This note was long due, but the culprit for this delay is the topic I am writing about. I am talking about MARKSTRAT, the simulation marketing game, which is a part of the curriculum for the course on Market Decision Making.
There are ninety teams taking part in the game. The teams have been divided into 5 Industries A, E, I, O and U, each having their own advantages and disadvantages as in a real life market. There are 5 consumer segments each having its own characteristics. The teams are doing research to improve their products, developing their own strategies and learning from the strategies of their competitors and also launching new products.
And as the fate of the teams is changing after every round as per their net contribution, the Products of companies- stars, cash cows, dogs and question mark of the BCG matrix are also basking in glory one day and are flop on the other day. As a summary and as I always say, I am rediscovering Marketing and management. What could be more interesting than seeing your competitors go in red all the way? While you a business czar think aggressively of price wars and acquisitions and watch the novice falter on every step.
But as the game is progressing, the pressure is building up. After all, it is only a small contribution of 6000 Markstrat $ that separates us from the team which is second in Industry ‘I’. Whatever is the outcome -for me like many others- MARKSTRAT is more than part of a course, and we are spending disproportionate time on it aggressively planning for our future actions.
At the same time, Ziv Katalan, our Decision Modeling Professor from Wharton has covered the Monte Carlo Simulations using the Crystal Ball software. Now we are modeling our decisions on oil prices, options valuations, and have also revisited the old Newsvendor Problem.
On the whole this term is more intensive than the last but the component of fun has also increased. And in case if our team does well in the marketing game, I will write more about our progress. And if we do not do that well, I leave a clue for you, I adopt a non disclosure policy (The copy right to the last line belongs to our Accounting professor).
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Thursday, June 07, 2007
A long post, from the heart
Last one week was full of hectic activities on more than one front. Of course there was the end term that means that we are a 12.5 % MBA already (though this is not my joke but it is quite popular here on the campus).
But before that we had well contested elections for the student representatives for the next one year. ISB now has the President and 5 Directors for the various Councils.
Talking of elections, I cannot help but go back in time to the year 2001 when I was on Protocol duty with Mr. Lyngdoh, Election Commissioner during his visit to our district Burdwan. Being an IAS Probationer gives you unparallel opportunity to meet the Masters of their respective trade. So there we were all prepared with power point preparations about our readiness for elections and there was our boss, who just wanted to move to the field and get an insight from the grass roots.
In one of the villages, Mr Lyngdoh had commented about the political awareness in rural Bengal and that he anticipated something from his visit which could be of general use. Since the election was one of the very first when the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) were being introduced, one of the villagers had asked about the absence of an option on the EVM where vote could be polled for ‘none of the candidates’.
Our reaction was that in such a case the person should not go for voting. But the villager had explained to us that the political functionaries may press public to go for vote. However, the earlier Ballot paper had an opportunity to leave the ballot blank. EVM in contrast produced this Beep sound which could reflect whether the person had voted or not. And so there was needed this option to vote for 'none of the candidates'.
There were also suggestions on ‘Right to Recall’ the public representatives in case if they failed to perform. By now both these issues have been discussed at much higher forums a number of times but I know they had very humble origins, from the masses. And I had a lesson that day; never belittle the intelligence of the public.
However, during election soap box in ISB we hardly had 40 people listening to the probable candidates, and most of them were the friends of the candidates themselves. Another 45 minutes after that the auditorium was full with 400+ people attending a case study session.
People have their own priorities, I respect that, but I still believe that we will have no right to blame anyone if they fail to deliver as per our expectations. Then there was a signature campaign by a few for pushing their candidate into election during what was supposed to be the official voting time. Election was postponed by a day, probably to take a decision on the merit of the signature campaign. And someone pulled out of the contest amidst this nonsense chaos.
