• IIM Ahmedabad, Kozhikode students to help out shortlisted aspirants
• Jyotiraditya Scindia addresses students at IIM Indore
• Dr Farooq Abdullah delivers IILM’s founder’s day lecture
• B Cube 2010 held at NITIE
• Brahmakumari Shivani ji addresses students at IIM Indore

IIM Ahmedabad, Kozhikode students to help out shortlisted aspirants

IIM Ahmedabad

The Students Affairs Council of IIM Ahmedabad has started an Ask the students initiative to help out IIMA shortlisted aspirants with the next round of the selection procedure. Last year,this round consisted of essay writing and an interview. IIMA shortlisted candidates can mail all their queries to [email protected]. The common queries will be put up on the student-run blog http://askthestudents.org/ while more personal queries will be replied to via mail or the aspirants will be called up by the students themselves. This is the first time that the students have come up with such an initiative at IIMA.

This is an entirely student driven initiative and has no involvement of the institute or the admissions committee. The students hope that this maiden venture will be helpful to aspirants and could be taken up at a bigger level next time.

IIM Kozhikode

The much appreciated Mentorship Program for GDPI call getters at IIM Kozhikode has started again this year. The IIMK Mentorship Program is the pioneer among its kind and purely driven by the students. Applicants to the PGDM programme who have cleared the first round based on CAT can register themselves at http://mentor.iimklive.com/ by providing their CAT TR number and email ids previously filled in the application. Verified candidates will be assigned mentors from the currently studying batch at IIM Kozhikode who will then guide them regarding the GDPI process. The registered candidates can also post their queries and discuss with the current students on the forums on IIMKLive. Call getters will also be mailed personally informing them of the start of the program. Given the response it got last time, it is hoped that this year the Program will be a bigger success.

Jyotiraditya Scindia addresses students at IIM Indore

Jyotiraditya Scindia, minister of state for commerce and industry, delivered guest lecture in IIM Indore on February 27, 2010. He spoke about reforms in the postal sector. A graduate from Harvard University and an MBA alumnus of Stanford University, he gave a managerial perspective of his previous stint with the Ministry of Communication and information Technology. Delivered as a case study, he described his plans, the obstacles and the eventual denouement of his mission for the Department of Post.

Underlining the significance of Management Education, he emphasised that Management Education was about what one could give back to the system. He then seamlessly transitioned into the main topic of Postal sector Reforms, describing the Indian Postal System as one of the best distribution channels in the world.

With roughly one and a half lakh post offices, most of them in the six lakh villages of India, the postal system has immense potential for the distribution of all kinds of products, including pharmaceuticals and consumer goods. However, this cannot be used right now, he realised, citing the lack of efficiency and excellence in the existing system. He needed to fix the core business of the Post which is delivery of mails, money transfer, banking services and other services. Thus, Project Arrow was born.

Speaking about his brainchild, Project Arrow, which has been an initiative to revamp the existing postal system – both in terms of delivery and execution, as well as look and feel and infrastructure of post offices, he delved into the ideation process – listening to the grievances of the postmen.

The project has led to improvement in delivery of mails (from 70 percent to 99 percent) and money orders. This was implemented in 50 post offices, and later expanded to 2000 post offices. He fought and won for the postmen, the right to a shoe allowance and a stationery allowance, and the right to send their children to Kendriya Vidyalayas- to give them a secure future.

His initiative, Project Arrow is still being implemented with zeal by the Department, and has been nominated for the Prime Minister’s award for National Change. The successful implementation of his legacy has been possible because of his insistence on managerial best practices, including a ‘Blue Book’, a Standard Operating Procedure that would be followed throughout the project. The Pan-African Postal Union (PAPU), an African agency o co-ordinate matters relating to postal delivery in Africa, sent a delegation of 70 members to study Project Arrow.

He concluded with three important learnings for all the audience to remember:

1. Change is the only thing that is constant in life.

2. If you want to be successful, only the paranoid survive.

3. The softest pillow is a light conscience.

The talk was followed by a Q &A; session where he responded to questions fielded by the students – questions about the viability of Post in the 21st century, the feasibility of using Post for selling various other products and services, and the recognition given to the post offices.

