Dr. C.K.Prahalad, the man behind the “Bottom of the Pyramid” concept, will be the chief guest and will deliver the convocation address. A professor of Corporate Strategy and International Business and a globally recognized business consultant, he has been the recipient of the Global Indian Award from the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence. His groundbreaking article, “The End of Corporate Imperialism," won the 1998 McKinsey Prize as the year's best Harvard Business Review article. He has also earned the first spot on the Suntop Media's “Thinkers 50” list. He is on the board of TIE, The Indus Entrepreneurs encouraging budding entrepreneurs in the industry.
In his keynote address, Mr Narayana Murthy urged the students to “identify as Indians first and foremost and to rise above affiliations to religions, castes, and regions; put in the interest of the nation ahead of personal interests; embrace a disciplined way of pursuing your goals; and be ready to work hard, without cutting corners, even if it means making short-term sacrifices for long-term success.”
The Distinguished Alumni Award instituted in 2005 by IMT, Ghaziabad was awarded to Mr Subhinder Singh Prem, Managing Director, Reebok India. The award had earlier gone to Mr Rajeev Karwal, Mr Prasoon Joshi, Mr Ravi Soni, Mr Arshi Narang and Mr Abhijeet Dutta Ray.
A Memorandum-of-Understanding (MoU) between the two institutes was signed, according to which CIMA will sponsor the Centre and a CIMA Professor of Management Accounting for an initial period of three years. The governance of the Centre will be facilitated by the creation of a Centre Advisory Board. The Board will have a chair person, who will be a person nominated normally by CIMA and IIMC by rotation and approved by the other partner. The Centre would hold conferences and seminars on a regular basis, at least once a year. CIMA will arrange to pay the travel cost of foreign experts, who will speak at the annual conference to be organised by the Centre.
IIMC will undertake the research to act as an Academic Host to the Centre. The scope of the research is international and will include investigations relating to the professional development of management accountants throughout their careers as well as other contemporary issues linked to CIMA's Centre of Excellence based at the Bath School of Management in the UK. IIMC and CIMA will publish results arising from the research and will discuss the same in internal seminars.
What is CIMA?
CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) is an international accountancy body with a sole focus on business. It offers an internationally recognised qualification in management accountancy, focusing on accounting in business in both the private and public sectors. It has 164,000 students as members in 161 countries. For more information about CIMA, please visit www.cimaglobal.com.
The program was designed to provide an opportunity to OB teachers to update themselves with new knowledge and teaching methods. The contents of the course included self awareness for enhancing teaching effectiveness, use of IT in organizations, Indian insights into leadership, emotional intelligence, spirituality and cultural content in organizations, new concepts and practices in HRD, and teaching methods like case method, role play, games / simulations/ outbound exercises and presentations. The program used multiple and intensive learning methods like experimental learning, group projects and discussions, industry visits, and interactions with senior executives.
The course directors Professor Satish K Kalra and Prof Rajen Gupta were of the view that there have been major changes in India's economy during the last 10 years. These changes have affected organizations functioning in varied manner and there is a need to modify the curriculum and teaching methods in management education.
MDI Director Dr Sujit K Basu said, MBA education has advanced and the number of management institutes in the country has soared to around 2200. He however, felt that quality education was badly in demand and qualified faculty non-availability was a serious problem. "Quality education should expose students to a platform where they learn and know how they can be relevant to the society. Education has to make students complete human beings with a sense of humanism and dedication,” he said.
Management Program for Army officers 18 serving Major Generals of the Indian Army officers attended a week long management program at MDI, Gurgaon from March 16-20, 2008. The theme of the program included analysis of economic environment, vision building and corporate governance, leadership challenges, financial and strategic planning, and human capital development through competency mapping.
According to Dr Radha Sharma, course director, the objectives of the program were appreciation of economic environment and challenges with a view to identifying opportunities, understanding the role of vision in strategic planning and implementation, analyzing role of corporate governance in organizational effectiveness, appreciating emerging HR practices, and developing insight into one's leadership style.
