IIM Bodh Gaya welcomed the incoming batches of MBA 07 and Ph.D. 02 on 23rd - 24th July 2021. The institute organized the Orientation Ceremony for its seventh batch of MBA and second batch of Ph.D. students. The ceremony was inaugurated by invoking the Goddess of Knowledge, Maa Saraswati, through a melodious Vandana.
This year, the institute has inducted 212 students, out of which 35 are female students. With 140 freshers in a batch, the average work experience of the batch is 23 months. The upcoming batch is rich in academic diversity. Students from multiple disciplines like Bachelors of Design, Commerce, Science, Commerce, Management, Pharmacy, Humanities, Journalism, Veterinary Sciences, and Engineering have come together in this batch. This year, six new Ph.D. scholars have been admitted to the institute, including two female scholars in Operations Management, Economics, Finance, Human Resources, and Organizational Behavior. It is a matter of great pleasure for the institution to have such an academically diverse batch of students and always a boon when the diverse mindsets grow and contribute to the alma mater and the society together.
The ceremony began with a presentation by Dr. Prabhat Ranjan, Chairperson, Admissions on the students' profile, followed by an introduction of the Ph.D. and MBA program by Dr. Krishna Mohan TV, Coordinator, Doctoral Programme, and Dr. Md. Laeequddin, Chairperson PGP. The event was taken forward by the Director of the Institute, Prof. Vinita Sahay, who welcomed the new batch and wished them good luck for an exciting and enriching journey with the Institute. She briefed the new batches about the responsibilities that came along with being a part of an IIM and encouraged students to live up to the brand's legacy and take it to newer heights.
Dr. Sahay welcomed all the respected dignitaries and paid her gratitude to them for gracing this auspicious occasion. The first guest address was given by the Guest of Honour of the ceremony, Mr. Gautam Kumra, Chairman, McKinsey‘s offices in Asia, and BOG Member of IIM Bodh Gaya. He enlightened the audience about the pool of choices students get in these times and briefed the audience on the power of focus, ambitions, mastery, serendipity, growth mindset, and purpose to achieve their goals. He highlighted the skills of a CEO and S-curve, which explains the highs and lows of learnings and success in the career.
The event was taken forward by the Chief Guest, Sri. Tripurari Sharan, IAS, Chief Secretary, Govt. of Bihar. He enlightened the audience about the glorious history of the ancient world’s iconic institutions, which were situated in our country, and the importance of Sannidhata (the Chief treasury officer) and Samaharta (the Chief Collector General of Revenue) in the growth of the economy. He stated the importance of public institutions, which are the enclaves of economic development, and how the first impulse of economic growth came from these institutions.
Post the session, the walkthrough video of the new campus was showcased to the new batch. The next dignitary to grace the podium was Mr. Santhosh Buddhiraju, Head of Inventory (Design, Planning, and Operations) at Flipkart. He welcomed the batches and discussed his experience as an MBA student in IIM Lucknow. He enlightened the students about his experience in Flipkart and the importance of inventory management. He also talked about the importance of stakeholder management with assertiveness and empathy. ‘Given the ability to be good with people and data, is what we look for at Flipkart.’
The second half of the event was started with a session by Mr. Vivek Sharma, Head Credit - Retail Lending and Payments, Axis Bank. He spoke about the Financial Inclusion scenario in India and how there is a scope of financial independence in the country. He briefed the audience about the various product offerings in the Retail Lending market and discussed the Retail Credit process. The session was succeeded by an address by the Guest of Honour, Mr. L. Ramkumar, Chairman Shanthi Gears Limited, President- Madras Management Association, and the BOG Member of IIM Bodh Gaya. He highlighted the learnings and value additions that MBA courses bring in the lives of the students. He mentioned that the conflicts that a manager needs to solve and maintain a constant balance of everyone’s needs in his career are propelled by the skills, tools, and techniques learned during the MBA days. He spoke about the growth of a leader out of an executive and how to do little innocuous things consistently that make a leader.
The next session was by Mr. Himanshu Madanmohan, Director, Safal Constructions, India. He talked about how fast-paced the world is to envision one’s near future. He spoke about a student's expectations from an MBA program and how consistency is what makes one stand apart from the rest. He also talked about the Indian Real Estate and Construction industry and where it stands in comparison to eco-friendly construction done in Oslo.
The event was taken ahead by Mr. Sameer Nagarajan, Global President, Human Resources, Cadila Pharmaceuticals Limited, who emphasized the importance of Ethics, Integrity, and Honesty. He quoted his life examples to highlight that it is okay to discover your passion at a later stage of life and never forget to have fun with what you do.
