'A Jack Of All Trades And A Master Of Some' - Divleen Talwar- Best 50 - Class of 2016

This line assumes great importance in my life and especially at IIM Lucknow. Succumbing to a leg injury and being on bed rest for a good 3 months (including the dreaded Summer Placement Week!!!) did not deter me from walking towards my goal. Hard work coupled with a passion for marketing especially in the fashion industry landed me into the coveted quarters of M.H.Alshaya in Kuwait, a retail franchise, a for summer internship. My project on evaluating brand competitiveness and identifying potential pricing opportunities for the newly acquired US accessory brand-‘Icing’ in Kuwait was much appreciated by the President of the Fashion division himself. Four rigorous rounds of evaluation process fetched me a PPO from them. I was also the 1^st runners up in the national level competition sponsored by UP Tourism on marketing strategy to promote tourism by leveraging chikankari, & improving chikan industry practices.

Currently, in the top 4% of my batch based on academic merit, I also like writing, public speaking and playing leisure sports. The three articles that I penned down for the ‘Lions of Lucknow’ series on InsideIIM as the Creative Head of the Media and Communication Cell at IIM-L garnered over 2000 likes and shares. Interviewing actor ‘K.K.Menon’ will certainly be one of the highlights of my two years here. I also represented IIM Lucknow in table tennis in both Manfest-Varchasva (the management and cultural fest of IIM-L) and Sangharsh 2016, the A-B-C-L Sports Competition. My other interests include singing old Hindi movie songs and free style dancing.

Aiming to achieve the best of my capabilities, my mantra in life has always been- ‘A jack of all trades and a master of some’.

If you were the Prime Minister of India, what would be the one problem that you would solve. Please explain your reasons.

As the P.M of the country, my focus area would be creating Infrastructure. The primary reasons are as follows-

INFRASTRUCTURE -> ECONOMIC PROSPERITY -> PUBLIC HEALTH AND EDUCATION -> ALLEVIATION OF POVERTY -> REDUCTION IN PUBLIC INTOLERANCE

1. Developing infrastructure enhances a country's productivity and makes firms more competitive, boosting a region's economy. Not only does infrastructure in itself enhance the efficiency of production, transportation, and communication, but it also helps provide economic incentives to public and private sector participants. The accessibility and quality of infrastructure in a region help shape domestic firms' investment decisions and determines the region's attractiveness to foreign investors.

2. Taking China’s example- The living standards in China, as measured by GDP per capita, overtook those in India more than 15 years ago. Since that time the Chinese economy has grown nearly twice as fast as India's and its GDP per capita is now more than double India's. Investment in infrastructure is recognized as one of the main ingredients of China's success. China's most visible infrastructure investment has been in roads and highways.

3. Even RBI has recognized the importance of infrastructure. According to an RBI report-"infrastructure bottlenecks are emerging as the single most important constraint on India's economy." The country's manufacturing sector is held back by relatively inefficient and high-cost infrastructure—roads, railways, airports, ports, and electricity. The lack of adequate infrastructure is constraining not only foreign trade but domestic trade as well. For example, with little refrigeration available, 40 percent of India's fruits and vegetables spoil before reaching markets.

4. The existence of infrastructure also boosts public health and access to quality education which helps in improving the quality of human capital both physically and mentally making them more employable. HIV/AIDS medication, for instance, must be refrigerated, so the insufficient supply of electricity in rural areas impedes the delivery of basic health care services to the poor.

5. Investment in infrastructure is often cited as one of the most effective tools for fighting poverty. Access to infrastructure is essential for improving economic opportunities and decreasing inequality.

6. At last, when economic prosperity exists in a country and connects everyone in a country, people learn to live in bonhomie and probability of riots on the premise of intolerance, inequality etc reduce because the success of everyone is so inter-dependent that societal friction can no longer be afforded.

What have you done in your life that you are the proudest of?

During the Initial Learning Program at TCS, one of the tasks was to complete a project for which we were divided into teams. I was in TEAM B with members from Assam, Tamil Nadu and Delhi. With respect to the skills required for the project we were all from varied backgrounds and with no prior experience of the domain whereas TEAM A had prior exposure and was seen as a clear winner even by the coordinators. So, there was an initial resistance in my team, in this case, was of mindset, of complacency, of accepting that someone else would be a winner without even trying! So I would regularly encourage my team to work to the best of our capabilities and not be worried about the results. Then I came across another resistance- resistance to not accommodate or respect others who might have a different way of living or talking. There was a lot of use of local dialect and other practices amongst various subgroups in the team which would make others uncomfortable at times. So, I consciously sensitized everyone to each others' culture and decided on a code of conduct which included the use of common language.

We were required to select one member as a SPOC (single point of contact) for each week. I made sure every member got a chance and bolstered them to take the responsibility even if they were hesitant. During team meetings, I would request everyone to speak their viewpoint and be conscious that some of us who were talkative did not overshadow the quieter ones. I ensured all tasks were completed in time in a light atmosphere where everyone was appreciated. Our optimism and effort paid off and on the final day, we were applauded for the best team coordination and implementation.

Therefore by assuming a responsible position in my Team not only was I able to create a cordial work environment but also achieve exemplary results at the end. This is what I am most proud of.

Meet the rest of India’s 50 Most Employable Management Graduates from the Class of 2016 here.