From cricket scores to movies timings, from spotting a location to navigating to it, from finding a house to finding a person; today we use internet for practically everything. Internet is our savior in all situations as we all are information seekers all the time.

But as much handy the World Wide Web is, most of us still do not know how to make the best of it. Knowing the correct ways of tapping the best possible potential of internet is an art. It is important to learn this art if you want to save further time and find exactly what you are looking for. Data on the internet is increasing manifold every year and access to information is more important than ever. It is all out there and yet most of the time, we don’t find it. This is because although we are looking through the right medium, we are not able to look at the right source of information.

Search engines have a unique way of working. For them relevance is more important than finding a page with the right key words. They have been developed over the years to better match results with our queries. Search engines also assume that more popular the site or page, the more useful it will be for the user. This assumption seems to have fairly matched the end user satisfaction. So, given all this, what are the things that we could take care of from our end to fulfill our means? Let us start by looking at the most effective and reliable search engine of today – Google.

Google offers multiple tools, operators and filters to refine your search. We will look at some of those tools and other tips and tricks to make your search easier, time saving and yielding more precise and accurate results.

Keywords

• The first step to any search is the keywords. Normally, Google returns the result giving priority to the pages containing most of your keywords, irrespective of the order. If you want to improve your search results, it is advisable to use 5 to 7 keywords as then it is easier for Google to understand what you are looking for. Please note that Google tends to ignore frequently used key words like a, an, the, I, this, that etc.
• Use of within-quotes (“ ”): to get the exact phrase or the order of keywords in your search results, you can put your search query within quotes. By doing so Google will look for sites with the exact phrasing. For example, if you want to look for the growth rate of the IT enabled services industry, you might use – “IT enabled services” “industry” “growth rate”, to yield more specific and precise search results.
• Use of asterisks (*): If you are not sure about what keywords to use, or do not know what to look for, you can use * symbol in combination with your keywords. This will make Google find all possible combinations of pages. For example, * internship

• If you want to exclude some words from your search, you can use the minus sign. Google will exclude all the pages from your search result that contain the specific words, except where the minus sign is used as a hyphen.
• Use for comparing data
• You can use the ‘OR’ operator to get choice in your search results. Google will display the sites with either of the two keywords, instead of the sites containing both the words. For example:

Other important points to consider are:

• Use precise keywords to describe what your are searching
• Do not use questions to search on Google. For example instead of using ‘in which year Pfizer acquired Wyeth?’ use ‘Pfizer acquired Wyeth in’
• Use Google shortcuts to save time.

Google Advance Search

Since you cannot always memorize the different search operators, Google offers us the advance search options. You can access more accurate information by using these basic tools:

• Site/Domain search: If you want to search on a specific site then you can use your keywords along with the name of the website separated by a double colon. Google will return results from the same website. You can also use this trick for searching a specific domain. For example, Disaster management : .org

• You can find pages that link to a certain page. For example- link:linkedin.com
• Search specific file type by using, Product development:PDF
• Access a cached version of a website by using cache:timesofindia.com
• Find related pages to the website you already know, related:IPL
• Use allintitle: to view a page with a title containing your desired keyword

Please note that while using operators, do not use any space between keywords and punctuation to refine your search.

Additionally Google gives us the option to filter our search by language, region, time, etc.

Google Shortcuts

• Dictionary: Find meaning of a word without having to access the whole dictionary. For example, use define:ambient to get the meaning of the word ambient

• Calculator: directly use Google’s in built calculator by simply entering the calculation you would like into the search box
• World clocks, weather forecast
• Public data or demographics
• Fill in the blank – Google reduces our efforts by filling in the information that we seek by providing initial keywords followed by asterisks sign (*).
• Unit conversion and currency calculators
• Mortgage rates
• package tracking

Now after having known almost all the search modifiers offered by Google, we can use these options in combination to further clean out the unwanted results. For example, if you are looking for the managing director of a company you can use: “Unilever India” “Managing director” site:Linkedin.com

You can also apply these search modifiers to search for images, news, videos – which are again a form of filtering our search results.

Google’s search technology has reached new heights since it was launched years ago. Most of us do not even know how search works anymore. We just assume to get the results we want. However remembering these simple search modifiers discussed in the article and learning to use them indicatively, can make you search more proficiently.

Here are some links that you can refer to for further gaining clarity on Google’s advance search:

https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/134479?hl=en

https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/35890?hl=en

https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2466433?hl=en

Contributed By : Isha Jajodia (IBS Gurgaon, Class of 2010).

One of the skills that most, MBA grads or would-be managers require the most is persuasion skills. A sales representative or marketing person is nothing without persuasion skills. One of my professors used to say that a marketing guy must be well-equipped with skills to sell raincoats in a desert. Interesting it sounds but it is certainly difficult to get anyone to do what you really want by making them feel that they really want it.

