Behind the Scenes of the Success of the Lodha Genius Programme

The Lodha Genius Programme was launched in the summer of 2023 as a result of a significant collaboration between Ashoka University and the Lodha Group, with a vision to offer a unique experiential learning opportunity and mentorship to the gifted children of our country and nurture them to become nation builders. Designed and delivered by Ashoka University with funding from the Lodha Group, the programme’s planning commenced in February 2023, allowing a four-month window to design and structure the programme, including its curriculum, faculties, operations, student enrolment, support systems development, and finally, launch the programme in May 2023. The launch was a special moment for the programme management team, as months of planning materialised into a tangible and dynamic experience on the Ashoka University campus. With a duration of one month and involving approximately 200 individuals at any given time, including students, faculties, instructors, interns, teaching assistants, and support staff, the operational demands were substantial.

Managing a month-long programme with diverse activities—every day for over eight hours spanning over ten venues, including classrooms, laboratories, halls, and outdoors—was made possible due to effective planning and interdepartmental coordination. The execution phase, deemed a real success, hinged on the cooperation of every administrative and academic department of Ashoka University. The programme management acknowledges the invaluable support received from the Admin Operations Team, Accommodation Team, Dining Team, Travel Desk Team, IT Infra Team, IT Systems Team, Housekeeping Team, Maintenance Team, Media Team, and other departments and centres such as Human Resources, Accounts and Finance, Residence Life, Sports, Ashoka Centre for Well-being, and Office of Learning Support.

From the programme operations manager’s point of view, finding the right points of contact from every department, considering them as secondary stakeholders of the programme, and keeping them informed and consulted long before the actual execution was the key to running the programme seamlessly. The programme operations team facilitated routine updates to all stakeholders, maintaining clarity regarding the schedule, requirements, and instructions. Establishing a well-structured communication channel comprising a master database and department-specific templates for information sharing ensured a seamless and trackable process. This approach fostered close collaboration between programme management and supporting departments, eliminating ambiguity and friction. The success of the Lodha Genius Programme exemplifies the effectiveness of leveraging the capabilities of every department at Ashoka University when they work together for a common cause. For programme managers, creating a robust channelling mechanism is crucial to fostering a sense of inclusion and importance among all stakeholders, which the LGP programme management demonstrated with its first iteration.

The programme management would like to express our deepest gratitude to every Ashoka team member for their support and involvement in the inaugural LGP and looks forward to continued support in the coming years!

(Written by Kishore MP, Assistant Manager, Science Advisory Council, Ashoka University)