What this project is really about
Meet Aarav. Every afternoon, he walks past the same fruit vendor outside his apartment. The fruit is fresh, the prices are fair, yet most people rush past to buy from large supermarkets. One day Aarav stops and asks a simple question: "What is the hardest part of running your business?" The answer surprises him. "It isn't the competition," the vendor says. "It's that people don't even know I'm here." That conversation changes everything. Communities are filled with people quietly solving everyday problems—local bakers, repair shops, home chefs, florists, tailors, and countless others. Many have incredible products or services but struggle with visibility, customer engagement, or simple operational challenges. In this project, you will become a Community Leadership Consultant. Rather than designing a business for yourself, you will work alongside a real hyperlocal business or community initiative, understand its challenges through observation and interviews, and design a practical solution that creates meaningful impact. Your solution could be a marketing campaign, a service improvement, a digital tool, a community event, or an awareness initiative. Throughout the project, you will reflect on how empathy, ethical decision-making, and collaboration influence sustainable community development. By combining creativity with service, you will discover that meaningful leadership often begins with listening before leading.
What you'll walk away knowing how to do
This project isn't about memorising facts. It's about building capabilities that transfer — to your next project, your next class, and beyond.
Learn from someone who does this for a living
You're not learning from a textbook. You're learning from a practitioner.
Prof. Jayanth Narayanan
Prof. Jayanth Narayanan brings real-world expertise and professional depth to this project, guiding students through every phase with insight that goes beyond the classroom.
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