What it takes to be a Great College

What is one thing that all great colleges have in common? If you think it is the ROI for joining that college or the salary offered, then you may be mistaken. A great college is defined by the culture and the sense of belongingness that its alums have towards the college. All the other factors are the outcome of long-term benefits of it, at some level or the other. Therefore, it is paramount to have a Strong Alumni network in any institute.
We, IIM Raipur’s community are the young toddlers in this sphere of colleges. It becomes an onus on us as community members to build a goodwill and lasting culture of the institute by engaging with the alumni network of our college. We do have alumni meets and city visits, however, calendar events are not enough to motivate and inculcate a culture of helping (giving & seeking), which leads a sense of contribution (forgiver) & indebted (for seeker) towards the community as whole. Both will be more connected with each other and it will also bring the sentiment in the seeker to help someone else and so on and so forth, this is how a culture is built.
We hence would like to bring this thought to action via the resourcefulness of Apps/social media platforms, where you can connect with your peers, faculty members, and the alums to seek help and help others. By taking such steps, we can contribute towards building a strong culture. When great things around us happen online, why not create a community that thrives on mutual admiration and education, be online.
It is time we get the butterfly effect rolling in favor of our community. The IIM Raipur backyard for innovation and excellence.

Author :

Shashank Patekar

Class of PGP 17-19

IIM Raipur

Disclaimer - The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official view.

The Adventures of the Youth Delegation Programme

The Department of Youth Affairs in India gives a golden opportunity to the Indian youth to go and visit different countries in Asia-Pacific regions and explore their culture. As a part of this program, students visit different cities and cultural places in the country and try to learn their culture and exchange ideas and values which will be beneficial to both the countries. I too got an opportunity to be part of this program and be privy to this enriching experience.

On 9^th June we started from Delhi airport to Hong-Kong. The first thing we saw being in Hong-Kong Airport is the scenic beauty, surrounded by beautiful mountains and seashore. We spent some quality time exploring this beautiful place and started for Beijing. We reached Beijing in the afternoon where we had a warm welcome by Chinese youth.

On day two, we left to explore the Great Wall of China, Juyung Pass. It was a great experience to visit the place and see the wonder of how they maintained that wall in a great condition. After this visit, we all went to Embassy of India, Beijing where officials welcomed us with a great speech. On this occasion, we got an opportunity to have a discussion with officials and interacted with them on various issues.

After that, we went to China Youth Center for international exchange where we learned different Chinese cultural things including Calligraphy and Taijiquan.

After this, we left for Heifei by flight and checked in at Hongrui Jinling Hotel. On the third day, we visited the Hui Park at 9:30 in the morning where we explored the various cities’ important attractions explained by sculptures in the garden. Also, we got a chance to attend the Huangmei Opera singing.

After that, we visited Anhui Museum of Historical Notables. Here we saw how their culture evolved and who were the famous personalities made China develop in various aspects. We also visited the Binhu Wetland Forest Park.

On day four we visited SUNWIN UAV and IFLYTEK technology innovation industry and got to learn how within short time duration the industry leaders of this company achieved massive growth. A visit to Qingwang Technology Park further enhanced our understanding of technology for growth aspect of Chinese industries.

13^th June morning started with a visit to University of Science and Technology of China. Here we communicated with students and visited various labs and explored the environment of the campus. After this visit, we started for Shanghai by flight and arrived at Shanghai City Hotel.

On day six, we left to visit different cultural places. At first, we visited an old age home where we interacted with old people and got to know how their daily activities are performed. Next, we visited a cultural center where they welcomed us with an Indian song. Here they encourage people to follow cultural things like dance and other activities. Not only this, but they also have fitness gym to encourage elderly people to remain fit.

We then visited waste management system governed by a private company. We explored and learned how they function and how they are able to help nature by doing waste management of various electronic stuff.

On the seventh day, we visited Deep sea lab in Tongji. After this visit, we went to Oriental Pearl Tower of Shanghai and went up to 230 meters. Here we had great opportunity to look at the city from heights. After this visit, we went to do the street shopping to buy various souvenirs and see various cultural stuff.

On day eight, we visited Shanghai Youth Centre in the morning and found out how students of age 10-16 are taught. They are taught to handle various machines including 3-D printing. Not only this, but they are given counseling about how to avoid drug intake. Following that, we visited SSRS physics lab we got to know the various radiations and how they use this for different medical and technical studies. Medicine museum visit after this was a great attraction of our visits. Here they explained to us how they evolved in the medical field and how they are still learning from the old ancient practices. After this visit, we left for India with the great experience of this youth delegation.