First and foremost, you need to understand that influencing others isn’t luck or magic, it is science! Researches and management books always proclaim that there are a certain number of ways that make people agree to your messages or pitch. As a marketer, you must be well equipped with consumer behavior i.e. you must be able to understand what affects your target’s behavior.

See, no one can give you a clear explanation that why customers take a particular decision. But if you really, really understand the factors that influence their decisions, you can use them in your favor and that is real persuasion skill. Now since you have knowledge on behaviors remember that in your long term interest never push a product or service to a customer with poor quality or extremely high prices, else you will end up losing your dependability and trust in the long term.

The first mantra that I am going to share with you is ‘A Tooth for a Tooth’. Most of you would-be managers would have guessed by now that a target customer feels more affected and related to a marketer who gives them something or does something for them at no cost. Here, you have to understand that in order to receive you have to give first, let it be samples, gifts, information etc. The key here is to provide a positive experience before hand and then reaping its benefits.

Giving a free trial pack or demonstration gives the prospective customer a feel or experience which they would like to reciprocate. Such prospects become more open to hear your pitch, donate for your cause or tip someone. Also remember, you do not have to go overboard to gift a positive experience.

After you have mastered the reciprocation game, the next step is ‘Communal Consent’. Remember prospective buyers may doubt your information. Hence, just like little kids look for approvals from their parents; prospective customers hunt for approvals from friends, family, relatives, peers, competition and others for their purchase decision.

The number one reason nowadays android applications, products on various shopping sites; restaurants on food sites etc have reviews and ratings beside them is that prospects want to know what existing customers have experienced as well as how they feel about it. This strategy is actually a cost less one but remember the target audience always looks for people similar to them. I used to work for an online ad space selling firm and one of my prospects only bought my service because I gave him a plethora of existing customer’s name that were using the service, were in the same industry or were well known!

The third mantra is ‘Honoring Promises and Remaining Steady’. Would you purchase from a sales representative who commits something and backs out at the actual time of sale? No. A marketer must honor something after agreeing to it verbally or on paper given by him. Prospective customers really look for this steadiness or say consistency in marketer’s commitments.

Moreover customers do not like to leave good deals for which attitudes, values and actions have previously been set, said or discussed. They want to honor what has been decided previously. If you really want someone to say ‘yes’ to you, just make them committed to an action in your favor. Remember elder people value this consistency more!

The fourth mantra is ‘Aristocracy’. People really like to follow what experts or people of high social class do. They like to mimic attractive clothing, valuable and precious jewelry or good quality automobile for the credibility they provide. When someone imposes authority, customers generally tend to blindly follow or accept it.

Remember when prospects are insecure or hesitant they look for reference points outside to guide their choices. Authority figures leave a high level of influence in the form of testimonials, certificates, etc. This is the prime reason why a Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan endorses hair oil, suit fabric, etc and people actually buy them.

The next mantra is to ‘Invoke Affinity’; i.e. understanding that prospects say yes to things or people whom they either know or have a liking for. Remember customers place high value of genuine compliments because everyone is needy for praise that boosts their self confidence and esteem.

Customers might like physically attractive or people just like them or their friends approaching them for sales. Understand and know the challenges, problems and preferences of prospects. Remember that Walter Hudson will only be impressed and interested in you if you understand the problems he faces with his weight and give him a solution easing one of his challenges.

Lastly the mantra of ‘Scarcity and Dearth’, leads to creation of demand because the lesser something is available, the more it is in demand else Picasso’s paintings wouldn’t be sold at extremely outrageous prices. Also, offers such as special edition or limited period add to demand temporarily leading to immediate sales at high prices.

Show the prospective customer that you are sensitive to their possible losses than their would-be gains. Therefore it is wise for a marketer to emphasize less on product, its style, benefits and utility but on the opportunity being wasted. Use phrases and words like don’t miss the opportunity. Also, highlight the uniqueness wherever it exists!

Your skill to persuade in the extremely competitive environment, depend on your genuine efforts to show customers that you care and value them; proving social acceptance of your product or service; sticking to your commitment and steadiness; implicating aristocracy; increasing likeliness and showing that the offering you have to make is unique as well as limited in availability!

Contributed By : Chayan Jain (Class of 2011-2013, IBS Hyderabad).

It is said, “When you focus on what you want, everything else falls apart”. Look back and think for a moment, have you decided what you really want to achieve in life? Some of you would say yes, but most would say no!

Pull up your socks, be focused on the future and give directions by deciding upon the ultimate goal of your life. It holds true both for professional and personal life. Until and unless you really know what you want to achieve, whatever you are doing in day-to-day life might be unrewarding.

