Am just amazed to see the latest trend of IIM and IIT graduates to turn to writing. Its become a whole new category in itself. Someone I know (a former colleague) just published his book. I read an excerpt on his website - and it was PATHETIC!
With all due respect to the person and his writing 'skills', I am amazed to see publishers print that kind of stuff. The grammar was terrible and the plot was as interesting as a wet carrot. I guess the Press with its inordinate amount of coverage to these institutions, has got people really curious on what actually happens inside. So curious that they pick up just about anything as long as there's an IIT or an IIM printed on the cover. Of course, Chetan Bhagat has opened up a whole new category of english readers, through his 'masala' style of writing. These low cost (Rs. 95 per book) and not-so-sophisticated english readers do not expect top class writing and are happy with, to put it crudely, a 'book' version of Bollywood films. Moment you add IIT/IIM to the title, you've got a winner.
Chetan Bhagat's writing style will probably not win him a Booker but atleast the books are interesting. The newer writers I feel are just trying to ride the wave through the brand names of their alma mater.
Another person I know has turned a writer. Full credit for following their dreams, but rheir writing style SCREAMS WANNABE. Am sure they will improve with time but I only hope that the person concerned is not trying to free ride the writing wave just because they got the privilege to study at one of the top institutions in India.
Personally, I agree I don't write too well either, but I think I have read enough to spot crass/wannabe writing. And nothing irritates me more than the garb of being a writer when you're actually just free riding on your institute's name.
Showing posts with label IIM Ahmedabad. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IIM Ahmedabad. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Thursday, June 04, 2009
LKP, Rambhai, Mess...
...D-20, 6064, Underpass, RJM, Harvard Steps....
Some words, once a prominent part of my vocabulary. And now just memories.
Damn, I miss you IIMA!
Some words, once a prominent part of my vocabulary. And now just memories.
Damn, I miss you IIMA!
Thursday, August 21, 2008
I Love WIMWI
Sitting in mah room, sipping tea,
I wonder about the place called WIMWI,
About its little quirks and strange ways,
The laughs, the cries and the fun filled days.
I will miss these red bricks,
Paining poor facchas with our silly tricks,
Oh, those euphoric tempo shouts,
And the all-night CS bouts.
Damn, exchange program is about to start,
Why do I feel a tug in my heart?
Germany, Paris, Sweden, Rome,
All that is crap, this IS home!
These lines were written by Gagandeep Singh, a batchmate at IIMA, about to go on exchange to Europe for 3 months.
Even though I am not going on exchange anywhere and will stay put on campus for the next 3 months, my feelings are much the same.
I have been home for the past 2 days and most unexpectedly, I miss my campus and I miss my life there. I am going to go back there on the 31st, but I have begun to dread March 2009, when home becomes just another place where I studied once.
Here's to the best damn institute ever - I truly love WIMWI!!
I wonder about the place called WIMWI,
About its little quirks and strange ways,
The laughs, the cries and the fun filled days.
I will miss these red bricks,
Paining poor facchas with our silly tricks,
Oh, those euphoric tempo shouts,
And the all-night CS bouts.
Damn, exchange program is about to start,
Why do I feel a tug in my heart?
Germany, Paris, Sweden, Rome,
All that is crap, this IS home!
These lines were written by Gagandeep Singh, a batchmate at IIMA, about to go on exchange to Europe for 3 months.
Even though I am not going on exchange anywhere and will stay put on campus for the next 3 months, my feelings are much the same.
I have been home for the past 2 days and most unexpectedly, I miss my campus and I miss my life there. I am going to go back there on the 31st, but I have begun to dread March 2009, when home becomes just another place where I studied once.
Here's to the best damn institute ever - I truly love WIMWI!!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
IIMA - The First Placement
Here's a very interesting article on IIMA's first placement season.
From the Archives
THE FIRST PLACEMENT
Prof. S. K. Bhattacharya
One of the major concerns of the Institute in early 1966 was the question of placement of the first group of IIMA graduates. However, at that time there was no placement office and nobody in the Institute had any inkling about the manner and process of finding placement for business school graduates. It was clear that the kind of placement that our graduates obtained would affect the future activities of the Institute in two different ways. If the companies recruiting our graduates were not of the kind which represented the upper crust of the corporate world and if the compensation packages offered were not attractive enough, the Institute would not be able to attract the right quality of applicants for its post-graduate programme. Also a ripple effect of an unsuccessful track record in placement would be that leading companies would not look to the Institute for recruiting its future entry level managers. While we were generally aware of the process of placement and campus recruitment in the US business schools, since no corresponding experiences were available in the Indian context, we were not sure what would be the appropriate steps to follow in our placement effort.
Campus recruitment by leading companies was very much the desired thing, but the manner of organising this activity was not very clear. This concern and anxiety was explicitly brought out in the faculty meeting. After a somewhat desultory discussion, I found one of my colleagues proposing that I must take up the responsibility of placement and organising this activity. Before I could protest and convey my view that at no point of time was it made clear that I would have to take up such administrative responsibilities when I joined the Institute, my colleagues strongly favoured the proposal. It was unanimously decided that I should take on the responsibility for placement. The faculty meeting resolved that all possible help should be provided to me in carrying out this responsibility. When I enquired from some of my colleagues after the meeting "Why me?" I was provided the most simplistic answer that since I had come from the business world (before I joined the government), I would naturally be the best equipped person to undertake this task since I would have many "contacts" in the business world. To add substance to their argument, many of my colleagues mentioned that since I had served in the Department of Company Affairs and as Registrar of Companies, I would no doubt be able to derive considerable support for placement given my past association with many senior industry people. It was, therefore, the consensus amongst the faculty that it should not prove to be such a difficult task.
The "Travelling Salesman"
I was without a clue as to how to go about this task except that I felt that four things had to be done right away: Firstly, we must send brief bio-data of the graduating group to a select group of companies who were likely to be aware of the contribution that could be made by management school graduates in their operations. Secondly, we must write individual letters to the Chief Executives of large industrial organizations in the public and private sector inviting them to come over to Ahmedabad for campus recruitment, with the further request that they might like to let us know in advance the kind of management level positions they had in mind so that these job descriptions could be circulated to the students in advance.
