MILK 'O MANIA

‘Dhoodh dhoodh dhoodh peeyo glassful dhoodh’, dhooddh the bone of contention between every mother and child was the theme of MILK O MANIA at IIM Raipur, a marketing simulation event conduted by the students of the PGP 1^st  year under the guidance of Dr. Sanjeev Prashar and  Dr. Vinita Sahay, wherein the students did an analysis of the 4 major competing brand of Chattisgarh in milk category.

Students started with the presentation by Miss Monika Thalla as she introduced the students to the Indian milk industry which is largest in the world and gave the details of the industry growth rate, demand and consumption. The presentation was carried forward by Mr. Umang Aggarwal who gave detail analysis of the Deobhog brand from the date of its concept inception in 2002. Deobogh is the milk brand of Chattisgarh milk cooperative society. Earlier Saanchi brand from Madhya Pradesh was there but the government of Chattisgargh finally decided to launch Deobhog in Sept 2011. Following Umang Aggarwal , details of reliance, Dinshaw and Amul Brands  were given by other students where they discussed the product mix, promotional strategies, pricing strategies of the brands.

Video clip showing the various print ads by amul wherein the famous ‘amul girl’ taking quirky shots on various events happening in India was highly appreciated by the students and teachers alike.

The presentation was followed by the simulation where the iconic milk cow was smiling on the door to welcome the students in. Inside, the entire product range of the 4 brands was arranged and the students learnt about the packaging of the brands. They were given insights by Dr. Vinita Sahay who posed them questions about why did the brands go for the specific packaging and was it good for the brand or not? With the room full of posters, print ads and videos, the students could get a good insight of the promotional strategies of the various brands.

The event ended with students enjoying the new product by Amul, Amul pro a health drink introduced recently.

TATA First Dot - B Plan Workshop

 

 

 

 

Consulting and Entrepreneurship Club of IIM Raipur acted as the host partner for ‘TATA First Dot Powered by NEN’ held on 24 November 2012. The one-day workshop focused on the successful progression of idea into a business model which can evolve into a fruitful venture. It was open to student entrepreneurs and was targeted to be beneficial to those who have already developed an idea. This workshop also served as a precursor to the participants for entry into the Pan-India Competition held by TATA First Dot. The top 30 entrepreneurs from the competition would be mentored by NEN.

The workshop was held by Dr. Radhika Meenakshi Shankar, Founder, Wise Owl Consultancy and Kalpana Sinha, Senior Consultant, NEN. Dr. Shankar guided the participants regarding how to develop their ideas by using different frameworks, business models and writing an effective business plan for successful pitching to the various stakeholders in the project.

Dr. Sanjeev Prashar, Professor, IIM Raipur, said “IIM Raipur with NEN will continuously work towards guiding students in preparing the B-Plans for their start-ups and providing them the necessary mentoring.”

Students from IIM Raipur, IIT BHU, NIT Raipur, Disha College of Management, Future Institute of Engineering Technology, CAHCET, Centre for Modelling and Simulation and DIMAT participated in this event.

Ethical Leadership of Mahatma Gandhi

 

Smt. Shobhana Radhakrishna and Mr. Ravi Chopra from the Centre for Gandhian Vision and Values visited IIM Raipur campus on 20th Nov 2012.

Smt. Shobhana Radhakrishna enlightened the students about Mahatma Gandhi’s ideology in the area of ethical leadership. She emphasized on the fact that the Gandhian era has not ended and the Gandhian principles and values are still relevant. As potential future leaders she advised the students not to have pay-cheques as their only objective in life but to attach themselves to higher ideals and work towards solving the problems of the society. Gandhiji had immense expectations from the educated youth of the society. She highlighted the fact that Gandhiji was a ‘practical idealist’ who practiced what he preached. He personified the modern idea of ‘leadership by example’. Mistakes committed by the leaders cost too high as they stand as a role model for the masses.

 We should do our work wholeheartedly to the minutest detail as each and every work is given by god. Objectives should be small but measurable but goals should be certain. The resources we use are not a gift from our forefathers but a loan from our future generations. It is therefore our obligation to give it back 100 times of what we use. She urged us to focus on increasing our efficiency. One should always spend one’s time for useful purposes because time is the most valuable resource in one’s life. She further mentioned the three principles that governed Gandhi’s time management techniques: Be Quick, Be Brief and Be Gone. Efficiency includes adherence to truth and avoidance of negligence. We must be able to take charge when the need arises, Gandhi was reluctant in public speaking and shy until he realized the purpose of his life. Similarly we should always live upto the expectations of the situation when the time demands for it and realize one’s purpose in life. Delegating tasks to the right people, dealing every situation with wisdom, being punctual, sincere and prompt in every step will help one achieve success. We all should identify the unique virtue in ourselves which would be our inner strength to guide us through life. Smt. Radhakrishna demonstrated how to spin thread with a ‘charkha’ and ‘takli’. The students travelled back in time to the 1950’s and witnessed the state of our country back then, compared to the present and it dawned upon them how Gandhian principles acted as a transformational tool in the development of the country. The session made the students realize how the efforts of a single individual can cause gargantuan influence on the society.

