This is a continuation of The Special Ones - our series on MBA toppers from Elite B schools (read earlier interviews with toppers from XLRI, IIM K, IIM Bangalore, and IIFT here) . We turn to JBIMS and interview Vineet Ranade - first year MBA topper at JBIMS.
This is a continuation of our series on First Year MBA toppers at elite B schools. IIM Bangalore has a bunch of stellar profiles on campus and it is certainly very difficult to come out on top there. In fact, the top 20 from IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calcutta basically have a profile that is above everyone else from other B schools. Here's an interview with Naveen Prashanth - a candidate for the Director's Merit List at IIM Bangalore.
Topping the first year of MBA in an elite B school, in the face of fierce competition is one of the rarest of rare achievements. Most of us would agree that it even beats being a 100 percentiler. At least 80-100 people are gunning for top spot and these are 80-100 of the best minds in the country. No doubt topping the first year is such phenomenal achievement that all batchmates, whether grudgingly or otherwise, have immense respect for the topper. It takes great determination, self-control and consistency to do well in all exams, to avoid slipping up at any stage.
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
This is a continuation of The Special Ones - our series on MBA toppers from Elite B schools (read earlier interviews with toppers from XLRI, IIM K, IIM Bangalore, and IIFT here) . We turn to JBIMS and interview Vineet Ranade - first year MBA topper at JBIMS.
This is a continuation of our series on First Year MBA toppers at elite B schools. IIM Bangalore has a bunch of stellar profiles on campus and it is certainly very difficult to come out on top there. In fact, the top 20 from IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Calcutta basically have a profile that is above everyone else from other B schools. Here's an interview with Naveen Prashanth - a candidate for the Director's Merit List at IIM Bangalore.
Topping the first year of MBA in an elite B school, in the face of fierce competition is one of the rarest of rare achievements. Most of us would agree that it even beats being a 100 percentiler. At least 80-100 people are gunning for top spot and these are 80-100 of the best minds in the country. No doubt topping the first year is such phenomenal achievement that all batchmates, whether grudgingly or otherwise, have immense respect for the topper. It takes great determination, self-control and consistency to do well in all exams, to avoid slipping up at any stage.
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