Hence setting goals is important. Now you would say setting goals for profession is understandable but what do I mean by setting goals for personal life – it could be anything from being a wonderful wife/husband who never gives an opportunity of complaint to their spouse to leading a stress-free life outside work. Difficult to imagine, isn’t it. Actually it is not, if you make a clear goal you will plan things accordingly, which would result in a happy personal life and positively influences your professional life too. Indeed a win-win situation. You would wonder why I’m going out of track and talking about setting personal goals on a blog where we talk about studies and career. In that case, most of you would agree with me that both are inter-related, which is why I’m talking about both sides of the coin.

Moving on to professional goals, the thumb rule is really simple – think hard about what is it you want to do in the future that would give you a kick and makes you happy. I am not saying that you imagine yourself to be the President of USA as he is one of the most powerful men in the world, but something realistic and achievable. No offence but if you think you can be the President, then go for it!

Say for example your dream is to become Google India’s head. That is an impressive dream and Google is such an amazing company to work with that most of the employees feel more at home when they are actually in office! You would instantly fall in love with Google and its more than awesome work culture. Additionally, it goes without saying how impressive the company is, that it has a turnover of multiple billion dollars, has presence in almost every country of the world and is a household name.

Say you have thought through it and have decided what your ultimate goal would be, now what next? Let’s put up a scenario here – if you want to reach the 1^st floor of a building, you take one step at a time or do you just jump to the first floor? Now please don’t say you would take a lift as that is a different scenario altogether. Here I am trying to make my point by demonstrating the example of climbing stairs, so let’s stick to it. Going back to the discussion, almost all of you would agree with me that taking one step at a time is the most comfortable and easiest way of reaching the first floor.

This is exactly what you need to do in case of setting goals for your life – make interim goals and give them a timeline. Giving a timeline to goals really help in staying focused. Also every time you achieve an interim goal you feel happy about it and are motivated to move on. To further illustrate it using an example, I will go back to the goal of being India’s Google head. In order to achieve that, one needs to decide upon interim goals. In this case those interim goals could be:

• Every third year aim of getting a designation hike
• Every year aim at getting at least 20% hike
• Every year aim at contributing at least one innovative idea that made a positive difference to the company.

What if you do not achieve your goals in the timeline you set for yourself? First of all there are slim chances of that happening because if you have a positive mindset, you almost always give the best shot putting you on the right track.

However, God forbid this happens there is no need to feel low as you get the opportunity to learn a lot of things during this course and this learning will certainly help you in achieving your goal when you try the second time around.

I would like to refer to the “Law of Attraction” which I learnt from ‘The Secret’ series written by Rhonda Byrne. My recommendation is to read ‘Secret the Power’, the second book of the series. It has helped thousands of people in achieving their goals.

So what exactly is Law of Attraction? According to this law, which holds as true as law of gravity, whatever you think you attract in your life. Your thoughts and feelings design your present and future. We should actually feel positive talking about these interim goals and should not worry about the result. If you believe in yourself, everything would be fine. If you worry then you would actually attract more worrisome circumstances! That is the last thing you should do. Take calculative risks and believe in yourself. Try to keep yourself as happy and as cheerful as possible as that will attract more happiness, which indeed would be achievement of your goal!

To further talk about goal setting, the following catalysts will give your career an accelerated growth:

• Good networking: In corporate world, networking plays a very important role. If you have a good rapport with your clients and influential people of your industry, things will be much easier. Here I am not saying that you get unreasonable and buy expensive gifts for clients or give free services, for which your company otherwise pays, to get a new client. What you should do is keep in touch with influential people, attend conferences and exchange your business cards there. Networking also means maintaining a decent relationship with your sister companies and know about their business as well. If you are part of a media agency that deals with TV campaigns, then you should have a good bonding with somebody in digital wing as well. This would give you knowledge of inevitable marketing medium and perhaps more business to your company!

• Going an extra mile to seek knowledge of your domain: Doing day-to-day work perfectly is not enough to be a star performer. In order to be that or to run a successful business you need to go an extra mile and keep yourself updated with latest trends of your industry. Read whitepapers, reports, analysis, surveys, blogs etc. Keep increasing your domain knowledge every passing day.

• Put yourself in other’s shoes: Before judging anyone, put yourself in their position and think what kind of behavior you would have expected had you been on the other side. Always and always behave in this manner, whether it is your subordinate, your colleague or client. Always follow this simple rule and you will always end up in people’s good books, which will eventually help you in being successful.