Thirdly, senior members of the faculty and members of the Board of Governors should write to their counterparts in the world of industry and government requesting them to support our placement activity.
Fourthly and lastly, we should identify the likely kind of personnel some of the companies would like to employ as managers in terms of their prior professional background in addition to their management education. For example, we felt that people with engineering qualifications or chartered accountancy degree would be of interest to engineering (and manufacturing
companies) and banks and financial institutions respectively. On this basis, we could quickly scan the background of the graduating batch of students and selectively write to the companies, particularly heads of personnel function, to consider the appointment of a particular student in the light of his curriculum vitae.
Having decided on this strategy, there was only one anxiety. How would the corporate world react to our scheme? We put together the format of a letter to be addressed which was issued under the Director's signature. Similarly, we identified the companies which could be addressed by the members of the faculty and members of the Board of Governors. I personally compiled a list of 150 prospective companies and set forth on a eight-week tour of industrial cities carrying with me detailed curriculum vitae of the graduate students. I was promptly dubbed as the "travelling salesman of the Institute's products". The first few replies I received in response to my letter saying that I would like to call on the Managing Director and Chief of Personnel were polite but tentative. The general tenor of reply was that while they would be interested in considering the Institute's graduates for appointment at the entry level in the managerial cadre, they were not sure in which field they would best contribute to the operations of the company. It was quite interesting to note that only one area which evoked considerable interest was marketing. There were several enquiries as to whether any of the students we would like to place had any previous background in marketing. Some companies enquired about the kind
of exposure our graduating students had in consumer goods and industrial products marketing.
"Ahmedabad had arrived"
One of the things that was done to help me carry out the task of organizing the placement activity was the provision of a secretary specifically for the purpose of this new activity. The person who was assigned was singularly innocent of all knowledge regarding filing, drafting or taking any action on his own. To add to all this, his capabilities in secretarial terms – just to
keep the correspondence activities on an ongoing basis – was less than heartening. When I left on the right-week tour, I was quite apprehensive as to what would happen to enquiries in my absence, since my placement secretary was in that habit of disappearing from time to time, particularly when the workload increased, on French leave. I came back from Ahmedabad to find loads of correspondence and letters unanswered and unfilled. I tried to imagine the effect this would have on the enquiring companies. When I compare that state of things with the current sophistication level of placement activities, I sometimes wonder how we actually got through the first placement programme body and soul together! To everybody's surprise, the first placement programme was a great success. The graduating students represented some of the best products
from the Universities, Institutes of Technology and the professions because of the very rigorous admission tests administered. At the time of the interview, employers could discern right away that they represented an elite group of students with fine intellect, and excellent academic and professional qualifications.
Also, because of the interfunctional exposure to the various business disciplines and the case method of instruction they were able to respond to the various issues raised at the time of placement interviews with considerable depth of understanding, articulation, and, most importantly, insight in the business planning and decision making process. Leading multinational and international companies participated in the placement programme and many of them came to Ahmedabad for placement interviews. Notwithstanding the near-chaotic state of the placement office, they were greatly impressed with what they heard and saw. Most graduating students had at least two, and several had three or more offers. Two other distinctive characteristics of the placement programme were that the salaries and compensation packages offered were extremely attractive compared even with the IIT graduates and professionals. At another level, the jobs offered were managerial in their content rather than functional (i.e. a specific position in manufacturing or accounting or purchase with no particular potential for moving up in the general management ladder).
At the end of the programme, we knew that Ahmedabad had arrived in the professional education scene. The achievement was of course built up on the part of the students' intrinsic merit, but credit has also to be given to Vikram Sarabhai, senior faculty members and several members of the Board of Governors who contributed their generous support to the placement programme. The immediate fallout of the success of the placement programme was the quality
of students we attracted in the succeeding academic programmes because of the perception that "you had to have merit to qualify for Ahmedabad in the keenly competitive admission test, but if you did so – and pursued your studies rigorously and purposively – the placement opportunities at the end of the programme were the most attractive in the country."
(Source: Institution Building, The IIMA Experience; Vol. I: The Early Years)
From the Archives
THE FIRST PLACEMENT
Prof. S. K. Bhattacharya
One of the major concerns of the Institute in early 1966 was the question of placement of the first group of IIMA graduates. However, at that time there was no placement office and nobody in the Institute had any inkling about the manner and process of finding placement for business school graduates. It was clear that the kind of placement that our graduates obtained would affect the future activities of the Institute in two different ways. If the companies recruiting our graduates were not of the kind which represented the upper crust of the corporate world and if the compensation packages offered were not attractive enough, the Institute would not be able to attract the right quality of applicants for its post-graduate programme. Also a ripple effect of an unsuccessful track record in placement would be that leading companies would not look to the Institute for recruiting its future entry level managers. While we were generally aware of the process of placement and campus recruitment in the US business schools, since no corresponding experiences were available in the Indian context, we were not sure what would be the appropriate steps to follow in our placement effort.
Campus recruitment by leading companies was very much the desired thing, but the manner of organising this activity was not very clear. This concern and anxiety was explicitly brought out in the faculty meeting. After a somewhat desultory discussion, I found one of my colleagues proposing that I must take up the responsibility of placement and organising this activity. Before I could protest and convey my view that at no point of time was it made clear that I would have to take up such administrative responsibilities when I joined the Institute, my colleagues strongly favoured the proposal. It was unanimously decided that I should take on the responsibility for placement. The faculty meeting resolved that all possible help should be provided to me in carrying out this responsibility. When I enquired from some of my colleagues after the meeting "Why me?" I was provided the most simplistic answer that since I had come from the business world (before I joined the government), I would naturally be the best equipped person to undertake this task since I would have many "contacts" in the business world. To add substance to their argument, many of my colleagues mentioned that since I had served in the Department of Company Affairs and as Registrar of Companies, I would no doubt be able to derive considerable support for placement given my past association with many senior industry people. It was, therefore, the consensus amongst the faculty that it should not prove to be such a difficult task.