Frisbee Sessions at Indian Institute of Management, Raipur by Frisbee Wizard Mr Brodie Smith

Students at Indian Institute of Management, Raipur witnessed a spectacle from Mr. Brodie Smith, the Frisbee legend who visited the campus on invitation from Prof. Vinita Sahay, Chairperson, Student Affairs. He was also accompanied by Mr.Praveen Prakash, Senior manager,HR,Usha international which is an active partner of Ultimate Frisbee matches.

Mr Smith is well renowned world over for being a 2-Time National Champion in Ultimate Frisbee. The students got an opportunity to interact with Mr. Smith, and Mr.Praveen Prakash, Senior manager,HR,Usha international and know more about the game.

The event started with an address by Mr. Prakash, followed by a screening of some famous Frisbee shots by Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith then shared with students on how he developed a passion for Frisbee and decided to follow his passion. He gave valuable insights, on how playing a sport dedicatedly has many benefits, like being disciplined and committed to one’s task. He also said that once in leadership position, the best way to make people follow you is by setting an example. Mr. Smith also emphasized on the importance of setting goals, be it business, be it sports or be it relationships. He then shared his experiences of being at India.

During questionnaire round while answering to one question, Mr Smith, appreciated that majority of Indians love playing sports; however most of them are devoted to cricket. Their ability towards playing sports makes Frisbee not so challenging game for Indians. In fact the country has the potential to become the world leader in the game.  

In one of the other questions asked Mr. Smith suggested students to have an open mind and take everything that comes to one as an opportunity.

The students then had a Frisbee practice session on the ground with Mr.Smith. He taught the basics of forehand, backhand and the Gator Clamp to the students. He further divided the students into various groups and made them play with the Frisbee to learn the basics. Post that, Mr Smith conducted a practice match of the Frisbee Ultimate among the students.

The event was organised by the Cultural and Sports club of IIM Raipur and commendable efforts were put by Coordinator Prashant Meshram, Tarang Singhal, Abhishek Sharma, Mahesh Nath Sahu, Avishek Mondal, Shauvik, Vivek, Sourav and Aditi Bajpai.

India Brazil Economic Cooperation - Mr Deepak Bhojwani

 

 

 

Mr Deepak Bhojwani , a career diplomat who has been the Ambassador to several countries in the Latin America in the last 12 years prominent being Venezuela, Columbia, Cuba among others and Consul General at Sao Polo, Brazil addressed the students about the opportunities in Latin America. The theme of his lecture was “India Brazil Economic Cooperation”. He urged the students to shun the myths around Latin America, which appears remote to most Indians. Mr Bhojwani described it as a land of 600 million people with per capita income as high as $15,000 which has great opportunities for business.

Mr Bhojwani began with an introduction about the region explaining about the rich history the continent has. He began with how the continent was discovered, explaining along the way why Brazil was Portuguese and the rest of the continent predominantly Spanish. He explained the difference in colonization of Asia , Africa and South America. He also pointed out the difference between the inhabitants of Caribbean and parts of  This in turn has had a great influence in the way Latin America behaves and thinks. The influence United States has had on the region and the rise and fall of left leaning dictators.

Mr Bhojwani elucidated the numerous reasons why Latin America needs to be looked in a new light and highlighted the absence of credible sources on the region. Some of the key opportunities according to him were:

A)     The continent is endowed with Mineral wealth for eg: Petroleum ( Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela), Natural Gas ( In Bolivia, Uruguay) etc , Iron Ore, Copper, Lithium, Gold etc.

B)      The presence of unified markets being created in form of Mercusor, Pacific Alliance and an Alliance of Latin American Countries (CELAC )creates new business opportunities.

C)      The relatively peaceful neighbors ( last time a major war that was fought between neighbors was over 150 years back).

D)     The prosperity of the people, the population being 6/10 of India and spread over an area that is over 5 times the size of India with high per capita income ( over 10 times the Indian per capita income) cannot be ignored for long

E)      The favorable image India has in the minds of Latin Americans

He discussed in detail about how the engagement with Latin Countries and particularly Brazil have grown in the past one decade ( during which he held prominent positions in Indian Embassies across the region) but he pointed that a lot is required to be done to promote bilateral trade. The trade has been limited to seeking resources from the region in the form of crude, which formed the bulk of trade, along with other natural reserves.  The overall investment by Indians in the region according to one estimate was over $15 billion but India on the other hand has not seen the same. Mr Bhojwani expressed his hope that in the coming years the visa policies for the region will be made more conducive to allow businessmen to explore the region before investing and at the same time stressed on the need to sign preferential trade agreements with the countries to make the most out of the opportunities that exist.