• Treat your client/customer as king: We all are majorly working for work satisfaction and money. But where does this money come? Clients of course. Hence we need to treat them with utmost importance. However at the same time we should never say yes to their unreasonable timelines or assignments they ask us to do. We should be confident enough to say no. If you make a valid point, client would always agree and would respect you even more for your approach and realistic attitude.

• Stay away from blame game: Usually in the corporate world if someone is reprimanded for anything, the blame game starts. However if you were at fault you should actually put your foot forward and except your mistake. Before such a situation arises, before it starts to pick fire just flag the issue in a subtle manner. Try not to offend anyone.

• Stay away from office politics: Here I would like to say, just don’t do it and try not to fall in its trap. By putting someone down and moving ahead by wrong means you could get short term success along with a lot of mental trauma. If you do your work well and highlight it to the senior management, they would certainly notice and reward you appropriately. If you do not then probably that company is not worth you and it’s time to move on.

Setting personal goals go hand-in-hand with professional goals, and when set right they can propel you to success. You will definitely enjoy a successful professional life along with a great personal life. After all, this is what everybody aims for!

Contributed By : Arpita Seth (Class of 2010,IBS Gurgaon).

 

When I was a kid, my grandfather used to tell me stories from his era. He used to boast of a simple and happy life with no stress or hurry. People were easy going, dedicated, honest in their jobs and satisfied with limited means.

But the world has grown too far from those times. Massive data is being transferred in small chips. We are constantly engaged in working even on the go, while eating and sometimes even doing our daily ‘honors’. We have learned to multitask, constantly striving to match the pace of fast moving and dynamic business conditions around us.

Change occurs mostly through evolution. If we don’t embrace it, we will be left behind unable to decipher our environment. So, new developments, technologies, processes have led to new mindsets, principles and ideals. Banks do not run on piles of files any more. Entrance exams are conducted online. Companies connect with other companies across the globe. The world has become a smaller place.

Operating businesses today, therefore, vastly differ from what it used to be in older times. There are many processes and principles that are no longer applicable to contemporary corporates. If you run your business like that in the 70’s, 80’s or 90’s, you might need to re-evaluate your current position in comparison to your counterparts.

Let’s look at some of the ‘old school’ business practices that are no longer relevant:

• Dictatorial leadership techniques and hierarchical bureaucracy: Gone are the days of ‘bossy’ bosses. No one wants to work because they are made to. Inflicting strict regimes, keeping records of in and out times by seconds, issuing warnings or the need to control every aspect of your company are ways of micro-management that is totally unappreciated or even required in today’s office cultures. Managers now believe in empowerment. Giving employees some flexibility and space to think out of the defined lines is encouraged. Following strict protocols is no longer relevant, as long as the work gets done.

• The “Flashy Executive Suites”: In times where companies have to face bigger and real problems within the market, providing big and lavish offices to its executives is not a high priority agenda. Organizational structures are becoming more horizontal. Communication and approachability of the higher management is more in demand. Also, in stressful global economy, management focuses on cost cutting rather than spending big bucks on designer offices.

• No – mistakes or no tolerance policy: Management these days acknowledge that to err is to human, unlike mangers of the 70’s or 80’s who believed in hire and fire. In fact, contemporary leaders consider layoffs as the last resort. Emphasis is laid on learning from mistakes and growing by learning.

• Emphasis on qualifications and grades over skills and experience: This is a cliché. I remember my elder brother narrating stories of how companies came for placements in their college and the best picked up the best. Toppers got placed first, but this practice is not strictly applicable today. Yes, academics are important, but placements do not completely depend on GPAs. Quite likely, a 5 pointer will land with a better offer in the end, but recruiters look for skills more than knowledge. Quick learners, problem solvers and people who take ownership are given preference than those who only have college ranks to show.

• Women are not suitable for leadership roles: I would say this was more of a social bias than a business practice. But it is completely insignificant today. The growing number of women at top positions, boards of biggest public companies is a clear indication to that. There used to be times when promoting women to top management was discouraged, but almost all companies now focus on improving gender diversity within their firm.

• Copy old theories than design new ones: Earlier businesses used to run with the sole aim of maximizing shareholder values. Tried and tested approaches of profit making and coping with competition were implemented. But globalization and Internet has changed everything. Innovation is the key to growth and survival as access to information is much easier now. The power equation has changed from seller to buyer, and relying on traditional management strategies is not enough.

• Pay employees more money and they will do more: Yes, money used to be a driving force in the old business era. Monetary incentives are still welcome but today, more importance is laid on rewards and recognition. You can retain but not motivate your employees by merely paying them extra bucks. Hence, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory is out of date. Instead, an ethical work culture driven by fair recognition, opportunity and scope for growth is part of the present-day core values.

• Management knows everything: Earlier, leadership was looked upon as someone who knew all the answers. But today’s managers don’t pretend to know everything. Collaborative learning, choosing the right people with right skills, trusting your workforce is the new approach.

