The Lexicon group of institutes provides visionary and progressive education to children. They believe in the philosophy to compete with yourself only. Their focus was and is to create a sustainable educational ecosystem to contribute to the society and country. A holistic approach towards model citizens, better community outreach and most importantly value-based individuals contributing to the greater good personally and professionally.
The Lexicon Group also caters to a unique space of students with special needs. It has opened doors to children who are often ignored or left behind in conventional classrooms. With the ideology of “no child left behind”, it has broken all stigmas and paved the way for a multidisciplinary range of services, which combat delays in development and various mental health issues present in children with special needs.
Today The Lexicon Group embodies businesses in different sectors-Fitness, Baby & Skincare, Media, Ed-tech, Legal tech to name a few.
Pankaj Sharma, President- The Lexicon Group of Institutes, Chairman and Managing Director – MultiFit, an embodiment of indefatigable spirit, courage and a human being par excellence in conversation with Financial World.
1. What according to you is the need of the hour in the education ecosystem?
According to me, the primary task for the leaders of education is to foster an ecosystem that breeds positivity, encouragement and a physically and emotionally healthy student body. It is time to shift from the pressures of the traditional learning formats, where rote learning takes priority and children are assessed purely by grades. This century requires thinkers, believers, dreamers and doers, and none of them can thrive in classrooms where there is no room for healthy communication and discussion. So, the need of the hour is to radically reform our current ecosystems, and truly bring the children to the front and centre of our schools.
2. How can you reconcile student aspiration with market demand?
When we believe in our students’ true passions and visions of their lives, the dreams they are often asked to leave behind, we are already bridging the gap between aspiration and profession. Today, there are infinite number of professional courses and career trajectories one can choose; this is a blessing compared to when we could either choose to be doctors, engineers or accountants at best. This generation has the gift of wanting to discover who they are and what they want to be. We can give them the experience and exposure with industrial training and ensure they meet the market requirements and excel in their careers.
3. What is your personal philosophy on education?
Education is an exciting journey of “believing in yourself”. If you believe you have wings, you will learn to fly. If you believe you are an artist, you will create works of art. If you believe you are a singer, you will sing with your heart humming inside your body. And when you fly, create or sing with your heart full of self-belief, there is nobody who will stand in your way. This is what education looks like for me- to enable every single child to shine with an infinite belief!
4. Would you say that the issue of curriculum has been addressed now with the changes that have come up?
Well, yes and no. The New Education Policy has brought about a lot of reforms within the system, which holds promise in a large number of areas. However, a lot will depend on the execution and implementation across schools.
5. How Inclusive School education is important for children with special needs.
There is no denying that there are many children who have special abilities and special needs, and they often struggle to thrive in regular classrooms. This struggle is primarily set in a school’s inability to incorporate a methodology that is conducive for these children. This gap between the needs of these children and the schools’ lack of training or resources led to the inception of Lexicon Rainbow Therapy and Child Development Centre. The essence of Lexicon Rainbow was to encompass the idea that “no child should be left behind”; every child should stand a fair chance at good quality education and not be discriminated against. Lexicon Rainbow and its entire team of therapists and educators work towards enabling children with special needs to develop the skills and foundation to integrate into regular schools. When schools become inclusive and accepting of children with special needs, we build a community that is more diverse, empathetic, compassionate and kind of all people, raising children who are wonderful leaders of our nation.
6. What has been your biggest challenge as a President of an Education Group.
For me the biggest challenge as a president of an education group has been to ensure that we uphold our motto of ‘believe in yourself’! To ensure that each and every student of our group has the belief in herself / himself and steps out in the world as a very confident human being who’s grounded and practices value-based policies. This is a challenging work in progress but I’m sure that we will be able to make a difference.
7. What are your core values as a President? How do you ensure to maintain those values in the institution?
I believe that every student, every teacher, every leader, and every member of support staff are integral and irreplaceable elements of my institution. I have never shied away from seeking the opinions of every member on my team, new or experienced, young or old. They all bring their unique perspectives to the table and add value to both me as a person as well as to the organisation. If I uphold the mantra of “believe in yourself”, I also truly believe in my team.
8. What made The Lexicon Group step into different verticals.
With every milestone in your entrepreneurial journey, you evaluate your contribution to the community and the impact you are able to create through your work. As a Group, we realised we could broaden our reach to other sectors where we may be able to bring unique domains of expertise. We also believed that diversifying the Group, will allow for a large exchange of opportunities and professional expertise within the multiple verticals of the Group.
9. What makes you stand out among the competitors in your sector?
I am supported by unwavering pillars in my life- my family and my team. My roots lay in the humility and integrity my parents have raised me with. With these creative and dynamic individuals to back my vision, we simply believe in doing good work with our values in place, and honestly, it has never really been about competition for us. We started with a lot of struggle, and to have come this far, in itself is a huge victory for us. We will continue to work and serve our communities to the best of our abilities.
10. Throw some light on the expansion plans of The Lexicon Group.
We have diversified into different sectors – fmcg, media, fitness, legal tech, ed-tech, and more verticals with in education – hotel management institute and media institute, We are working hard to deliver quality in everything we do. We believe that as a group we will be able to contribute towards the society by not only creating jobs but also numerous other ways.
11. What changes would you like to spearhead?
I would like to make happiness an important parameter as a part of goals and targets checklist across all our verticals under the aegis of The Lexicon Group.
Though happiness is unique to each individual but over all as an organisation, one can strive to create a happy environment.
