KIIT School of Management (KSOM) hosted the first ever Academic Leadership Round-Table Conference on 20th December 2025. Fifteen professors and teachers from colleges in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, attended the event. The discussion was on the theme “Re-Shaping the Future: Co-Creating Tomorrow’s Talent with Industry and Academia” and was expertly moderated by Prof. Ashok K. Sar
The inaugural address was given by Prof. Kumar Mohanty, Director, KSOM. Prof. Arvind Tripathy, Dean, KSOM and Prof. Saroj Routray, Admission Head, KSOM welcomed the guests. It was followed by an interactive session led by Mr. Abinash Mohapatra, Head – Campus Recruitment and Relations, KPIT.
Prof. Jnyana Ranjan Mohanty, Registrar, KIIT-DU joined the discussion at the end and emphasized the university’s commitment to holistic student development through the integration of curricular, co-curricular, and extra-curricular initiatives.
The round-table discussions, led by Prof. Ashok K. Sar focused on three key areas: Assessing gaps, suggesting changes, and partnership needs; Bridging broken links through design, delivery and assessment; and Building thinking, adaptability, and innovation.
The KSOM was privileged to host Dr. Umesh Chandra Sahoo from Indian Institute of Technology, Bhubaneswar; Dr. Sanghamitra Jena from Rajdhani College, Bhubaneswar; Dr. Swapna Bijayini from Capital Law College, Bhubaneswar; Dr. Soumendra Ku. Patra from Ravenshaw University, Cuttack; Dr. Sanjit Kumar Rout from P.N. College, Khordha; Dr. Suratha Kumar Das from Dev Ray College, Bhubaneswar; Dr. D.N. Mishra from DAV School of Business Management, Bhubaneswar; Dr. Vandana Barik from Dev Ray College, Bhubaneswar; Dr. Sarba Narayan Mishra from OUAT, Bhubaneswar; Prof. Nancy Bhandari, Prof. Pradeep Kumar Sahoo, Dr. Amit Tripathy, Dr. Sanjukta Mohanty, Prof. Subhasree Garnaik, and Dr. Rojalin Pani from OUTR, Bhubaneswar.
The conference reaffirmed the critical role of academic leadership in bridging curriculum and career, highlighting the shift from employability to deployability through outcome-based learning, industry immersion, and sustained institutional commitment.