• Investing in technology and not people: While this is somewhat still relevant and followed, the modern perspective is to invest in people who are creating and running the technical interface that runs your business. Without them, no technology infrastructure can be successful.

• Dress code or uniforms: Surprisingly, ties and double-breasted suits are no longer standard office attires. Except for specific occasions, companies permit employees to ‘loosen-up’. Business casuals are the new fashion trend for office-goers. There are casual Fridays, themed –working days in MNC offices. The idea is to have people relax and de-stress instead of worrying too much about following the clothing protocol.

There are many large corporations who still practice traditional management. GE, for example, co-exists with old ways in the new world. Work culture today is undergoing a metamorphosis. There is no place for slowing down. The transition is happening across industries and among all large as well as small-scale firms.

Even these management practices are not perfect and will continue to evolve, finding new ways to add value. Modern day management revolution calls for continuous innovation and transformation, keeping the customers happy and employees inspired. We could all hope the change continues to be for the larger good.

Contributed By: Isha Jajodia (IBS Gurgaon ,Class of 2010).

The BCG matrix named after the Boston Consulting Group, identifies 4 types of strategic business units for a company’s portfolio analysis so that companies can identify which of its products and services are performing well, growing, decaying, need investment or need to be done away with. Four years back, I made a blunder of classifying the clients (of the company I was doing my internship with) into BCG matrix (growth-share matrix) instead of classifying its services and products for portfolio analysis in my summer internship project report.

But I realized that though this approach may sound rude and inappropriate for business clients; it can be successfully implied in our lives to understand the kind of friends we make during our MBA days; keeping in mind that it is important for all of us to understand whose presence is good and benefiting for us while who is our grave digger.

Friendship growth rate refers to the summation of various characteristics such as the age of friendship (whether new or old); the quality of company (enjoyable or irritating); the extent of matching interests (knowledge, recreation, thinking etc.) With these factors being common such as old friendship, good company that refreshes you and like thinking you are more likely to get together and form friends with a person. Such person may be contributing to your various interests such as academics, discussions, sports; recreation etc and these characteristics make him/her attractive.

Friendship’s share in life or say strength of friendship refers to the importance and value you assign to your friendship. Also, this refers to the strength of equation shared by you with a friend. It is important to know whether you assign value to a particular friend or not and if you do then how much. Those with high value should always be grown to be beneficial and those whom you value less should be taken care of because every friend has their own importance.

Remember it is easy for you to make your place as a friend in someone’s life when there is opportunity to grow friendship. Also, if you try to build all your friends at one time, you might end up being confused as to who is more important to you while, who is less important.

The Star Friends: A very few friends remain attractive and maintain the friendship for a long time due to various reasons. Although I believe only few of your friends qualify and maintain as star friends, such people are those with whom you invest most of your time, efforts and thus friendship grows rapidly. With time their growth may or may not slow down and they may shift to other areas due to excessive closeness.

Such friends are ideal and beneficial for everyone because from teaching to project work they stand by you and you reciprocate with ease. Everyone wants such loyal and dedicated friends who not only know your grades better than you but also your family and your mindset. Such friends are practically challenging to maintain because with time, things change yet some people successfully maintain the equation.

The Cash Cows: This classification of friends does not refer to your filthy rich friends but those who are with you for a long time; already know you and share a very strong bond with you. Such friendships do not demand extensive investment from your side in terms of excessive effort. Such friends reciprocate with good relations, support, understanding that are always a positive for you.

You neither need to go out of the way to help them out nor need to overdo anything because you already share a good rapport with them. You are aware of their extent and limitations of friendships and vice-versa. Such friends are a boon because you need to make no additional efforts and the relations are already good. You stand by them and they give an extra hand to you when you need help.

The Question Marks: Such friends devote lesser time and strength in the present but have a high growth rate or potential. What do you do with friends who give you less time but appear worthy of your companionship? You invest in them by giving them your attention, time, dedication as well as look ahead to spend time with them.

You have to be extremely careful as to which friends you should convert as star friends. There are chances that your efforts may succeed or fail, there’s complete uncertainty. The crux here is to identify here who is valuable and who is not. Once you know whom all to focus upon, you must make efforts.

Dogs: Ethically it is ridiculous to call or coin a friend as a dog. But, this combination is the least important looking at your interests, its attractiveness and the time and effort you would like to devote. They may be disloyal, prove to be a time and energy drain or use up a disproportionate amount of time and resources. Such friends might have been close friends with you in the past but you lost touch or closeness with them due to some form of lack in trust, misunderstanding or deceit. This category includes those friends who cannot keep your secrets and blow the trumpet in front of the world.