The "Travelling Salesman"
I was without a clue as to how to go about this task except that I felt that four things had to be done right away: Firstly, we must send brief bio-data of the graduating group to a select group of companies who were likely to be aware of the contribution that could be made by management school graduates in their operations. Secondly, we must write individual letters to the Chief Executives of large industrial organizations in the public and private sector inviting them to come over to Ahmedabad for campus recruitment, with the further request that they might like to let us know in advance the kind of management level positions they had in mind so that these job descriptions could be circulated to the students in advance.
Thirdly, senior members of the faculty and members of the Board of Governors should write to their counterparts in the world of industry and government requesting them to support our placement activity.
Fourthly and lastly, we should identify the likely kind of personnel some of the companies would like to employ as managers in terms of their prior professional background in addition to their management education. For example, we felt that people with engineering qualifications or chartered accountancy degree would be of interest to engineering (and manufacturing
companies) and banks and financial institutions respectively. On this basis, we could quickly scan the background of the graduating batch of students and selectively write to the companies, particularly heads of personnel function, to consider the appointment of a particular student in the light of his curriculum vitae.
Having decided on this strategy, there was only one anxiety. How would the corporate world react to our scheme? We put together the format of a letter to be addressed which was issued under the Director's signature. Similarly, we identified the companies which could be addressed by the members of the faculty and members of the Board of Governors. I personally compiled a list of 150 prospective companies and set forth on a eight-week tour of industrial cities carrying with me detailed curriculum vitae of the graduate students. I was promptly dubbed as the "travelling salesman of the Institute's products". The first few replies I received in response to my letter saying that I would like to call on the Managing Director and Chief of Personnel were polite but tentative. The general tenor of reply was that while they would be interested in considering the Institute's graduates for appointment at the entry level in the managerial cadre, they were not sure in which field they would best contribute to the operations of the company. It was quite interesting to note that only one area which evoked considerable interest was marketing. There were several enquiries as to whether any of the students we would like to place had any previous background in marketing. Some companies enquired about the kind
of exposure our graduating students had in consumer goods and industrial products marketing.
"Ahmedabad had arrived"
One of the things that was done to help me carry out the task of organizing the placement activity was the provision of a secretary specifically for the purpose of this new activity. The person who was assigned was singularly innocent of all knowledge regarding filing, drafting or taking any action on his own. To add to all this, his capabilities in secretarial terms – just to
keep the correspondence activities on an ongoing basis – was less than heartening. When I left on the right-week tour, I was quite apprehensive as to what would happen to enquiries in my absence, since my placement secretary was in that habit of disappearing from time to time, particularly when the workload increased, on French leave. I came back from Ahmedabad to find loads of correspondence and letters unanswered and unfilled. I tried to imagine the effect this would have on the enquiring companies. When I compare that state of things with the current sophistication level of placement activities, I sometimes wonder how we actually got through the first placement programme body and soul together! To everybody's surprise, the first placement programme was a great success. The graduating students represented some of the best products
from the Universities, Institutes of Technology and the professions because of the very rigorous admission tests administered. At the time of the interview, employers could discern right away that they represented an elite group of students with fine intellect, and excellent academic and professional qualifications.
Also, because of the interfunctional exposure to the various business disciplines and the case method of instruction they were able to respond to the various issues raised at the time of placement interviews with considerable depth of understanding, articulation, and, most importantly, insight in the business planning and decision making process. Leading multinational and international companies participated in the placement programme and many of them came to Ahmedabad for placement interviews. Notwithstanding the near-chaotic state of the placement office, they were greatly impressed with what they heard and saw. Most graduating students had at least two, and several had three or more offers. Two other distinctive characteristics of the placement programme were that the salaries and compensation packages offered were extremely attractive compared even with the IIT graduates and professionals. At another level, the jobs offered were managerial in their content rather than functional (i.e. a specific position in manufacturing or accounting or purchase with no particular potential for moving up in the general management ladder).
At the end of the programme, we knew that Ahmedabad had arrived in the professional education scene. The achievement was of course built up on the part of the students' intrinsic merit, but credit has also to be given to Vikram Sarabhai, senior faculty members and several members of the Board of Governors who contributed their generous support to the placement programme. The immediate fallout of the success of the placement programme was the quality
of students we attracted in the succeeding academic programmes because of the perception that "you had to have merit to qualify for Ahmedabad in the keenly competitive admission test, but if you did so – and pursued your studies rigorously and purposively – the placement opportunities at the end of the programme were the most attractive in the country."
(Source: Institution Building, The IIMA Experience; Vol. I: The Early Years)
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Another Lecture I Slept Through
At WIMWI, my classes are held in CR-7, Section A that is. The misery of having a name that starts with 'A' is one that never seems to end. Over here, my seat is in the 'well', dead center, right in the line of sight of the professor, and right in the front of the class. Although, the biggest advantage has been that I am forced to listen to the lectures, there are still some of them which would make the most energetic man go to sleep.
Today however, I slept through another lecture.
This man's -
H.H. The Dalai Lama.
He had come down to the campus to deliver a talk on Business and Ethics.
There were a few things about him which struck me. His personality - Confident and simple, which was reflected in the way he started his talk - he asked his aide to tell him the topic; on being told that it was Business and ethics, the first thing he said was - 'I don't know anything about business! If I start one, it'll probably fail in a week!'
The talk he gave subsequently was related to ethics with a touch of philosophy and spirituality. To some extent it was on expected lines, which for me made the talk uninteresting. Having said that, on attending the event, I did come to realize the immense amount of strength and courage that soft spoken human had. To have been the symbol of hope and a bright future for a people who have lost their country, in the face of hostilities from the Chinese government is no kid's play.
