2016 was a year of extremes as business sentiment swung from optimism to pessimism as the year drew to a close. The unexpected demonetisation put India Inc in a pincer as the cash crunch throttled businesses and threw growth projections out of the window. Against such a backdrop, Outlook Business invited an eclectic mix of experts comprising a banker, a consultant and chief financial officers from diverse sectors for its inaugural roundtable series, Outlook Business Brunch, 2017, in Mumbai. Editor, N Mahalakshmi, moderated the roundtable and this is the deliberation that followed.