Technology will play an increasingly integral role in shaping CSR strategy: Honeywell

India has a keen focus on initiatives and goals, such as Digital India and Viksit Bharat 2047, that can be achieved through advancing digital literacy. Honeywell India has embarked on a mission to drive digital literacy leveraging CSR to create a meaningful impact in this space.

Prashanth Balarama, Senior Director, Communications & CSR, Honeywell India, tells us more. Excerpts from an interview: 

DQ: How does Honeywell view the role of digital literacy in creating economic opportunities, and what steps is the company taking to bridge the digital skills gap?

Prashanth Balarama: The nation’s keen focus on initiatives and goals such as Digital India and Viksit Bharat 2047, can be achieved through advancing digital literacy. Nearly 12% of the country’s GDP was met by the digital economy in 2022-23, and this is further expected to grow to one-fifth of the economic contributions by 2029-30. 

As the nation is moving towards building a Viksit Bharat, acquiring digital skills is a non-negotiable for employment opportunities, driving innovation, entrepreneurship, and promoting overall social mobility.

At Honeywell, we believe digitalization can drive the country’s economic empowerment and redefine industries and livelihoods at an unprecedented pace. We are making digital skills literacy available to women and youth across rural and semi-urban regions in India through Honeywell Foundation, our CSR arm. 

Through our partnership with ICT Academy, we have established 196 Centers of Excellence to train disadvantaged women and youth in these regions in advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Cybersecurity, and Robotic Process Automation. 

Our efforts have impacted over 27,950 students across 21 states since FY21- 22, and have created a pool of future-ready workforce aligned with the industrial megatrends. By ensuring at least 60% of our trainees secure job placements, Honeywell Foundation imparts essential skills and empowers communities to thrive in India's digital economy.

DQ: Encouraging more young women to pursue STEM careers remains a challenge. How is Honeywell leveraging CSR to create a meaningful impact in this space?

Prashanth Balarama: We believe that equal access to quality STEM education is the first step towards inclusion. That said, one of Honeywell’s key CSR priorities is to bridge the gender gap in STEM by empowering young women through holistic, long-term education programs. 

As part of one of our earlier programs targeting STEM promotion amongst young girls, we collaborated with Avasara Academy in 2018 to offer residential STEM programs to promising female students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The program has empowered over 400 female students through STEM-focused residential schooling that motivates and shapes them to pursue careers in science and technology at an undergraduate level.  

Additionally, Honeywell Foundation has established 60 Honeywell Science Experience Centers and mobile STEM labs, which benefit nearly 500 young girls from marginalized societies. 50% of the students who benefit from Honeywell’s skill development initiative are women. 

The program not only focuses on imparting future skills, but also links the students to suitable employment opportunities as they embark on their professional journey in STEM. These are some initiatives through which Honeywell Hometown Solutions India Foundation nurtures the next generation of women leaders in STEM.

DQ: What are some of the biggest barriers preventing young women from entering STEM fields, and how can corporate initiatives help break these stereotypes?

Prashanth Balarama: The under-representation of women in STEM fields is largely because of some deep-rooted barriers such as gender stereotypes, limited access to quality education, very few women role models in the industry and other societal norms that discourage girls from pursuing technical careers. 

Even on a global scale, women only make up about 35% of STEM graduates. In India, only about 14-17% of women are in science and technological research. This gap begins in schools, where young girls may not always get the support, encouragement and access to quality education in STEM courses. This is where CSR initiatives by corporates can make an impact. 

Corporate initiatives that offer early exposure to STEM education, hands-on learning experiences, mentorship and sponsorship programs and access and awareness of female role models can bring a positive change in promoting STEM among young girls. 

Companies, educational institutions, and NGOs can collectively break these barriers and shift perceptions about advancing STEM careers among young women.

DQ: In what ways can emerging technologies like AI, IoT, and automation be integrated into CSR programs for greater reach and efficiency?

Prashanth Balarama: Technologies like artificial intelligence and automation can help CSR programs run more efficiently by enabling organizations to make informed, data-driven decisions. 

For example, AI can be integrated into CSR initiatives on skilling and education programs, to personalize learning pathways, identify skill gaps and analyze regional employment trends. Such tech interventions can be deployed, especially in underserved regions, to equip youth with job-ready skills aligned with market demands. 

Similarly, Internet of Things (IoT) can be used in community-centric solutions like smart water conservation systems, monitoring energy usage in schools, and similar processes to ensure transparency and responsiveness at the grassroots level. 

Then, there is automation, which can be deployed to minimize the amount of manual efforts in tasks like collecting beneficiary data, measuring impact, or distributing resources. This would be particularly useful in times of crisis when speed and accuracy matter most.

When used thoughtfully, such emerging technologies can help CSR programs become more flexible, responsive, and impactful, enabling CSR efforts to touch more lives.

DQ: How do you view the role of public-private partnerships in driving digital inclusion, and what has been Honeywell’s approach to forging impactful collaborations?

Prashanth Balarama: The government has laid a strong foundation for digital inclusion through initiatives like Digital India, PM Gati Shakti, Skill India and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, which support wider access to skilling, digital infrastructure and access. 

Public-private partnerships will be essential to promoting wider digital access and inclusion for the people in a diverse country like India. Although the public sector leads policy direction, the scale and reach of the initiatives can be met with the innovations, technology support and execution strength supplied by the private sector. 

Together, public-private partnerships can amplify the outcomes to make these initiatives more adaptive, inclusive and effective on the ground.

At Honeywell Foundation, we view our partnerships as long-term collaborations based on a shared commitment to promote digital growth for all. We have partnered with organizations like ICT Academy and Avasara Academy on skilling and empowerment programs. 

Our partnership with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) supports deep-tech startups to solve key challenges in fields of med-tech, sustainability and agri-tech, areas that are central to the country’s development journey. We work to support women entrepreneurs and individuals from marginalized communities, ensuring that inclusion is always a fundamental aspect of what we do.

DQ: How does Honeywell ensure that its CSR programs go beyond short-term benefits to create sustainable, long-term social impact, and what role does technology play in this?

Prashanth Balarama: At Honeywell, sustainability is built into the very design of our CSR programs. We focus on creating long-term impact by aligning our initiatives with community needs, building local capacity, and integrating outcome-based measurement frameworks. Whether it is supporting education, healthcare, or livelihoods, Honeywell aims to enable communities to thrive independently over time.

Technology acts as a critical enabler in this journey. We leverage emerging technologies across various programs—be it smart classrooms to enhance learning outcomes, solar-powered lighting in villages to support electricity access, or clean-energy powered pumps in place of traditional irrigation methods in farms. These innovations help us scale impact efficiently and ensure that our interventions remain relevant and resilient over time.

DQ: Looking ahead, what are Honeywell’s key priorities in terms of CSR and social impact, and how do you see them evolving with advancements in technology over the next five years?

Prashanth Balarama: Over the next five years, our CSR priorities will continue to focus on these core areas: education, research and skilling; sustainable community development; and humanitarian relief. We remain committed to empowering underserved groups and communities, particularly women, youth, and rural populations.

Looking ahead, technology will play an increasingly integral role in shaping our CSR strategy. With the rapid advancement of AI, IoT, and data analytics, we see tremendous potential to make program design, execution, and impact measurement more integrated and data-driven. 

We also aim to scale the use of these technologies in education and livelihood initiatives to make them more engaging, future-ready, and economically empowering for our beneficiaries.