Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar, witnessed Stratonomics 2025,The Annual Business Conclave organized by CONSTRAT – The Consulting and Strategy Consortium of XIM, Bhubaneswar.
The theme for this year was “Beyond Barriers: Redefining Differentiation in an Age of Hyper Competition .”
The conclave was graced by the presence of distinguished guests and XIMB alumni, including Mr. Harsh Shah (Senior Product Manager, OpenTable), Mr. Ankush Arora (Chief Human Resource Officer, TBO.com), Mr. Tapan Mishra (Consulting Partner, Wipro), and Mr. Siju Narayan (Chief Experience Officer, RexEmptor Consult LLP) and Mr. Suman Sastry (Vice President, AI Acceleration, Everest Group). The esteemed Professor Francis Thomas Castelino moderated the proceedings.
The conclave commenced with the lighting of a lamp. Subsequently, Mr. Harsh Shah, the first speaker, discussed how traditional barriers to entry have evolved, and highlighted the true enablers of growth today. He then spoke about the new basis of competition and how organisations stay relevant, referencing Microsoft, Salesforce, Oracle, and OpenTable through the lens of the competitive triad, he stressed that “partnership is not just about acquiring, but about delivering value together.”
The second speaker, Mr. Ankush Arora, reflected on his XIMB experience and emphasised that differentiation today lies not in offerings, but in how organisations stand out, respond, and build internal capability. He highlighted the importance of culture, purpose, trust, talent, and agility, as core pillars of organisational excellence. As he stated, “Culture, purpose, agility, talent and trust will be the new differentiators for competition.”
The third speaker, Mr. Tapan Mishra, spoke about consulting as the art of delivering innovative solutions that create meaningful differentiation for clients. Drawing from his experience at Wipro, he highlighted the importance of trust, ethics, purpose, core values and the five guiding principles he upholds within his organisation. Reinforcing his belief, he stated, “Winning the trust of customers in an ethical manner is what matters most.”
The fourth speaker, Mr. Siju Narayan, shared insights from his career journey while emphasising that Customer Experience (CX) is the ultimate differentiator. He spoke about the shift from manufacturing to a customer-driven era, and how winning today requires being customer-obsessed, supported by relevant examples. His takeaway underlined that, “The focus of the new edge era is to improve the customer experience incrementally.”
Finally, the last speaker, Mr. Suman Sastry, expressed gratitude to XIMB and reflected on his memorable experience there. He spoke about the transition from now → new → next, how A3 (Automation, AI & Agents) is reshaping how advisors think and work, and also discussed the Five D’s framework – direction, design, decision, delivery, and durability As he remarked, “Start building your edge by sharpening new skills, solving real problems and staying informed on innovations.”.
The conclave concluded with an interactive Q&A session and a panel discussion, moderated by Professor Francis Thomas Castelino, who encapsulated the key takeaways from the day. A vote of thanks was then delivered by Mr. Asjad Malik, Coordinator of CONSTRAT, expressing gratitude to all speakers and participants.