In contrast in 2001, after the day’s work, we had visited the grave of Sher Afghan, the Bengal governor and first husband of Mehr-un-Nissa, the lady who was later married to the Mogul king Jehangir and went on to become the Indian empress. Mr. Lyngdoh had read almost everything about Burdwan from the district Gazetteer by then. I had my own version of history arising out of the traditional romantic versions, being from Mogul town of Agra and a fresh pass out of the Civil Services Exam. I know my DM had so much faith in me that I was free to escort and talk to senior most officials, on topics ranging from elections to history, a privilege which most DMs would not allow even to their ADMs.
The evening had a party to end the day, hosted by the first lady of the District. There were officers in their formals, soft music was being played, and words of wisdom and advice were flowing. And for discussion we had the passionate Mogul ‘Prince Salim’ and his childhood love ‘Mehr-un-Nissa’ with all her charm, ambition and that mystery behind a woman’s mind and a valiant ‘Sher Afghan’, who probably had earned his wife and death for his integrity and bravery.
In the next few days we had conducted one of the smoothest elections with almost zero failure. EVMs were grand success, even if there were some technical snags, there were fixed or EVMs were changed. Elections are not to be stopped or postponed, until something drastic happens was the learning. It is just not a sin to postpone the election, it is blasphemy.
Some twenty days after that, the District Magistrate had a mail from the Election Commissioner about the successful conduct of election and containing the exact details of the Mogul and Bengal history, of which our district had had its role to play.
But before that we had well contested elections for the student representatives for the next one year. ISB now has the President and 5 Directors for the various Councils.
Talking of elections, I cannot help but go back in time to the year 2001 when I was on Protocol duty with Mr. Lyngdoh, Election Commissioner during his visit to our district Burdwan. Being an IAS Probationer gives you unparallel opportunity to meet the Masters of their respective trade. So there we were all prepared with power point preparations about our readiness for elections and there was our boss, who just wanted to move to the field and get an insight from the grass roots.
In one of the villages, Mr Lyngdoh had commented about the political awareness in rural Bengal and that he anticipated something from his visit which could be of general use. Since the election was one of the very first when the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) were being introduced, one of the villagers had asked about the absence of an option on the EVM where vote could be polled for ‘none of the candidates’.
Our reaction was that in such a case the person should not go for voting. But the villager had explained to us that the political functionaries may press public to go for vote. However, the earlier Ballot paper had an opportunity to leave the ballot blank. EVM in contrast produced this Beep sound which could reflect whether the person had voted or not. And so there was needed this option to vote for 'none of the candidates'.
There were also suggestions on ‘Right to Recall’ the public representatives in case if they failed to perform. By now both these issues have been discussed at much higher forums a number of times but I know they had very humble origins, from the masses. And I had a lesson that day; never belittle the intelligence of the public.
However, during election soap box in ISB we hardly had 40 people listening to the probable candidates, and most of them were the friends of the candidates themselves. Another 45 minutes after that the auditorium was full with 400+ people attending a case study session.
People have their own priorities, I respect that, but I still believe that we will have no right to blame anyone if they fail to deliver as per our expectations. Then there was a signature campaign by a few for pushing their candidate into election during what was supposed to be the official voting time. Election was postponed by a day, probably to take a decision on the merit of the signature campaign. And someone pulled out of the contest amidst this nonsense chaos.
In contrast in 2001, after the day’s work, we had visited the grave of Sher Afghan, the Bengal governor and first husband of Mehr-un-Nissa, the lady who was later married to the Mogul king Jehangir and went on to become the Indian empress. Mr. Lyngdoh had read almost everything about Burdwan from the district Gazetteer by then. I had my own version of history arising out of the traditional romantic versions, being from Mogul town of Agra and a fresh pass out of the Civil Services Exam. I know my DM had so much faith in me that I was free to escort and talk to senior most officials, on topics ranging from elections to history, a privilege which most DMs would not allow even to their ADMs.