It was a great opportunity given by Youth Ministry of India to explore and learn the foreign culture. The most important thing that I learned on this trip was the importance given to cleanliness by the general public of China. The transportation system and rules and regulations imposed by government are respected by all people and all follow it rigorously. Because of this quality, it is easy for the government to implement new policies.

Also, the infrastructural growth of China is marvelous and everywhere we can see tall buildings properly maintained. Also, the ancient culture of China is respected a lot and they modernize their things by taking into account their old cultures. Because of this unique thing they have developed a lot with the essence of having cultural touch.

We, the youth, should be open-minded and ready to accept good ideas. We should not only learn new things but also should be on the front line to implement the philosophies and concepts for the betterment of the society. Students and young generation are the biggest asset of the country. So we should feel responsible for the growth of our country and take initiation to make our country grow.

Author :

Sonali Phapale

Class of PGP 16-18

IIM Raipur

Disclaimer - The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official view.

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IIM Raipur Successfully conducts second edition of PRAYAAS

IIM Raipur successfully organized the second edition of its flagship Marathon event Prayaas 2.0 on 19^th November 2017. The event kicked off from the environs of Marine Drive, Telibandha with more than 2500 registered runners .The theme for the run this year was ‘Beti Bachao,Beti Padhao’ with the objective to create awareness regarding the importance of equal rights and opportunities for the girl child.

Bus arrangements were made to pick up participants from all points of the city to ensure the adherence to the schedule.Kits including t-shirts and caps were distributed to the registered participants.Ambulance, health check, route markers and volunteers were all in place apart from water and glucose before the start of the event and spot registrations continued smoothly at the multiple registration points.

The chief guests included popular Bollywood actress Mugdha Godse, widely known for her role in the National award winning movie Fashion,ace archers Rahul Banerjee ,Commonwealth gold medalist (2010) and his sister Dola Banerjee, the second woman archer to be honored with the Arjuna award and Prof. Bharat Bhasker, Director of IIM Raipur. The chief guests were felicitated at 6.30 am after which the flagship 11 km run was flagged off amidst a thunderous applause. Twenty minutes later, the 5 km run was also flagged off,an unprecedented number of 1900 registered participants ran in this group. This was followed by a special Divyang run conducted this year in 2 categories-one for the visually challenged and the second for other specially abled category ,both of which saw enthusiastic participation and appreciation from the crowd and chief guests.

Mr. Pintu Kumar Yadav walked away with the first prize for men in the 11km event whileMs. Chandravati Raswade won the women’s event. Both won cash prizes worth INR 50,000 as well as goodies worth INR 5000. 5 km event winners were Mr.Babkutudu and MsBhuneshwari Nishad for men and women respectively walking away with prizes of INR 10,000 and goodies worth INR 5000 each. Mr. Balram Singh was declared the winner in the Special Divyang run while Mr. Tikeshwar was declared the winner in the visually challenged category.Prizes were also given to the top 6 finishers (men and women) in the 11 km event, runners up in the 5km event and top 6 finishers in the Divyang run event for total prize money of INR 2.5 lakhs apart from goodies.

Various dignitaries graced the occasion including Mayor Shri Pramod Dubey; Shri Om Prakash Choudhary,Collector & DM;Shrimati Ramshila Sahu,Minister for Women and Child Welfare and Shri Sanjay Alung, IAS officer.

The event also saw several Cultural performances including dance performance by Columbia Global School, Zumba performances and Folk dance performance.This was followed by enlightening speeches of the dignitaries.The center of attraction, Bollywood star Mugdha Godse was very happy to be a part of IIM Raipur’s Prayaas 2.0 marathon. After the prize distribution, the Director of IIM Raipur, Profesor Bharat Bhaskar congratulated the team for pulling out a successful run. He emphasized on taking more effective steps towards betterment of the girls. The guests were pleased to see the crowd turning up in huge number. They appreciated all the team members, volunteers and participants for making the marathon a grand success. The entire amount raised from this marathon shall be used for supporting the PG Umathe Govt. Girls Higher Secondary School to support them in fulfilling the objective of educating the girl child. The marathon concluded with a message ,”Winning is only half of it, having fun is the other half.”

IIM Raipur celebrates Chhatisgarh Foundation Day

November 1^st, 2000 witnessed the birth of Chhattisgarh, the 26^th state of India which was carved out of Madhya Pradesh. Chhattisgarh, a resource-rich state is also known for its achievers who have excelled in various fields. From freedom fighters to sports personalities, artists to business tycoons, Chhattisgarh has been a birth place for a plethora of talents. To celebrate the success of these talents and to spread awareness about social issues prevailing in the nation, Prayaas – the marathon team of Indian Institute of Management Raipur celebrated Chhattisgarh Foundation Day on 01-11-2017 in their campus.

