Need Global Platform Across Universities For Inspiration And Innovation, Says Oxford University B-School Dean

Dean of Said Business School at the Oxford University Soumitra Dutta on Monday called for the need to build a global platform across universities to connect entrepreneurs, faculty members and industry leaders for inspiration and innovation.

In his address at a plenary session at the B20 India Inception Meeting organised at Mahatma Mandir here as part of India's G20 presidency, Dutta said that more "inspiration" was required for students and faculty members of universities to do great things.

For that, there is "a need to connect Indian entrepreneurs in universities with peer entrepreneurs in universities in America, Europe, Africa and other parts of the world," he said at a session on "rethinking and revitalising innovation to drive inclusive impact."

"I do think today if I look at entrepreneurship and innovation, there is a need for more inspiration. I honestly do not think capital is a constraint, I think inspiration is the most important issue. If students are inspired, if faculties are inspired, they do great things," Dutta said.

"The question really is how I inspire. The most common source of inspiration is another individual—another fellow colleague, another student, another professor who has done something great. So, can we in fact try to build a global platform across universities that connect entrepreneurs, faculty members together with other relevant industry leaders?" he proposed.

Dutta said that a lot of the solutions that we seek for the global crises will have to come from technology and innovation, and the government alone cannot solve all these challenges.

Business will have to play a very key role, but universities are another "important partner in the solution" because universities are sources of talent, research and innovation in countries around the world, he said.

While universities have made progress in terms of research, supporting entrepreneurship and innovations of various kinds, a lot more can be done for which "inspiration" is required, he said.

Dutta said connecting Indian entrepreneurs in universities with peer entrepreneurs in universities in America, Europe, Africa and other parts of the world will help create "a lot of valuable learning" across these connections.

Entrepreneurs who are successful professionals would also benefit a lot from interacting with students and faculty across the world in different universities, he said.