The students asked about the safety of business in the region and the instability of the business regimes and also tried to understand the cultural nuances in terms of doing business in Latin America. The students tried to understand the various policies India has to promote Indian Business in the region and also were intrigued how the region especially Brazil, despite the similarities with India, has larger companies on Fortune 500 than India and is now also facing a slowdown.

The session gave students a comprehensive overview on doing business in Latin America and Mr Bhojwani complimented the students on their keenness to learn about the region. He expressed his desire to come back to the campus and talk more about the same.

Global Leadership

 

 

 

Indian Institute of Management Raipur conducted guest lectures on ‘Managing across Culture’ by Mrs Josiane O’Brien and ‘Global Leadership’ Mr John O’Brien of ESCP Europe, one of the leading International B-Schools. The lectures focused on the cultural diversity in organizations and business, Leadership that is global in scope. The students had the opportunity to glean a unique insight into the evolution of management and business in Europe, and the growing importance of cultural aspects in the corporate.

                Mr John O’Brien discussed the various aspects of Global Leadership, which he had researched upon, and interacted with the students on the same subject. Mrs Josiane O’Brien discussed the European business and the cultural aspects involved therein. In further interaction with the students on how the theories and practices that are universal and differ, the Indian business leadership and cultural implications were discussed.

Mr Amitabh Pandey discusses about future of e-commerce in India at IIM Raipur

IIM Raipur students were today graced by the presence of the man behind implementation of online railway reservation system in India, Mr Amitabh Pandey. Mr Amitabh was here to deliver a guest lecture about the future of e-commerce in India. Mr Amitabh, who has also been the President and Head of E-Business for Thomas Cook India, concentrated on the learning from his real life projects. The students were fortunate enough to know about the implementation of one of the earliest internet based commerce project in India and the lessons learnt from it.

Mr Amitabh was adamant on instilling the entrepreneur spirit among the students. He showed through numerous examples that if opportunities are grasped at the right time, one can achieve the success. In 2001 it was a tedious process for common people to book the rail tickets standing in queues and when online reservation system was introduced, people welcomed it and today almost 400,000 tickets are booked on IRCTC daily. He emphasized that even today lot of such opportunities exist and it is just a matter of time when various entrepreneurs will come up with innovative solutions. Even today more than fifty percent of the e-commerce business in India is related with online travel booking which leaves a huge scope in the retail segment.

While discussing various practical experiences from his past projects, Mr Amitabh told about the importance of limiting costs in initial phase and dealing with customers honestly. He said we all learn great lessons in our classes but after joining corporate, we sometimes limit our vision just to next quarter results and the year’s bonus. He also discussed about the various risks related with the e-commerce business and management of those risks. He mentioned about various problems faced by him throughout his career of conceptualizing e-commerce business and solutions he adapted at various places. All in all, the session was an enriching experience for the students some of whom were seriously contemplating about grasping any such opportunity existing today. 

IIM Raipur signs MoU with IESEG School of Management, France

Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Raipur, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the IESEG School of Management seeking student and faculty exchange programs, collaborative research projects and organization of joint academic and scientific activities. The MoU was signed by Prof. B S. Sahay, Director, IIM, Raipur and Prof. Jean-Philippe AMMEUX, Director General & Dean, IESEG School of Management, Lille & Paris.

IESEG School of Management is one of the main business schools in France. The school has a total of 3,000 students (of which over 700 are international students – mainly exchange students) scattered on both the Lille and Paris campuses. The business school is a member of the Université Catholique de Lille, the largest private university in France in terms of student population and endowment. 

The co-operation program aims to foster advancement in teaching, research, cultural understanding, as well as international reputations of both institutions through: the exchange of postgraduate students, faculty members, and academic information and materials; the organisation of joint corporate training programs, joint research programs, joint conferences and other academic exchanges that both institutions agree to. 

Each institution will accept Post-Graduate students from the other institution starting from the academic year 2013-14. They have agreed to exchange up to five students for one semester/term of study per academic year. No tuition fee will be charged by the partner or host institution. 

IESEG and IIM Raipur will also exchange faculty members, which will create a strong basis for the development of joint training programs, formulating joint research projects, exchange of teaching materials, and so on. Under this agreement IESEG and IIM Raipur may invite faculty members from the partner School to teach part of a course or a full course. 

