Jennifer Garvey Berger's India Visit Sparks Leadership Transformation Amid Business Complexity

By: WE staff | Monday, 24 February 2025

Cultivating Leadership, a global leader in leadership development, hosted two transformative leadership sessions in New Delhi and Mumbai in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). Led by Dr. Jennifer Garvey Berger, co-founder and CEO of Cultivating Leadership, the session brought together India’s top business leaders to explore new approaches to navigating complexity and redefining leadership for the future. The event also marked a significant milestone, celebrating 15 years of CII’s Leadership Centre of Excellence and its ongoing commitment to shaping visionary leaders for Indian industry.  

With organizations facing rapid market shifts, technological disruptions, and workforce transformations, the sessions provided an invaluable opportunity for leaders to engage with Jennifer’s globally recognized insights on leadership in complexity. The discussions emphasized the need for adaptability, systemic thinking, and collaboration as key leadership capabilities for the future. Attendees actively participated in thought-provoking conversations, interactive exercises, and real-world case studies designed to challenge conventional leadership models and inspire new approaches to strategic decision-making.

Reflecting on the event, Shweta Anand Arora, Director, Cultivating Leadership, India, said, “The overwhelming response from Indian business leaders reaffirms the urgency of redefining leadership in today’s dynamic environment. Complexity is not a challenge to be solved but a reality to be embraced. Jennifer’s insights have provided Indian leaders with practical tools and mindsets to navigate uncertainty with confidence, shaping a more resilient and forward-thinking leadership culture.”

Jennifer Garvey Berger, known for her work with global organizations such as Google, Microsoft, and Novartis, shared her insights for building adaptability in leadership in her 2-hour workshops, focussed on the mindtraps leaders tend to deal with and how that changes the way they show up for their teams and eventually lead.

Speaking about her experience of the sessions, Jennifer emphasized, “The leaders in the room were incredibly diverse, coming from so many different places and organizations—it was like a small version of a giant society right there with us. I was delighted by how thoughtful their questions were, how deeply they sought to understand, and how happy they were to share with one another. Often, leaders can feel disconnected from those outside their industry, but this group was so warm and welcoming of all the differences in the room. I found that truly inspiring.”

"Leadership today is more challenging than ever, with rapid technological disruption, economic volatility, and geopolitical shifts redefining the business landscape," said Avijit Bhattacharya, Member, CII National Committee on Leadership and HR & CHRO, Tata Capital Limited. "Traditional models are struggling to keep pace, making it imperative for leaders to embrace complexity, foster innovation, and build resilience to drive sustained success."

CII also highlighted the strategic importance of such engagements in strengthening India’s leadership capabilities. The sessions featured an engaging dialogue with top industry leaders, reinforcing the growing recognition that leadership development must evolve in response to today’s challenges.

The events were attended by senior leaders from prominent organizations, including BCG, Apple, Godrej Agrovet, Samsonite, CP Plus, Hindalco, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Barmalt, Grant Thornton, Diageo, Egon Zehnder, and Deloitte, amongst others, highlighting the widespread interest in redefining leadership approaches in India’s corporate landscape.

Strengthening their collaboration, CII and Cultivating Leadership have signed an MoU to jointly design, develop, and deliver leadership development interventions for Indian corporates. This partnership will focus on curating high-impact programs, workshops, and masterclasses, engaging renowned faculty and industry experts, and leveraging cutting-edge pedagogies, including technology-enabled and blended learning, to equip leaders with the skills needed to thrive in an evolving business landscape.

The sessions not only provided deep insights but also facilitated meaningful networking among industry peers, creating a platform for collaborative growth and shared learning.

Cultivating Leadership established its presence in India in 2024 through a joint venture with The Core Questin, aiming to empower leaders with the tools to thrive in complexity. This successful event marks the beginning of a broader effort to reshape leadership development in India, equipping leaders to turn uncertainty into opportunity.