The week saw us donning the hats of market surveyors. Students of different groups went out for market surveys of different products as part of a marketing assignment. Some were interrogators, some mere observers. Some were roaming vegetable markets, some TV showrooms whereas others were checking out second hand bookstores.
I belonged to a lucky group who had to survey TV buyers. Or so I thought! Lucky because we had the air conditioning working in our favor which probably the vegetable market guys were sorely missing. But then it is peak summer with IPL in full swing. We ventured out in the afternoon hoping to catch up some sleep later. But alas, empty showrooms greeted us. After spending two full hours of general loitering, better sense prevailed and we soon beat a retreat to the dorms.
The second session was planned in the evening and this time we could see some light at the end of the tunnel. We sneaked into a showroom and caught hold of an unsuspecting customer the moment he signed across the dotted line. Though taken aback, he seemed to be sympathetic and the IIM badge also helped to an extend. However, the store manager had another opinion of the whole affair. He intervened hastily and made sure we shifted our rendezvous to a suitable spot outside of the store in question. Nevertheless, we could complete our survey and returned with a handful of data to ponder over. The egos were busted in the process and the respect for salesmen in general took a significant boost.
Friday, April 30, 2010
The week that rocked the boat
It has been almost two full weeks of classes already and to most of us, the outside world and its memories are fast diminishing. The last week in particular has been particularly harsh. The smiles are fast shrinking and dark circles are getting prominent by the day. I could see a couple of fellow classmates catching up on lost sleep in the cool comfort of the back benches. My sympathies are with those who are in the limelight of the front seats.
To give a perspective, we had in our plates a surprise test and a submitted assignment with just two weeks of classes. We also have only four more assignments to be submitted this Monday. Some lessons in time management IIMA is going to teach us! The last two weeks have also seen close to six sessions of four heavy duty quantitative subjects each and people have started confusing one subject for the other already. The breakneck speed has not only broken our necks but also a considerable amount of optimism from our lives.
But some of us are made of sterner stuff. We still are holding on to our share of midnight football and Joos doses. [For the uninitiated, Joos is a cafe in IIMA that remains open well past midnight.]
I am sure the weeks to come will see the 86 unsuspecting souls being subjected to more inhuman torture. But life has its brighter side as well. The saving grace is the break on May 26th that we all are eagerly awaiting. Till then midnight football will hopefully keep us alive.
To give a perspective, we had in our plates a surprise test and a submitted assignment with just two weeks of classes. We also have only four more assignments to be submitted this Monday. Some lessons in time management IIMA is going to teach us! The last two weeks have also seen close to six sessions of four heavy duty quantitative subjects each and people have started confusing one subject for the other already. The breakneck speed has not only broken our necks but also a considerable amount of optimism from our lives.
But some of us are made of sterner stuff. We still are holding on to our share of midnight football and Joos doses. [For the uninitiated, Joos is a cafe in IIMA that remains open well past midnight.]
I am sure the weeks to come will see the 86 unsuspecting souls being subjected to more inhuman torture. But life has its brighter side as well. The saving grace is the break on May 26th that we all are eagerly awaiting. Till then midnight football will hopefully keep us alive.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Classes that are a Class apart
It has been only a week of classes for us at IIMA and what an experience it has already been. So far we had only heard fables of the the kind of interaction that happens in the classrooms, but to experience it first hand is a different ball game altogether. Consider this - marketing is taught by a professor who has co-authored the bible in marketing and is also a visiting professor for various renowned business including INSEAD. Organizational behavior is taught by a professor who holds the entire class of 86 in almost a captivating trance. The first case was delivered by someone who almost made it look like child's play to us.
The professors are not just great subject matter experts but are equally brilliant in holding the class attention with optimum amount of humor. To a question of a student about how 7 different personalities can gel in a work group for a year, the simple counter question of the professor was "Are you married?" And the entire auditorium erupted in a roar.
It is only a week of classes and we have already got insights into marketing strategies, watched a small movie as part of organizational behavior and indulged in an extempore speech session. The indications are quite clear that the journey, though a very difficult one, is going to be equally enjoyable for all of us.
The professors are not just great subject matter experts but are equally brilliant in holding the class attention with optimum amount of humor. To a question of a student about how 7 different personalities can gel in a work group for a year, the simple counter question of the professor was "Are you married?" And the entire auditorium erupted in a roar.
It is only a week of classes and we have already got insights into marketing strategies, watched a small movie as part of organizational behavior and indulged in an extempore speech session. The indications are quite clear that the journey, though a very difficult one, is going to be equally enjoyable for all of us.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Class Mix
Why do we need an MBA? One strong reason that I could convince myself about pursuing an MBA education was to get a training that will allow one to manage business that is industry agnostic. In general, one would expect that a person who has spent considerable time in a given industry will gradually acquire the expertise to manage business in his own industry. But doing so, the thought process of such managers become susceptible to being stereotyped. This is not always the case, but there is a fair chance of that happening.