The event started with a prayer song. The event witnessed dignitaries from all walks of life who have made tremendous achievements in their fields. Their commitment to the work and stupendous contributions have added pride to the state of Chhattisgarh. The event was graced by Dr. Sanjay Alung, Director Social Welfare Department, Govt. of Chhattisgarh,Mr Sharad Jha, General Manager of NABARD,Mrs Sadhana Sharma - Women Achiever, India 2016,Mr Pramod Sahu – Painter and Sand Artist, Mr Satish Bhuwalke & Sachin Bhuwalke – Founders of Bunch of Fools and Mr Priyank Patel – Founder of Teafe Nukkad.

The event was centered around the theme 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' which is also the theme of Prayaas - a marathon of national significance organized by IIM Raipur which will be conducted in the heart of Raipur on Sunday, 19th November 2017. The guests addressed the gathering and shared their success stories.

Dr. Sanjay Alung explained about the accessibility of education and the inclusion of society among all the various levels which have to be critically analyzed for the better well-being of the nation. ‘Sex ratio can be handled only when inclusiveness has been taken up by everyone as a citizen of this nation’.

Mr.Sharad Jha spoke about the grave issues faced by women in India while also highlighting the importance of educating a girl child, women rights in India and women empowerment.

Mr.Priyank Patel inspired everyone by sharing his experiences about the Nukkad Cafe where he asserted that it is Asia's first cafe to be open for transgenders as part of its workforce and also mentioned ‘Compassion is the way forward’ for the betterment of humanity.

Today’s modern India offers a lot of opportunities to women. This is one side of progressing India where on the other side if one looks at gender decline in the sex ratio, the dark side of Indian society comes in front which was spoken in detail by the dignitaries present in the hall.

The event concluded by distributing mementos to the dignitaries.

This celebration of the incredible spirit of our Chhattisgarh Achievers was a huge success and an inspiring event for everyone present.

How millennials are influencing the marketing norms

Ever thought why there is suddenly so much craze for chatbots and Artificial Intelligence? 

Why did facebook come up with facebook live?

Why are all the companies in the world spending so much money on analytics and digital marketing?

The new age companies are now more focused than ever before to reach out to the social animals, chat junkies and the gadget gizmos who are more popularly known as the Millennials.

The Millennial generation is also transforming the way in which companies market their products both online and offline in order to stay relevant.The generation of people now 18-34 years old engage with brands far more extensively and personally than older generations. They expect the brands to behave the same way as they do.

They are driving a transformation of consumer marketing across four elements:

reach, relevance, relation and referral:

§  Reach -- Millennials engage much more extensively with brands through social media and mobile devices than older generations. Millennials check prices, look up product information or search for promotions on their mobile devices while in a store.

§  Relevance -- Millennials say they are most influenced by family, friends, and strangers. They are also twice as likely as Gen-Xers (ages 35-49) to say that they are influenced by celebrities and four times more likely than boomers.

§  Relation -- Nearly twice as many Millennials as boomers cite "availability 24-7" as the most important thing that brands can do to engage them.

§  Referral – Millennials believe in the concept of referrals and influencers play a big role in their decisions to purchase any product.

Bourbon, India’s first premium chocolate biscuit from Britannia had lost its charm, in the sixty years of its existence. The brand wanted to bring back the lost charm and connect with today’s millennial generation.

It announced the launch of a new smartphone called the Bon. The smartphone reportedly ran on Chocolatey 2.0 and had features like power pack, friend finder, auto charge, etc. User participation was boosted with the help of fun contests where the new Bon6 phone was up for grabs.

When the buzz was at its peak during the unboxing, the duo revealed it as the new Bourbon biscuit. Each of the features was also explained: Chocolaty 2.0 because the new Bourbon was ‘thoda aur chocolaty’, Friend Finder because sharing a Bourbon helps you find new friends instantly, Power Pack because it Is available in Hangout pack as well as in a Pocket pack, and more.

Hence going forward brands need to represent the voice of the millennials, speak in their language and also respond in the same manner.

Virtual shall become reality and reality will become virtual.

IIM Raipur explores ‘Infinite Dimensions’, hosts fourth edition of TEDx

From artists and authors to record holders and ideapreneurs, speakers from diverse walks of life graced the fourth edition of TEDx IIM Raipur.Drawing on the theme of ‘Infinite dimensions’, the speakers spoke about how all around us are infinite opportunities, ideas and challenges that need to be solved and brought to realization. The attendees witnessed the prolific speakers and thinkers talk about how they reshaped their own boundaries with their wisdom and experiences.