The evening had a party to end the day, hosted by the first lady of the District. There were officers in their formals, soft music was being played, and words of wisdom and advice were flowing. And for discussion we had the passionate Mogul ‘Prince Salim’ and his childhood love ‘Mehr-un-Nissa’ with all her charm, ambition and that mystery behind a woman’s mind and a valiant ‘Sher Afghan’, who probably had earned his wife and death for his integrity and bravery.
In the next few days we had conducted one of the smoothest elections with almost zero failure. EVMs were grand success, even if there were some technical snags, there were fixed or EVMs were changed. Elections are not to be stopped or postponed, until something drastic happens was the learning. It is just not a sin to postpone the election, it is blasphemy.
Some twenty days after that, the District Magistrate had a mail from the Election Commissioner about the successful conduct of election and containing the exact details of the Mogul and Bengal history, of which our district had had its role to play.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
End Terms Knocking at the door
What happens when the exams are right in front of you? Does one tend to behave erratically and start blogging? May be or may not be but I did end up writing this meaningless worth in last five minutes.
A lame man and a blind man were friends and wanted to cross a busy road one late evening. The blind couldn’t see and lame walked slowly, so they stood waiting for the traffic to reduce. One old man wanted to catch a bus. He could see the bus-stop at a distance but still comforted himself with the idea of walking less and stood behind them, believing the bus ‘should’ stop for the lame and the blind. There started the queue and soon a sixty five other people were standing at a place where the bus never stopped.
As usual, the bus reached the bus-stop at the right time and the old conductor gave a call or two. But since no one responded he asked the driver to move ahead. When the bus passed the crowd, some wise men in the crowd waved their hands asking the bus to stop. The driver didn’t care to stop. He had this long standing grudge against the crowd that why the hell do they always stand behind the lame and the blind when the bus-stop is right in their sight.
Sadly that was the last bus of the day and the crowd started cursing the inefficiency of the Government Transport System. Realizing that some thing was wrong, the blind and the lame friends vanished from the spot. After another half an hour, a Tempo stopped at the place where the crowd was waiting for the public transport. As usual some people in the crowd pushed themselves in the vehicle realizing that that was the last option, if they had to reach their destination. The tempo happily moved ahead leaving a few others bewildered.
Moral of the story is that think twice before you stand behind the lame and the blind even if in your heart they evoke a lot of pity or standing in a crowd gives you a sense of security, for you never know where you might end up.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
The First Test.
Our first Midterm examinations are over. They were a mixed bag for some. For some others, they were just what they would have wished them to be while a few of us found them rather tricky. Some of my friends were obviously tensed as the stakes are too high. So I was giving 'gyan' to one of my friend (OK, I take that liberty owing to my work-ex in the Administration and handling bigger pressure situations) that management is not all about cracking good grades. It is also a bit about handling pressure situations and unexpected disappointments and still coming out winner.
Australian Cricket team is the best example of management, I could quote. From their finding and grooming the right talent, to their determination, hard work, discipline and aggression, every thing has some management discipline deployed to its full potential. Call it JIT, six-sigma, it is all there and the result is that they are almost running a monopoly now. The Australian Cricket team never seems to be perturbed even after a few hiccups and still manages to win. While most other teams continue to be ‘a house of cards’.
And for those who want to know about the MBA in general- I can say (after having spent last one year in IIM Ahmedabad as a Fellow Programme student and now with my ISB exposure) that the study for an MBA degree is not a cake walk. To say the least, what has now become almost a proverb; it is more about handling the “pressure cooker” like situation. And these courses are designed as such so as to prepare the young managers for the future pressure of the Corporate world.
Somehow I feel that I have an advantage over most of the people here, and that is due to my grooming in Administration for handling the pressure situations. The pressure that I handled as a Sub Divisional Officer when I went ahead for the closure of a sick Public Sector Unit, against all resistance, was brutally painful. Then I passed sleepless nights for months when I had deleted about 2 lakhs voters from the 4 constituencies after the special revision of the electoral roll. My job was at stake, if I were proved wrong.