As an inference, a management education that enhances your knowledge about more than one industry can be considered desirable. One way to do this is to impart such knowledge directly through the curriculum. The other more effective way would be to get the knowledge from someone who has been in such different industries and situations first hand.
From the first day at IIMA, I have realized that the diverse learning from peers would be one of the biggest takeaways. Imagine, in a class of just 86 students, I have already interacted extensively with a commander from Indian Navy who has trained NDA cadets for over 20 years. There is another who has been a deputy commissioner of Income Tax. The guy who sits next to me in class is a general surgeon. Leaving aside the business development managers, technology consultants, engineers, media persons, you still have those who have worked with NGOs, energy firms and Indian Railways. Not only are these very talented individuals from various industries, they also carry substantial work experience and have not just superficial industry knowledge. The fact that we are just a group of 86, means that touch time with each and every one of us is very effective and meaningful. This, I believe, makes all the difference at IIMA PGPX.
As an inference, a management education that enhances your knowledge about more than one industry can be considered desirable. One way to do this is to impart such knowledge directly through the curriculum. The other more effective way would be to get the knowledge from someone who has been in such different industries and situations first hand.
From the first day at IIMA, I have realized that the diverse learning from peers would be one of the biggest takeaways. Imagine, in a class of just 86 students, I have already interacted extensively with a commander from Indian Navy who has trained NDA cadets for over 20 years. There is another who has been a deputy commissioner of Income Tax. The guy who sits next to me in class is a general surgeon. Leaving aside the business development managers, technology consultants, engineers, media persons, you still have those who have worked with NGOs, energy firms and Indian Railways. Not only are these very talented individuals from various industries, they also carry substantial work experience and have not just superficial industry knowledge. The fact that we are just a group of 86, means that touch time with each and every one of us is very effective and meaningful. This, I believe, makes all the difference at IIMA PGPX.
I Will Take It Case By Case
Since I started my application process to various MBA programs in 2009, one of the things that intrigued me the most was the case method of imparting management education. Noteworthy among the schools which employ this method are Harvard business school, Darden and IIMA. Although it seemed to be a desirable way of pedagogy, I frankly had little clue about the method until I started experiencing it myself.
On day 1 of our program at IIMA, we were divided into groups and were expected to work closely to solve management problems. A special room akin to the boardrooms of corporates are assigned to each group where we are expected to work - sometimes round the clock to arrive at strategies to problems. These rooms are called syndicate rooms.
The case method is structured such that each class discusses a business problem related to the subject of study. The case is a narration of a real-life-like situation with adequate data and description. This is handed over to each group and a related reading material is stated to prepare, study and possibly solve the business problem.
The syndicate members then individually study the problem, discuss among the group members and prepare a set of decision points. The next day the class discusses the case in conjunction with the subject at hand and the knowledge is imparted indirectly as a side-effect of the case discussion. Various viewpoints come to the classroom as a result of the various groups independently preparing for the same case and this makes the classroom discussions amazingly fruitful.
Thus, the case method helps in exposing the students to a real-life-like situation and hopefully prepares future managers in a very effective way as opposed to a direct study confined to only subject matter discussion.
On day 1 of our program at IIMA, we were divided into groups and were expected to work closely to solve management problems. A special room akin to the boardrooms of corporates are assigned to each group where we are expected to work - sometimes round the clock to arrive at strategies to problems. These rooms are called syndicate rooms.
The case method is structured such that each class discusses a business problem related to the subject of study. The case is a narration of a real-life-like situation with adequate data and description. This is handed over to each group and a related reading material is stated to prepare, study and possibly solve the business problem.
The syndicate members then individually study the problem, discuss among the group members and prepare a set of decision points. The next day the class discusses the case in conjunction with the subject at hand and the knowledge is imparted indirectly as a side-effect of the case discussion. Various viewpoints come to the classroom as a result of the various groups independently preparing for the same case and this makes the classroom discussions amazingly fruitful.
Thus, the case method helps in exposing the students to a real-life-like situation and hopefully prepares future managers in a very effective way as opposed to a direct study confined to only subject matter discussion.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
First few days at IIMA
Finally my MBA journey started on 8th April 2010 when I boarded the Indigo airlines flight for Ahmedabad from the Bangalore airport. At the airport, I met a couple of classmates who were all excited and anxious at the same time about what lay in store for us at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA). We were all well-fed with fables about the rigour of the course and this was probably the most important thing playing in our minds.
