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At the Annual General Meeting of the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce held Thursday June 28, 2012, in Toronto, Mr. Naval Bajaj was elected the 25th President of the Chamber. He has been associated with the Chamber for the last three years, initially as a director and then as the Vice President.

Speaking about his priorities as the new President, Naval said, “Our Chamber is both a business organisation and a Diaspora organisation, and we will continue to stay focussed on our mandate of fostering Canada-India bilateral economic relations and promoting the interests of the Indian Diaspora in Canada.”

Elaborating on his core priorities, Naval explained that the two developments that have determined the course for the Chamber are of the growing bilateral economic cooperation between Canada and India and the steadily growing population of the Indo-Canadian Diaspora.

“We have evolved a grassroots approach to build our membership, and we will continue on the same path,” Naval said, and emphasised that the Chamber’s councils in Alberta, British Council, Quebec, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and one in Ottawa would be revitalised to augment the councils’ membership.

Referring to the discussions that emerged during the annual general meeting, the new President observed that the process initiated by the previous board on issues of governance and the utilisation of the building corpus will lead to clear directives on both these issues that are important to the members.

“As the new President, I’ll work hard to meet the expectations of our members on these matters.”

Naval Bajaj is a Certified Business Consultant with 7-Eleven Canada where he is involved in strategic and financial planning. He holds a Master of Engineering, Master of Business Administration and Bachelors of Law degrees. Naval has held a number of leadership positions at IIM, SSM, Management Association of Gujarat Chamber of Commerce.

Over 1200 people converged in full force on June 9 to celebrate the ‘Best of the Best’ as The Indo Canada Chamber of Commerce held its annual Awards and Gala Night at The Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Downtown Toronto. This premiere social and business event’s theme this year was ‘Engaging Partners, Implementing Strategies’.

The Awards Gala hosted a number of Canada’s influencers who enjoyed a mix of dinner and entertainment, award presentations and speeches. 

Honorable Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister for Natural Resources was the Chief Guest for the evening.

Phaneesh Murthy, President and CEO of iGate was the keynote speaker. ICCC President Satish Thakkar talked about ICCC’s efforts over the past 35 years to create a better understanding between Canada and India.

“The Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) has worked hard with dedication and strived to create a better understanding of India in Canada and Canada in India, provided unstinted support to India’s causes and concerns in a tangible way, and built close links between India and the Indian Diaspora, and Canada,” said Mr. Thakkar. He has been heading the Chamber for the past year.

“Today, we are the largest and fastest growing bilateral Indo-Canadian organisation in Canada. Both the Canadian and the Indian establishments depend upon our Chamber to be a key facilitator in fostering economic relations. Zeal and enthusiasm are two words that aptly describe our Chamber’s approach during its three-and-a-half decade’s journey from nebulous and tentative beginnings in 1977 to its present august status,” said Mr. Thakkar.

The event recognised prominent Indo-Canadian achievers from across the country in several categories through the evening. These included:

• Female Entrepreneur: Pravina Budhdev, CEO Huntington Travel Group of Companies

• Male Entrepreneur: Harpreet Sethi, CEO, The Grand Victorian Convention Centre and Radisson Plaza in Mississauga                      

• Female Professional: Dr. Madhur Anand, Director of Global Ecological Change Laboratory

• Male Professional: Sunit Radia, William Procter Sales Master, Market Strategy & Planning, Procter & Gamble Inc                              

• Young Achiever: Akash Sahney, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, My Voice

• Technology Achievement: Suneet Singh Tuli and Raja Singh Tuli ofData Wind Ltd                              

• Corporate Executive of the Year: Sriram Iyer, President and CEO, ICICI Bank

• Humanitarian of the Year: Chandrakant Sachdev, President, Rainbow Capital Properties Inc                        

• Lifetime/Outstanding Achievement award: Dr. Pawan Singal, Professor of Physiology and Director of Cardiovascular Studies at St. Boniface Hospital and the Universityof Manitoba, Winnipeg

• President's Award: Preeti Saran, Consul General of India in Toronto        
  

• Member of the Year: Kasi Rao, Senior Advisor, Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce

SATISH THAKKAR

Special to Globe and Mail

Published Wednesday, February 15, 2012

The Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) and the Town of Markham, Ont., led a trade mission to India and the UAE in January, providing a unique opportunity for delegates to explore emerging markets and, in some cases, clinch deals.