What was more interesting was the Q&A round at the end of the talk. Some people asked interesting questions such as Sino-Indian relations and the Indian policies with regard to Tibet. Dalai Lama's response to some of the such awkward questions asked just reflected the deep intelligence that this outwardly simple looking person had. Some people asked him downright philosophical and spiritual questions. For some reason I haven't been able to figure if such questions are actually genuine or whether those people were just putting their CP*. Some questions were downright funny, one mathematics professor asked him whether the concept of karma and destiny could be integrated with the concept of probability to come up with a mathematical model to scientifically analyse the whole thing. Personally speaking, the idea was interesting, but the time and setting it was asked in was, as i said, funny. I mean here was a Buddhist Monk and a Nobel Peace Prize winner, on a mission of peace, giving a lecture on ethics, thanks to the unknown mathematics prof., trying to understand the concepts of Probability!
I went to the auditorium to see him for two reasons -
1) To see an actual Nobel laureate
2) To see what was so great about this personality that people right from Heads of States to common people all over the world flock to see and hear him wherever he goes.
I guess one of the perks of being at IIMA is that one gets access to such personalities, which is why I went to the talk, even though the topic of ethics is not the most interesting in the world for me.
All said and done, atleast there's one more person whose lecture I can claim to have slept through. And this time its a Nobel Laureate!
*CP - Adapted from the concept of Class Participation - An event where students speak in a class discussion just for the sake of it, because the measure of your CP has a bearing on your final grade.
Today however, I slept through another lecture.
This man's -
H.H. The Dalai Lama.
He had come down to the campus to deliver a talk on Business and Ethics.
There were a few things about him which struck me. His personality - Confident and simple, which was reflected in the way he started his talk - he asked his aide to tell him the topic; on being told that it was Business and ethics, the first thing he said was - 'I don't know anything about business! If I start one, it'll probably fail in a week!'
The talk he gave subsequently was related to ethics with a touch of philosophy and spirituality. To some extent it was on expected lines, which for me made the talk uninteresting. Having said that, on attending the event, I did come to realize the immense amount of strength and courage that soft spoken human had. To have been the symbol of hope and a bright future for a people who have lost their country, in the face of hostilities from the Chinese government is no kid's play.
What was more interesting was the Q&A round at the end of the talk. Some people asked interesting questions such as Sino-Indian relations and the Indian policies with regard to Tibet. Dalai Lama's response to some of the such awkward questions asked just reflected the deep intelligence that this outwardly simple looking person had. Some people asked him downright philosophical and spiritual questions. For some reason I haven't been able to figure if such questions are actually genuine or whether those people were just putting their CP*. Some questions were downright funny, one mathematics professor asked him whether the concept of karma and destiny could be integrated with the concept of probability to come up with a mathematical model to scientifically analyse the whole thing. Personally speaking, the idea was interesting, but the time and setting it was asked in was, as i said, funny. I mean here was a Buddhist Monk and a Nobel Peace Prize winner, on a mission of peace, giving a lecture on ethics, thanks to the unknown mathematics prof., trying to understand the concepts of Probability!
I went to the auditorium to see him for two reasons -
1) To see an actual Nobel laureate
2) To see what was so great about this personality that people right from Heads of States to common people all over the world flock to see and hear him wherever he goes.
I guess one of the perks of being at IIMA is that one gets access to such personalities, which is why I went to the talk, even though the topic of ethics is not the most interesting in the world for me.
All said and done, atleast there's one more person whose lecture I can claim to have slept through. And this time its a Nobel Laureate!
*CP - Adapted from the concept of Class Participation - An event where students speak in a class discussion just for the sake of it, because the measure of your CP has a bearing on your final grade.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Updates
Well, haven't got an opportunity to write something here in a long long time. Life has been really hectic. One of the major developments though, has been the summer placement process getting over last week.
Before going for the term break after 1st term, most people were just aware of the fact that summers (as in summer placements) were approaching. A few had already begun preparations in real earnest but some like me are habituated to leave things for the last moment. Well, not exactly the last moment, but having started way too late, I definitely would have been a lot more satisfied with my preparations had I started early. Just to give you an idea of what I am talking about, I did spend around 25-30 hours preparing my CV, which is the average around here.
But as they say, all's well that ends well. I got the job I wanted. The crib I now have from life is whether or not I'll get the much vaunted PPO (Pre-Placement Offer). I'll be interning at General Atlantic Partners in Mumbai. It's a private equity firm and for someone interested in finance, I think I can safely say its one of the happening sectors today. More so since it was a day 0 offer I got the rest of the placement days to relax. A mini vacation if you will. At IIMA, trust me that is a luxury!
I wanted to put up photos of the day 0 placement process. Thanks to the lack of a camera phone, I wouldn't be. I still might though, if the placement committee here would be kind enough to share a few photos with the batch. I did see a photographer hanging around the place on all placement days. Why I am talking about the photos is because they are interesting!
One thing that really strikes one and makes one proud to be associated with IIMA is the extreme degree of professionalism reflected in any and everything. Be it in the placement of pens on the table, while setting up the interview rooms at night for the recruiters for the next day or be it something like interacting with the top firms worldwide, the way it has been conducted by the placement committee and the student body in general here has been exemplary. It is things like these I guess, which creates the bond between oneself and WIMWI.
On the same note, it is really amusing to read articles on the placement process in other reputed B-schools in the country. I wouldn't name any school but having read an article or two, its great fun to realize that such behaviour is ultimately driven from the insecurity created by brand IIMA. I probably sound like I am boasting, but whatever I say has a substantiative backing. Ultimately, the biggest parameter to measure our brand value is just a simple observation - IIMA never compares itself with anyone, whether directly or indirectly. And the others do it, again and again. Please read press reports on placement processes in other well known B-schools in the country and you'll realize what I am talking about. Those schools are good, no two ways about it, but when you come down to showing yourself to be better by simply showing others down and talking about what makes you happy, I believe there couldn't be a bigger sign of your inferiority complex.
Anyhow, I was a little amused as I said, and just wanted to use this medium to talk about this phenomena. It's 1-30 AM and I'll hit the sack now.