Now, that I have mentioned about the rigor of the course, let me give a brief introduction of the course itself. IIMA had launched a one year full time MBA program in 2006 called PGPX which is meant for professionals with substantial work experience. The entry criteria are a GMAT score, essays, profile and a minimum of 27 years of age. The acceptance rate is less than 10 percent - even less than Harvard or Wharton business school. The course is designed to include a very rigorous academic curriculum divided into 5 terms of about 2.5 months each. One of the terms is an international stint of academics and industry immersion.
It need not be said that coming from IIMA, this is probably one of the best one year MBA programs available in the country and hence it attracts the very best of MBA aspirants of Indian origin from all over the world. Consequently it is one of the toughest courses to get in - with average GMAT score of 714 (in the current batch), international experience of about 4 years on the average, a stringent screening process and an equally grueling interview.
We reached Ahmedabad in the afternoon and soon realized that the heat in terms of the rigour of the course would get stiff competition from the scorching heat of the city itself. Probably the temperature was around the 40 degrees centigrade mark and the cab driver who drove us to the campus informed us that it can only get worse.
On reaching the campus we soon were basking in the glory of being part of the great legacy of IIM Ahmedabad. To be a student after a gap of 10 years was a thrill in itself. We soon found ourselves in the student's canteen and immersed in the regular chat and tea session. The one great thing that we all agreed was being part of a great mix of students who have excelled in their own fields of work. I am not sure if such a mix can be expected in any business school at least in India.
Later in the afternoon, we got ourselves registered to the office and were presented with the most unwelcome gift we all had anticipated but never quite prepared ourselves for. The mountain of books that were handed over to us probably called for a mini truck to be accompanied with, as it was humanely impossible to carry those with your bare hands. Morale had taken a serious beating.
But we were made of sterner stuff and a morale maintenance committee was constituted in no time. The committee made immediate plans of organizing trips to movie theatre, cricket matches and even nightly football sessions for the next few days because it was only Thursday and classes were to start only from Monday. The next few days passed in a breeze.
Monday saw a grand opening ceremony where even spouses and small children took part. It was really an amazing experience to see some very serious topics being discussed and intermitted by cries and laughter of little ones. Lunch followed and then the dreaded entry to the actual CR 11 - classroom designated for the batch of PGPX. Thus started the journey of 86 ambitious and highly talented group of young men and women for a year of rigour and fun.
Now, that I have mentioned about the rigor of the course, let me give a brief introduction of the course itself. IIMA had launched a one year full time MBA program in 2006 called PGPX which is meant for professionals with substantial work experience. The entry criteria are a GMAT score, essays, profile and a minimum of 27 years of age. The acceptance rate is less than 10 percent - even less than Harvard or Wharton business school. The course is designed to include a very rigorous academic curriculum divided into 5 terms of about 2.5 months each. One of the terms is an international stint of academics and industry immersion.
It need not be said that coming from IIMA, this is probably one of the best one year MBA programs available in the country and hence it attracts the very best of MBA aspirants of Indian origin from all over the world. Consequently it is one of the toughest courses to get in - with average GMAT score of 714 (in the current batch), international experience of about 4 years on the average, a stringent screening process and an equally grueling interview.
We reached Ahmedabad in the afternoon and soon realized that the heat in terms of the rigour of the course would get stiff competition from the scorching heat of the city itself. Probably the temperature was around the 40 degrees centigrade mark and the cab driver who drove us to the campus informed us that it can only get worse.
On reaching the campus we soon were basking in the glory of being part of the great legacy of IIM Ahmedabad. To be a student after a gap of 10 years was a thrill in itself. We soon found ourselves in the student's canteen and immersed in the regular chat and tea session. The one great thing that we all agreed was being part of a great mix of students who have excelled in their own fields of work. I am not sure if such a mix can be expected in any business school at least in India.
Later in the afternoon, we got ourselves registered to the office and were presented with the most unwelcome gift we all had anticipated but never quite prepared ourselves for. The mountain of books that were handed over to us probably called for a mini truck to be accompanied with, as it was humanely impossible to carry those with your bare hands. Morale had taken a serious beating.
But we were made of sterner stuff and a morale maintenance committee was constituted in no time. The committee made immediate plans of organizing trips to movie theatre, cricket matches and even nightly football sessions for the next few days because it was only Thursday and classes were to start only from Monday. The next few days passed in a breeze.
Monday saw a grand opening ceremony where even spouses and small children took part. It was really an amazing experience to see some very serious topics being discussed and intermitted by cries and laughter of little ones. Lunch followed and then the dreaded entry to the actual CR 11 - classroom designated for the batch of PGPX. Thus started the journey of 86 ambitious and highly talented group of young men and women for a year of rigour and fun.
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