Delivering the valedictory address, Lt General J K Mohanty, GoC-in-C ARTRAC (Army Training Command, Shimla) said, change management is crucial to an organization's growth. For that it is necessary to understand self as well as others. Leaders therefore, have to master various competencies to enable them to handle change smoothly, help productivity, and enhance organization effectiveness. General Mohanty said, the role of Indian Army was undergoing changes as per new requirements and in order to face new challenges, latest trends and theories of management had to be understood and applied. A dynamic organization like the Indian Army could in no way be oblivious of the vital developments taking place in management practices in the country and the world.
The teams were gauged on parameters such as co-ordination, strategy and concentration. Presence of mind and impromptu thinking were also given considerable weightage. The participants had to go through these rounds under stress and time constraints to emerge as Business Tycoon. These rounds were judged by people from the industry who shared their insights with the participants. The winners were given prizes worth Rs 35000/-. In addition the final Business Tycoon of 2008 received a scholarship worth Rs.25000/- from Knit Faktory, which was the main sponsor for the event.
Jitendra Marchino hosted on campus
JBIMS hosted on campus Jitendra Marchino, an alumnus of JBIMS and Vice President, Future and Options division at JP Morgan, for a session on Derivatives on March 10, 2008. In the session, he divided the class into teams of 5, and involved them in small games, and the conclusions of each of them were related to relevant concepts in Derivatives.
He started off by stressing on the fact how each one of us is a part of and is intricately involved with the stock market, irrespective of whether we directly invest in stocks or not. He also explained the significance of the stock market movement on the different functionalities of an organization which the MBA students may end taking up in the future.
He explained that the choice of an investment depends on more than one factor and varies from person to person. While the market perception may be the criteria for some, others might decide on the basis of their tenure of investment and expected returns during the period. To add to this, what also comes into play is the risk taking ability of each individual.
He went on to explain the concept of derivatives, but only after an exercise in which the teams were asked to bid at present the for IPL squads based on their perception of the future profitability of each of the squads. The example clarified the meaning of an underlying principle on which all Derivatives instruments are built.
Also, he explained that how the market changes in one sector directly or indirectly impact the other sectors. This is what, he said, is the chief role of people who manage such derivative instruments. They keep a close watch on various sectors and try to project the impact of small and big changes/predictions/research on the other sectors of the economy.He concluded by suggesting them various ways in which they could groom themselves to tackle their jobs in the future. Mere reading is not enough, he said. It is how we apply what we have read, that is important to make a difference.
The key note address was delivered by the distinguished Chief Guest, Dr CK Prahalad. He congratulated the PGP students and appreciated the efforts put in by parents and professors in moulding the students. “India's current financial success may hide its true potential”, remarked Dr. Prahalad. He stressed that it is time for India to accelerate its growth by reducing costs and improving the quality. He emphasized that the biggest worry for the country is the growing income inequality due to rapid economic growth. Unless India embraces new ways of thinking, it cannot achieve its growth potential. Dr.Prahalad concluded his address by advising the students to tread the path of innovation and entrepreneurship with morality and honesty and transform their ideas into action.
On the occasion Prof. Krishna Kumar, Director, said, “We are the fastest growing IIM in the country. We have achieved the target of 50 crore in revenues set by the central government in just three years”.
Earlier in the day, Prof. Prahalad interacted with the students of IIMK. Various general topics were discussed. Speaking on corruption, he went on to say that if there was anything that will bring the nation down, it will be corruption. And as managers, the onus will be on us to take a tough stance on corruption. Answering to a query on entrepreneurship, he noted that no one is ever ready for entrepreneurship. Alikening it to a form of self-expression, he added that entrepreneurship is always lonely and hence self-commitment is very critical to every entrepreneur. Complimenting the dabbawallahs on their efficiency, he observed that there are many other similar cases which are the epitome of efficiency but have not been researched - like the rural beedi distribution network, for instance. It is upto us to learn the finer nuances of management from them. As a parting remark, Dr. Prahalad said, "Create the best practise; don't worry about the best practise.
