The Vinod Gupta School of Management, IIT Kharagpur was decked up with excitement to host Mr TJ Hyman, noted tennis professional and Vice President Sales- Enterprise Group, DatabaseUSA, and Mr Warren Rhomfeld, tennis coach based in the USA, on 24th January 2018 for a guest lecture on the topic "15 Skills That Athletes Can Transfer To The Working World".
The two eminent professionals were a part of VGSoM's guest lecture series - 'Pratyaksh', which endeavours to bring on board personalities from diverse walks of life, who have risen to glory in their respective spheres. True to its billing, our guests for the day who carried a strong level of involvement with sports, provided a welcome departure from the norm to everyone in attendance. Mr TJ Hyman or 'TJ' as he likes to be fondly called, has been connected with the game of tennis for decades now and has been a close associate of Mr Vinod Gupta, the founder of the School and a lifetime fellow of IIT Kharagpur. TJ has in the past, famously played a pivotal role in the Brittania Amritraj Tennis Academy in Chennai where he has trained a number of budding tennis players of India including the star - Leander Paes. Over the years, he has trained a substantial number of tennis players and has forayed into the field of database marketing. At DatabaseUSA, he is responsible for contacting mid to large size companies and driving sales for the company through an in-depth understanding of the client's business and the overall market for information databases. Our other guest, Mr Warren Rhomfeld, a certified US Professional Tennis Association elite 1 tennis instructor, has a rich experience of coaching hundreds of tennis players and is currently linked with Dominion Country Club and Fair Oaks Country Club, USA.
Today, with competition becoming ever more intense in the corporate arena, it is of paramount importance that managers and corporate leaders imbibe within themselves essential traits that constitute a successful sportsperson. Only if one has the agility of a sprinter and the persistence of a marathon runner, can one achieve sustained success in today's age of disruption. TJ, our honourable guest having been at the crossroads of excellence in the realm of sports and that of business is someone who personifies this thought in the truest sense. Taking a leaf out of his coaching manual, TJ enlisted 15 qualities that every budding manager ought to incorporate within him or her for a successful career. The crux of this according to him is formed by the qualities of 'Team Work', 'Communication', and 'Tenacity'. The next set of qualities is populated by an emphasis on - 'Growth', 'Learning', 'Leadership', ‘Commitment', 'Motivation', and 'Dealing with Pressure' among a few others. Citing instances of successful comebacks staged in the sporting world by tennis stars such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and others who have successfully fought dips in both form as well as fitness to emerge stronger, TJ lucidly planted in the minds of the budding managers of VGSoM the significance of showcasing grit and determination in the face of failure. The batch of 2018 and 2019 being ones which took a special liking to sports and tennis, in particular, were enthusiastic in their interactions with the 2 guests and made sure to ask them a wide range of questions, in a bid to advance their own development as leaders of the future.
With a spirited question and answer round, the wonderful session by Mr TJ Hymen, assisted by Mr Warren Rohmfeld, came to its closure. Indeed, the session opened up many new avenues of understanding and growth for the students of VGSoM, IIT Kharagpur as they lent their ears to the invaluable lessons delivered by the two guest speakers. The VGSoM family once again extends its gratitude to the honourable guests and looks forward to welcoming them again in the times to come.