The Indian School of Development Management (ISDM) hosted the highly anticipatedDialogues on Development Management (DoDM) 2024 at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi on November 21, 2024. The event brought together over 80 changemakers, including thought leaders, policymakers, and practitioners from civil society (Samaaj), government (Sarkaar), and business (Bazaar), to discuss Development Management and its strategies for advancing social impact in India.

Focused on empowering and building resilient social purpose organisations (SPOs) to drive sustainable impact, DoDM 2024 served as a dynamic platform for exploring the potential of Development Management in designing and implementing social change interventions

The event featured compelling plenaries that sparked thought-provoking discussions featuring prominent and well respected leaders including Pramath Raj Sinha, Founder and Trustee of Ashoka University; Dr Shamika Ravi, Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India; Dr R Balasubramanium, Member HR-Capacity Commission; Rekha Koita, Director and Co-founder Koita Foundation, among others.

Aamir Khan, Co-founder of Paani Foundation, shared his experiences in community-driven development – one of the fundamental principles of development management, “The youth of today care deeply about social issues. They are also more motivated to take action. Problems plaguing our country – like water scarcity – need collective action. When you are trying to solve at scale, then you have to work at scale and for that you have to make it a people’s movement. No authority, no government alone can solve it the way that people can collectively do it for themselves.”

Reflecting on the event’s significance, Ravi Sreedharan, Co-founder and President of ISDM, stated: “India’s projected economic growth of over 6% annually for the next couple of decades offers a rare opportunity to uplift millions of Indians from poverty. Achieving this requires huge focus on Management of Development work failing which we could lose this opportunity of a millennium.  ISDM has prepared itself to catalyse and build the domain and cadre of Development Management professionals. Dialogues on Development Management (DoDM) is a unique platform to bring together very diverse individuals to ignite dialogues around Development Management”

The discussion underscored the urgent need to build a social sector ready for the future, capable of addressing systemic challenges with scalable, data-driven, and collaborative approaches. These themes are expected to shape strategies for India@2047: A Vision for a Resilient and Inclusive Bharat.

Amit Chandra, Co-founder ATE Chandra Foundation, one of the pioneers in Capacity Building in the country, emphasised the need for the sector to change gears and focus on scalable solutions as well as for philanthropy to therefore, be far more bold and strategic. “Given how much experience exists in the sector and enhanced wealth management, the time is right in India for big bets that take the aspirational quote to tackle sticky issues.”

The conference also marked the launch of several reports and initiatives aimed at catalysing transformative change within the social sector: Catalysing Good Governance & Accountability Systems: This initiative, by ISDM’s Strategic Capacity Building (SCB) vertical, supported by the Ford Foundation, seeks to equip SPOs with essential resources and training to enhance governance capabilities and practices. The primary goal is to foster accountability and ensure long-term institutional and programmatic sustainability. The inaugural needs assessment report, Decoding Good Governance, draws insights from over 234 SPOs, shedding light on governance and compliance challenges while presenting key recommendations to advance governance practices within India’s social sector; Effective Philanthropy through an Inclusive Development Lens: Presented by ISDM’s Centre for Philanthropy for Inclusive Development, this report unveils the 6-Point PID Framework, emphasising support for marginalised communities, trust-building, community involvement, flexible funding, transparency, and partnerships. Based on a  survey undertaken by the centre, the report aims to catalyse shared learning and offers actionable strategies for impactful, and equitable philanthropy.

The event left participants energised, inspired, and better equipped to tackle complex development challenges, laying the groundwork for long-term collaboration and innovation across the sector.