Before going for the term break after 1st term, most people were just aware of the fact that summers (as in summer placements) were approaching. A few had already begun preparations in real earnest but some like me are habituated to leave things for the last moment. Well, not exactly the last moment, but having started way too late, I definitely would have been a lot more satisfied with my preparations had I started early. Just to give you an idea of what I am talking about, I did spend around 25-30 hours preparing my CV, which is the average around here.
But as they say, all's well that ends well. I got the job I wanted. The crib I now have from life is whether or not I'll get the much vaunted PPO (Pre-Placement Offer). I'll be interning at General Atlantic Partners in Mumbai. It's a private equity firm and for someone interested in finance, I think I can safely say its one of the happening sectors today. More so since it was a day 0 offer I got the rest of the placement days to relax. A mini vacation if you will. At IIMA, trust me that is a luxury!
I wanted to put up photos of the day 0 placement process. Thanks to the lack of a camera phone, I wouldn't be. I still might though, if the placement committee here would be kind enough to share a few photos with the batch. I did see a photographer hanging around the place on all placement days. Why I am talking about the photos is because they are interesting!
One thing that really strikes one and makes one proud to be associated with IIMA is the extreme degree of professionalism reflected in any and everything. Be it in the placement of pens on the table, while setting up the interview rooms at night for the recruiters for the next day or be it something like interacting with the top firms worldwide, the way it has been conducted by the placement committee and the student body in general here has been exemplary. It is things like these I guess, which creates the bond between oneself and WIMWI.
On the same note, it is really amusing to read articles on the placement process in other reputed B-schools in the country. I wouldn't name any school but having read an article or two, its great fun to realize that such behaviour is ultimately driven from the insecurity created by brand IIMA. I probably sound like I am boasting, but whatever I say has a substantiative backing. Ultimately, the biggest parameter to measure our brand value is just a simple observation - IIMA never compares itself with anyone, whether directly or indirectly. And the others do it, again and again. Please read press reports on placement processes in other well known B-schools in the country and you'll realize what I am talking about. Those schools are good, no two ways about it, but when you come down to showing yourself to be better by simply showing others down and talking about what makes you happy, I believe there couldn't be a bigger sign of your inferiority complex.
Anyhow, I was a little amused as I said, and just wanted to use this medium to talk about this phenomena. It's 1-30 AM and I'll hit the sack now.
Thursday, November 01, 2007
I-Banking; Money
Words of wisdom from a 'rockstar' trader, whose talk I attended today.
"With higher salaries, we might get a bigger TV, a bigger house......but not everything gets bigger in life"
One of the most amazing company PPTs I attended so far. I sure am glad, I belong to this place!
Rightly said - Branded for Life
"With higher salaries, we might get a bigger TV, a bigger house......but not everything gets bigger in life"
One of the most amazing company PPTs I attended so far. I sure am glad, I belong to this place!
Rightly said - Branded for Life
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
If There Was A God...
...Here's his chance to prove his existence
I am really hungry and have nothing to eat. Please o God, give me something to eat! and a little more time to blog in higher detail...!
I am really hungry and have nothing to eat. Please o God, give me something to eat! and a little more time to blog in higher detail...!
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Real Pleasure
At a Dorm 20 meet -
The chimp: I always thought the pleasure you have when you finally pee after holding on to it for a long time is equal to orgasm. I was wrong, peeing is better, since you have to work harder to hold it...!
And I....have no words...
The chimp: I always thought the pleasure you have when you finally pee after holding on to it for a long time is equal to orgasm. I was wrong, peeing is better, since you have to work harder to hold it...!
And I....have no words...
Monday, September 03, 2007
One Thing You Didn't Know About IIMA
Something for that matter which even I didn't know.
IIMA is one HELL of a dating joint! I mean at the parking or the LKP or some other secluded corner of the campus, you see the local Amdavadi couples together. I am pretty sure they tell their folks that they're going for CAT coaching classes and come here instead. For 'inspiration' I guess!
Infact I see this one couple at the parking stand, near the ever-present Rambhai (more on him later, he deserves a full post), every evening. And I mean, every evening. The guy is sitting on his motorbike and the girl is sitting on a chair nearby or the reverse arrangement. Boring but definitely cost-effective and also hats off to the guy's patience for being able to chat with the girl everyday for atleast 2-3 hours. I always wonder where that couple finds the topics to talk on everyday.
From the IIMA perspective, I guess its a contribution to the society, saving those young lovelorn couples their pocket money...;)
That's LKP (Louis Kahn Plaza) by the way
Beautiful, isn't it? Don't blame those couples for coming here! Sometimes when things aren't going good, which is most of the times for me, sitting here at night makes it all worth it. Makes you feel like a WIMWIan, an ossum and a godly feeling indeed!
IIMA is one HELL of a dating joint! I mean at the parking or the LKP or some other secluded corner of the campus, you see the local Amdavadi couples together. I am pretty sure they tell their folks that they're going for CAT coaching classes and come here instead. For 'inspiration' I guess!
Infact I see this one couple at the parking stand, near the ever-present Rambhai (more on him later, he deserves a full post), every evening. And I mean, every evening. The guy is sitting on his motorbike and the girl is sitting on a chair nearby or the reverse arrangement. Boring but definitely cost-effective and also hats off to the guy's patience for being able to chat with the girl everyday for atleast 2-3 hours. I always wonder where that couple finds the topics to talk on everyday.
From the IIMA perspective, I guess its a contribution to the society, saving those young lovelorn couples their pocket money...;)
That's LKP (Louis Kahn Plaza) by the way
Beautiful, isn't it? Don't blame those couples for coming here! Sometimes when things aren't going good, which is most of the times for me, sitting here at night makes it all worth it. Makes you feel like a WIMWIan, an ossum and a godly feeling indeed!
Friday, August 10, 2007
The Notice Everyone Dreads
IIMA
August 10, 2007
Sunday, July 29, 2007
On His Wedding Night
Prof RaviC is writing the case solution on the blackboard and looks at a guy who's studying his casemat (case material) instead of looking at the blackboard for the solution.
