Meet up 5: Hyderabad

What happened

1. 9:30 am

   Arrival — Tea, Coffee & Networking

   The most valuable conversations may begin before the first session. Start with people, not presentations.

2. 10:00 am

   Why SPG Leaders — And Why This Community Matters

   Gautam Hardikar - SPG Leaders

   Why SPG exists, what makes this community different, and why practitioner-led, trust-first spaces matter more in today's procurement environment.

3. 10:10 am

   Who's In The Room — And What Procurement Leaders Are Facing

   Amol Ghanekar - Forum Curator, Global Indirect Category Management Leader

   Curated reflections and patterns from participant responses collected before the forum — key themes, emerging concerns, and the shared realities shaping procurement leadership today.

4. 10:30 am

   Procurement in a FIKA World

   Amol Ghanekar - Forum Curator and Creator, FIKA Framework

   Fragmented. Interconnected. Kinetic. Ambiguous. Why procurement leaders now operate in a permanently unstable environment — and what leadership capabilities matter next.

5. 11:00 am

   AI in Procurement — Judgment, Speed & the New Sourcing Workflow

   Nitish Rai - Entrepreneur & Supply Chain Technologist

   A live procurement-first case study on how AI is reshaping strategic sourcing — from RFP evaluation and market benchmarking to negotiation prep. Where AI accelerates procurement judgment, where it creates dangerous false confidence, and why human accountability remains non-negotiable.

6. 11:45 am

   The GCC Shift — India's Expanding Strategic Role

   Marina - Global Indirect COE Lead

   GCCs are no longer execution hubs. How procurement operating models, leadership expectations, and decision-making are shifting as India becomes a strategic capability centre.

7. 12:15 pm

   AI in Operational Procurement — Reducing Noise, Surfacing Risk Faster

   Shiv - Procurement Workflow & AI Practitioner

   How AI-supported workflows improve operational procurement across PO tracking, supplier delays, invoice mismatches, and escalation management — and where data quality breaks trust.

8. 1:00 pm — Lunch & Curated Networking

   No panels. No presentations. Just honest conversations between practitioners navigating similar realities.

9. 2:00 pm

   Storytelling for Procurement Leaders

   Toshiba Tewari - International Leadership Trainer & Story Teller

   "Facts Inform. Stories Transform." Procurement leaders often have the insight — but not always the narrative. How storytelling influences stakeholders, accelerates buy-in, and increases leadership visibility.

10. 2:55 pm

    Closing — Thank You & What's Next for SPG

    Gautam Hardikar - Co-Founder & COO, SPG Leaders

    Acknowledging every leader who made time to be in the room. A genuine thank you — and a look at what's next for SPG and this community.

11. 3:00 pm

    One-on-One Connects & Open Discussion

    The room remains open for deeper peer conversations, challenge-sharing, collaboration discussions, and informal leader connects under Chatham House Rules.