The Akshaya Patra Foundation appeals to Oxford students yet again!

78 students of 33 nationalities from Said Business School, Oxford University, pursuing the Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) course visited The Akshaya Patra Foundation, Bangalore, India; the not for profit organisation during April, 2014. This cross country excursion aimed at study of the operations and technology module adopted by the organisation for implementation of the Mid-Day Meal Scheme. The students have also visited businesses such as Infosys, Wipro and RuralShores. This is the second time students from Oxford University are visiting Akshaya Patra
 

A brief account of the visit

Students assembled at The Akshaya Patra Foundation’ kitchen, HK Hill, Bangalore at Six in the morning; for a brief on end to end processes undertaken by the unit to deliver the wholesome meal on every school day. The curious group were given an opportunity to peek into the operations of not for profit organisation, summarising the techniques adopted for preparing food under the Mid-Day Meals Scheme by the organisation. The Head of Talent Engagement & Development, The Akshaya Patra Foundation addressed the visiting group.

The students were spellbound by the impact the organisation has made which was visualised by them with help of videos and presentations. They also understood the nitty-gritties of the partnership between the not for profit organisation and the Government and the support revered by the government for effective implementation of the Mid-Day Meal Scheme.

The Oxford student’s project and The Akshaya Patra Foundation

According to Kathy Harvey, Director, Oxford Executive MBA programme; to understand the way a not for profit organisation such as Akshaya Patra deal with the multitude of the stake holders that range from Children, school staff, employees, donors, vendors and the Government representatives was an important aspects for the project. They also noted that exposure to such large operations with the transparency and accountability on the funds utilisation for implementation of Mid Day Meal Scheme was also an important aspect.

Students were encouraged to probe throughout the visit, on The Akshaya Patra Foundation’ operations, sustainability plans, assessment of financial risks, challenges faced and more. The not for profit organisation was among several business entities that the students visited as part of their exposure to different dimensions in technology and its application around the world.

The students expressed interest to volunteer with The Akshaya Patra Foundation and appreciated the not for profit organisation’ feat to implement the Mid-Day Meal Scheme effectively. "Thank you very much for the tremendous work you [Akshaya Patra] do for the children of India," said Harry Turner.

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