The Indian Foundation for Quality Management (IFQM), established by a consortium of India’s leading enterprises, will host the third edition of its annual two-day IFQM Symposium, focusing on how Quality & Innovation can make India globally competitive. The event is to be held in New Delhi on October 5–6, 2026, under the central theme “Quality, Innovation and Excellence as India’s Force Multiplier”.
 |
IFQM (Indian Foundation for Quality Management) 2026
Instituted in September 2023, IFQM is an industry-led movement committed to catalysing Indian organisations to become globally competitive and export-capable through Quality, Innovation, and Excellence. Over the years, the IFQM National Symposium has grown into India’s principal platform for the quality and innovation agenda. The inaugural edition of the IFQM National Symposium in 2024 opened with sector-specific discussions across Automotive, Engineering, Aerospace, Defence, Electronics and Digital Engineering R&D. The next edition in 2025 focused on how Quality & Innovation can make India globally competitive. It identified “Needle Movement,” anchored in a Nation First ethos, and brought together top industry leaders and national and international speakers.
The 2026 edition will debut the Pharma and Life Sciences track and, along with Infrastructure, feature an enhanced focus and a wider sectoral net. Pharma and Infrastructure sectors have long operated at scale, but neither has been part of a structured national quality conversation. In this edition, Pharma and Life Sciences will explore ways for India to move beyond generics toward innovative medicine. The panel will discuss and debate infrastructure issues to reimagine India’s infrastructure for global leadership.
The event will witness participation from industry leaders such as Venu Srinivasan (Chairman Emeritus, TVS Motor & Chairman, IFQM), N. Chandrasekaran (Chairman, Tata Sons), Dilip Shanghvi (MD, Sun Pharmaceuticals), Dr. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (Executive Chairperson, Biocon Group, (Virtual presence)), S.N. Subrahmanyan (Chairman & MD, L&T), TV Narendran (CEO & MD, Tata Steel), Dr. Randhir Thakur (CEO & MD, Tata Electronics), K.N. Radhakrishnan (Director & CEO, TVS Motor Company), Salil Gupte (President, Boeing India & South Asia), Dr. Randhir Thakur – Managing Director and CEO, Tata Electronics.
The symposium will feature keynote addresses and special sessions by a distinguished line-up of leaders, bringing perspectives from automotive, technology, manufacturing, infrastructure and quality management.
-
Mr. Euisung (Ernie) Kim – Executive Vice President & Head of Quality Division, Hyundai Motor Group
-
Mr. Akinori Onodera – President & CEO, EARTHBRAIN Ltd
-
Mr. Frank Sieren – China Specialist and Bestselling Author
-
Mr. Masahiko Mori – President & Group CEO, DMG MORI
-
Mr. Stefan Grosch – Member of the Board of Management and Director of Industrial Relations, Robert Bosch GmbHr
-
Mr. Yugo Miyamoto – Managing Director, Kaizen Saudi Arabia, Abdul Latif Jameel
-
Special address by Mr. Masato Onodera – Managing Director, JUSE
Panel discussions are planned around:
-
Pharma & Life Sciences: Moving Beyond Generics
-
From Scale to Excellence: Reimagining Infrastructure
-
IFQM as force multiplier
-
Humble beginning to Global Standards
-
Transforming India into a Trusted Global Electronics Hub
-
Making Business Smart: Deploying AI for Manufacturing and Services
An exclusive session, “Creating Force Multipliers for the Industry-led Movement – Boardroom Vision to Shop Floor Excellence,” will bring together senior CEOs and CXOs to discuss how boardroom vision can translate into measurable improvements and excellence on the shop floor.
