The MOB Testimonies: Queen of the Clouds

It was 6 am …after a sleepless night of banter with my mates it was finally time to sleep. On the way to the toilet, I met Mudit dressed up and backpack slung on his shoulder, and asked the first question that would make the rest of my day “Are you going somewhere?” Mudit, as always his smiling and excited self said that they were a group of 11 riding to a place called ‘Ghatarani’ known for its waterfall. He was looking for people who would come along and started pestering me to join. One of those moments where the mind says yes and the heart says no. I wanted to go …but with having wasted the entire night before and the one before that, the ghost of pending projects and studies haunted me. I came back to the room seeing others on their way to join Mudit. I sighed; maybe some other time. When I entered the room Alok (my roomie) asked what was up. I told him about the ride these people were going on and how I wanted to go too. I had not even finished my sentence when his bike keys hit me in the chest, “Go on bro!” he said. Those three words were the stimulus that made me get ready in 2 minutes and on the bike with the others.

The pack (if I may call it) started from our residence at IIM Raipur, heading northwards towards NH-30 after fuel and air checks. On NH-30 and outside city limits, we stopped at a ramshackle tea-stall for tea and cigarettes. After tea, it was time to twist the throttle and burn some rubber as we zoomed away through the green paddy fields of Chhattisgarh towards the small town of Abhanpur. With the wind in my hair and Metallica pounding away “I disappear” in my ears I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else, that moment. To top it all, Partha zoomed in from behind me throwing up a challenge. I quickly responded with a change of gears and twist of the accelerator to get ahead of him; our little race went on for a while before I left him in the lurch and put distance between myself and the rest of the group. I finally reached Rajim and waited for the others to come; meanwhile I bought cigarettes and had tea. Seeing that it was taking them too long and fearing something wrong I turned back, to look for them. After going back a considerable distance without a sign of the rest of the group, I asked the second question that would make my day this time directed towards me.”Should I go back or continue towards Ghatarani?” Still don’t understand why I chose the latter but would be thankful to god later. 

What followed were few very anxious moments with all sorts of things bouncing inside my head. Despite everything, I went on… The road had by now become a narrow track with paddy fields on both sides and cattle in the middle (yes, on the road!). As I weaved through oncoming obstacles, I brushed on more than one occasion by their tails…. Not a good experience. But despite the thoughts going on in my head and the trouble I was having in maintaining speed, I could not stop myself from soaking in the serene beauty all around me, from lush green paddy fields, fresh air laced with incense from a nearby temple to the sights and sounds of a quaint village waking up. Not really the romantic.... I tried concentrating on the road ahead but couldn’t help my eyes from wandering towards the simple yet touching beauty. Stopping at a place to ask for directions, I was told that the remainder of the group had passed before me. It was the moment of relief that I was looking for, flipping gears and opening the throttle my bike reflected my emotions.

Coming down a slope I suddenly saw a blur of colors mainly yellow with some pink and bit of others. The next thing I knew was that I was on the ground my clothes dirty and some blood on my left leg below the knee. It was nothing serious actually, I had taken a skid and a fall in the process of avoiding a collision with a “family travelling on a bicycle” (man, wife and child on one cycle ….can you believe it!). The bruises were minor and to avoid any further embarrassment in front of a group of giggling schoolgirls, I picked up the bike and whatever was left of my pride and rode on.

“Is that them?” Yes, the third question which made my day came after about 15km later …on a road with curves which could put Jennifer Lopez to shame, I had arrived within seconds of the group and the anxious faces returned to being their usual grinning selves. We went up to the waterfall and posed for photographs trying to look the best we could while being semi-naked (Special mention to Sumit Ranjan for this). Partha was in his element while under the falls and surrounding forest, from making gorilla mating calls to dancing in ways considered offensive in many civilized societies. The temple of Jamtaimata at the head of the falls must have been at least many hundred years old, it made me realize that no matter what changes, but man’s faith in god is perpetual.

As we sat for lunch in a sleepy dhaba in Rajim, the fatigue showed but what showed more was joy. Everyone was happy about the trip and then past incidents were narrated. The laxity in service at the dhaba only gave us more time to chatter about, but suddenly it turned very formal more like a group discussion on topics ranging from Clubs in college to the CR’s. Time seemed to have slowed down (especially for me and Partha; the most uncouth in the group) ….and then the food finally came…spicing things up a bit (quite literally actually). 

