In our list of India's Best 50 - the 50 Most Employable Students from the Class of 2021-23, we feature MBA students who have walked that extra mile and done that little more to stand out! One of those featured in today's story, Yash Sharma, has shown an incredible amount of passion to achieve his true potential. Read on and find out his story!
The following are Yash Sharma’s set of responses to a questionnaire floated amongst MBA graduates to determine the top 50 Most Employable MBA Graduates of the Class of 2023. Amongst the massive number of entries and responses being evaluated, Yash's story and profile stood out. Here's his story in his own words.
Name an instance where you wanted something and went out of your comfort zone to achieve it OR Tell us the biggest risk you have taken so far in your life.
One of the most significant risks I have taken recently was joining the PGP-Sustainable Management (PGP-SM) program of IIM Lucknow. Even though the program is associated with IIM Lucknow, I would call it a risk, although calculated, because unlike the other two PGP courses of IIM Lucknow, the SM program is relatively new and is taught at the Noida campus. It is yet to reach the heights of the flagship PGP program. Since the course operates from a different campus, all the committees, including the Placement Committee, and activities at the two campuses are independent. This is reflected in PGP-SMs placement reports because when I joined PGP-SM in 2021, the reports were not very promising the highest salary was not significantly different from what I was making as an Associate Consultant at ZS. Hence, I wondered about the ROI I would get by joining this course in an economy severely hit by COVID-19 and leaving the healthcare consulting industry, which hugely benefited from the pandemic. Additionally, the course was very niche. I was sceptical about the opportunities I may get in this domain. But then I researched Business Sustainability as a domain. I liked the odds of it flourishing in the near future due to the changes in the international and national policy landscape and the investor outlook on sustainability. Plus, I had confidence in my abilities and believed that my past consulting experience and education from IIM Lucknow would be an excellent match for the opportunities in this domain. So I decided to go all in and join this specialized yet relatively new course.
When was the last time someone relied on you? OR What did you do which was purely for someone else - a truly selfless act?
I have held multiple positions of responsibility in my academic and professional life. However, my role as Placement Coordinator at NIT Rourkela in 2017-18 is the most crucial and impactful. At NIT Rourkela, I was part of the Committee that was responsible for attaining job offers for ~1000 students, and we were able to do justice to the expectations of these 1000-odd students by becoming the first Placement Committee to attract 1000+ offers in NIT Rourkelas history, driving a 63% YoY growth in job offers. We managed 247 recruiters, achieving a 104% YoY growth in the recruiter pool. We also introduced a placement process for PhD scholars, getting 73% of the PhDs placed. The fact that we were able to impact a vast number of students through our work positively still gives me immense satisfaction. That experience motivated me to take up more roles where I could positively influence change. And thats why I consider my voluntary role of being a mentor at IIM Lucknow equally vital. Even though there was no upside to being a mentor, I dedicated significant energy to the 1st year students to assist them, in whatever capacity, to be better prepared for their summer internship processes from drafting CVs to conducting knowledge transfer sessions on business sustainability to conducting interviews. What gives me immense satisfaction is that some of those students were able to bag offers from McKinsey and Accenture Strategy.
Tell us about a time when you disagreed with an opinion/idea/decision. What did you do about it?
I like to believe that I handle disagreements well. Through my experience over the years, I have realized that almost every conflict stems from inadequate expectation settings, lack of communication, or both. And I believe the conflict could be easily solved if all the relevant stakeholders are brought to the table and they discuss each others point of view. One such instance was when I was leading the day-to-day workstreams on a fast-paced consulting project with minimal support. As the project was for a US-based client, the engagement manager was from the US, while the daily workstreams were handled by the India team, which involved an Associate and me. The three of us were working together for the first time, and naturally, there were differences in the working styles; At the same time, the manager preferred to meet daily and expected us to course-correct and send updated work before the end of the day, we liked that if we knew the exact ask and client request from the beginning, there would be minimal rework and better work-life-balance for everyone on the project. There was constant pressure from the Associate to streamline the feedback, while there was a continuous push from the manager to meet the deadlines. I communicated with everyone in the team, and we made two simple changes; we started having our team check-ins in the morning, which gave the India team the whole day to work on things, and I started leading the daily client communication, which kept the India team more informed on what's the exact ask from the client. At the same time, the manager continued to lead the broader client engagement.
What is the one thing you can claim to have some level of expertise or depth of knowledge in - it could be anything - a subject, a sport, a hobby, a venture, an initiative that has led you to do deep work in that field?
As I mentioned, joining PGP-SM at IIM Lucknow was somewhat risky for me. Hence, I fervently believed that to be better placed after completing this course, I need to read more and more about this domain and the evolving business landscape to compete with my peers for the best opportunities that come across us. Thats how I believe I developed deep expertise in Business Sustainability, particularly Corporate Governance, ESG Risks and Ratings, Carbon Markets and developing decarbonization roadmaps, and Sustainability Reporting. My internships with Accenture Strategy & Zomato helped me get my hands dirty by working on real-life projects on Business Sustainability and further building upon my textbook knowledge.
If 10 Million Dollars (approximately INR 75 Crores) is given to you to use it any way you deem fit what would you do with this corpus?
I will primarily spend this corpus to fulfil my present desires and ensure sustained recurring income for my future wishes. I have always been a foodie, a fitness enthusiast and an avid traveller, and I will spend a significant chunk of the allotted money to cater to these hobbies. As a foodie, I have had a long-standing desire to run a restaurant, and my rough calculations indicate that I can build an Instagram-worthy restaurant for 5 Crores. Also, given my enthusiasm towards fitness, I would like to start my gym, which would again cost me roughly 5 Crores. The restaurant and gym are both recession-proof investments in a way. They will continue giving me a monthly income for a long time. Thirdly, I would set aside 5 Crores to travel the world and learn about different cultures. Aside from investing in my hobbies, I will also use a portion of this money to buy a house for my parents in Delhi, roughly costing 2-3 Crores. Also, as a healthcare consultant at ZS and a sustainability student, I have always been weary of the expensive medical services in India. I will start a foundation with roughly 20 Crores of this corpus to provide healthcare support to the marginalized. Lastly, I will hire a fund manager and use their expertise to invest the remaining corpus in the insurance plans, mutual funds and stock markets so that the corpus never dies out and I have enough money to keep me going when I am in my rocking chair after retirement.
***
As per government tax payers' data and our assessment, only about 6,00,000 Indian taxpayers earn an annual 'salaried' income of INR 30 lacs or above. And only 11,00,000 Indian taxpayers earn a 'total' income of INR 30 lacs or more.
Have you ever considered how much time it would take for you to be amongst these top 0.5% earners in India?
Find out here!