Remember that while some friends might need immediate deletion, there are some friends required to be maintained to avoid negative publicity; to complete the group where such a friend is liked by others; to receive regular updates or any other reason. Such friends may be capable of revitalization and must not be done away with completely. At least maintaining touch is important in this case.

You must remember that since question mark and star friends are crucial; they are extremely demanding and require consistent efforts to be maintained and nurtured. Further it is extremely crucial for you to understand whom are you investing your time on and what kind of return are you expecting? Again as the critics of the matrix say, this matrix doesn’t care about averages; uses absurd notations and headings, cannot be used freely and lacks pragmatic approach.

Contributed By : Chayan Jain (Class of 2011-2013, IBS Hyderabad).

In August 2011, I remember purchasing the form for IBSAT among many other competitive exams but the lines that came out from my mouth astonished my friend who was standing beside me. ‘I am going to Hyderabad, for sure and I am going to make the best of it’ I spoke as I clutched the form in my hands like a priced possession. Life threw its own pangs and I gave the endless number of competitive exams everyone gives.

Amidst the interview calls that were in my favor, I went to I.B.S. Hyderabad along another friend for the GD and PI. Through the train route I wondered what the institute would be like; how would the people of Hyderabad be different from my city; would I clear the selection process; how would the institute otherwise be apart from the brochure and information provided by the institute, shared by pass-outs, friends and online. Even though I didn’t know that I had this customer centric approach to look at an educational institution and judge it on the basis of its faculty, infrastructure, reputation, hygiene and cleanliness etc I did pretty well on reaching the institution.

Going to the campus for the first time was an experience in itself. When I reached the campus, I was mesmerized by the grandeur of the campus area and its cleanliness. With coconut and papaya trees in sight, I walked towards the central area which had the academics block at one end and the library at the other. The absolute green surroundings added to my overall first impression.

On walking to the library’s reading hall, for registration, I collected the information required and got all necessary paper work done with the cordial and accommodating staff at the counter. Due to my endless curiosity, I went to see the library (which was just above the reading hall) and was elated to find that it was no less than a palace of academic and other books.

I was directed to the academics building by a staff member, where the GD’s were being conducted, waiting for my group’s turn. The GD was conducted in a lecture theater where our classes would be held in the future and this gave me a tentative idea about the classrooms. I gave my personal interview in a class room like many others where I was evaluated for my ambitions, goals and seriousness by institute’s own faculty members for around 20 minutes. By now I was affected and impressed by the faculty’s cooperativeness and staff’s humility along with good infrastructure.

After the procedure, I saw the instructions and advanced to the canteen area with my friends. To my surprise, there was an amazing variety of snacks, beverages and options available to eat throughout the day at a campus which was distant from the main city. Also, with the mess (that was serving regular food to the hostelers) just next to the canteen, my friend and I got the opportunity to visit the mess which was spotlessly clean and tidy, hence hygiene was totally assured.

Further, on interacting with undergraduate students who were present in the campus, I learnt that the food quality is good and there is variety from North Indian to Chinese food. Hence two criterion i.e. food and academics were satisfying on interaction with existing students, faculty of the institute and witnessing the physical evidence i.e. the modern classrooms, well-equipped lecture theaters, a loaded library as well as hygienic mess and canteen.

Now, the only thing that was left was hostel room. How would the hostel room be? For this question I didn’t need to go too far because that year I.B.S had called in prospective students along with parents to stay at the hostels but my friend and I had decided to stay at the city to explore it in the evenings.

On interaction with few parents and competition I learnt that the rooms were clean and tidy with a huge cupboard for clothes; a full size study table with a chair for studying and an iron bed which had to be equipped with easily available mattresses. Moreover, there were two hostel options, one with attached washroom while the other with a common one.

In fact, it was amazing to learn that the institute had a saloon for the students in these respective hostels. On hearing about individual occupancy in the hostel rooms, it felt even more interesting as the place was offering the comfort and privacy I was also concerned about. Hence, my worries for staying in the campus were also reduced to a great extent.

On exploring the campus further, I found out the plethora of sports facilities like table tennis, badminton court, squash and tennis courts, swimming pool, football ground, cricket ground, a modern gymnasium and others that the institute provided for. To add to all this, there were special rooms for the college band; recreation rooms with television sets to watch crucial matches; special clubs for arts, culture, public speaking, creative writing, entrepreneurship, marketing, finance etc.

On a holistic basis, the institute was away from the conservative clutches of home and the glittering city and thus provided for a peaceful environment for study. Moreover, on going through the information brochure of the institute I learned about the never heard before ‘case study pedagogy’ which was designed to make others and me self reliant for studies and answerable for the knowledge attained through self-study by studying the chapter, case and correlating them for class all by oneself.