More than 60 small and medium-sized Canadian businesses visited Delhi, Jaipur, Mumbai and Pune in India, and Dubai in the UAE.

The SMBs included companies from such diverse sectors as food processing, hospitality, travel and tourism, construction and development, information technology, and business-service industries. In India, SMBs account for 20 per cent of the country’s GDP, 65 million jobs and 45 per cent of manufacturing and exports. In Canada, the sector contributes 45 per cent of GDP, 75 per cent of employment growth, and 60 per cent of all jobs.

The United States and Mexico capture the bulk of SMB exports from Canada, but companies are steadily expanding into the European Union, Japan, and South America.

The ICCC has been promoting the role of SMBs in bilateral economic relations between Canada and India. The 35-year-old, Toronto-based institution has a coast-to-coast presence in Canada and it is the largest organization with Canadians of Indian origin or descent.

Indo-Canadians have traditionally exhibited a higher-than-average propensity toward their own businesses, in part to overcome a lack of Canadian experience when attempting to get a job. Several factors help steer this process, and ICCC has consistently championed their cause.

Given SMBs have limited resources for overseas market research, ICCC is committed to assisting with networking and providing substantive insights into the Indian market. The ICCC also organizes more than 70 annual events across Canada that focus on business opportunities for its members. The events include site visits and hard-hat tours to expose members to real-world examples of different processes.

During the January trade mission, the ICCC connected Canadian delegates with Indian economic organizations that have significant representation in the SMB sector and an increasing interest in Canada, including the Canada committee of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).

Delegates also benefitted from the interactive sessions with senior government officials who are directly involved with the continuing Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). The ICCC believes these connections are crucial for the expansion of Canadian SMBs into the Indian market.

According to Katie Macmillan’s report, Canadian SMEs and Globalization - Success Factors and Challenges, which was published by the Conference Board of Canada in 2008, “the best performing foreign exporters are often headed by owner-managers with an international background.” She suggests governments in Canada should encourage “born global” SMBs.

This is an accurate assessment. The ICCC consistently encourages its members to expand operations into emerging markets such as India, and advocated for a stronger role for SMBs in fostering bilateral relations between Canada and India.

The ICCC believes that SMBs with an international perspective tend to be more competitive and have a better chance of success in the long run. Global competitiveness leads to innovation, and it helps SMBs perform better on a local level as well.

Special to The Global and Mail

Satish Thakkar is the president of the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-growth/going-global/sixty-companies-join-trade-mission-to-india/article2338312/

Markham: The Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) released its ‘India Mission 2012’ report on the occasion of a debriefing session at the Markham Convergence Centre Monday February 6.

Mr. Satish Thakkar, President, ICCC, presented the report to Frank Scarpitti, the Mayor of Markham and Consul General of India, Mrs. Preeti Saran.

In addition to the delegates who participated in the mission, several elected representatives from Markham, officials from different departments, directors of the ICCC, key sponsors of the Chamber and members of the media corps were present at the event.

The 60-member trade mission was one of the largest ever that the ICCC organised to India and it coincided with the annual convention of the Indian Diaspora in India – the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, which was held in Jaipur this year.

 “The mission provided us many opportunities to pursue the business, trade and investment opportunities that India has to offer,” Mayor Scarpitti said in his address. “It also created an excellent platform to showcase Markham to Indian businesses,” he emphasised.

Echoing Mayor Scarpitti’s sentiments, Satish Thakkar, President, ICCC, explained that the mission’s program was developed to give the delegates a rich Indian experience – that would showcase the best of India to Canadians and the best of Canada to Indians.

“The cities were carefully selected – Delhi, Jaipur, Mumbai, Pune and Dubai, and the lineup of events included meetings with India’s policy makers, seminars and roundtables on topics of relevance to the delegates, interactions with the largest, and the most influential trade bodies, B2B meetings and networking opportunities,”

Three delegates – Ruby Maini of HR Strategies Consulting Inc, Chantal Deslodges of Chantal Deslodges Professional Corporation and Moe Anwar of RBC Royal Bank – shared their experiences during the mission.

https://commonwealthsport.ca/news/archive/indo-canada-chamber-commerce-iccc-pledges-support-canadas-athletes.html