The event kicked off with a few mesmerizing performances by the students. The first speaker of the day, celebrated photographer and speaker Mr. Arvind Chenji gave a thought-provoking talk on the things he learned from his journey as a photographer. He also spoke about the next part of his journey, where he intends to meet and celebrate the lesser known but fabulous people of India. “When someone comes up with a novel or different idea, people laugh at that person, killing his or her morale. It is those who don’t let their morale die out who create wonders“, said Mr. Chenji.

The next speaker, author and life coach Mr. Achal Rangaswamy, gave a talk on the ‘Joy of Selling’. He gave the students valuable lessons on sales from his vast experience. ‘When you want to sell, don’t sell’ was his mantra that he shared with the audience. “Everyone sells. Politicians, lawyers, doctors – all of them sell. Yet, there is an unnecessary stigma associated with a sales guy, which needs to change” said Mr. Rangaswamy

Iconic international model and artist Ms. Ninja Singh, gave a talk on ‘Life with a purpose and the ultimate secret to success’. She spoke about how women are beaten down for being who they want to be and also described her venture which aims encouraging modeling among women irrespective of their skin colour. “Women need to start dreaming to come out of stereotypes. They need to be heard. No one is self-made, it has to be a collective effort", said Ms. Singh.

Noted actor and songwriter Mr. Zeeshan Ayyub also gave a motivating talk on the topic ‘The world is yours to explore’. He spoke about how failures are stepping stones to success and how satisfaction and contentment stop people from exploring their options.

Miss World Asia Ms. Koyal Rana, spoke on the topic ‘Impress yourself’. A well-known philanthropist, her talk focused on how to achieve internal happiness. “We tie our happiness to how many compliments, likes or followers we get. There are infinite such people and we would never be able to impress each one of them. The only true way of being happy is by impressing yourself", said the beauty pageant titleholder.

Renowned producer and director, Mr. Gajendra Singh, spoke on the topic ‘Be positive, think positive, live positive’. His talk focussed on the challenges he faced while conceptualizing and implementing his TV shows Antakshari and SaReGaMaPa and how keeping a positive attitude helped him achieve success.

Founder of the paperless postcards, Ms. Bistriti Poddar, spoke about how we need to give up things to achieve success. The ideapreneur and writer said “Do not be scared of giving up because the moment you break cliché, you are hoisted to achieve success”. She gave examples of how she gave up her comfort zone, fears and possessions in order to achieve success.

The last speaker of the day, bestseller author and songwriter, Mr. Divya Prakash Dubey, spoke on the topic ‘Why should you never write a book’. He urged the students to find a strong reason before attempting to write a book and change the world.

Every speaker left an impression on every mind present in the auditorium. It definitely gave them a food for thought. Perhaps it is time for all of us to explore the infinite dimensions surrounding us and surpass the boundaries that restrict us.

Keep Calm and Visit South Korea

Marcel Proust, the French novelist, observed that "the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new lands but in seeing with new eyes".I understood the significance of this statement as a member of the Youth delegation from IIM Raipur.

The delegation to South Korea was my first international experience and it couldn't have been better. Be it the arrangements regarding the journey or the stay, kudos to Indian Ministry as well as the South Korean Government. The entire 9-day programme gave us an opportunity to meet and interact with South Korean students, officials in the Ministry as well as South Korean families. The diversity of experience was enormous. Not just in South Korea, but also within the Indian delegation, students had come from diverse backgrounds which further enlivened the experience of being a part of the team.

My favourite part throughout the trip was 'stay with a Korean Family', as we got a chance to observe their lifestyle and way of living.We got a chance to grab bites of delicious South Korean home-made food and also share our own tastes from India. Besides, the organized and beautiful streets, their usage of high-end technologies motivated us to bring similar changes in our country. The people were quite friendly and had very calm demeanour. The beaches were serene and the pleasant weather complemented the feel.

We visited multiple cities in South Korea via bus and also got to experience the traditions at a South Korean village. Be it the joy of posing in native outfits or the awe of visiting High-tech Samsung Innovation Centre, South Korea had it all.

The Indian and South Korea governments are open to strengthening the Indo-South Korean relations beyond just diplomatic efforts. The two governments have taken sincere efforts in revitalizing the historical relationship through people-to-people contacts, which is an effective initiative. The complete programme was meticulously planned and seamlessly executed and the hospitality, friendly attitude and the affection shown to us throughout the 9-day trip will be etched in my mind for the rest of my life.

Author :

Monika Vasvani

Class of PGP 16-18

IIM Raipur

Disclaimer - The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official view.