Under this agreement both institutions will explore possibilities of collaboration in conducting middle and senior management training programs in business management topics with a view towards promoting the image of both Schools as disseminators of state-of-the-art knowledge in this field. The program will be of two weeks duration. One week of the program will be conducted at IIM Raipur and one week will be conducted by IESEG at their facilities. 

Both institutions shall explore the feasibility of organising joint international and local academic and business conferences to improve visibility and enhance the image of both institutions as quality service providers to business and industry. 

IESEG has been accredited by EQUIS and has collaborations with IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM Indore, and IIM Kozhikode. 

MOU signed between IIM Raipur and National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN)

The Indian Institute of Managemnent Raipur signed an MoU with National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN) today at IIM Raipur Campus. The partnership with NEN will help IIM Raipur develop content and programs around Entrepreneurship to motivate its students take up Entrepreneurship as a career option and at the same time encourage local entrepreneurs to scale up and reach out to a wider audience. The immediate result of the partnership will be capacity building for the Entrepreneurship cell of the Institute so that it can develop over a period of time to answer to the needs of the students of the Institute. The MoU was signed by Prof Ajit Prasad Dean Academics, IIM Raipur and Ms Kalpana Sinha and Mr Debmalya Bhattacharjee from NEN. 

The MoU signing session was preceded by a session by NEN highlighting the relevance of Entrepreneurship and at the same times how NEN can benefit the institute. Speaking to students Mr Bhattacharjee told 

By 2020, the average age of India’s population will be in the 25-30 age bracket. Considering this, there will be a huge need of jobs for the young people and job creation in turn needs entrepreneurship. NEN, an organisation founded by Mr.Ramesh Wadhwani of the Wadhwani foundation, focuses on fostering the spirit of entrepreneurship amongst the students and aims to inspire, educate and support them. Its goal is to create 100,000 jobs in India. 

Mr. Bhattacharjee started the session with a video on ‘Lead India’ and explained how entrepreneurship is all about need, innovation and fun. He further explained NEN’s model of synergistic partnership with the institute and how it would be effective in building a vibrant entrepreneurship ecosystem on campus to aggregate support for the institute members and entrepreneurs. 

Ms Kalpana Sinha from NEN, Delhi Region, motivated the students to ‘Try and fail, rather than to fail to try’. She, along with Mr Debmalya entertained all students’ queries. 

Speaking about the positives of the partnership Tarang Singhal, the student Coordinator of Entrepreneurship Club said that that the club is right now only a year old but has started with the right notes by starting a B Plan Competition to promote ideas here in Chhattisgarh. Partnering with NEN would add more resources to take make the programs more effective. Rahul Khedkar, member of Entrepreneurship Club expressed hope that this partnership would help him take his business plan from idea to an execution stage and he looked forward to the programs from NEN at IIM Raipur campus. 

The session was also attended by Prof. Sanjeev Prashar, Prof. Ajit Prasad and Prof. S.K Mitra of IIM Raipur. The student members entrepreneurship club of IIM Raipur Tarang, Vamsy, Rahul, Deboleena, Manu, Shashank, Bir were also present at the MoU signing ceremony. 

IIM Raipur launches Post Graduate Programme for Working Executives – Inauguration by Hon’ble Governor of Chhattisgarh

IIM Raipur launched Post-Graduate Programme for Working Executives on October 27, 2012. The Programme was inaugurated by Governor of Chhattisgarh Hon’ble Shri Shekhar Dutt.

The Hon’ble Governor said that in pursuit of excellence if you achieve the skill of managing business, corporate or other economic affairs; people may call you the Business Manager par excellence but if you can achieve the quality of managing and inspiring others to manage those affairs – you are a Business Magnate.

He further said that today, our country is recognized by the world as the future world leader and he believes that this generation is the one who will lead the country to new heights. Therefore, they have this added responsibility of achieving this goal. It is said that 21^st century is the century of Asia, but Hon’ble Governor extended it to the century of India.

Welcoming Hon’ble Governor and PGPWE students, Prof B.S. Sahay, Director IIM Raipur, said that there are many qualified professionals who could not pursue their management education due to different reasons. The PGPWE provides an opportunity for such experienced professionals and minimises disruption of work and personal pursuits. It empowers one with the knowledge, skill attitude, flexibility and ability for lifelong learning, to develop one’s career to its fullest potential. It fosters independent thought and fuels informed management decisions and practices resulting in valuable contribution to the organisation.

He added that the uniqueness of PGPWE is the rich, diverse yet collective professional experience of its participants, which translates into outstanding learning opportunities, enriching the educational environment and shared understanding.