On the way back, I tried to reminisce all that I had seen on the trip and all that I had done (The stinging bruise on my leg a mute reminder)…. I guess most of all, I remembered faces…smiling faces, be it the bearded ‘Babaji’ at the first tea-stall we stopped at, the giggling schoolgirls, the smile of relief on the faces of my mates when they saw me come over the hill and many others; it showed more than just happiness and contentment …what I saw in them was resilience, for which I arrived at a new definition. It’s not really what people say it is …. It is actually the ability of a person to curl his lips upwards and display his dentures in times of adversity (so much …for an MBA).

I can’t really describe the feelings my posterior had while riding into the campus. Finally it was going to be relieved of all the weight it had been carrying for so long …Now the 80 kg of man would be transferred on to the back on a Godrej mattress, until we ride again!

This article is written by Aniruddh Mukerji, PGP 2013-15. He can be reached at pgp13063.aniruddh@iimraipur.ac.in .

The fine balancing act: Inflation Vs Growth

The thought that Dr.Raghuram Rajan, the RBI Governor visited our campus at IIM Raipur still gives me goose bumps. He came across not only as a man brimming with knowledge but also as a person with humility that formed an extensive part of his demeanor.

Dr.Rajan commenced the session with a brief on where the Indian economy stands, how the RBI had tackled the pressing issue of CAD (Current Account Deficit) and the measures undertaken to revive the economy. This was followed by a question answer round by the students. It was a wonderful interaction filled with a few light moments and a lot of knowledge sharing that ended with the departure of the RBI Governor.

The RBI Governor’s address focused on the measures taken by the RBI to bring the Indian economy back on the growth trajectory. The RBI is focusing on creating a fine balance between the mounting inflation and the slowing economic growth. It has been following a balanced approach instead of the hawkish stance followed till last year.

Although inflation remains a pressing issue, inflation can be curbed through stringent measures. However, this is likely to have an adverse impact on the economic growth. The RBI is aiming at achieving a slight moderation in the inflation figures in the near term in line with the growth targets.

Secondly, CAD was under control and the government was even prepared if USA proceeded with the quantitative easing process. This statement exuded confidence that the Indian economy was out of the woods for the moment and the rupee depreciation would be curbed in the coming future.  

Thirdly, he also emphasized that the Indian economy was facing fundamental problems such as pending implementation of economic and tax reforms, creaking infrastructure, project implementation delays, procedural and clearance delays. Unless these issues were resolved, bringing growth back on track would be difficult. He also pointed out that when the country was tooting about the “India Shining Story”, it still faced these underlying difficulties. A slowdown has brought these fundamental problems to the forefront.

The pitfall is that these fundamental issues have led investors and banks to rethink their project investments across India. The delays have not only created a bottleneck for the original investors but also for the banks that have their loan and investment amounts blocked in existing projects. This situation is causing an asset liability mismatch for banks and also leading to rising NPAs. This is an area of concern and requires to be addressed.

The government in coalition with the RBI, plans to undertake small steps to resolve these fundamental issues that are detrimental to the Indian economic growth. The resolution of these issues is expected to boost investor confidence and mobilise funds in the Indian economy. 

Lastly, the RBI governor addressed the queries that the students had about inflation, food security bill and the like. It was a memorable and an enriching experience that involved knowledge sharing between the Governor and the students.

Contributed by : Ms.Jaslene Bawa. She is pursuing Fellowship Programme in Management at IIM Raipur and can be reached at Jaslene.fpm2013@iimraipur.ac.in

HR Confluence ‘13 - The Experience

Come 30^th August 2013, the students of IIM Raipur PGP batch 2013-15 were to attend the HR Confluence ’13. Despite there being a lot of hype surrounding the kind of reputed professionals participating in the panel discussions of the confluence, the true nature of what we were about to witness was yet to be revealed. It is a common sight in IIMs, the premier B-schools of India, to see people donning suits and lots of grey hair sitting on the dais and addressing students. However, as soon as the discussion began, it was apparent to us that this was no ordinary event.

