I came across a very interesting initiative by ASDC called the National Automotive Olympiad [NAO]. It is an effort to make the younger generation, from classes 6 to 12, interested in the automobile, more than just a poster, and the automotive industry. It comes from a single insight that youngsters find the automobile very cool, but the automotive industry very boring. Children wish to buy a Hayabusa or an NSX, but don’t necessarily want to work at Suzuki or Honda. This uncomfortable fact extends to even non-engineering graduates and postgraduates. And this is not a new phenomenon. 35 years ago, in my batch at XLRI, there were only 5 in a batch of 100 who applied to automakers. The auto industry was uncool then. It is uncool even now.
Which is why this initiative of the NAO is simply wonderful. It is to project and promote one of the country’s and world’s biggest economic pillars as a cool place to work in. If selling soaps and software can be cool, this can sure be cooler. But it is not. The auto industry, as per ASDC, is facing a lack of good talent choosing it as a profession. Kids want to use the money from writing code or investment deals to buy fancy sets of wheels. They do not want to work in the places that make those sets. And this applies across the board, from engineering to MBA to general management. More importantly, the network faces a critical lack of talent choosing this profession. Those who join the automakers or the larger networks leave soon for more “challenging” roles that connote higher status.
Over the years, the automakers and larger networks have stopped going to the premier institutes on the excuse that their students do not stay. And the overall quality of manpower in the industry has dipped over decades. It’s a vicious cycle. One that ASDC wishes to break with the NAO. It has the single agenda of getting the young generation interested in the automobile as a conscious and aspirational career choice. Not an alternative or the last resort. This is in collaboration with CBSE. The 2026 edition is underway as you read this. More than 1,50,000 students are participating from across the country and also overseas. They go through multiple rounds of knowledge and skill tests. The final round, of just 150-175 kids will happen in December. Each participant will hopefully come away more appreciative of the auto industry and choose it as a career option. The schools will find the industry proactive, progressive and inclusive. All in all, a classic win-win for the larger community.
Such initiatives should see all automotive brands coming together in support, participation and promotion. They should financially back ASDC in making it bigger and better every year. It is in their own interest and that of the nation too.
Sergius Barretto
Rishaad Mody
