Jamshedpur, December 3: XLRI Jamshedpur’s PGDM (GM) programme hosted the second edition of its flagship AI conclave, Manakriti 2.0, on Saturday, bringing together industry leaders, technology practitioners and academics to examine how artificial intelligence is reshaping business, talent and ethical frameworks for the decade ahead.
Held under the theme “Trust, Truth, and Transformation: Building Responsible AI for the Next Decade,” the day-long event featured panel discussions on enterprise-scale AI engineering, workforce transformation and the growing demand for transparent, human-centred systems.
The conclave was opened by Prof. Giridhar Ramachandran, Associate Dean of XOL, who urged students to view AI not merely as a technical capability but as a discipline requiring ethical clarity and human sensitivity. “The next decade will belong to leaders who balance innovation with wisdom,” he said, highlighting trust as the defining currency of an AI-driven world.
The first panel, Engineering Intelligence, examined how companies are moving from proof-of-concepts to enterprise-ready AI deployments. Speakers from Aptiv, Kearney, EY and Convera said that strong data governance, explainability and modern cloud-native architectures are becoming essential to scaling AI.
A second panel on Redefining Talent focused on the shifting nature of work, with experts from Accenture, Simon-Kucher, Knowledge Foundry, BCG and NielsenAI saying AI is augmenting rather than replacing human roles. They stressed that future jobs will demand hybrid skills combining technology fluency with problem-solving, creativity and empathy.
The final session, AI Ethics by Design, featured leaders from IBM, Dell, PwC and Microsoft, who warned that fairness, transparency and privacy safeguards are now strategic requirements. Organisations that embed ethical frameworks early, they said, will be better positioned to comply with emerging global regulations and build durable trust.
Prof. Sunil Sarangi delivered the closing address, calling for “responsible innovation anchored in human values and societal impact.” He said that while AI capabilities are expanding rapidly, their purpose must remain aligned with improving lives and strengthening institutions.
The event received institutional support from Fr. S. George SJ, Fr. Donald D’Silva SJ, Prof. Sanjay Patro and senior faculty members. It was organised under the guidance of Prof. Kanagaraj Ayyalusamy and Ms. Haripriya B.
Manakriti 2.0 reaffirmed XLRI’s focus on preparing leaders who see AI not only as a tool of transformation but also as a responsibility. The conclave has quickly grown into one of the institute’s key platforms for dialogue at the intersection of management, technology and ethics.
