The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in partnership with ITC Hotels and EHL (founded in 1893 as Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne), has long been at the forefront of bridging academia and the hospitality industry, most notably through the 18-month VET by EHL Swiss Professional Diploma Program, currently being delivered across 10 ITC Hotels, including the flagship ITC Maurya.
This programme has impacted over 800 students to date, with an impressive 100% placement success, setting a benchmark for industry-led professional education in India. Building on this momentum, CII, EHL and ITC Hotels have launched Industry–Academia Connect 2025 from New Delhi—a flagship multi-city initiative designed to spark nationwide dialogue and action toward a future-ready education ecosystem.
Designed as a high-engagement, nine-city series, this initiative will bring together leading corporations and academic institutions to co-create an ecosystem of innovation and workforce readiness. The initiative is aligned with the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2025 and will cover cities including Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad.
The Delhi leg of the series brought together a distinguished cohort of principals, career counsellors, and institutional heads from across the capital region, with over 70 leaders from industry and academia. The event saw educators from varied institutions in attendance. The educators were joined by senior representatives from industry across sectors like IT, Hospitality, Animation, Healthcare, BFSI and Gaming, building a confluence of thought leadership across the education and industry spectrum. The engagement featured high-impact panel discussions, sectoral insights, and a strong emphasis on aligning curriculum frameworks with dynamic industry demands.
Nilesh Mitra, Vice President, Talent Management, ITC Hotels Limited, said, “For hospitality and service-driven sectors, skills are changing at a rapid pace. Soft skills, digital fluency, and cultural adaptability are becoming as important as technical know-how. Forums like Industry–Academia Connect 2025 allow us to engage directly with educators, enabling institutions to better prepare students for what’s next”
Aman Aditya Sachdev, Non-Executive Director, EHL, said, “When we launched the VET by EHL programme with ITC and CII, the goal was simple: to bring world-class hospitality training within reach of young Indians with big dreams. What has been remarkable is seeing how quickly these students rise. By embedding international best practices into local learning environments like ITC Maurya, we are enabling Indian students to thrive domestically and confidently pursue career opportunities across global hospitality markets.”
Sougata Roy Choudhury – Executive Director CII, said, “The future of our workforce starts with the choices students make today, and the guidance we give them along the way. At CII, we need to understand each student’s potential at a deeper level. That’s why we are embracing scientific tools like psychometric assessments to help young people discover what they are truly suited for. Initiatives like the Industry Academia Connect 2025 are about sparking real conversations between industry and academia to empower the upcoming talent pool to align their skills with the evolving needs of a specific industry.”
CII’s Model Career Centres, 48 established across India, form the backbone of this outreach. These centres have counselled over 14.25 lakh students and facilitated placements for more than 9.42 lakh individuals, offering structured guidance free of cost. Building on this success, Industry–Academia Connect 2025 aims to introduce policy-aligned best practices and collaborative pathways into mainstream education planning.
Through this series, CII envisions bridging the link between education and employment by bringing together an anticipated footfall of 600+ educators and industry leaders across the nine cities. At a time when digital transformation is reshaping industries, India’s tech-enabled workforce needs are projected to reach 1 million by 2026, with a 53% demand-supply gap. Industry–Academia Connect 2025 is a strategic bridge between aspiration and opportunity.