Prof. Pradyumna Dash, Chairman (Admissions & International Relations) IIM Raipur presented the profile of the pioneer batch of PGPWE. 1^st Batch of PGPWE comprises of 39 students with an average age of 37 years and an average work experience of 13 years. The participants are a fine blend from many private and government organizations viz. NTPC, SAIL, ACC Ltd, BALCO, NRDA, Kotak Bank, Central Excise and Indian Railways etc.

Prof. M. Kannadhasan, Chairman (PGPWE) IIM Raipur briefed the participants about the programme. The programme is formulated and designed to enhance skills and capabilities essential for managerial positions. The focus is to enable and develop managers that understand global requirements of their organisations as well as also understand the intricacies of business at functional and strategic levels.

Prof Ajit Prasad, Dean (Academics) IIM Raipur proposed vote of thanks to the Hon’ble Governor. He extended his thanks to the Director, Chairman PGPWE and Chairman Admissions. In his address to the PGPWE students he said that the participants will study in an intellectually invigorating program for the next 18 months. After the program is over they will be in a better situation to face any organizational promotional challenge. They will work under the prestigious IIM brand name, being taught by the best minds in the country, using state of the art pedagogy.

IIM Raipur signs MoU with HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management, Germany

Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Raipur, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management seeking student and faculty exchange programs, collaborative research projects and organization of joint academic and scientific activities. The MoU was signed by Prof. B. S. Sahay, Director, IIM, Raipur and Mr. Frank Hoffmann, Director, International Relations, HHL.

Both parties of this cooperation agreement express their determination to promote international mobility of students and teaching staff and to improve the quality of their training by different means of exchange and cooperation. This agreement is based on mutual confidence and acknowledgment of the principles and practical rules of both institutions.

Cooperation should mainly be concentrated on the exchange of students which should give students the opportunity to pass an acknowledged and integrated study term in a partner institution abroad.

Both parties agree to the exchange of students in the field of business administration on graduate level. Language of instruction for coursework will be English at the host institution.

Students can spend one term at the partner institution. The selection of the students designated for the exchange is made by the home institution based on a list of criteria developed by both parties. The host institution agrees to admit the selected students without any further examinations or conditions.

Students are entitled to the use of university and social services granted to home students.

HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management is accredidated by AACSB and has collaborations with IIM Ahmedabad, IIM Bangalore, IIM Calcutta, IIM Lucknow and IIM Kozikode.

IIM Raipur collaborates with AIT Bangkok

Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Raipur, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Bangkok seeking student and faculty exchange programs, collaborative research projects and organization of joint academic and scientific activities. The MoU was signed by Prof. B. S. Sahay, Director, IIM Raipur and Prof. Said Irandoust, President, AIT on 18 October 2012.

Prof. Sahay remarked that his association with AIT dates back to 17 years when he first visited the Institute. IIM Raipur has already started its post-graduate and doctoral programmes and it wishes to collaborate with AIT Bangkok in both Master’s and Doctoral programmes.

Both the top Institutions are committed to promote more contacts and co-operation between their faculty members. It is to be emphasized that contacts and cooperation between faculty members create a strong basis for the development of joint training programs, formulating joint research projects, exchange of teaching materials, and exchange of students. Both institutions will collaborate in research activities will be explored in subjects of mutual interest and benefit and encourage the doctoral students to get a co – supervisor. IIM Raipur and AIT Bangkok will conduct the exchange of postgraduate students starting in the academic year 2013-14. Both institutions will accept to host a short study tour of a few weeks by the students of the partner institution.

IIM Raipur and AIT Bangkok will explore possibilities of collaboration in conducting middle and senior management training programs in business management.

Prof. Said Irandoust, while welcoming Prof. Sahay said AIT was happy to be associated with IIM. Prof. I.M.Pandey, Vice President for Academic Affairs, AIT, elaborated on the many offerings in AIT, particularly its Doctoral program in Business Administration (DBA). Prof. Sahay expressed his desire to associate with AIT’s DBA program. Mr. Ahmed Amjad Ali, Head, External Relations and Communications Office (ERCO), Mr. Tenzin Rabgyal, Senior Program Officer, ERCO, and Ms. Binita Gurung, Program Assistant, School of Management (SOM) also attended the meeting.

AIT Bangkok has been accredited by AMBA and has collaboration with IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Calcutta.

“Rural India is an exception to the four P’s of marketing” – Prof Sanjeev Prashar at SOAP OPERA – Marketing Simulation Store set up by IIM Raipur students

On October, 22, 2012, IIM Raipur conducted its first marketing simulation store “Soap Opera”. As the name suggests the simulation was about the Indian soap market, one of the biggest FMCG sectors of the country.

The event was conducted by a team of PGP first year students under the guidance of Prof. Sanjeev Prashar, Chairperson, Career and placement, IIM Raipur. The event was attended by the faculty and the students of IIM Raipur.

