A B-school has many more activities and experiences on the professional front apart from the academics, placements and case competitions. And like in all of these fields, competition is intense everywhere. It is no different when it comes to the year-end awards given by the institute. Apart from the awards given for brilliant academic performance, there are a few given for extracurricular achievements and leadership abilities. A rigorous process is followed, which includes nominations from the student community, followed by them voting for the selected nominations. The winning students are then felicitated by the institute during convocation.
6 awards were given this year, of which, one was the Monalisa Gupta Memorial Award. This was to be given to a
“Female student of the outgoing batch who has significant achievements in multiple spheres during her two years of the PGDM course at IIM Calcutta".
The award for this year went to Anusha JVD. I caught up with her and asked her a bit about her experience.
Niranjan:
Hi, Anusha. Could you tell us a bit about your background first and where you were before you came to IIM Calcutta?
Anusha: Hi, Niranjan. I am an Electrical Engineer from AUCEW (Andhra University College of Engineering for Women) and possess work experience of 3 years with Infosys.
N: What motivated you to do these activities which are beyond the normal curriculum and expectations of college and fellow students?
A: I was always that person who would get my hands dirty by indulging myself in multiple activities. I love keeping myself busy and probably these were a few things which caught my interest, so I had no looking back!
N: That’s great to know! Which of your achievements do you value the most and why?
A: Being an External Relations Secretary* is an experience that has taught me lessons and experiences for a lifetime. Apart from this, something which I would value the most is when I stood as Runners Up in the Toastmasters Evaluation contest at Area Level because this is not something which I have done for myself but for IIM C Toastmasters club. Probably this was the first time our club was represented outside our campus. This made our club more visible to the other clubs in Kolkata and other areas and ensured that they remember IIM C as a potential club for great endeavours.
N: What role do you think the college and fellow students can play in encouraging more women into leadership roles?
A: I feel that we should respect each other and respect equality in all senses - in opportunities and in opinions. Not only for women, but for anyone to conquer the corporate ladder, you have to have the back of your peers, be very rude and honest with feedback, be a compassionate mentor and always be a shoulder to lean on.
N: Finally, how does it feel to win such a distinguished award?
A: I am definitely honoured to have won this! This has given me more responsibility to keep this up as an alumna of this great institution now.
*
External Relations Secretary is an elected post at IIM Calcutta. The role is to be the official face of the institute to incoming students, alumni and the media.