive Director, Mphasis, and Prof. Ishwar Murthy, Dean Faculty, IIM Bangalore exchange the MoU between Mphasis & IIMB for the setting up of a Research Chair in Digital Accessibility & Inclusion
Prof. R. Srinivasan, Director Incharge, IIMB, Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, faculty member, IIMB & Meenu Bhambhani, Head-CSR, Mphasis. Mphasis has set up a Research Chair on Digital Accessibility & Inclusion at IIMB with Dr. Mukta Kulkarni at the helm.
(L-R) Prof. R. Srinivasan, Director Incharge, IIMB; Prof. Ishwar Murthy, Dean Faculty, IIMB; Dr. Mukta Kulkarni, Research Chair, Digital Accessibility & Inclusion, IIMB; Prof. Vasanthi Srinivasan, Organizational Behaviour & Human Resources Management, IIMB; Dr. Rajluxmi V Murthy, Chairperson, Committee on Disability, IIMB; Dr. Meenu Bhambhani, VP and Head-CSR, Mphasis; Nipun OS, Program Manager, CSR, Mphasis and IIMB alumnus (PGP ’08), after signing of the MoU between the IT major and the institute.