The store was launched with a case study presentation “Soapcase” by PGP first year student Shweta Mallick. The subject of the case study was Lifebuoy, one of the oldest soap brands and world’s largest selling soap.

The event had counters of major players in the Indian Soap Industry which displayed the various products and their variants from the product line of the company. Information about the history, target markets, positioning and campaigns during the evolution of the product was provided by the student volunteers. The companies who featured in the marketing simulation store included Godrej, Wipro, HUL, ITC, Park Avenue and Reckitt Benckiser.

Students participated in a quiz session to check their knowledge about the Indian soap industry. The quiz had attractive prizes for correct answers.

Prof. Sanjeev Parashar explained how the 4P’s do not work in rural India. Companies generally fail to understand it and hence their products do not make a mark in the Indian market.

The last phase of the simulation consisted of a humorous skit presented by Sujeet and group to show how despite of many marketing strategies being framed and applied by big companies, their products do not get success.

The event was a great success and the students gained new insight in the area of marketing of FMCG products. 

IIM Raipur join hands with State Council Educational Research and Training SCERT (Chhattisgarh), to augment education system in Chhattisgarh

IIM Raipur along with SCERT is conducting a five day residential training programme on School leadership and capacity building to improve school education and its process from October 15 to October 19, 2012 at Hotel Grand Tulip, Raipur.

This is the first step of a year long engagement by IIM Raipur with Chhattisgarh state government to improve the current education system and its process within the state. The participants for the whole training program comprised of principals of higher secondary schools of few blocks out of five districts chosen by State Government board SCERT. The State Council Educational Research and Training (SCERT (Chhattisgarh)) is an R&D institute at the state level by providing guidance, support and assistance to the state education department to improve the quality of primary, upper primary and secondary education and teacher education.

IIM Raipur is providing active consultation to SCERT for streamlining the overall development of secondary education in the state and to advise the Government on policy matters relating to school education. Speaking about the relevance of the programme Prof Ajit Prasad, Chairperson, PGP Program, said that the GSDP of the state is growing at 11% and the development of its human resource is of utmost importance. IIM Raipur has chosen to work at the very grass root level which is the school education. The program is as a part of IIM Raipur’s vision to be a net contributor to the development of the region.

The total participants are 25 in number who are currently undergoing training. This program is in phases and will also involve continuous monitoring and rigorous training at regular intervals.

The program instructors are IIM Faculty members including Prof. Ajit Prasad (Director of this program), Prof. Vinita Sahay (Director of this program), Prof. Sanjeev Parashar, Prof. S.K. Mitra and Prof. Shubhra Hajela.

The training involves training on understanding behavioural issues like developing school leadership, motivation, time management, use of technology, conflict resolution. It would also involve technical training on use of internet, computers and will also involve methods of community mobilization.

Given below are the program in details:

1.     Day 1 Monday October 15

Theme: Institutional Leadership:
It focused on assessing the current economic environment and the challenges posed to the school education system both in terms of knowledge, technology and changing age mix of the catchment population. Focus was to channelize motivation as a tool for community mobilization. There were four sessions taken by Prof Sanjeev Prashar IIM Raipur, Prof Ajit Prasad, IIM Raipur, Prof Shubhra Hajela, IIM Raipur and Prof Vinita Sahay, IIM Raipur.

2.     Day 2 Tuesday October 16

 Theme- Quality in Education
It covered the skill sets required for school principals like time management, efficient use of technology and the art of conflict resolution between the different stake holders. The following sessions were taken by Prof Ajit Prasad, Prof Sanjeev Prashar, Prof Shubhra Hajela and Prof Vinita Sahay, respectively:

·         On managerial skills and requirement for school principals.

·         Time management in school administration

·         Institutional planning, requirements, budgets, quality and vision of an excellent school

·         Conflict resolution: staying on top of conflicts

3.     Day 3 Wednesday October 17

 Theme- Personal Role Modelling:
It consisted of psychometric testing for participants to have a better self understanding and at the same time getting exposed to the basis of transactional analysis. Also, IIM Raipur focused on communication being the key factor in the leadership development, and therefore emphasised more on communication skills, understanding and improving. IIM Raipur also used training techniques to demonstrate at the individual level the different aspects of communication. The following sessions were being taken on day 3 of the training:

·         Understanding self, MBTI, basics of transactional analysis by Prof Shubhra Hajela.

