New Delhi (India CSR): Social Innovation Catalyst, a mentorship program for NGOs spearheaded by My Kartavya, a NASSCOM Foundation initiative along with Tietoevry, showcased the outcome of the three-month mentoring phase at a virtual event. Apart from extensive mentoring, the non-profits were given grants to fund their operations and increase their outreach.
During the event, eight select non-profits gave a detailed presentation on their project, the operational challenges, the scope of outreach, the solutions given by the Tietoevry professionals, and the potential impact they can achieve.
The Jury comprised Sharanayya Kantikar, Head of Digital Innovation, EVRY India (A Tietoevry Company); Sarang Dewaikar, Head of European Deliveries, Tietoevry Create India; and Vishal Thakur, Head – Tech for Good, NASSCOM Foundation.
The jury, emphasized that in the rapidly changing world, technology and innovation are woven into the fabric of society. At Tietoevry it’s time to shift perspectives from what technology can do, to what it should do, so that the future of business, humanity, and societies can live and thrive together.
With this collaborative effort, Tietoevry is able to accelerate technology, innovation, and adoption for social good. In this uniquely curated innovation program, experienced technology and business professionals of Tietoevry offered their knowledge, insights, and mentorship to selected NGOs. The event culminated with the non-profits getting catalytic grants as a token of appreciation. Among them, Nourishing School, Missing Link, and Inclusive Divanjgan Entrepreneur Association got the top grants
Sharing about the My Kartavya, volunteering program, Nidhi Bhasin, CEO, NASSCOM Foundation said, “India’s social sector has always been a vibrant one with over 3.17 million registered non-profits working across different fields. However, capacity building, especially aided by technology has forever remained a challenge in this sector. Creating an enabling ecosystem for India’s social sector, is a critical factor that will decide how quickly we can scale social transformation initiatives and that’s the focus of our TechForGood programs. Under that umbrella the Social Catalyst Innovation initiative in partnership with Tietoevry, has shown that mentorship and support can go a long way in delivering lasting impact at scale.“
On the occasion, Raj Mohan, Managing Director and Country Manager, Tietoevry India said “We, at Tietoevry, believe in harnessing the power of purposeful technology that makes businesses run and societies thrive. Our partnership with NASSCOM Foundation for the Social Innovation Catalyst program is another step in this direction; our experienced technology professionals are providing mentorship to eight selected non-profits and helping them use technology innovatively for greater social impact. “
Under this program, technical, strategic, and marketing mentorship was provided to below mentioned select non-profits to help them strengthen their operations for greater impact:
- Missing Link Trust, India’s foremost public art and education organization
- Indian Music Experience Museum (IME), India’s first interactive music museum.
- Muskaan Papeid society, which provides comprehensive education and training including vocational training and employment opportunities to persons with intellectual disability
- Inclusive Divyangjan Entrepreneur Association (IDEA) – SAKSHAM acts as an entrepreneurship enabler by bringing together PWDs, training providers, financial support systems, technology providers and market linkages, and enterprises that work with PWDs.
- Nourishing School – an NGO that focuses on improving nutrition in every child
- Renovatio Foundation that is aiming for revolution through innovative education & social interventions empowering students & adults with Health, Happiness, and Greatness.
- Key Education Foundation (KEF) is a Bangalore-based NGO working to improve the quality of Early Childhood Education (ECE) for children from low-income communities.
- Sampark Sathi – an app-based one-stop platform designed to bridge the gap between people and NGOs.
The My Kartavya initiative, Social Innovation Catalyst program was started this year with an aim to strengthen the non-profit ecosystem through tech support and mentoring from experienced professionals. Initially, 175 NGOs were enlisted in the program, and eight were chosen after a rigorous selection process.
The select non-profits were given a 3-month exhaustive mentoring program by Tietoevry professionals who mentored the NGOs in streamlining the operations, using tech solutions to target demographic, transcending geographic limitations and boost marketing efforts. The program culminated with Q&A sessions and presentations by the non-profits to gauge the progress and potential of impact.