So when you risk your most prized possession - your job as an IAS officer- for the hard work of your team, those hundreds of enumerators who did that house to house enumeration, you learn to trust your team and also to handle the pressure. It is another thing that you end up becoming the Joint Chief Electoral Officer of the State for the conduct of the Assembly Election in flat less than four years after that. And that someone in those corridors of power tells you that ‘Bloody, you have been picked to do this job’.
Examinations can be tricky, for instance a question may tell you only that the costs are sunk costs, and not whether those sunk costs are avoidable or unavoidable. Of those two only one will give the correct answer- implies that only half the group would presumable get the answer right. So even if someone ends up loosing some marks, that is SUNK COST. What is more important is to feel inspired for the next battle, in the Aussie way of playing cricket.
Different people have different ways of preparing themselves for the next day, so some are partying again. But many are silently preparing for the marketing assignment and a few were solving the Accounting Assignment in the library. Parties help in networking for some and building ‘brand recognition’ which might be useful in days to come. There are others who are working hard for getting into the Dean’s List based on their Academic performance, for that is ‘their’ forte. Then there are many people in the party because they just want to dance in a big crowd and loud music.
But if it comes to my belief, I believe that there are rewards for everyone, especially for those who missed a lively evening and instead spent a dull evening in the library.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
It is Examination Fever
It is one month since we arrived in ISB, which means one of the twelve months of our stay at ISB is already over. The time is running really fast and many of us could not believe that they have been here for one month already. It appears that we had arrived here yesterday only.
But that we are here for one month can be realized from the fact that we have our midterm examination on this Friday. The examination fever is getting higher with every passing day. After all this is the first mid term. Just now while I was coming back from the learning resource centre, I saw someone who reminded me of my school days when teacher used to scold us and we used to come back to home dragging our feet. The same old rosy cheeks, turned pale due to fear and punishment. It’s cute that examination still continues to be a terror.
And three of our instructors have finished their portion of the course i.e. the pre-midterm portion of the course. So from Wednesday, we will have three new faculty members taking our classes. Two of them are from Wharton, for Economics and Statistics, while in Marketing we will have a faculty coming from Terry College of Business, University of Georgia.
Right now when most of my friends are busy mugging, I just managed to find a few minutes to keep the blog updated. One more thing is that today I removed the crepe bandage from my knee and have already been scolded by a few friends for doing that. Any way I feel I am more comfortable without that bandage.
I will try to write about midterm or some thing else on the weekend. Right now it’s Examination fever.
But that we are here for one month can be realized from the fact that we have our midterm examination on this Friday. The examination fever is getting higher with every passing day. After all this is the first mid term. Just now while I was coming back from the learning resource centre, I saw someone who reminded me of my school days when teacher used to scold us and we used to come back to home dragging our feet. The same old rosy cheeks, turned pale due to fear and punishment. It’s cute that examination still continues to be a terror.
And three of our instructors have finished their portion of the course i.e. the pre-midterm portion of the course. So from Wednesday, we will have three new faculty members taking our classes. Two of them are from Wharton, for Economics and Statistics, while in Marketing we will have a faculty coming from Terry College of Business, University of Georgia.
Right now when most of my friends are busy mugging, I just managed to find a few minutes to keep the blog updated. One more thing is that today I removed the crepe bandage from my knee and have already been scolded by a few friends for doing that. Any way I feel I am more comfortable without that bandage.
I will try to write about midterm or some thing else on the weekend. Right now it’s Examination fever.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Sailing with the wind
One and a half week into the first term and the term is 25 % complete.
How come?
It’s so because each of the eight terms at ISB is of 6 weeks, so the course is going very fast and there is Mid term on week end after this one.
After the first weekend people were longing for the classes to begin. Why? Is there any problem with them?