The earlier two awards have been conferred on Professor Lord Bhikhu Parekh (Centennial Professor of the London School of Economics and internationally renowned scholar and writer) in 2006 and on the father of India's green revolution, Dr. MS Swaminathan in 2007.
Addressing the occasion KT Chako, Director, IIFT, said, “In the four decades of IIFT's existence, we have built a niche for ourselves and are constantly striving towards fulfilling our pioneering role”. He also congratulated the maiden batch of students from Kolkatta.
Also, speaking on the occasion Kamal Nath, Minister, Commerce and Industry, congratulated the convocating batch and said, "Climate change may be a bad thing for the environment but trade climate change is a good thing!.”
The first and second rank holders, Ms Soumya Gayatri and Ms Puspamitra Prusty were awarded the CM Kandoi Gold Medals along with a cash award of Rs.10, 000 and Rs.5000 respectively. These medals have been instituted by Aditya Steel Industries. NTPC Gold Medals went to Ms.Soumya Gayatri for being the Lady Topper and Suchita Dikshit for HRM Area Topper. The Ravi Sharma Memorial Gold Medal for Best All Rounder was awarded to Mr.Tushar Bagla. The Convocation also saw the release of the 5th Volume Issue No.1 of 'VILAKSHAN', the XIMB Journal of Management.
The chief guest was Shekhar Datta, Chairman, Bombay Stock Exchange Limited. Mr Rajive Kaul, Chairman of the XIMB Governing Board, presided over the ceremony with PT Joseph, Director, Fr.E.A.Augustine, s.j., Dean (Administration & Finance) and Prof. W.S.William, Dean (Academics) of XIMB.
Speaking on the occasion as the Chief Guest and Chief Speaker, Shekhar Datta said, “There are only two things that are needed to enable one to lead a fulfilling life –the wisdom to know the right path and the courage to follow it.”
The day started off with Prof Arun Sehegal, CEO Chempro and a faculty at the institute, teaching the nuances of selling to the students. The students then bid for products which they thought would fetch the highest return on investment. Students tried various ways to sell the products, ranging from setting up road side stalls on Colaba Causeway to approaching corporates on Dalal Street, from selling merchandise to cottage industry outlets to hard selling over the phone, from making high margins to picking up bulk orders.
With twelve teams making the final cut, from only four hours of strategising, positioning and hard selling available to them, the students were able to create sales of more than Rs 45000., a 100 percent rise over that achieved in last year's event. The Winners walked away with Rs 20,000 in cash and an opportunity to contribute a foreword to Prof Sehegal's upcoming book on selling.
The programme is divided into three modules of seven weeks each and one of three weeks. During the twenty-four weeks, the participants will study twenty two courses made up of three hours sessions and work on a project. They will study functional area subjects like Marketing Management, Financial Accounting, Manufacturing and Materials Management, Human Resource Management along with the general management inputs such as Organisational Behaviour, Legal Aspects of Management, Project Management and Strategic Management. The programme will follow an interactive learning methodology – cases, interactive lectures in the form of discussions and assignments to facilitate learning.
The first batch of this programme has completed the programme and the participants have been placed in many companies. The institute plans to run two programmes of six months each once the infrastructure is ready.
Also, an award ceremony recognizing the scholastic excellence students was held at the MICA auditorium. Several awards were conferred acknowledging students with outstanding academic records and completion of projects from the different disciplines – Brand Management, Account Planning, Media Management and Marketing Research and Retail Communications, as well as awards for the best student thesis (dissertations). Awards were given to Ms Arthi Balasubramanian (Gold), Ms Kaumudi Mahajan, PGPC (Silver), Ms Sinduja Rangarajan (Bronze) and RCM student Mr Gaurav Kumar (PGPRCM) for academic excellence.