Dr Farooq Abdullah delivers IILM’s founder’s day lecture in memory of Indira Gandhi

IILM Institute for Higher Education hosted its Founders Day Lecture at Lodhi Road campus on March 2, 2010. The lecture was addressed by Dr Farooq Abdullah, Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy. On the occasion, Dr Abdullah also released a compilation of the previous Founder’s day Lectures.

IILM Founders Day is dedicated to the memory of the late Smt Indira Gandhi. Welcoming the distinguished gathering, Ambassador K V Rajan, Converor, IILM India Forum remarked, This is a very special event in IILM calendar. This is the day when we celebrate the vision, leadership, exceptional achievements, and human qualities of the founder of the IILM group, Shri Kulwant Rai. His effort has been to develop students as responsible, socially sensitive, and globally aware members of society who are able to contribute towards international development and transmit the ever so rich and deep-rooted Indian values to the rest of the world. Everyone recognizes IILM as what it is today, because of his vision and guidance.

Since 2005, IILM has organized Founder’s Day lecture by distinguished leaders on important issues of concern such as Indian’s future economic growth, The meaning of success and ways of achieving it and promoting a sustainable environment. In the past, prominent leaders such as His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Shri V. Krishnamurthy, Chairman, National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council, Shri Murari Bapu, religious scholar of Hinduism, Shri Wajahat Habibullah, Chief Information Commissioner of India have addressed the gathering.

B Cube 2010 held at NITIE

Best Business Brains or B-Cube was organized by the National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE) on February 27 and was aimed at providing veritable knowledge to the MBA aspirants about what they can expect from a B School and also, what a B School expects from them.

Street the student forum of finance enthusiasts at NITIE, launched their very first edition of the magazine called In-FIN-NITIE at B-cube.

Professor Ghodeshwar (Dean Academics), the convenor of B-Cube, welcomed all with warm words explaining the essence of B-Cube and the role it plays in facilitating a more informed decision making at the aspirants end.

The program started with ‘Seminaire’, as experienced faculty members throwing light on various streams of management, their relevance in the industry and the profiles one could expect after majoring in any of them. From Supply Chain Management to Finance, Marketing to Environment Management, the professors addressed the need for integration of business processes.

This was followed by the much awaited GD/PI workshop called the ‘Midas Touche’, which elucidated the nuances of effective communication and conduct that can go a long way in helping one make a strong case for oneself.

The next couple of hours was every bit as interactive and informal as it had promised to be. ‘Tessor Chasse’ was a treat for all those with a knack for whacky thinking and out-of-the-box ideas. Business ‘Jeu’ (Quiz) next on the cards raised further the tempo as the in-house quizmasters kept the audience on their feet with questions on mergers, acquisitions, taglines, rebranding etc.

Finally an informal session Student Corner wrapped up the show, with the alumni and current students taking queries from the MBA aspirants about everything under the management sun.

Brahmakumari Shivani ji addresses students at IIM Indore

IIM Indore resonated with the spiritual notes of a guest lecture on “The Art of Joyful Living” delivered by Brahma Kumari Shivani Ji, on February 22. Shivani Ji spoke about the importance of staying in control of one’s mind as the key to handling stressful situations in today’s world. She also touched upon the importance of a short, five-minute meditation and a constructive attitude towards others as effective tools to stay in control of the happenings in one’s life. It is only by being in control of one’s mind (man) can one be a good manager and leader, she said. Her examples were picked from everyday occurrences and were eagerly received by the audience at IIM Indore. The students, following the hectic lifestyle in a business school, especially appreciated the aptness and importance of the address.

A former Gold medallist engineering graduate, Shivani Ji is now a RajYoga meditation teacher practicing the technique as taught by the Brahma Kumaris in Mount Abu. She speaks on a wide spectrum of themes like Stress Free Lifestyle, Leadership skills, Emotional Intelligence, Art of Right Thinking, Self management etc. Several corporate houses have benefited from her programs in the past, including Maruti Suzuki, The Escorts Group, GE Money and L&T.;