AI alright, but not bereft of ‘Authenticity’, suggest business leaders during Bengaluru summit

Bengaluru: The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Karnataka, recently organized the Karnataka HR Conclave 2025 on the theme ‘Shaping India’s Future Workforce: Harnessing Generative AI for Inclusive, Sustainable, and Human-Centric Growth’ at Hotel ITC Windsor, Bengaluru.

The inaugural session brought together leaders to discuss how AI was transforming work and how organizations could build inclusive and people-centric environments.

Rabindra Srikantan, Chairman, CII Karnataka State Council and Managing Director, ASM Technologies Ltd, highlighted Karnataka’s leadership in technology-driven growth.

He stressed that generative AI offered vast opportunities but required investment in re-skilling and policy frameworks to ensure inclusive and sustainable development, alongside strong industry-academia collaboration.

Radhika Nair, Convenor of CII Karnataka, Future Skills Panel and Head of People and Culture at Volvo Group, welcomed those present and emphasized that the challenge was not adopting AI but embedding it responsibly with empathy, fairness and inclusion.

She underscored the need for organizations to foster continuous learning and adaptability among employees.

Christopher David, Assistant Vice-President – Consulting at Knolskape, presented current HR trends, noting AI’s role in making organizations more agile and efficient.

He urged leaders to embed transparency, ethical judgment, and trust in AI-driven transformations and described generative AI as a nation-building agenda that could future-proof India’s workforce by adopting inclusive, sustainable and human-centric strategies.

Kalpana Balasubramanian, former CEO of Grant Thornton dGTL, reflected on AI as a powerful agent of change, emphasizing that HR’s role was crucial in developing an AI-literate workforce where humans were enabled, not displaced, by AI.

She highlighted the importance of fostering a learning mindset and empathy to navigate workforce diversity.

Closing the session, John Robert Divyanathan, Country Head – ER at Bosch Limited, noted how AI was reshaping workplaces and called for collaboration among industry, government, and academia to ensure a smooth, ethical, and sustainable transition,

He also said that future-ready HR policies were necessary, balancing automation with human-centric values.

Other topics covered during the conclave included workforce re-skilling, AI-enabled talent strategies, inclusive leadership, and the ethical use of technology in human resource management.

The event also spotlighted discussions on sustainability and creating an agile, future-ready workforce.

The conclave was supported by Volvo, Bosch, AM LEGALS, Blue Tree, and CIEL.

Prominent participating companies included ASM Technologies Ltd, Knolskape, Grant Thornton dGTL, and Bosch Limited, among others.