No. It’s so because there are problems with the weekend- Marketing Assignment, Microeconomics Assignment and FADM (Accounting) Quiz to name a few of them. So the consensus is that the regular classes are much better.
And when we are meticulously being taught journal entries, my disbelief that an accounting course as wide as ours can be completed in 20 contact hours is fading away. And that’s Professor Mark Finn for us- with all the delight he gets in teaching his class (you have to be in the class to feel it).
Then in the Class of 2008 when there are 8 Amits, 7 Nehas, 6 Nitins, 6 Gauravs, 6 Abhisheks, 5 Saurabh/Souravs, 5 Satishs, 5 Rohits, 5, Ashishs, 4 Sachins, Viveks, Vijays, Puneets, Prashants, Pankajs, Kartiks, Ankits and Abhijits each, no wonder to distinguish amongst three Puneets in our section, our Micro Economics Professor had to call me the ‘Quieter Puneet’.
It’s true Amit, most of us have few doubts by the end of the class so it’s more to learn than raising questions.
Any MBA course would be incomplete without a course in Marketing. Any marketing course will be incomplete without CP. (‘Class Participation’ for the uninitiated). And when there are 20% marks at stake for the class participation, the class is bound to look like a stock exchange. But this time our Professor stumped us by randomly selecting all the groups for the CP. People had to orient their thoughts at the shortest notice and even an eternal CP master Sourya Da was caught off guard.
So all of those who are listening and want to know about an ISB MBA, I can say that it is like a cool wind and you have to be really fast and alert to keep pace with it. And that is the real fun which our batch is enjoying at the moment.
Bye for now and C u soon with the next post.
How come?
It’s so because each of the eight terms at ISB is of 6 weeks, so the course is going very fast and there is Mid term on week end after this one.
After the first weekend people were longing for the classes to begin. Why? Is there any problem with them?
No. It’s so because there are problems with the weekend- Marketing Assignment, Microeconomics Assignment and FADM (Accounting) Quiz to name a few of them. So the consensus is that the regular classes are much better.
And when we are meticulously being taught journal entries, my disbelief that an accounting course as wide as ours can be completed in 20 contact hours is fading away. And that’s Professor Mark Finn for us- with all the delight he gets in teaching his class (you have to be in the class to feel it).
Then in the Class of 2008 when there are 8 Amits, 7 Nehas, 6 Nitins, 6 Gauravs, 6 Abhisheks, 5 Saurabh/Souravs, 5 Satishs, 5 Rohits, 5, Ashishs, 4 Sachins, Viveks, Vijays, Puneets, Prashants, Pankajs, Kartiks, Ankits and Abhijits each, no wonder to distinguish amongst three Puneets in our section, our Micro Economics Professor had to call me the ‘Quieter Puneet’.
It’s true Amit, most of us have few doubts by the end of the class so it’s more to learn than raising questions.
Any MBA course would be incomplete without a course in Marketing. Any marketing course will be incomplete without CP. (‘Class Participation’ for the uninitiated). And when there are 20% marks at stake for the class participation, the class is bound to look like a stock exchange. But this time our Professor stumped us by randomly selecting all the groups for the CP. People had to orient their thoughts at the shortest notice and even an eternal CP master Sourya Da was caught off guard.
So all of those who are listening and want to know about an ISB MBA, I can say that it is like a cool wind and you have to be really fast and alert to keep pace with it. And that is the real fun which our batch is enjoying at the moment.
Bye for now and C u soon with the next post.
Monday, April 30, 2007
First Class at ISB
Today was my first day in class at ISB in real sense. Since I was not registered for any of the pre terms or the preparatory courses, I was sort of relaxing and recuperating after the ‘orientation madness’ (the topic of the photography contest here- right). Only that my ligament injury is very painful.
