Two-Day International E-Conference (DAY-1)

IUU NASMEI International E-Conference on

THE AGE OF DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Impact of Emerging Technologies in Marketing

(18th – 19th December 2020)

INAUGURAL FUNCTION DAY-1: 18th December 2020

The IMS Unison University had the inauguration of a two-day international e-conference titled 'The Age of Digital Transformation' that is being organized in collaboration with the revered North American Society for Marketing Education India (NASMEI) and National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (NABARD) on 18th-19th December, 2020. The beginning of the event was marked with a welcome note. The university is determined to contribute vehemently towards research and development irrespective of the ghastly pandemic that persists and has impacted the world to the entirety.

The introductory remark was given by Prof. (Dr.) Gautam Sinha, Vice-Chancellor (IUU) who threw light on the significance of digital transformation which is a multi-disciplinary area of strategic planning. He re-iterated on the immense role of digital technology that has brought a digital transformation leading to a fathomable change in customer behaviour. He added to his address by sharing the most prominent research-questions that added value to his insightful remarks about the movement of firms towards digital transformation, the extent of the movement, the structure of organisations that can pave the way of achieving transformation in a particular industry. He expressed his optimism concerning the answers that may be obtained through the intellectual inputs by various paper-presenters.

A welcome address was given by Prof. (Dr.) Ravikesh Srivastava, Pro Vice-Chancellor (IUU). Further, he emphasized the remarkable transformation in the gargantuan domain of marketing that can be witnessed by implementing digital technology. He focused on the relevance of data and also highlighted an important issue of utilizing data effectively, efficiently and ethically.

A brief about the conference was given by Prof. (Dr.) Kalyani Rangarajan, Conference Chair wherein she shared her valuable inputs pertaining to the conduct of the conference and also promulgated about the technical sessions that have been scheduled to be conducted in two days.

The Chief Guest of the conference, Dr. Vithala R. Rao, an eminent academician and distinguished professor of marketing enlightened the participants during the conference. He gave an overview of the various phases that led to a paradigm change in the vast area of marketing, i.e., from product-centred approach to the recognition of artificial intelligence and machine-learning leading to immaculate developments in the area of marketing. He shared thought-provoking points on 5D's of digital marketing viz., digital devices, digital platforms, digital media, digital data and digital technology. He also expressed some concerns on digitization. Finally, he concluded his knowledgeable address with a few recommendations to the IMS Unison University that will certainly add to its prosperity.