Iift gd-pi 2016-18

Would the interview dates be given location wise, batch wise or randomly between 1-14 feb ?

Opens last year's GDPI form.Finds it to be same as this year's.

Ctrl+C > Ctrl+V.

Problem solved 😛 😁

By when will the exact date of GDPI be communicated?

Q.4 Describe an incident in your life that has changed your perspective/outlook towards life

"Each person's life is dominated by a central event, which shapes and distorts everything that comes after it and, in retrospect, everything that came before." - Suketu Mehta, Maximum City

Not knowing what changed your outlook towards life is practically impossible. We are a summation of our good and bad experiences. And all of us know those defining moments, may be not when we are in the middle of such events but after a period of time, when we sit and realize that had it not happened, we would have been something entirely different.

Some of you might find multiple such incidents. Fair enough. Shortlist and mention the best of the lot. Recently, someone I know turned vegan after a ten day meditation session. Now, this is a significant event for that person but the interviewers might not want to read this. It might paint a picture that one is so malleable that 10 days changed one's way of life. Plus, it might lead to a 'your-belief-versus-my-belief' discussion and arguments.

At times, candidates write extremely trivial things and it becomes difficult for others to believe that this event could be the most impactful event in one's life. Not being able to study because of a family wedding and still managing 80% score cannot be a significant incident. Failing miserably and then coming strong next year can definitely be significant. 

Mentioning something from your formative years is a safe option. That period is significant for most of us and it becomes easier to believe and relate to such incidents. Whatever you decide to write, share it with your friends and family and with people who were a part of it. Ask them their views. Understand and incorporate their feedback.

Try and avoid putting interviewers in awkward situations. For example, talking about a health issue might not be the best thing to do. Because it doesn't lead to a discussion most of the time. It becomes a 'stop-now-and-ask-me-something-else' answer than a 'tell-us-more-about-this-incident' answer. Write something worth mentioning and let the importance of that incident flow through your answer.

How to frame this answer?

Here is my suggestion. Try to write this experience in the 'Pixar Pitch' format. 'To sell is human' is a book by Daniel Pink in which he has shared this little formula to pitch your ideas. It's called Pixar Pitch.

Pixar has produced 13 feature films that together have grossed $7.6 Billion. Six of these movies have won the Academy Award for best animated film. And the company has amassed a total of 26 Oscars in all. How do they do it? Pixar story artist, Emma Coats has cracked the code and argues that every Pixar film shares the same narrative DNA - a deep structure of storytelling that involves six sequential sentences:

1. Once upon a time there was ...

2. Every day ...

3. One day ...

4. Because of that ...

5. Because of that ...

6. Until finally ...

By offering an introduction, you make the reader aware of the initial state. The change is the main event. Because of that and Because of that is expansion of event description or post-event repercussions. Resolution and effects should follow and close the answer. Needless to say, you should avoid using these exact phrases but this definitely gives you a path to walk on.

Also, the answer need not be sad or an unpleasant situation. It can be happy, inspired moments. For someone, reading a book can be a life changing incident. As long as the person is able to justify the 'why' part of it, anything should work. It is not the incident that will help you get through but what you write and say about that incident in the interview.

To summarize, write multiple answers and then decide instead of rephrasing one incident again and again. The exercise will help you give a structure to your thoughts and will prepare you for cross questioning by interviewers. Ensure that your answer sounds genuine and leads to a healthy discussion. All the best! 

What exactly is the call letter from IIFT. . . is it the same mail that had the CV form attached to it or am I missing something here?

Regarding short term goals :

Would it be wise for me to mention that I want to see myself working as an operations manager in a corporate setup  ?

Considering IIFT offers a degree in International Business, are my career aspirations not in line with what IIFT has to offer ?

If so then should I just write some generic answer in my essay to avoid being grilled in interviews regarding questions like "If you want to pursue a career as an operations manager then why IIFT ?

As far as I know IIFT caters to Foreign Trade management but is equally good as a general management program for people with diverse career aspirations.

Can the seniors kindly clear my doubt. TIA

In the languages known section, do we just fill 'yes' or 'no' corresponding to the various headings?

Q.5 Describe two instances where you have been able to demonstrate leadership and team building skills.

When I started thinking about this question, the first example that came to my mind was Hiro Hamada creating a superhero team in Big Hero 6. He turns Tadashi's nerd friends into superheroes by developing armor and accessories in line with their scientific expertise. Vengeance takes over Hiro's rationality. He later apologizes to the team and they work together to stop Callaghan. Now, before I get into a long discourse on how Hiro Hamada is an individualist who turns into a leader due to a contingency, let's get back to forming an answer to this question.

