We all know how insanely difficult it is to top the first year of MBA. It is one of the rarest of rare achievements. Batch toppers enjoy special perks like direct shortlists to dream companies, scholarships. The fierceness of the competition ensures that toppers are always respected by the entire batch for this singular achievement.
Amidst the major global leaders whose voices at Indore reverberated at the Global Investors Summit in the city, a few voices in the same city received an ovation at the Voice of Indore, popularly known as VOI, a flagship event hosted by the Indian Institute of Management Indore. The upcoming annual management and cultural fest of IIM Indore, IRIS 2014 is already gaining momentum and the hues could be seen at the round of VOI auditions that were conducted at the Indian Institute of Technology Indore on 10th October 2014.
IIM Kozhikode is one of the few Indian Business Schools that can boast of a rich culture where students are not only encouraged to pursue their extracurricular interests, but are also given the right platforms to nurture & showcase them to the world.
The first year of MBA is for many B schoolers, a defining period in their academic life. It is here that they are exposed to a smorgasbord of activities - academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular, and most students struggle to strike the right balance among all three. In the first year, enthusiasm for studies is quite high because students know that their first year grades will be considered while shortlisting for final placements. The perks of a top-20 rank in the first year are many - starting from direct shortlists for many investment banking, consulting roles, to scholarships, and many other special opportunities. Thus, there is fierce competition, with at least 80-100 students on each campus actively working hard on academics. Securing a top-20 spot in a batch of 400 is no mean feat in itself. However, topping the MBA course and finishing the first year as rank one is an order of magnitude higher in difficulty. It takes a military level of determination, self-control, and courage to finish the year as Rank One. You have to be consistent and stay motivated in each and every exam. No wonder toppers are revered by the batch for this one achievement - because everybody knows just how difficult it is to achieve it.
IIM Raipur organized its 1st HR Summit on 19th and 20th of September, 2014 which proved to be a huge success as industry professionals and academicians from all over India shared their experiences and insights on the various topics related to the central theme of “Aligning HR with Business Strategy”. The two day event saw participation of over 50 HR Directors, Presidents and Vice Presidents from the industry voicing their opinions during the six panel discussions. For students like me who are looking for a career in HR, the Summit gave an opportunity to get an industry perspective. The Chief Guest, Mr. Narendra Kothari, CMD, NMDC, in his inaugural address stated that better HR policies are the best way of motivating employees and there is a need for performance differentiation during appraisal. In his words, “While hiring a new employee one must try to align the job requirements with the personal requirements.” Mr. Ramkumar, Executive Director, ICICI bank, built his speech around leadership. He ascertained that techniques can be learned but passion cannot be and as business professionals we should stop identifying ourselves with our specializations. His opinion that we should refer ourselves as leaders and not as HR or marketing professionals was intriguing and made me realize how we limit ourselves as we inch a step closer to the doors of the corporate world. On the first panel discussion, titled ‘Managing Intangibles – Connecting with Internal Customers’, the panel members talked about the best HR practices across the industry and how they manage, motivate and reward their employees. I particularly enjoyed the discussion of the third panel, which was on ‘HR as a strategic business partner’. As an HR enthusiast I do feel that HR should move from the administrative role and be a part of the decision making process of any organization. The discussion revolved around the changing roles of HR. Key speakers in this panel shared their opinions about the practices that could be implemented to achieve this. The second day of the summit was as enriching as the first day and started with the discussion on how organizations can develop a high performing culture. At this time I remembered the article, ‘Characteristics of High Performance Organizations’ by André de Waal which talks about various dimensions an organization should assess itself on to be high performing. The discussion revolved around the same dimensions and the members of the panel shared their firm’s culture and expressed views on the dimensions which their organization focused on to become high performing. The last panel discussion on ‘Leadership in volatile times’ was very interactive and the panelists stressed that all times are volatile times and a leader should be prepared to face any challenge that comes along their way. All in all, the 2014 HR summit organized by IIM Raipur was an exciting experience and as a student I found it to be a very enriching journey. This article is written by Prasha Mishra, of PGP 2013-15. She can be contacted at pgp13101.prasha@iimraipur.ac.in
IRIS is the annual management and cultural festival of the Indian Institute of Management Indore and will be held on 13th, 14th and 15th November 2014. Initially spread over two different fests - Ahvan, the management fest and Mridang, the cultural fest, this year sees these two events come together to bring forth IRIS 2014, which promises to be bigger and better than ever before. The past year alone boasts of participation of close to 10,000 students from over 50 B-Schools across the country. IRIS 2014 will play host to a plethora of challenging management events in every domain to test a manager’s aptitude. The cultural events will add to the festivities and make for an exciting experience.
Mr. Kavindra Mishra, CEO of Pepe Jeans India, visited IIM Indore, Mumbai Campus to interact with PGP students on 29th September. Mr. Mishra pursued his MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. He started his career with Madhura Coats Limited and then worked for brands like Allen Solly, Tommy Hilfiger and United Colors of Benetton. He is also co-founder of Zovi.com, the first online apparel and lifestyle platform. After having two year stint at Zovi.com as an entrepreneur, he is presently the CEO of Pepe Jeans India and has been instrumental in designing effective strategies and embedding them tactfully in the broad spectrum of global strategy.
