What I did with my Final Integrative Assignment
After the Covid-19 pandemic, I realised that the world no longer functioned as it did in the past, and the rapid pace of digitalisation made it challenging to keep up with the demands of doing business. This reminded me of a quote from the book Who Moved My Cheese: ‘Movement in a new direction helps you find new cheese’. The need to map, explore, navigate and chart change led me to seek a place where I could not only gain knowledge but also engage with diverse cultures and value systems My studies in the Oxford Executive Diploma in Strategy and Innovation were expertly structured across four modules, offering endless learning opportunities that helped us develop strong value chain attributes alongside actionable frameworks and tools for strategy formulation, innovation specification, and execution mechanisms.
‘The Himalayan glaciers are melting in Nepal, and the 1.5-degree limit is only possible if we, not reduce, not abate, but phase out fossil fuels.’ – UN Chief, COP28.
Many third-world countries suffer from power deficits, and the mountainous, landlocked country of Nepal was no exception until FY2018. Today, however, the country’s energy sector has undergone a major shift, moving from an era of electricity shortages to surplus. Energy is a critical sector for the nation, affecting all stakeholders. Its growth and development must be prioritised, with continuous government attention on legislation, policy stability and support through appropriate institutional mechanisms, alongside a mindset that respects the role of private-sector firms. Adequate and reliable electricity supply is essential for any economy’s prosperity and sustainability, and thus, conventional hydrocarbon-based energy production cannot be expanded hastily or sustainably.
During my final module, I sought to address the energy challenges and explore better ways to harness Nepal’s renewable energy sources. My research, submitted through the Final Integrated Assignment (FIA) to the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, focused on applying several management frameworks from our course to address the potential impact of COP28’s fossil-fuel phase-out initiatives in Nepal. The paper provided a strategic review of government plans and identified macro-environmental external factors affecting the development of the energy sector in the country. By embedding dynamic capabilities, I recommended how expanding renewable energy technologies, along with cross-border clean electricity trade, could reduce Nepal’s reliance on fossil fuels. With the recent approval of the Hydrogen Energy Policy, green hydrogen represents the next phase of Nepal’s energy S-curve, signalling inclusive innovation and potential market disruption. Looking forward, Nepal must embrace a transition to a sustainable energy ecosystem on the national grid, aiming to achieve an optimum, efficient and reliable energy mix, potentially reaching 26% by 2030.
Following graduation, I shared my FIA with a leading energy journal in the country, and it was subsequently published in the 6th issue of ‘Urja Khabar – Energy for Prosperity’.
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