Dr Kalam in his address emphasised the important role the young men and women in front of him, and how they can help in the development and progress of the country. He brought out analogies from 'Five Minds of The Future' by Howard Gardner, and stressed how these 'five minds' – disciplinary, synthesizing, creativity, respect and ethics – should exist in synergy for a person to be well-equipped to deal with the challenges.
Following up on its two year Diploma program in Communications Management, MICA has recently started an AICTE-approved Executive Post-Graduate Programme (PGPCMX) for working professionals to enhance their knowledge and skills, for careers in the industry sectors of media and entertainment, design and retail.
Srini Raju, Co-Founder of companies such as Peepul Capital (a.k.a iLabs Capital) Satyam Enterprise Solutions, D&B; Satyam Software (now known as Cognizant Technology Solutions) said, “I am keen to ensure that the benefits of IT reaches all sections of society. The ISB is doing seminal work in this area and I am proud to associate with their Centre of Excellence to make this possible.”
Speaking on the occasion, M Rammohan Rao, Dean, ISB, said, “We are grateful for the recognition and support given by Srini Raju. His generous grant will allow us to attract more world-class faculty and students and take CITNE to the next level in IT knowledge creation and dissemination for emerging markets.”
Other participating teams for the India round were from B-schools like Faculty of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Management – Ahmedabad (IIM-A), Indian Institute of Management – Bangalore (IIM-B), Indian School of Business (ISB), Institute for Financial Management and Research, Management Development Institute (MDI), SP Jain Institute of Management and Research and Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI).
Commenting on his experience, Nikhil Salvi, member of the winning team said, “It was a great learning experience to apply what I've learnt at JBIMS in real life research on a national level. I really look forward to the next round where we can showcase our institute on a global level.”
For more information regarding the challenge, you may visit:
The event highlight is the panel discussion, which in the past has seen participation from persons like Mr Santosh Desai (MD, Future Brands), Mr TS Seshu (Head- Rural Marketing, ITC), Mr. Lloyd Mathias (Director- Marketing, Motorola), Mr Hemant Sachdev (Director- Marketing, Airtel), Mr Raju Narisetti (Managing Editor, MINT), Mr Saurabh Kanwar (VP- Content & Communication, Channel V), Mr. Tarun Katial (COO- BIG FM), Ms. Sonya Banerjee( Head- Marketing, Yahoo! India), Mr LV Krishnan (CEO- TAM India), Mr Madhukar Kamath( MD & CEO, Mudra Communications), Mr. Bhaskar Das (President, TOI Group), Ms. Shovana Narayan, (Padmashree & Central Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardee), Mr Shiv Visvanathan, (Anthropologist, Social Scientist & Human Rights Researcher), Mr Neeraj Roy (CEO, Hungama.com).
Hemant Gupta has secured the first rank in the PGDM programme and will be receiving Dr BC Roy Gold Medal and other prizes. Ayushi Gudwani has secured the second rank and will be receiving Dr BC Roy Silver Medal and Dr Amiya Barat Prize. Joshi Nivedita S. has secured the third rank and will be receiving the Exide Award for Excellence. Their names would be placed in the Institute's Honour Roll for this year.
In PGDCM, Akash Chattopadhyay has secured the first rank and will be receiving the IIMC Gold Medal and Dr Jogendra Kumar Chowdhury Gold Medal and other awards for his outstanding achievement. His name would be placed in the Institute's Honour Roll for this year. Shri Rahul Gupta has secured the second rank and will be receiving Smt Indira Chowdhury Gold Medal and other awards. Shri Haria Vishal Mahesh has secured the third rank and will be receiving the ACC Award.
In PGDBM, Debraj Banerjee has secured the first rank and will be receiving the IIMC Gold medal and other awards. Arun Soumya Mukherjee has secured the second rank and will be receiving the IIMC Silver medal and Praveen Kumar Jha has secured the third rank and will be receiving the IIMC Book Prize. Their names would be placed in the PGDBM Honour Roll for this year.
