ICE Business Times

21/07/2025

06/06/2025

Warm wishes for a joyous Eid al-Adha!

29/05/2025

The ‘Navigating Disruption: Generative AI in the Workplace’ specialisation from the University of Michigan on Coursera explores how generative AI functions and its historical precedents. It examines the ways AI transforms jobs, tasks, and organisational strategies. As generative AI automates routine tasks and enhances human capabilities, it also introduces new challenges. This series of courses provides learners with the tools needed to address those challenges and leverage AI effectively.

Click the link to read an overview of the specialisation: https://ibtbd.net/new-intelligence-new-work/

28/05/2025

Industries in Bangladesh are poised to adopt advanced technologies as a logical step toward accelerated economic growth. While businesses stand to benefit, the transition poses a serious risk to the labour force. Many workers, especially in low-income sectors, lack access to the training or resources needed to upskill and adapt if automation replaces their roles. With limited time, income, and support, their options remain severely restricted. This makes it more urgent than ever for Bangladesh to plan and implement a just transition - one that ensures no one is left behind.

Click the link to learn more about just transition: https://ibtbd.net/automation-and-inequality/

27/05/2025

In recent research, perceived fairness has emerged as a pivotal factor in determining whether people embrace or resist climate policies. When citizens believe that the costs, such as higher fuel prices or new regulations, and the benefits, like cleaner air or better flood defences, are shared equitably across all segments of society, they are far more willing to support measures like carbon pricing, tighter emissions standards, or reformed subsidies. But what is ‘perceived fairness’, and how can policymakers ensure that climate actions are received positively by all stakeholders?

Click the link to learn more about the topic: https://ibtbd.net/fair-policies-strong-future/

26/05/2025

Best of Bangladesh is a nation-branding initiative that unveils the remarkable progress and potential of Bangladesh on a global platform. The event facilitates exhibitions, business networking and panel discussions, and dialogue among industry leaders, policymakers, stakeholders, incrementally solidifying Bangladesh as a potential investment destination. Best of Bangladesh is also a singular event where the transformative potential of emerging industries on the country’s economy and its entrepreneurs’ commitment to ethical sourcing, responsible manufacturing, and social compliance can be discovered.

Click the link to read about the key highlights of Best of Bangladesh 2025: https://ibtbd.net/a-nation-on-display/

26/05/2025

Why do marketers still fixate on “Gen Z” when the realities of life haven’t shifted? In their latest column, Dave McCaughan and Faiyaz Ahmed, co-founders of Marketing Futures, draw on over two decades of research in Asia Pacific and Bangladesh to show that understanding consumer life stages—from Identity Builders to Family Builders—reveals far more about behavior than birth-year labels ever could. They trace how the core needs of youth, career-seekers, and parents remain consistent even as fashions, music, and technology evolve. If you’re ready to move beyond generational myths and build strategies grounded in real human motivations, this read is for you.

Read the full column here: https://ibtbd.net/think-life-stages-not-generations/

26/05/2025

Significant progress in the Bangladesh ready-made garment sector has led to stronger labour rights, higher wages, and safer working conditions. This success is commendable, but it often overshadows the reality of workers in agriculture, non-RMG manufacturing, construction, and the informal service industries. Many wage earners in these sectors still face low pay, limited protections, and unsafe environments. How effectively are these sectors supporting their workforce, and what steps can be taken to ensure fair treatment for all?

Read our in-depth analysis here: https://ibtbd.net/whom-we-count-whom-we-dont/

25/05/2025

Bangladesh’s luxury hotel sector is undergoing a dynamic transformation driven by increased competition, niche positioning, and experiential marketing. Renaissance Dhaka Gulshan Hotel, part of the Marriott International family, has distinguished itself as a lifestyle hotel tailored to creative explorers and modern business travellers. In this interview, MD Al Amin, Hotel Manager of Renaissance Dhaka, reveals how the hotel’s strategic positioning equips it to lead the next phase of luxury hospitality in Bangladesh.

Read the full conversation here: https://ibtbd.net/next-gen-hospitality/

25/05/2025

Sheikh Sadi, Deputy Managing Director of SSG - Super Star Group, shares the company’s remarkable journey from a team of just five individuals to more than 5,000 employees devoted to empowering people and creating opportunities for them to thrive.

Read the full interview here: https://ibtbd.net/lighting-the-way-forward/

22/05/2025

Tamara Hasan Abed, Managing Director of BRAC Enterprises, traces Aarong’s journey from a BRAC initiative to empower rural women into a pioneering social enterprise - one that champions sustainable materials, fair-trade practices, and ethical sourcing. She reflects on the recent unveiling of the world’s largest craft store, Aarong’s latest outlet in Dhanmondi, as a testament to Bangladesh’s cultural heritage on the global stage, and discusses how Aarong balances tradition with innovation while maintaining its commitment to community empowerment.

Read the interview here: https://ibtbd.net/local-looms-global-dreams/

21/05/2025

The May 2025 issue of ICE Business Times shines a spotlight on the invaluable yet often invisible labour force that forms the backbone of Bangladesh’s economy. The cover features Tamara Hasan Abed, Managing Director of BRAC Enterprises, whose leadership at Aarong exemplifies how social enterprises can elevate artisan communities and preserve cultural heritage. In an exclusive interview, Tamara Hasan Abed discusses Aarong’s long-standing commitment to supporting, promoting, and improving the lives of artisans and craftsmen across Bangladesh.

This issue also presents a collection of in-depth features designed to broaden readers’ perspectives on labour and its far-reaching effects. An in-depth analysis of labour progress juxtaposes the advances in wages and working conditions in the RMG industry with the overlooked realities of the labour force in sectors like construction, agriculture, and service. A technology-focused article emphasises the need for a fair transition as industries rapidly integrate new technologies. Complementing these pieces are curated book suggestions on labour history, guidance on an online course for navigating workforce management in the digital era, and a climate-themed essay examining ‘perceived fairness’ in environmental policy.

Together, these contributions offer a rich, multidimensional exploration of Bangladesh’s workforce, underscoring why balanced attention to every labour segment is both ethically essential and economically advantageous.