The last session of the day was with Ms. Richa Singh, Founder, and CEO, YourDost. She started her session with a few activities like writing an autobiography, writing a title in 60 sec and asked the audience about the difficulties they faced in the activity. She raised a pertinent question of how one wants to be remembered after death and what makes oneself happy. She also explained what a counselor does, and described the stigma attached to it.
The second day of the ceremony saw a panel of eminent personalities who graced the event. The first speaker of the day was Mr. Akhilesh Parmanu. Mr. Parmanu is the Faculty of the Art of living. He took the students through a spiritual session to rejuvenate them. He focused on the fact that there are a number of ‘noises’ around us and if we can look past these and focus on ourselves, we can excel in the art of living. He stated that in today’s time there are a number of people who are successful yet stressed and vice versa but the winning combination is that of a feeling of harmony within ourselves, which reflects as a dynamic on the outside.
The event was taken forward by Mr. Srinivas Peddi, Sr. Vice President, Zen Money. He highlighted the importance of Personal financial management. He mentioned how everyone has some goals in life - financial management helps you achieve those goals with peace of mind. He spoke about how people are shy in financial management like not writing a will until they are on death bed). He also talked about critical issues one faces such as Asset allocation, debt mgmt, risk mgmt, etc.
The next speaker to grace the podium was Mr. Shreevar Kheruka. Mr. Kheruka is the Managing Director of Borosil. He briefed the students about how values should drive Decision Making in a corporation. He shared anecdotes from his stint at Borosil to share a lesson that values supersede the financial benefits. He mentioned that as students decide to venture into the corporate world, they should be mindful of the organization’s value system they choose to work in because if your values match, it becomes easier to work. His session aligned with the branding of the Enlightening IIM and the historical significance associated with Bodh Gaya.
The session was succeeded by Sudipto Mandal, VP, CHRO-HR Star Cement. He spoke about internalizing and analyzing the learnings we get in our life. He talked about how as an MBA, we should keep our learning throughout and open and how transformation does not happen just with a degree. He highlighted how as a manager, one needs to innovate the theory, to get optimized output, and focused on digging deeper and reflecting more.
The event was taken ahead by Ms. Vinita Bali. Ms. Bali is the Independent Director and Former MD, Britannia. An alumnus of JBIMS, she has worked with various prestigious organizations like Cadbury, Coca - Cola, Zyman Group. In 2011, she was named on the list of "Asia's 50 Power Businesswomen" by Forbes and is also the Chair of the Board of Directors at the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN). She briefed the audience about the leadership skills one needs to develop and the type of person one wants to become. She also spoke about how one can contribute to society and how it is upto each of us, what we want to take from the opportunity and what we want to do from this opportunity. She highlighted how authenticity is an excellent characteristic of leadership and how one should be a Responsible citizen of the world.
The last speaker for the morning session was Mr. Harsh Kumar, Partner, IBM Global Services. He highlighted the positive impact in terms of the adoption of technology of cognitive enterprise post COVID. He spoke about how the new age technology is changing the world, and we see a positive impact in terms of the adoption of technology during COVID. He talked about how cutting-edge organizations are going deep in science and data-led innovations; they are pushing it.
In the afternoon session of the event, the speaker was Mr. Sunil Naik, Director, DHL Global. He spoke about how we need to bring all our learning to live in the darkest moment of our lives. He emphasized trying again and again. He underlined the importance of taking a break once in a while, being flexible, being curious, prioritizing physical and emotional health, and setting boundaries. He also talked about how our efforts may not make sense on tough days, but upon seeing the fruitful results, we will cherish the efforts. The next speaker was Sri. Pankaj Dikshit, Director, Industries & Technical, Development, Govt of Bihar. He spoke about flourishing our institution with our efforts and emphasized how important it is to set our long-term objective in life. He also warned students not to be overconfident and advised students to continue their efforts consistently.
The next session was with Sri. Abhishek Singh, District Magistrate, Gaya, Bihar, spoke about the sacrifices one needs to make while growing up. He emphasized that it is essential to come out of your comfort zone and never give up and the importance of punctuality. He advised students to keep the pace of technology and keep themselves updated. Mr. Shitiz Modi took the session forward, Product Marketing Manager (B2C), Google Search, who spoke about the earnings he gained in his MBA and corporate life. He said about the companies he worked with and the campaigns he was associated with. The next session was with Mr. Rajeev Rajan, CEO, McDonald’s, who imparted valuable lessons to the students. The last session was with Mr. Krish Danam, Managing Partner, Skylife Success, USA, who wished the new batch and motivated the students to grow and learn throughout the two years of MBA life and never stop learning. The day with the relaxing meditation session with the Samatvam, the Mindfulness Centre of IIM Bodh Gaya.