The first batch of the PGPEX programme has been completed. 38 students will be receiving the award the Post Graduate Diploma in Management for Executives. Prakash Chandra Sah; Panchali Roychowdhuri and Krishnakumar Sankaranarayanan have secured the First, Second and Third ranks respectively. Their names would be placed in the Director's Merit List.
Present at the occasion was the Chief Guest, K P Singh, Chairman of the Board, DLF Ltd. Also, present in the audience, were the eminent Board members, Thomas Robertson, Dean of The Wharton School, faculty, parents, friends, and relatives of the students.
This year the ISB Scholars of Excellence Awards were given to Amit Jain and Chitra Raghunath. “It's been an honour and pride to top a class of 422 very bright and sincere people. The professors made it very interesting,” said Amit, the topper of Class 2008. Chitra Raghunath, the other topper feels very special about her achievement. “Getting this recognition at the ISB is very special to me as I competed with 422 very brilliant students,” remarked Chitra. The top 10 percent of the batch made it to the Dean's List for their distinctive performance in various activities.
Speaking to the audience, Chief Guest, K P Singh, Chairman of the Board, DLF Ltd. said, “The challenge in India is – how do we manage growth? Our old mindsets of thinking small and managing shortages come in the way. We need to think big and create surplus. This is possible only through change in education and training of bureaucrats, policy makers, and businessmen alike. It is up to you, the younger generation to help India grow.”
According to the press release, the website for the production house will be soon launched. It will be an interactive website where the viewers can exchange their views about the movie. It will also have additional promotional material, like additional shots, behind the scenes and interviews with the makers and actors. Besides, the website will be a common platform for amateur filmmakers, where they can discuss and learn more about filmmaking. There will also be contests for amateur filmmakers, where the winner will be judged on the basis of ratings awarded by the viewers.
The movie is also being promoted among young executives. Also, it is being planned to be premiered across other B-schools. Various management concepts like product placement, buzz marketing and viral marketing have been used to promote the movie. Initially the movie was promoted through posters and word-of-mouth publicity. Currently, the film's trailer is being promoted online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKRMxhkiyAM and also being shown across various campuses.
Sreerama Suprath, the director of the film said,”the idea of the silent film came from the classic silent movie Pushpak. I wanted to try something creative and set a decent benchmark for a start and we are quite happy with the results”.
The Chief Guest for the inauguration of the conference was Nesim Tumkaya, UNFPA Representative. Also present on the occasion were Mr. Shadrack Omol, UNICEF Representative for the State of Orissa; Prof PKB. Nayar, President, IASSH; Dr KE Vaidyanathan, Vice-President, IASSH; Fr PT Joseph, S.J., Director, XIMB; Prof WS William, Dean, XIMB; Fr EA Augustine, SJ, Dean (Admn. & Fin), XIMB and Prof S. Peppin, Organising Secretary, Professor and Coordinator, Centre for Healthcare Management, XIMB.
Speaking on the conference Shri. Pradeep Jena, Assistant Country Director, UNDP Orissa Programmes, said “There is a very long way to go in order to achieve the MDGs. There is a need for all of us to act together and put in all our efforts. I sincerely believe that the conference will contribute immensely in understanding what needs to done in order to achieve MDGs pertaining to Health sector.”
In a media interaction held at IIM Ahmedabad, the Director Prof Sameer Barua said, "We were to release the final list of candidates tommorow. But after the Supreme Court's order on OBC reservations, all the IIMs will have consultation and might defer the release of list by a week."
All the IIMs would release their final results at once, he said.
The institute would honour the law of the land and make necessary infrastructure provisions, he said.
"We have not received the copy of the order yet and are not clear what SC has said about the implementation of the OBC quota in IIMs," Barua added.