·         Communication and self awareness and communication as a key to leadership by Prof Vinita Sahay which also included detailed training on individual and group communication

4.     Day 4 Thursday October 18

Theme- Managing Schools effectively
The principal as a leader is also required to be a good manager. This programme will focus on managing a school as an organization, setting of mission and vision, and translating them into objectives and goals. The session emphasised on the role of leadership in establishing culture, facilitating institutional planning to achieve targets and setting up of an appropriate Management Information System (MIS) to facilitate decision making. The following sessions will be in line for day 4:

·         Managing a school as an organization, mission, vision and objectives by Prof Ajit Prasad.

·         Understanding leadership, requirements, planning of a leader by Prof Shubhra Hajela

5.     Day 5 Friday October 19:

Theme- Leadership and Change Management:
The role of the principal of a school as a change manager becomes very critical. The sessions will explain the importance to understand the leadership requirements, planning for growth, using technology effectively and applying best practices in the whole education system.

·         Creating culture understanding dimensions of culture which will be taken up by Prof. Sanjeev Prashar

·         Benchmarking education and need for standardization taken up by Prof. S.K.Mitra.

Apart from this, there were also some group activities in the evening every day after training from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm, planned by IIM Raipur to fully utilise the facility of residential program and is scheduled for both day 4 and 5 of the program.

Vihaan – The first ray of light

Helen Keller had said that "There is no lovelier way to thank God for your sight than by giving a helping hand to those in the dark." The students of IIM Raipur and the neighbouring colleges took this saying to heart when they participated wholeheartedly in the eye donation registration camp organized by Kartavya. The event was aptly named ‘Vihaan’, which means ‘the first ray of light’ in Sanskrit. It resulted in over 200 people pledging to donate their eyes to the people who suffer from corneal blindness.  The main idea behind the event was to make students aware about how they can help others even after they are no longer a part of this world. Students of Kartavya Club had also arranged Free Eye Check up at IIM Raipur campus in Collaboration with Auribindo Netralaya, Raipur. This got huge response wherein over 80 people including students, faculty and staff from IIM Raipur and GEC availed the facility and got free counselling from Optician.

Corneal blindness is a serious form of blindness which mostly affects children and young adults. There are over 6.8 million people who suffer from this disease in India alone. Fortunately, it can be cured by transplanting the healthy cornea from a donor to replace the affected cornea of the recipient.  Unfortunately, due to lack of awareness, India is not able to receive sufficient number of healthy corneas and hence a large number of our fellow Indians are condemned to remain in the dark forever.  We burn or bury so many of our relatives without considering that their eyes could gift sight to someone who has never seen the light of the day. Every person can make a difference; we just need to take the initiative.

The students have shown the way, now it is up to the rest of us to follow them and ensure that we do our part as well. Donate your eyes and gift sight to others, there is no nobler gift.

Contributed By: Neha Khapre, PGP 2012-14, she can be reached at pgp12084.neha@iimraipur.ac.in

IIM Raipur students organize flash mob to create awareness about eye donation

Kartavya, CSR club of IIM Raipur is organizing an eye donation registration camp in IIM Raipur on 11^th Oct, 2012. The event, called ‘Vihan’, aims to create awareness about eye donation among the students of IIM Raipur and other neighboring colleges.

To create awareness about the event, CUSP, Cultural Club of IIM Raipur organized a flash mob at Pandri City Centre Mall on Wednesday evening. The flash mob started with dancing on random dance numbers but ended with a message that one should donate eyes to make this world a better living place.

Chhattisgarh has one of the best Public Distribution System in the nation : Mr Kaushalendra Singh

The biggest sin for a king is the death of any of his subjects due to hunger

- Chanakya, in his treatise ‘Arthasastra’

Indian Institute of Management Raipur conducted a guest lecture by Mr. Kaushalendra Singh, Managing Director Chhattisgarh state civil supplies corporation on October 3, 2012. The lecture focused on the Evolution of best practices in Food grain management through procurement and Public distribution systems in Chhattisgarh.

The lecture discussed various aspects of public distribution system, and the usage of information technology and logistic facilities for effective and efficient collection and distribution of food grains throughout the state of Chhattisgarh.

He observed that the use of modern technology and the involvement of public in the PDS had been a major factor that ensured the achievement of the intended goal.

Recently the Supreme Court of India acknowledged the effectiveness of innovative policies followed in PDS by Chhattisgarh and has recommended implementation of similar policies in other states.

The state government’s role in procuring agricultural goods has improved the welfare of the farmers. It has saved the farmers from the distress caused by the intermediate agents. The farmers now receive right sum for their hard work void of exploitation at the hands of arhtiyas.

Improved accountability, transparency, instant payment through computer generated cheques and effective protection of the collected food grains have enforced the government’s commitment towards its people.  

 He commented that several legal and structural reforms were undertaken to deliver these benefits to the farmers and the ration cardholders. Removal of 2.80 lakh fake ration cards has helped the government to identify the real demand within the state.  The Dal bhat Kendra is an initiative taken by the government to provide healthy and tasty food for the below poverty line citizens.