This was certainly not the case for me since my childhood because either my parents tutored me or arranged tutors for me if I couldn’t understand a particular subject. But now in this method of learning, I had a challenge of not only becoming self dependent for my academics but also discussion, competition and debate on my thinking in the classes. With such a drastic change I had a humongous challenge to make or break myself among the proposed batch strength which provided for stiff competition that existed in the real or say corporate world.

With the image of the institute; the placement guarantee and records; the cordial staff, the informative faculty, the compelling infrastructure, well-equipped hostels and hygienic mess moved me enough to select the institute for my MBA when the results were in my hands.

Contributed By : Chayan Jain (Class of 2011-2013, IBS Hyderabad).

Just a month to go and I’ll be out there in the big, wide world. I’m itching and ready to put all my new found expertise to use wherever and whenever I can. Excitement! Anticipation! Apprehension! A mixture of all this and most of all relief – that the two years of studies are over. My wife, who has been a constant course of support for me in these last two years, is experiencing all these emotions and is more relieved than I am, I can tell.

These were my feelings when I was a second-year MBA student, just on the cusp of graduating. I am sure many of you, similarly situated, can recognize these feelings (though many of you may not have a spouse prodding you).

Looking Back

When I look back over the two years that I spent at IBS, the memories rush back. I came to the institute with a lot of expectations and while things may not have gone exactly the way I thought, probably I came away with far more than I expected.

The relationships, the connections, and the principles I imbibed during that time – they were all an affirmation of why I was there in the first place. Now, with time, space and hindsight I can say that everything of what I learned has gone into making the ‘ME’ that I am now.

In school and college, I was one among a lot of students in a class. At IBS, the small class size, the fewer students led to an intimacy among us students and greater focus on our learning. More chances of meaningful interactions; more chances of developing deeper relationships; more chances of interacting with the faculty; and of course, more chances of having fun and playing the fool.

I think that I made closer friendships during those two years than I would have in all my years in school and college.The best part about it is that some of these friendships have deepened over the years while acquaintances have flourished. It must be something to do with the campus ambiance or just the fact that all of us were going through identical experiences – only in a more focused and intense way.

Though many of my batch mates are in diverse fields and are scattered all over the world, when I get a chance to interact with them at alumni meets, it’s as if the space and time gap never existed. We are able to pick up the threads of our lives as easily as if we had been talking just the other day.

Earlier this year when I went to IBS Ahmedabad to attend a seminar, it was as if I had never been away. I met my professors in whose classes I had whiled away a lot of my time – though now with the years of adulthood experience – and we met as equals. I was charmed by their enthusiasm and their continuing interest in all of us ‘old’ students.

Back to the Future

Has my investment paid off? Am I better off for having done my MBA from IBS? Could I have been done things differently?

My answer to the last two questions is, quite frankly – I don’t know. If I had done my graduation, say from the Indian Institutes of Management or XLRI or any of the ‘elite’ institutions, maybe I would have had a different career path or maybe not – its all in the realms of speculation. The basic person I am would remain the same; whether I studied here or elsewhere. Its like saying what if I had been born in some remote country in Africa or what if I had been born in America? My skills are what I have and how I use my skills is up to me. Yes, circumstance, training, experiences and of course, the kind of mentorship I receive all have a bearing on my future – but whether one is better than the other is very subjective.

As to whether my investment – in studying at IBS – has paid off – my answer is a resounding YES! After more than ten years in the corporate sector and now that I am on the path of entrepreneurship, I can say that I would not exchange my sojourn in IBS for anything in the world.

I said in my opening lines that my experiences in the institute have moulded me into what I am now. Whatever values I have gained are due to the professors who gave them to me; my domain expertise is due to the way they taught me; my behavior with my environment is due to what I have absorbed by watching them.

Did I put all my chips in the same counter when I opted for IBS? Perhaps. Life is a gamble; every decision we take stands the equal chance of going right or going wrong. Some decisions may have more in favor of it than others but still it can turn adverse too. But what you have to go through and how you deal with it, is a final test of what you have learned from your institute and how you apply it.

I think probably the best thing I have learned from IBS is that life is not just about a good salary or a good job. There’s more to it. It is about getting happiness from what you do; its about being a responsible citizen; its about doing things you want to do; its about being empathetic to others; above all, its about being a good human being. Earning is not the big thing – the big thing is what you do with it. Is it making a difference to the others around you?

Stars in my eyes; empty pockets; a world of ambitions; dreams; the good wishes of my colleagues and that of my professors who spent time trying to drilling all the knowledge they possessed into my head; expectations of my parents; my wife’s unstinting support  – Hello, World, here I come.

