“Do Not Underestimate The Importance Of Team Work” – Danish Xavier, PGDM Class Of 2016, Placed With Coffee Day Beverages

Danish Xavier, student of SCMS Cochin PGDM 23 – Class of 2014-2016, believes that teamwork has been instrumental in his learning and growth as a budding professional. Now that he has been placed as a Sales Management Trainee with Coffee Day Beverages in Bangalore, he plans to invoke that team spirit at work. According to him, this trait and every other skill he has gained at the B-school will help him work towards being a successful professional

A bumbling start

Danish describes his first day at SCMS Cochin as awkward as he had stepped onto the campus as a nervous Electrical and Electronics graduate. After two years, he is not only walking away with a PGDM, specializing in Systems and Operations, but an experience that will help him throughout his life. “I made a few friends on the first day but I was pretty nervous. Two years later I would say it has been an enlightening journey that has brought about several changes in me,” he says with a smile.

Time to smell the coffee

According to Danish, every day at the institute was an eye-opening experience, and he had reality checks every step of the way. “There were three important takeaways for me in these two years: the importance of hard work, discipline and teamwork. The biggest challenge was keeping up with the deadlines. The IMLP sessions not only tested our presentation skills but the ability to deliver on time as well,” he says, reminiscing on his time at the institute.

But the challenges taught Danish ways to improvise and that held him in good stead. He mentions how he started making a set of timetables for the day, which helped him distribute the work load over a week to keep a handle on things. “It taught me so much about time management that I am grateful for today. I used to be quite lazy but I would like to believe I have become more efficient. SCMS Cochin has given me the perfect combination of knowledge and confidence to go into the professional world with a strong belief in my abilities,” he adds.

Time to sell the coffee

Now that he will be working with the sales team of a big brand like Coffee Day Beverages, Danish is reminded of the importance of teamwork. It’s something he learned in SCMS Cochin and plans to use it to good effect. “You can’t function in the professional world on your own. I will be a team player at work, where I have plenty of opportunities to grow,” he says, buzzing with energy. “After a month of training I will be the Territory Sales Manager. I will be meeting with clients, setting up dates, negotiating proposals etc. It’s going to be one exciting ride that I am really looking forward to.”