All these measures clearly radiated the amount of political and bureaucratic will required in developing an effective public distribution system in the state.

The lecture closed with an interactive session with the students on the intricacies involved in the implementation and improvisation of the innovative systems designed for these purposes.

Prof. B. S. Sahay , Director of Indian Institute of Management Raipur gave a vote of thanks to Mr. Kaushalendra Singh for sharing his valuable insights.

A (non violent) explosion of colors at IIM Raipur on Gandhi Jayanti....

Creativity and subtlety has no bounds; it just needs a medium to express itself. The students of IIM Raipur proved the truth in this saying on the morning of Gandhi Jayanti, when over 60 of them participated in the finger painting and sketching competition organized by Kartavya.

The event aimed at portrayal of CSR related themes by participants through finger paintings or sketches, while having fun at the same time. The paintings and sketches would be displayed around the campus to help create awareness about the issues. Needless to say, the event was a rip-roaring success with some beautiful pieces of art being created and everyone having a great time.

Students rose up early in the morning and turned up in droves to promote a good cause. All the colors of the rainbow were seen in the amazing finger paintings created by the students. More importantly, each and every painting carried a message which was conveyed brilliantly through the colors. Some students focused on global warming, others on population explosion; some thought that water crisis was most important, while others promoted the go-green initiative. Some students highlighted burning human trafficking. No matter what the topic was, the students participated enthusiastically and ensured that their art create awareness about the issue.

The pencil sketches were no less brilliant; these artists didn’t even need colors to convey the meaning behind the sketch, the sketch spoke for itself.  Some students adopted face painting as a medium to express their sensitivity.

A picture is worth a thousand words. Through their sensitivity towards social and environmental issues, students showed the life of b-school student is not just restricted to business.

All in all, it was a day to remember for everyone.

Contributed By: Neha Khapre, PGP 2012-14, she can be reached at pgp12084.neha@iimraipur.ac.in

Shantanu Bhagwat conducts Business Plan workshop at IIM Raipur

A business plan workshop was conducted on Thursday at IIM Raipur by Mr. Shantanu Bhagwat, a leading venture capitalist and advisor, who is associated with firms like Myntra.com, Elements Akademia, and MilkMantra. Mr Bhagwat had taken similar workshops at institutes like IIM Indore and IIT Bombay. This workshop was organized to promote and instill the spirit of Entrepreneurship across the state. Mr Bhagwat helped participants to conceptualize new ideas and opportunities that are emerging.

The whole concept of the workshop was to explain students about the compilation and presentation of a business plan in an effective mannerso as to attract funding from venture capitalists when starting a business of their own.

It started off with the basic understanding of entrepreneurship andhow to decide on whether can one become an entrepreneur or not.In the words of Tarang Singhal , a student attendee “ Mr. Bhagwat actually helped us figure whether we can become entrepreneurs or not.”

Mr. Bhagwat told that entrepreneurship is not glamorous, most of the startups fail and most of the entrepreneurs are not rich when they start. So he told that the basic requirement of an entrepreneur is the ability to take risks, one should learn the skills of managing risks rather than being averse to it. Rahul Khedkar, a first year student of IIM Raipur, said “Mr Bhagwat helped us in knowing practical problems in entrepreneurship and how to tackle them.”

He explained the importance of understanding the perspectives of the audience of the business plan. The plan should effectively communicate the benefits to the investors because no one is interested in doing charity. A good investor not only brings money but also value to the venture.

He also talked about the constituents of a good business plan.The plan should necessarily have a competitive landscape, industry analysis, risks and the mitigating factors. The plan should tell about the opportunities and the idea in a clear and crisp manner. He demonstrated all these necessities with appropriate examples.

He also suggested that there should be direct quotes and references from various resources and all the facts should be backed by statistics. In the words of Manu Dhunna, another attendee from IIM Raipur, “ A case study was solved during the workshop which helped us in learning from the real life story of an entrepreneur.”

The cases discussed were confidence boosters for the audience as they could actually relate the workshop with their real life experiences. Mr. Naresh Verma , a member of CII Chhattisgarh remarked , “ After attending the workshop I have gained confidence to expand my business.”

Mr. Bhagwat talked about the importance of efforts required to be put in the next 15-20 years by budding entrepreneurs as this will be a crucial phase in the growth story of the nation.Prof. Sanjeev Prashar, Chairman of Placement Committee at IIM Raipur thanked Mr. Bhagwat for conducting the workshop at IIM Raipur campus and in helping participants understand the idea of entrepreneurship so that more jobs can be created in the state and the nation at large.