Sharing his thoughts about the Symposium, Mr. Soumitra Bhattacharya, CEO & Director, IFQM, said, “India’s aspiration of Viksit Bharat demands that quality and innovation become national force multipliers. The Symposium is a call to action for industry, government, and academia to embed excellence into every process, product, and partnership. Through insights from eminent speakers and collaborative dialogue among leaders, we aim to identify measurable milestones and practical pathways that help organizations achieve greater impact on this industry-led movement, with enhanced intent, speed, and effectiveness. By driving broader participation from Indian industry and academia, we can accelerate economic growth through the twin engines of Quality and Innovation, ensuring our enterprises lead with credibility, resilience, and impact.”
Major takeaways from last year’s symposium included the critical role of MSMEs in India’s growth and the need to strengthen their quality culture through better access to finance, technology, skilling, infrastructure and simplified compliance. Despite challenges such as low R&D and digitalization, MSMEs have strong potential across emerging sectors and global value chains. Strengthening their capabilities is key to improving India’s competitiveness, exports and sustainable growth.
The 2026 symposium agenda, building on last year’s takeaways, will feature a broad spectrum of sessions exploring how India can accelerate its journey toward becoming a self-reliant, inclusive, and globally respected nation. Discussions will examine India’s current standing in global quality, productivity, and innovation; the pathways to achieve ambitious 2030 targets; the role of industry–academia partnerships in enabling growth; and how innovation can be deployed to address systemic barriers.
Over two days, the symposium will feature 25+ sessions, 50+ speakers covering national priorities, sectoral deep dives and cross-cutting enablers.
-
Day 1 will feature key sessions on Pharma & Life Sciences, Infrastructure, IFQM’s cross-sector impact, and India’s ambition to become a trusted global electronics hub, preceded by a keynote on:
-
“Enabling Viksit Bharat: Quality as National Force Multiplier” by Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Hon’ble Union Minister, and Mr. N. Chandrasekaran, Executive Chairman, Tata Sons
-
“Powering Viksit Bharat – ‘Scale without boundaries” by Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Hon’ble Minister of Communications; and Minister of Development of North-Eastern Region, Government of India and Mr. Venu Srinivasan – Chairman, IFQM
-
Day 2 will begin with a keynote on “Wings of Viksit Bharat: Transforming India into a Global Aviation Hub” by Shri Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, Hon’ble Minister of Civil Aviation, and Mr. T. V. Narendran, CEO & MD, Tata Steel. Other highlights include AI for manufacturing and services and the IFQM–JUSE global partnership.
-
The symposium will conclude with key takeaways from Mr. Soumitra Bhattacharya, CEO & Director, IFQM, and speakers from TVS Motor Company and Tata Steel.
About IFQM
Instituted in the year 2023, IFQM is the Indian Foundation for Quality Management (IFQM) that is committed to the promotion of transformative changes across Indian industries. It seeks to institutionalize a culture of quality that meets and exceeds global standards. It is about bringing in continuous improvements of both products and services, thereby elevating the perception about Brand India. Committed to the prosperity and quality of life of all, IFQM functions as a catalyst in making Indian businesses globally respected with cooperative trust, respect, empathy, and mutual sharing. Through its initiatives, IFQM supports India’s journey towards becoming a developed nation by 2047, with an emphasis on innovation, excellence, and stakeholder engagement across sectors.
The IFQM Governing Council: Mr. N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons | Mr. Dilip Sanghvi, MD, Sun Pharmaceuticals | Ms. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Executive Chairperson, Biocon Biologics | Mr. TV Narendran, CEO & MD, Tata Steel Limited | Mr. K.N. Radhakrishnan, Director & CEO, TVS Motor Co | Dr. Randhir Thakur, CEO & MD, Tata Electronics Pvt. Ltd. | Mr. Salil Gupte, President, Boeing India & South Asia | Mr. SN Subrahmanyan, Chairman & MD, Larsen & Toubro | Mr. Venu Srinivasan, Chairman Emeritus, TVS Motor Co & Chairman, IFQM |
IFQM on Web: ifqm.org.in
IFQM Events: events.ifqm.org.in
IFQM on social media: www.linkedin.com/company/ifqm