Contributed By : Sidhartha Mohanty (Class of 2005, IBS Ahmedabad).

Group Discussion has become a necessity during the selection process for educational institutes and jobs these days. What you and I feel amongst those 8-12 people at the discussion table is similar. We all wonder, where do these judges get such weird topics from; why are they so concerned with our knowledge of general awareness; where do these unknown group members produce content that appears valid; how do people sometimes form a sub-group in between a discussion; how do I make a point and get selected?

I can understand your situation and empathize with shy people who feel extremely uncomfortable in such situations. Before I jump on to the theory I would like to share with you one of my experiences; where the topic for GD was ‘Medical services in the West are better than the East’. Now at the beginning of the GD, I was totally confused along the entire group whether the topic was about West of India or West of the World. I totally gave up on the idea of initiating and let GD reach a stage of confusion where even the judges were perplexed. Hence I came up with the stance of bringing the group back to the topic and discussing whether it was for the world or India specifically.

Thereafter, I talked about the equipment, techniques and technology of the western countries and Ayurveda and other local medicine therapies of the western India. Thereafter I mixed the technology of the west with operational efficiency of our country and thus moved on to discuss about aping the west by the eastern countries. Also, I remembered getting attention, acceptance and honored all everyone who agreed with me and decided these points to be suggestive and not decisive. Result was clear selection!

Let us now approach Group discussions with a fresh perspective with a different theory that I suggest through my MBA experience and the lessons in strategy during my MBA course.

First of all you need to understand your strategic position when a topic is given to you. Did you understand and comprehend the topic? Did you understand all macro and micro factors running in the economy that relate to this topic? Further, understand whether you have any information on the same. Do you have facts and figures about the topic? Are you having some debatable or relevant content to deliver?

Coming to the matrix, internal factors are those that remain in your control like your awareness and knowledge structure, your posture, your fluency, content delivery etc.; whereas external factors are those that are out of your control but you can respond to them by adapting yourself to conditions like the nature of competitors, opportunities to speak, initiate, intrude, respond and questioning.

If you have concrete knowledge then it becomes a strength that can be questioned by a person who is unaware, which is an opportunity to succeed. If you don’t have complete knowledge it is a weakness but absolute absence of knowledge is threat and weakness combined. Now let us go to the strategies:

SO: If you have knowledge and content on the topic, it leads to strength. When you have strength, you can take the advantage of initiating the discussion without a judgment to bring people to comment, discuss and agree with your idea. Once people start discussing, use the opportunities to go slightly technical, develop and express fresh views and points, spread your content over the designated point, segregate relevant and secondary content from your knowledge and bring the same in front with humility.

WO: When you are weak on the content and knowledge, use opportunities merged with others and make extensions of their points that are worthwhile but not avoidable. Your point must be relevant and value adding rather than just a ‘me too’. Acquire from past learning and others’ points of view and build your fresh thoughts. Exploit their competency, be efficient and quickly learn how to articulate your limited content. These will build an image that you are growing continuously even if you are unaware of the topic; are ambitious, can partner with colleagues and others if required and can prove you can be a good group member in a team.

ST: Since you are aware of the topic/content just be careful to express it articulately. There will be people who might be more mature and aggressive than you but it will be wise for you remain subtle. If someone tries to fight or argue don’t get into a one-on-one fight with them, focus on a group consensus. You are there in a group to form opinions not to have one-on-one agenda and dialogues. Do not get aggressive or overpowering in the group as it forms a poor impression. Get people to agree to your point subtly and with humility without offending anyone. You are not there to show your knowledge but the agreement you can win with when you are in a group. Do not fight at any cost!

WT: Now when you are weak and under threat of having no content and being attacked as the non speaker or silent one in the group; focus on grasping the points others make and form a conclusion for the entire group mentally. Nod your head at times when you understand and listen but don’t overdo this. Don’t fiddle with your pen, yawn or scratch your body. Let others argue, talk and discuss, as you have nothing concrete to say. Hence, towards the end, when only a minute is left, intrude and express that you want to conclude on the group’s behalf. Conclude without adding anything from your end but focusing on the points where the group had come to a consensus. Just in case, anyone intrudes and claims you wrong, let them; and you finish with the conclusion. Such intrusion will make them faulty not you. Hence you would be judged as a good listener and a decision maker who understands and respects everyone.

Group discussions are conducted to understand your stance on contingencies in a group so that organizations or institutions match their values, expectations, beliefs, thinking with yours and see if they need someone like you or not. Remember in GD, you don’t fight a battle for survival but are being judged by representatives of the company. Think and prepare your stance according to TOWS matrix and experience the difference!

Contributed By : Chayan Jain (Class of 2011-2013, IBS Hyderabad).