There are multiple reasons behind asking this question. It checks your understanding of 'leadership' and 'team building' as these terms are frequently used but partially comprehended. It then asks for evidence because one can always understand something yet never demonstrate it. There is a massive intersection between leadership and team-building skills. A good leader will never become one in the absence of a team. Someone who is good at building teams assumes the role of a leader to achieve his or her objective. You can't really segregate these two qualities. Hence, reading about team building and leadership will definitely help. You don't have to explain these concepts in the answer, but reading will give you basic understanding and will be beneficial in your interview preparation.

This question is asked keeping in mind the fact that you are entering a course which aims at creating leaders and good team performers. During your course and in the corporate environment, you will be working with and leading teams of people with different backgrounds, work-styles, attitudes and beliefs. And it gets quite challenging if you don't have an interest in developing these skills.

What is expected in the answer?

As mentioned in the question, you have to give two instances and not one. Keep that in mind. If you have read my earlier posts, you must have realized the importance of 'beginning-conflict-resolution/end' process of writing a story worth reading.

When you are stressing on the leadership part, make use of 'I' and 'me' to highlight your contribution. When you are describing the team-building part, focus on 'us' and 'we' for heightened impact. Ensure right mix of these words because you don't want to come across as a self-centered individual or a free-rider. Also, understand that if you haven't really done something, having peripheral knowledge isn't going to help in the interview stage. You might as well go through your life story and figure out these instances than cooking something up.

Read these samples:

Sample 1: I was given the responsibility of .... And I asked our team to gather resources .... And the team managed to get required sales figure.

Sample 2: I took the initiative of ... and it was a herculean task for all of us .... I helped my team by .... And we achieved our target of 1 crore sales.

The second sample is better because it talks about initiative, describes the criticality of the situation, leader's contribution and the final outcome. Leader's role is doubtful in the first sample.

Should both the instances be work-related?

No. You can decide what you want to write but it is better if you have one instance from your personal life and one from your professional career. For a student in the final year of graduation, work done on a project or a committee/club work can feature here in addition to a personal example. For a working professional, it is easy to find such instances because you end up assuming leader and team-builder roles more often.

For example:

School/College/Professional instance: Taking up a new project and managing it with a team. Assuming a new role in addition to your work for organizational benefits. Competition/team event with distributed deliverables or leading a contingent.

Personal instance: Crucial family role/responsibility. Social initiative and awareness creation.

Note - If you are mentioning personal instance, let it be different from your answer to the 'one incident that had a significant impact on your life' question. Try and make both the instances equal in length. 80 words on personal instance and 20 words on professional instance doesn't make sense. Be specific with numbers, esp. number of people involved. There is a difference between a team of ten people and a team of about ten people. Be clear with roles and responsibilities.

Also, don't misunderstand an aggregation/compilation role with a leadership role. Most of the presentation based group assignments have a person who sits and compiles work done by other team members. With projects and assignments examples, be specific and make sure you know everything about that project.

To summarize, craft your answer well. There is nothing right or wrong. Have the event flow and reasoning in place for the final interview. Keep it easy to read and something that will help the interviewers evaluate your current leadership and team-building skills. If you have really exhibited that behavior, I am sure it will pay off in some or the other way in your future.

Sharing two interesting videos that you can check on YouTube: 1. Tom Wujec: Build a tower, build a team. 2. Ten Leadership Theories in Five Minutes by Professor Michael Zigarelli.

All the best!

Hi puys, admins, . I want to know what profiles do recruiters offer to a student who has taken Marketing as Major ?

A breifing on each of the profiles would help ?

TIA  😃


@uditdelhi @sawant.prasad 

hi i hvnt got the cv form by post,will it be fine if i take printout of cv(via mail) and send that?

thanks

Admins , I understand that this is more of a very specific answer , and that there exists no generic way of how to answer this question but could you point us in the right direction on how to answer the last question ( q 17.7) in the call form. 

Are word limits sacrosanct as far as the long answers are concerned? Is it okay if the limit is exceeded by 5-6 words in some of the answers?

Is it okay to mention entrepreneurship in career goals? I can justify why I want to become an entrepreneur and why an MBA will help me. IIFT's vision nowhere states anything abt entrepreneurship, but there is a course in the syllabus. Also, I've heard abt rejections at IIMC (from an alumni) and other institutes just bcz of entrepreneurship.


OBC certificate has to be attested by some gazetted or Self Attested should be suffice?

Is it fine to hand-drop the form on 4th/5th January'16 at IIFT campus rather sending by Speed/Courier Post? 

@uditdelhi  please add me to IIFT gdpi Facebook group..

I have an ISB YLP convert.Should I mention that.Will they not ask why am I not joining ISB?

are you guys mentioning specific organization and designation in career objectives part??

I wasn't an avid sports player in my school and college days. I participated in sports events but was never a winner or runner up. Should I leave the sports column blank or write about my participation in various sports events? Participation doesn't mean sports achievements,right?

Are we supposed to have proof for two instances which we are quoting for leadership question ? or any question per se?