How this Chennai Rotarian moderated global training meet

AS Venkatesh’s life changed when he attended a Rotary meeting. “My objective was to make friends beyond my work circle,” recalls AS Venkatesh. The meeting, in which he was seated in the last row with little knowledge of what was happening, changed his perspective. “They (the members) were talking about constructing three classrooms at Tiruneermalai, because students did not have enough facilities. I watched that conversation in awe.”

Venkatesh, a Chennaiite with IIT-Madras, IIM-Ahmedabad credentials, thought he was doing his bit to society by paying the school fees of his domestic help’s children. “This bunch — all ordinary people, much like me — were doing something grander in scale, which would positively influence so many children,” he says.

That day, he decided he would become a part of it. Today, Venkatesh aka Venky is a distinguished Rotarian. His latest feat is becoming the first Indian Rotarian to be a moderator, which involves planning and executing a week-long training programme for District Governors Elect from 534 districts across the world.

Held at Orlando, Florida in February, Venky spent sleepless nights putting together the content for Rotarians. “The challenge was to find a common ground that would appeal to people across the world. For instance, if someone from India is looking at healthcare or education sectors, someone from an advanced nation would look at mentoring students.”

AS Venkatesh during an event | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

To ensure that, common training content and schedules were chalked out much in advance, so things went like clockwork. “In the 26 breakout rooms operating simultaneously, the same topic would be handled in the same way for the same time period, in different languages. This was to ensure all participants had the same experience.”

Being a moderator, a first for an Indian, gives him and the country a boost in the eyes of the world, feels Venky. “It has also been a great learning experience,” says Venky, who heads a civil construction organisation which employs over 1,400 people, “I interacted with someone who contributed significantly to the reduction of mortality rate due to malaria in Zambia. The next day, I was speaking with someone who impacted an old homeless couple. Both macro and micro changes have impact.”

Both are important, believes Venkatesh, who, after completing his under-graduation at IIT-Madras, had a decision to make: head to a top university in the US or study at IIM-Ahmedabad and live in India. He chose the latter. “In IIT, I paid ₹200 a term. In IIM, I paid ₹80 per term. My studies were highly subsidised thanks to many Indian taxpayers. I felt like it would be a disservice if I didn’t provide employment to atleast 10 people here.”