USIBC to present Global Leadership Humanitarian Awards to CEOs of Microsoft, IBM and Accenture

The US-India Business Council on Tuesday announced to present the 2021 Global Leadership Humanitarian Awards to CEOs of Accenture, IBM and Microsoft in recognition of their strong leadership and contributions towards the Global Task Force on Pandemic Response (GTF).

Julie Sweet, CEO and chair, Accenture; Arvind Krishna, chairman and CEO, IBM; and Brad Smith, president and vice-chair, Microsoft, would be presented the prestigious award during the India Ideas Summit on Wednesday, a media release said.

"Early this year the world watched as India battled a second wave of Covid-19 infections. Julie Sweet, Arvind Krishna and Brad Smith quickly coordinated a group of 40+ CEOs to assemble corporate resources to aid relief efforts in India and formed the Global Task Force on Pandemic Response (GTF)," said Nisha Desai Biswal, president of USIBC and senior vice president for International Strategy and Global Initiatives, US Chamber of Commerce.


"The outpouring of corporate support to procure ventilators, oxygen concentrators and support employees on the ground were unparalleled in the global fight against Covid-19," she said.

"Microsoft launched an interactive map to help users track the status of the COVID-19 pandemic in various regions. It became a powerful tool to mobilise a Task Force response to the surges in India and globally," Smith said as he thanked the US Chamber of Commerce for recognising the efforts of Microsoft.

The Global Task Force highlighted the power of purpose-driven public private partnerships to have real impact on people's lives, said Krishna.

"We quickly came together in a unified effort across business, government and non-profits, and I am hopeful this framework can continue to be called-on in response to major emergencies," he said.

"I am inspired by the incredible leadership of Arvind, Brad and the more than 40 CEOs and their teams of the Task Force's companies and non-profits; and appreciate the support of the Business Roundtable. I also want to recognise the responsiveness and dedication of the US and Indian governments," said Julie Sweet.

"All of us worked together to achieve more than we each could have done alone with a singular purpose to help address the urgent needs of the great people of India during the pandemic. I am optimistic that we can build on this model to handle the challenges ahead, including our ongoing work in Southeast Asia," she said.