Aruna Subramaniam
Managing Trustee – Bhoomika Trust
India
SUMMARY
I am an academically qualified management professional with a wide array of experiences in the social enterprise sector, with a focus on community building and rehabilitation. I have a particular focus on disaster relief and a successful record of establishing strategic partners, both corporate and individual, for creating social impact at scale. I have over two decades of experience in consulting for the private sector, with specific expertise in forging strategic alliances.
SOCIAL SECTOR
Executive Committee Member- Native Connect Chennai 2019 to date
Native Connect is a part of Native Lead that seeks to create an eco-system for native entrepreneurs across tier 2 and 3 towns in Tamilnadu, to sensitise, enable, nurture, incubate and invest.
Managing Trustee at the Bhoomika Trust – 2014 to date
Disaster relief, crisis management and education
• Planning and executing relief to scale to migrants across Chennai and Tiruvallur District impacting over 75000 people- COVID relief 2020
• Facilitating a team of remote volunteer support for validation of migrants data for Shramik Trains for two States Jharkand and West Bengal- COVID relief 2020
• Logistical planning of a community kitchen overnight completely manned by volunteers for cooking, packing, transporting and delivering food to Chennai and its suburbs during the 2015 floods: 10K volunteers; 1.9L food packets; 1L+ hours- Chennai Floods 2015
• Long-term strategic plan defining clear verticals, national vision outlining policy measures for collaboration with other agencies to increase impact and footprint
• Disaster rehabilitation programmes including a pilots: Resilient Homes.
Trustee at the Mahesh Memorial Trust – 2006 to date
Currently one of the largest state-of-the-art paediatric oncology centres in India
• Structured a unique partnership programme to deliver quality care to underprivileged children affected with cancer by entering into long-term collaboration with a leading specialty hospital, by splitting up infrastructure and patient care and identifying stakeholder roles
• Five-year plan to create similar partnerships in three other locations, beginning with Assam
in 2020
Core Member at the Naam Foundation – 2010 to date
• Intervention module identifying critical areas to empower single women from the underprivileged through a mentor- mentee process.
Strategic Member at the Bharat Yuva Shakti Trust – 2006 to date
Mentoring youth for business
• Undertook an elaborate research-based study and created an organisation structure and manual of procedures for a network of chapters of business mentors nationally for this CII affiliated Trust.
PRIVATE SECTOR – 1992- 2012
Strategic Consultant to projects in SME sector with clients in service Industry, auto ancillary, retail. Projects included Structuring corporate alliances, equity partners, due diligence management, cross border partnership, facilitating bank loans, takeover of retail company. Served as a CFO and Board member of An Advertising Agency
CULTURAL SECTOR
• Vande Mataram 1997
Worked with filmmaker Bharatbala as a strategic consultant on A.R. Rahman’s Vande
Mataram
• Thiruvasagam in Symphony 2005
Principal coordinator on business and market strategy for Illayaraja’s Thiruvasagam in Symphony
• Chennai Sangamam 2007-12
Structured and coordinated weeklong annual artistic festival in Chennai involving over 2000 classical and folk artistes
EDUCATION
Harvard University – 2006
Summer Credits in Mergers and Acquisitions and Business Analysis and Valuation
Institute of Chartered and Financial Analysts of India, Hyderabad 1995
Diploma in Business Finance
Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University 1979
Master of Business Administration
Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University 1977
Bachelor of Commerce (Hons.)
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
• Member of the Madras Management Association
• Fellow of the Chennai International Centre
• Confederation of Indian Industry Chennai-
➢ Member Corporate Social Responsibility committee 2006-2008
➢ Member Entrepreneurship Sub Committee 2006-2008
• Past President Rotary Club of Adyar- Rotary (2000- 2011)
PUBLIC ENGAGEMENTS
• Panelist in seminars organized by U S Consulate, Global Shapers- Chennai hub, Indian
Institute for Human Settlements, and several NGO forums –2015-2020
• Presented a case study on Chennai floods 2015, on national media in
Republic TV’s ‘ One India ‘Programme- Jan 2018
• Motivational speaker in communities and Government Schools. 2005-2018
Links and References
1.Chennai Floods 2015 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCNIvLUIiYg&feature=youtu.be
2. Food First Initiative, Ration kit to migrant workers – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNZ6-TMHvVc
3. Food First initiative, Cooked meal for migrant work