Today’s class was special for me because our Statistics Professor happens to be from Wharton. I had this curiosity that when those schools have such exceptional reputation then is there really some differentiating factor. I must admit that I got to know one of the factors. Today’s class was much different from the types of class where you substitute values in equations and ‘EUREKA’. You discover you’ve got the answer.
And then in the microeconomics class we were reintroduced to microeconomics, very differently with the help of a trading game. So I reconfirm my joining ISB as a wise decision. As most people used to say, here you get to learn from amongst the best in the profession.
And continuing from my last post, the batch of 2008 continues to amaze me. For one full week our mail box was jammed with mails from people offering a helping hand or volunteering in club activities when no student body has yet been formed and even before the classes had begun. (Hmmm….. elections at the end of the first term)
Thanks God that the classes rushed to us. And with that came the wisdom and awakening that being prepared for the classes might not be such a bad idea. So for last three days the mail flow dried up like the municipality water supplies. Obviously those who started the readings must have finished reading those and so the celebration reflected in the party coinciding with the world cup final. And as usual I got to hear the loud music while this injury wouldn’t permit me being on the dance floor.
And as the party creatures blurred away in smoke, today there were different and determined faces carrying books and lap tops to their classes.
Being to class today also took me back in time, when another batch was flocking to LBSNAA Mussourie. That of the people selected in the batch of Civil Services ’99. And while some of my friends in Civil Services will be going to Mussourie this June and then to US for the Phase III training for the IAS Officers, I will have to miss the same.
And if I have sounded straight forward so far, I’m not and nor will the life allow it to be like that. Life continues to be wonderfully mysterious and confusing. It is like a lost mail, where you are never sure whether it ever reached the destination or not. And so when I was planning to take sports seriously in the next year, for CV point’s sake, I got this leg injury which will take less medication and more time to heal.
But the game has just begun, there is one full year to unfold before all of us, and I wait in excitement for the same.
Today’s class was special for me because our Statistics Professor happens to be from Wharton. I had this curiosity that when those schools have such exceptional reputation then is there really some differentiating factor. I must admit that I got to know one of the factors. Today’s class was much different from the types of class where you substitute values in equations and ‘EUREKA’. You discover you’ve got the answer.
And then in the microeconomics class we were reintroduced to microeconomics, very differently with the help of a trading game. So I reconfirm my joining ISB as a wise decision. As most people used to say, here you get to learn from amongst the best in the profession.
And continuing from my last post, the batch of 2008 continues to amaze me. For one full week our mail box was jammed with mails from people offering a helping hand or volunteering in club activities when no student body has yet been formed and even before the classes had begun. (Hmmm….. elections at the end of the first term)
Thanks God that the classes rushed to us. And with that came the wisdom and awakening that being prepared for the classes might not be such a bad idea. So for last three days the mail flow dried up like the municipality water supplies. Obviously those who started the readings must have finished reading those and so the celebration reflected in the party coinciding with the world cup final. And as usual I got to hear the loud music while this injury wouldn’t permit me being on the dance floor.
And as the party creatures blurred away in smoke, today there were different and determined faces carrying books and lap tops to their classes.
Being to class today also took me back in time, when another batch was flocking to LBSNAA Mussourie. That of the people selected in the batch of Civil Services ’99. And while some of my friends in Civil Services will be going to Mussourie this June and then to US for the Phase III training for the IAS Officers, I will have to miss the same.
And if I have sounded straight forward so far, I’m not and nor will the life allow it to be like that. Life continues to be wonderfully mysterious and confusing. It is like a lost mail, where you are never sure whether it ever reached the destination or not. And so when I was planning to take sports seriously in the next year, for CV point’s sake, I got this leg injury which will take less medication and more time to heal.
But the game has just begun, there is one full year to unfold before all of us, and I wait in excitement for the same.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
At ISB
Life has changed a lot in last few months, but it has been for good all the way. And here I am back blogging after a long break.