Prof. RaviC: You're like the idiot who wants to watch a blue movie on his wedding night!
I don't think I need to describe the class reaction now!
I haven't had the privilege to be taught by this amazing guy but he's well known in IIMA circles for his witty remarks. I hope I too get to sit in his class next year!
Prof. RaviC: You're like the idiot who wants to watch a blue movie on his wedding night!
I don't think I need to describe the class reaction now!
I haven't had the privilege to be taught by this amazing guy but he's well known in IIMA circles for his witty remarks. I hope I too get to sit in his class next year!
WIMWI - Decoded
What 2T a.k.a. Vamsee, a friend and my dorm-mate (is that a word?) had to say on WIMWI, an introduction to life in WIMWI.
"I am really tempted to write a full fledged blog here, considering that this will be my first post since entering the hallowed portals of IIM A. But alas, with the mid-terms around the corner, it would be too much of a risk. But since I have managed the miracle of completing my WAC assignment before time (three hours to go!!!), I will take the liberty to put up a post.
Here is a list of some common jargons used here in WIMWI. Disclaimers, since it is not an original work. None the less, it makes a pretty interesting read. I promise there is a lot to follow, for which this will work as a reference guide. Take them at the face value now, explanations will follow in due course of time. I am off to enjoy the famous WAC run(See below) now...
Arbit (adj.: origin:: local); short for arbitrary .meaning nothing in particular and everything in general.
Assignment (n: origin:: James Bond Movies); PC lab has computer paper; groups have to meet; the Profs have to give something in order to take something; hence ass-ignments; gives rise to
Blackbooks (n: origin:: IIM A); collectors' items; consists of old question papers which are the saviours during quizzes, midterms and endterms; question-able methods of cracking the scene. "
Bumps (n: origin:: A'bad Municipal Corporation); if it's your birthday or in case you crack the scene , then you have had it - no ifs and butts.
Case mat (n: origin:: Case Unit); IN CASE YOU ARE FOUND WITHOUT IT IN CLASS , THEN YOUR CASE IS VERY WEAK. BT THE WAY THE UPPER CASE IS INCIDENTAL
CCCF (n: origin:: IIM A); acronym for 'Conceptual Clarity and Contextual Familiarity'; for cccf on what that means see cccf.
Chai (n: origin:: obscure); the underlying fillosophy of WIMWIans; the forum for countless discussions over countless cups; the non-alcoholic spirit of IIM-A life. Has strong associations with mess , NR and Rambhai's
CHAOS (n: origin:: Biblical (almost), IIM-A); describes the state of an WIMWIian two hours prior to any submission or presentation. Also IIM-A's organised (???) annual extravaganza.
Cogging (n: origin:: Arthur Hailey); Collaborative Operations on Getting Good Insights for Necessary Grades; on-line teaching aids for turning the wheels of one's life . Strictly prohibited in WIMWI.
Combo (n: origin:: Phantom Comics); IIM-A equivalent of Jungle Olympics; never ending source of fun, entertainment and activity in the second term, when battles are fought on an mental and physical plane; an outlet for action and interaction.
Convocation (n: origin:: Nalanda); the day when IIM-A life turns full circle; 180 degrees are handed over on this day.
Corpo Dinner (n: origin:: IIM-A), one more resultant)of mess grub; around 25 Indians go out in English suits to an American place, have Mexican and Chinese food and go Dutch; a truly global affair.
CP (n: origin:: Harvard); Acronym for 'Class Participation'; IIM's vocal support to the cause of socialism, often accompanied by its offshoots like Arbit CP, Challenge CP, RCP, ACP etc.
CR (n: origin:: Sholay); acronym for 'Class Representative'; generally jobless except for rescheduling classes, making farewell speeches, postponing assignments and making a fool of him(her)self in the Talent Nite.
Cribbing (n:: Oliver Twist); Continuous Ranting and Industrious Brow Beating Inevitably for Necessary Grades.
D-l, D-2 & D-ll (origin:: Louis Kahn); short for Dorm-1, Dorm-2 and Dorm-11; residences for non-males and non- resident males.
Day Zero (n: origin:: Algeber-wai mulublai); the day of reckoning for the best; genesis for some ;armageddon for any.
Diro (n: origin:: English); Big Chief of IIM-A; a figurehead who can't figure out where we are heading.
Dorm (n: origin:: Louis Kahn); they exist from 1 to 23; the epicentre of all activity in IIM-A; also residences for WIMWIans.
Dorm Rep (n: origin:: IIM-A); Chief of the dorm; arranges for dinners, dunkings, T-shirts and other common dorm inventory
Dunking (origin::
Endterm (origin :'The Crusaders'}; the magnum opus of the coterie of professors, an epic battle fought by valiant students to stay afloat, which puts other occurrences like the Mahahharata and the Ramayana to shame; used in conjunction with other torture instruments like midterms and quizzes.
Exhibit (origin:: showbiz); Unnecessary, but necessary portion of anything attached to its end; an integral part of WAC reports and PPTs.
'F'(origin:: ancient Greek); the most dreaded grade in non-academic circles; also happens to be the sixth letter of the alphabet.
Fachchas ( origin: obfciirc); all new entrants to the realms of Louis Kahn, Vastrapur, the case method, corpodom and MANAC quizzes.
FPM ( origin: 11M A); fully paid mazaa; a four year transform which involves a fully subsidized vacation with a universal pastime called research; fine fellows they become.
Fraud (origin: RaviC, mind u, only the word, not what it stands for) to beautifully elaborate and then succinctly encapsulate first grade BS, applies to many assignments, and unfortunately, some courses as well
Garba ( origin: Gujjuland); a rollicking local dance form; an occasion for honing one'? skills in tertiary activities like dancing, bird-watching; a time when IIM A comes to NID, NIFT and CEPT.
Group Meeting (origin: Harvard); necessary part of the curriculum; when WIMWIans sit or stand or lie down and discuss solutions tor unstructured problems and dilemmas in life; in other words , the day's juice is collated, arranged and prepared ready for dispatch to community at large the next day.
