Bangalore to host Social Media Week
After its debut in Mumbai in September last year, global social media event — Social Media Week (SMW) — will hold its second edition in Bangalore from February 17 to 21. This fest, which has over the past five years been a platform to explore the social, cultural and economic aspects of social media, is being held simultaneously in seven other cities: Barcelona, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Lagos, Milan, New York and Tokyo. In Bangalore, the event will be hosted by R Square Consulting. A release said that organisers expected the fest to attract over 5,000 professionals from across the country. The event will have speakers from the corporate and technology world. Neville Taraporewalla, GM India, Microsoft Advertising and Online; Rishi Dogra, GM Marketing, PepsiCo India, Varun Agarwal, Author and Founder, Alma Mater and Nikhil Dey, president, Public Relations, Genesis Burson-Marsteller, are some of the names on the speaker list.
Yet another safety app launched
OnMobile Global Ltd., telecom value-added services provider, launched Help Me, a free 24x7 mobile application that will help those in need during emergencies. The free application houses a bank of two services ‘I am here’ and ‘I need help’, designed to ensure personal safety of an individual and which is easily accessible from a single place, a release from OnMobile stated. Users can get assistance in tracking location, sending panic alerts to chosen family and friends, trigger panic alarms and more, all on their smartphones.
The ‘I am here’ service lets family and friends of the user track his/her location while the ‘I need help’ service raises an alarm in crisis situations and simultaneously sends alerts to family and friends. It is currently available on Android phones only and can be downloaded for free.
Morgan Stanley’s new Global In-house Center
Global financial services major Morgan Stanley announced that it will open a new Global In-house Center (GIC) in Bangalore this year. The new centre will complement its existing GICs in Mumbai, the firm said in a release.
The existing GICs host functions across domains, including technology and data, operations, fund services, finance and other specialised functions. The release quoted Bill Strong, Morgan Stanley’s Co-CEO, Asia Pacific, who said: “We have reviewed global options for building a new GIC that can provide a critical mass of employees to support our global functions.”
Skits, mime and conversation
An event organised by ITHI, a support forum for women working in the IT/ITeS industry, saw software professionals from different companies come together to participate in a cultural programme that highlighted issues women face in society and at the workplace. Held at the Jai Bheem Bhavan, the colourful evening had performances, including mimes and skits, followed by discussions with the audience. A panellist at the discussion that followed, Geetha Menon from the Stree Jagriti Samiti, implored the audience to be socially conscious and gender sensitive. Prabha from the Bharatiya Gyan Vigyan Samiti pointed out that in spite of the Vishakha guidelines, many workplaces were yet to implement sexual harassment laws properly. Deepthi R., a member of ITHI and a software professional, said that ITHI was trying to use arts and culture to provide a platform where people employed in the sector could meet and discuss issues of social relevance.