We all know how insanely difficult it is to top the first year of MBA. It is one of the rarest of rare achievements. Batch toppers enjoy special perks like direct shortlists to dream companies, scholarships. The fierceness of the competition ensures that toppers are always respected by the entire batch for this singular achievement.
Amidst the major global leaders whose voices at Indore reverberated at the Global Investors Summit in the city, a few voices in the same city received an ovation at the Voice of Indore, popularly known as VOI, a flagship event hosted by the Indian Institute of Management Indore. The upcoming annual management and cultural fest of IIM Indore, IRIS 2014 is already gaining momentum and the hues could be seen at the round of VOI auditions that were conducted at the Indian Institute of Technology Indore on 10th October 2014.
IIM Kozhikode is one of the few Indian Business Schools that can boast of a rich culture where students are not only encouraged to pursue their extracurricular interests, but are also given the right platforms to nurture & showcase them to the world.
The first year of MBA is for many B schoolers, a defining period in their academic life. It is here that they are exposed to a smorgasbord of activities - academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular, and most students struggle to strike the right balance among all three. In the first year, enthusiasm for studies is quite high because students know that their first year grades will be considered while shortlisting for final placements. The perks of a top-20 rank in the first year are many - starting from direct shortlists for many investment banking, consulting roles, to scholarships, and many other special opportunities. Thus, there is fierce competition, with at least 80-100 students on each campus actively working hard on academics. Securing a top-20 spot in a batch of 400 is no mean feat in itself. However, topping the MBA course and finishing the first year as rank one is an order of magnitude higher in difficulty. It takes a military level of determination, self-control, and courage to finish the year as Rank One. You have to be consistent and stay motivated in each and every exam. No wonder toppers are revered by the batch for this one achievement - because everybody knows just how difficult it is to achieve it.
IIM Raipur organized its 1st HR Summit on 19th and 20th of September, 2014 which proved to be a huge success as industry professionals and academicians from all over India shared their experiences and insights on the various topics related to the central theme of “Aligning HR with Business Strategy”. The two day event saw participation of over 50 HR Directors, Presidents and Vice Presidents from the industry voicing their opinions during the six panel discussions. For students like me who are looking for a career in HR, the Summit gave an opportunity to get an industry perspective. The Chief Guest, Mr. Narendra Kothari, CMD, NMDC, in his inaugural address stated that better HR policies are the best way of motivating employees and there is a need for performance differentiation during appraisal. In his words, “While hiring a new employee one must try to align the job requirements with the personal requirements.” Mr. Ramkumar, Executive Director, ICICI bank, built his speech around leadership. He ascertained that techniques can be learned but passion cannot be and as business professionals we should stop identifying ourselves with our specializations. His opinion that we should refer ourselves as leaders and not as HR or marketing professionals was intriguing and made me realize how we limit ourselves as we inch a step closer to the doors of the corporate world. On the first panel discussion, titled ‘Managing Intangibles – Connecting with Internal Customers’, the panel members talked about the best HR practices across the industry and how they manage, motivate and reward their employees. I particularly enjoyed the discussion of the third panel, which was on ‘HR as a strategic business partner’. As an HR enthusiast I do feel that HR should move from the administrative role and be a part of the decision making process of any organization. The discussion revolved around the changing roles of HR. Key speakers in this panel shared their opinions about the practices that could be implemented to achieve this. The second day of the summit was as enriching as the first day and started with the discussion on how organizations can develop a high performing culture. At this time I remembered the article, ‘Characteristics of High Performance Organizations’ by André de Waal which talks about various dimensions an organization should assess itself on to be high performing. The discussion revolved around the same dimensions and the members of the panel shared their firm’s culture and expressed views on the dimensions which their organization focused on to become high performing. The last panel discussion on ‘Leadership in volatile times’ was very interactive and the panelists stressed that all times are volatile times and a leader should be prepared to face any challenge that comes along their way. All in all, the 2014 HR summit organized by IIM Raipur was an exciting experience and as a student I found it to be a very enriching journey. This article is written by Prasha Mishra, of PGP 2013-15. She can be contacted at pgp13101.prasha@iimraipur.ac.in
IRIS is the annual management and cultural festival of the Indian Institute of Management Indore and will be held on 13th, 14th and 15th November 2014. Initially spread over two different fests - Ahvan, the management fest and Mridang, the cultural fest, this year sees these two events come together to bring forth IRIS 2014, which promises to be bigger and better than ever before. The past year alone boasts of participation of close to 10,000 students from over 50 B-Schools across the country. IRIS 2014 will play host to a plethora of challenging management events in every domain to test a manager’s aptitude. The cultural events will add to the festivities and make for an exciting experience.
Mr. Kavindra Mishra, CEO of Pepe Jeans India, visited IIM Indore, Mumbai Campus to interact with PGP students on 29th September. Mr. Mishra pursued his MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. He started his career with Madhura Coats Limited and then worked for brands like Allen Solly, Tommy Hilfiger and United Colors of Benetton. He is also co-founder of Zovi.com, the first online apparel and lifestyle platform. After having two year stint at Zovi.com as an entrepreneur, he is presently the CEO of Pepe Jeans India and has been instrumental in designing effective strategies and embedding them tactfully in the broad spectrum of global strategy.