Harvard Dinner (origin: IIM A); the soup that we land ourselves in on Friday nights; a solemn acknowledgment of where we derive our 'bread and butter' from;
IIM-B (origin: Indian Govt.); never heard of such a place, cccf invited. Also called Not So Well Known Institute of Management In Southern India.
IIM-C (origin: Indian Govt.); never heard of such a place, cccf invited. Also called Not So Well Known Institute of Management In Eastern India.
Juice (n: origin: IIM-A): WIMWI's own edition of the British, Hindi and vernacular tabloids put together in torture chambers called classrooms for public consumption and reprieve; no wonder Hitler didn't like the 'juice'.
Junta (origin: 1930s,
KLMDC (origin:Gujjuland); Kinda' Lodge for Misled Delegations from Companies, a paid vacation for middle level managers in an amiable ambiance; for those who can't afford golf courses, crash courses are the in-thing; a classic case of mutual value addition.
Leli (origin IIM-A); ancient war cry of the masses; occurs when unwitting individual(s) have been taken (in) by a revenge seeking mob. (see tempo shout and zigzag).
LKP (origin: Louis Kahn); IIM-A equivalent of the red square; venue for convo, afternoon snoozes, photograph sessions, inaugs, rock-nites .....
LSD (origin: 'TheBeatles); stands originally for' Literary and Symposium Desk' but literally the symposium part is non-existent.
MAD Club (origin: IIM-A); stands for Movie A Day; but often Xceeds one's XXpectations.
Management (origin: Gujjuland); what one tells the auto driver when you want to get to IIM-A; not to be confused with anything else.
Marketing (origin:
MF (origin: IIM-A); stands for Marketing Fair christened 'Insight'; where the companies use WIMWIans as guinea pigs for trying out new ideas and the WIMWIans use local junta as guinea pigs to try out their fledging skills and all the junta not doing serious work enjoy themselves immensely.
Midterms (origin: 'The Crusades'); See endterms.
NID (origin: 'Govt. Of
CT (origin: local); Where WIMWIans mortally wounded in the mess, retreat in the night to assuage grumbling tummies.
Nightout (origin: 'The Owl and the Pussy Cat'); doing something you should have done earlier, at a time when you should be doing what you did earlier, (see WAC).
Open Book (origin: smug Profs); Kind of exam in which cogging from a book is allowed, but in which you can't figure out which chapter. Or if you know the chapter you must have brought the wrong book. If nothing else you've come to the wrong classroom. See cogging.
Operations (origin:World War II); nothing medical There is a rumour that it used to be a substitute for Finance and Marketing, but you shouldn't believe everything you hear.
Pantry (origin: Louis Kahn); A. small room in every dorm. Some of these actually contain Ossum food.
PGP (origin: PGP office); Presently Grilled Prisoners. (See endterms, midterms, quiz, assignments).
Postpone (origin: Mojo); Something that is done to assignments, classes, quizzes on pretexts like Talent Nite, LAN crashes and a general attack of lethargy.
PPO (origin: P&G); Stands for 'Placement Panic Over' or 'Persistence Pays, OK?'.
PPT (origin: Placement Office); Stands for 'Please Pay "Ttention'. Sadly, very few comply and the rest pay up 250 bucks each.
Quiz (origin: Charles Daley); Like any other you have seen. Puzzling questions, limited time, makes you wish you knew more and of course the quizmaster's decisions final.
R.As (n: origin: 'The Mahabharta'; Lord Ganesha being the first one); People holding the key to a good GPA and must hence be kept in good humour. Attendance, CP and exam marks are in their hands. Behold them in awe and handle them with care (see GPA, CP, cribbing).
Rambhai (origin: Gujjuland); One man institution outside WIMWI who could teach a course or Wo if he had time (see marketing, chai).
Rem (origin: 'the Bible', 'The Second Coming'); Replay in slow motion for those who missed action the first time round.
RG (origin: The autobiography of Daintier Benz); I know what it means but why should I tell you ?
SAC-C (origin: The Chancellor of Exchequer); WIMWIan equivalent of President, Pope and CEO rolled into one. In short a position in which you can sac, see?(see WIMWI).
Soapbox (origin: Hyde Park,
Tucchas (Origin: Paradise Regained by
Ramp (origin:
Summers (origin: Revolution of the earth round She sun);Hot season in preparation for which people wear blazers and ties .
Systems (origin: Mckinsey's 7 S model); Like Operations a rumoured alternative to Finance and Marketing. Most WIMWIans don't believe this to be true. (see operations, marketing, finance).
Talent Nite (origin: local);
Tempo Shout (origin: The Paleolithic Age; origin: of spoken tongue); tribal war whoop emitted by groups of WIMWIans, apparently without any provocation, rhyme or reason (see Leli, zigzag-zigzag).
Tower Lawns (origin: Louis Kahn); used by WIMWIans for playing football and hockey, general junta for lazing on and cows for grazing on.
Vastrapur (origin: unknown); Small unimportant village in a small unimportant town in
Vet (origin: Blue Cross); The medical man about town. Short for 'veteran doctor' - contrary to popular opinion. Met when you report a stomach upset , the main symptoms of which are over-sleeping and inability to attend classes.
WAC run (origin: local); strange ritual held nine times a year in which WIMWIans remain awake all Friday night and start running madly at 04:25 PM on the next day. (see Nightout).
Welcome Night (origin: local); Traditional event to see how well a PGP 1 can sing when two hundred PGP 2s are yelling.
WIMWI (origin: the professors used this to signify IIMA without using the name IIMA in case studies in the 1970s); Well known Institute of Management in Western India.
Wing (origin: Louis Kahn); View of the campus from the wrong side of the LKP.
Work-ex (origin:
Zigzag-zigzag (origin: Tempo Shout); Description of the path to success and future glory from here. Part of tempo shout, no doubt for that reason, (see Leli, tempo shout)."