To begin with I feel elated being at the Indian School of Business. Our Batch of 2008 at ISB has great diversity. It includes Ex-Army men, Squadron Leader from the Air Force, Doctors, Engineers, Chartered Accountants, Diplomats (IFS), Cops (IPS), Entrepreneurs, Marines, Journalists, Bankers, Consultants, and so many more wonderful people.
I am staying in the student village 3 and Quad I. My other Quad mates are Jayan, Ram and Pradeep and we have already built great rapport.
Then I have been allotted the section E and subgroup 13 (hopefully lucky for us). My group includes Amit, Rohit, Ankush and another Puneet. All of them have traveled a lot across the world and Rohit was working with McKinsey & Co, before coming to this place. They are great friends to have and they have been helping me a lot since I injured my leg playing Frisbee. Along with them for the last two days Dr. Kiran Shete and Jayan have also been taking great care of me.
To continue about the ISB, for the last few days we are having the Orientation week and a number of Alumni are also in the campus, and they are giving us a lot of gyan. We also have been introduced to the various clubs and the seniors are very supportive and protective of the new batch. I hope that our batch also does the ISB proud.
ISB is a great place to be at with such a wonderful batch of over 400 people. The place is built amidst a rocky terrain and large boulders beautify the place as if they were intentionally placed sculptors. The building architecture is modern with best facilities available and the Learning Resource Centre (or the LRC) is the towering centre around which the whole campus is spread.
But the greatest thing possible is the batch of 2008 itself. As the competitions in the Orientation week reach closer to the finals, the team preparations are increasing. The slogan for section E “Rock-E……. Rock-E” has already become popular (at least in our section). And after sweating in the field the people relax by partying hard. It is about 3 a.m. in the night and the party has just begun and I can hear the loud music outside. And there has been a party atleast every alternate day since we reached here.
I think the forth coming days will see some wonderful performances by this batch in the field of business, entrepreneurship, governance and social work. And I would like to be a part of some of those and would like to write about some on this blog as well.
To begin with I feel elated being at the Indian School of Business. Our Batch of 2008 at ISB has great diversity. It includes Ex-Army men, Squadron Leader from the Air Force, Doctors, Engineers, Chartered Accountants, Diplomats (IFS), Cops (IPS), Entrepreneurs, Marines, Journalists, Bankers, Consultants, and so many more wonderful people.
I am staying in the student village 3 and Quad I. My other Quad mates are Jayan, Ram and Pradeep and we have already built great rapport.
Then I have been allotted the section E and subgroup 13 (hopefully lucky for us). My group includes Amit, Rohit, Ankush and another Puneet. All of them have traveled a lot across the world and Rohit was working with McKinsey & Co, before coming to this place. They are great friends to have and they have been helping me a lot since I injured my leg playing Frisbee. Along with them for the last two days Dr. Kiran Shete and Jayan have also been taking great care of me.
To continue about the ISB, for the last few days we are having the Orientation week and a number of Alumni are also in the campus, and they are giving us a lot of gyan. We also have been introduced to the various clubs and the seniors are very supportive and protective of the new batch. I hope that our batch also does the ISB proud.
ISB is a great place to be at with such a wonderful batch of over 400 people. The place is built amidst a rocky terrain and large boulders beautify the place as if they were intentionally placed sculptors. The building architecture is modern with best facilities available and the Learning Resource Centre (or the LRC) is the towering centre around which the whole campus is spread.
But the greatest thing possible is the batch of 2008 itself. As the competitions in the Orientation week reach closer to the finals, the team preparations are increasing. The slogan for section E “Rock-E……. Rock-E” has already become popular (at least in our section). And after sweating in the field the people relax by partying hard. It is about 3 a.m. in the night and the party has just begun and I can hear the loud music outside. And there has been a party atleast every alternate day since we reached here.
I think the forth coming days will see some wonderful performances by this batch in the field of business, entrepreneurship, governance and social work. And I would like to be a part of some of those and would like to write about some on this blog as well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
