Despite having been warned by the seniors about the Marketing Professor, their descriptions did not diminish the dramatic persona who stood before them.
There was something akin to watching a theatre professional perform some of Shakespeare’s finest works, in the clearest diction. What made the performance even more compelling was the constant reminder that there was no flamboyance in marketing- it was just hard work!
The first time he took a class for us, the Monday morning air was thick with anticipation. Sixty-odd students waited with bated breath while he adjusted his spectacles, took a sip of coffee and carefully placed his bag on the table. Having asked students to come prepared with a write-up on the pre-reads for that day, his first words were to admonish the crowd- for their lack of preparation. His words echoed across the classroom: You will not disdain a subject!
Of course, as serious as he was with his words, he could not betray a smile at the befuddled faces that were staring sleepily back at him on a Monday morning. When there was no response to his words, the smile quickly turned into a laugh. Though there was a dash of menace in that laugh, there wasn’t an ounce of malice. Quite frankly, he wanted to extract the best out of the students, and he knew precisely what would do the trick.
He took one of the packaged drinking water bottles and dropped the cap on the floor. He proceeded to sweep the cap across the room with his foot. After being engrossed in this activity for a couple of minutes, he looked up and narrowed his gaze at the class representative, who, by some unfortunate coincidence happened to be sitting in the front row.
With a flourish, he pretended to pick up a speck of dust from the floor and put it into the bottle, and close the bottle. He advanced towards the class representative and told him: Drink it.
The student refused outright saying that there was dirt in it and that the water was impure. This observation tied in with the lesson that the Professor wanted to instill in the students. If the water is impure, you will refuse to drink from it. In the same way, if you come underprepared, I shall refuse to teach.
While he did not intend to carry through on his actions, the message was received. This was not someone to be trifled with.
Which group of Aditya Birla would I like to work with?
I would like to join Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL) in my future. The reasons for the same include
• The growth opportunity in the fashion industry and the changing dynamics of the offline business which is being supported by the new online technologies
• The business involves working with suppliers (B2B Marketing) as well as with the customers (B2C Marketing)
• Here product not only means providing superior products but also involves services which differentiate us from competitors
These align with my goals of making a career in Product management with special focus on marketing.