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
4pLay
That, ladies and gentlemen is my name from now on. In other words, I've been rechristened as
4pLay - The Sex God
This is another WIMWI tradition, one of the famous ones I guess - Dorm Naming. An example - the Vindi you hear in M.S. Vindi Banga (a well known alumnus of IIMA), is his dorm name. The first thing people do when talking to IIMA students or alumni is ask their dorm name. So it is quite well known. There are 26 dorms in all over here and every dorm has secret rituals and traditions for dorm naming. No one outside the dorm is aware of these.
Here are all the dorm names in Dorm 20 - Dorm of Sex Gods...
This board though, hardly tells you the story. There have been worse names than these. A few examples are - Sussu Singh, Potty Singh, Landesh Singh, Blojo, Blomie, Brasak etc. Then we have some nice ones too, but then nice is boring!...;)
4pLay - The Sex God
This is another WIMWI tradition, one of the famous ones I guess - Dorm Naming. An example - the Vindi you hear in M.S. Vindi Banga (a well known alumnus of IIMA), is his dorm name. The first thing people do when talking to IIMA students or alumni is ask their dorm name. So it is quite well known. There are 26 dorms in all over here and every dorm has secret rituals and traditions for dorm naming. No one outside the dorm is aware of these.
Here are all the dorm names in Dorm 20 - Dorm of Sex Gods...
This board though, hardly tells you the story. There have been worse names than these. A few examples are - Sussu Singh, Potty Singh, Landesh Singh, Blojo, Blomie, Brasak etc. Then we have some nice ones too, but then nice is boring!...;)
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Panna Marathala Vavaala!!! Section A Ku Savaala!!!
Thats the tamil tempo shout (there's been a tradition of tamil tempo shouts you see) for my section, Section A, for the upcoming T-nite (Talent night). Full credit to Karthik, our tempo manager for this...;)
T-nite is the annual inter-section competition between the four PGP 1 sections (A, B, C, D) in IIMA. Its supposed to be ultra competitive with intense rivalries between sections. With the event scgheduled right after the mid-term exams, there is hardly any time to practice or prepare, but that simply adds to the fun. Along with full support from the tucchas, even IIMA alumni working in various locations come to the campus to support their former sections. Thats the scale of it.
And lastly, if you're wondering what this particular tempo shout meant, I have no idea and if you're wondering what a tempo shout is, its a cheer, to keep the tempo high!...;)
- Section A ka tempo....high hai!!!
.
.
.
.
Baaki sab ki le li....zig zag zig zag!!!
-Section A ka naara hai....T Nite hamara hai!!!
T-nite is the annual inter-section competition between the four PGP 1 sections (A, B, C, D) in IIMA. Its supposed to be ultra competitive with intense rivalries between sections. With the event scgheduled right after the mid-term exams, there is hardly any time to practice or prepare, but that simply adds to the fun. Along with full support from the tucchas, even IIMA alumni working in various locations come to the campus to support their former sections. Thats the scale of it.
And lastly, if you're wondering what this particular tempo shout meant, I have no idea and if you're wondering what a tempo shout is, its a cheer, to keep the tempo high!...;)
- Section A ka tempo....high hai!!!
.
.
.
.
Baaki sab ki le li....zig zag zig zag!!!
-Section A ka naara hai....T Nite hamara hai!!!
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Feeling Guilty is sleep >= 6 hours
And that is the way I felt the whole day, thanks to the princely 6 hours I slept last night.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Quantitative Methods, Hand Grenades and Cafe TANSTAAFL
An interesting application of QM was related by my Quant Methods professor in class, his Belgian friend in the NATO forces told him this about hand grenades.
The grenades that they use have to have an optimum composition of chemicals. When you throw them at the enemy during war, if the chemical composition is more than the optimum level then it kills the enemy soldier and you can't get any information out of him or if he's alive then you need 1-2 of your own men to carry him. This reduces your force, hence efficiency.
If the composition is less than the optimum level and it doesn't do much harm, then its not of much use anyways. Therefore the composition has to be just right, where you incapacitate the soldier but to the extent where he is alive and can walk by himself but can't do any harm or run away.
The graph would be something like this.
Ignore the numbers and look at the trend. Imagine the efficiency on Y-axis and grenade chemical composition on the X-axis. Just the right composition at the single point or near about its vicinity where you see the curve at its highest point, would ensure maximum efficiency.
As for me, its 4 in the morning and I got to study QM. Feel thirsty but too lazy to go and get water in my bottle. Feel hungry too but no choice, CT (Cafe TANSTAAFL - There Aint No Such Thing As A Free Lunch, the cafe on my campus) has closed for the night/day/morning whatever, can't order anything.
Thinking about the days when I slept peacefully and why I am writing this post at this hour, when I should be studying. Tomorrow is going to be a hard night's day.
In simple language, I'll sleep in class. Hopefully.
The grenades that they use have to have an optimum composition of chemicals. When you throw them at the enemy during war, if the chemical composition is more than the optimum level then it kills the enemy soldier and you can't get any information out of him or if he's alive then you need 1-2 of your own men to carry him. This reduces your force, hence efficiency.
If the composition is less than the optimum level and it doesn't do much harm, then its not of much use anyways. Therefore the composition has to be just right, where you incapacitate the soldier but to the extent where he is alive and can walk by himself but can't do any harm or run away.
The graph would be something like this.
Ignore the numbers and look at the trend. Imagine the efficiency on Y-axis and grenade chemical composition on the X-axis. Just the right composition at the single point or near about its vicinity where you see the curve at its highest point, would ensure maximum efficiency.
As for me, its 4 in the morning and I got to study QM. Feel thirsty but too lazy to go and get water in my bottle. Feel hungry too but no choice, CT (Cafe TANSTAAFL - There Aint No Such Thing As A Free Lunch, the cafe on my campus) has closed for the night/day/morning whatever, can't order anything.
Thinking about the days when I slept peacefully and why I am writing this post at this hour, when I should be studying. Tomorrow is going to be a hard night's day.
In simple language, I'll sleep in class. Hopefully.
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