Dignitaries from various areas of the corporate sector arrived to the city of Raipur to participate in discussing various aspects of 'Strategic Recruiting and Employee Branding'. The era has changed drastically, the quintessential workplace has changed, the needs have changed and so have the recruiters. Recruiting is one important function of HR and with these changing times, it has become more and more strategically aligned with the entire organisation. In words of one of the speakers, “HR is too serious to be left to the HR guys.”

One of the most difficult tasks in any academic discussion is to ask simple, grassroot yet pertinent questions. This task was amply addressed in the confluence, taken care of by the able faculty of IIM Raipur as moderators. As discussions progressed, the issues started coming out of the mist and clarity emerged as to some possible precautions and solutions. The result, a form of enlightenment for the students.

One very important thing which appealed to me was that if you keep the designations in perspective, the people on the other side of the dais still were able to connect both to the topic and to the students at a very basal level. The kind of comments that were made, the kind of arguments that were put forward, were of course pertinent, but they also appealed to the raw intellect of the students in a very natural fashion. This contributed very much to the non-commercial success of the event.

One of the speakers, Mr. Shwetabh Jha, mentioned, “HR as a function has always had an identity crisis. This is changing now.” The change that the aforementioned speaker spoke about,  has been very apparent for quite some time now. The only dearth was that of recognising it and acting upon it. This confluence and all events of such kinds go a long way in contemplating upon the said change. Another interesting thing about HR as a functional specialisation is that it seems very generic on the outside; non-HR aspiring professionals are often of the opinion that HR is something which needn’t be learnt or studied, it is something which comes very intrinsically. Whether this is good or bad, that is a story for some other time. But the fact remains that this confluence, in a not-so-subtle manner, showcased the importance of HR as a discipline and the complex nature of the kind of problems and issues that HR professionals face one they are in the industry.

Suffice to say that the HR Confluence ’13 organised by Indian Institute of Management Raipur was an enriching experience, both in terms of knowledge and exposure.

Contributed by : Jayesh Surisetti, PGP 2013 -15. He can be reached at pgp13082.jayesh@iimraipur.ac.in 

HR Confluence 2013 – Strategic Recruiting and Employee Branding

After last year’s successful HR Confluence on ‘Managing Talent for Competitive Advantage: From Identifying and Acquiring Talent to its Retention’, the theme of this year’s confluence is Strategic Recruiting and Employee Branding.’

This second edition of the confluence will see eminent people from the industry, coming together on this platform to share their ideas on strategizing the hiring process that is of special relevance in the world of business today. The confluence will hold panel discussions on topics such as transformation in recruiting culture, employer value proposition strategy, HR in employee branding – Public v/s Private sector, and emerging global talent pools.  Strategic recruitment means identifying the needs of the organisation and recruiting accordingly. HR practitioners will share their observations from real life experiences.

Employee branding is the image that the employee of a company showcases of himself and the company outside. Each employee is a brand ambassador and it demands a strong affiliation to the company. Pipeline approach which includes workforce planning, branding, continuous sourcing and on-boarding will be included in panel discussions on transformation in recruiting culture.

Employer value proposition is what is offered to the employee to make the organisation a desirable place to work in. It describes the mix of characteristics, benefits, and ways of working in an organisation. It is also important to understand the differences and similarities in the role of an employee in public or private sector. The impact on local employees due to the emerging and sought after global talent pool will also be covered in the panel discussions.

The confluence aims be a learning experience for the future managers for whom it would be essential to understand in depth the methods and strategies for recruitment. 

The First Step Forward- HR Confluence 2012 in Reminiscence

      Managing talent for competitive advantage – this is a sentiment that resonates in every organization as people are its most valuable resource. So when the first HR Confluence 2012 addressed this very issue, it was bound to generate a huge interest among industry experts as well as budding managers. 

       The discussions of HR Confluence 2012- Managing talent for competitive advantage revolved around three major themes which addressed the central idea in phases. These were talent spotting, talent retention and talent development. The main objective of the event was to provide insights into the plurality of perspectives on talent management. Also, the factors affecting the adoption and formulation of talent management strategy tailor-made to meet specific local needs and context of an organization were discussed.

          In a fiercely competitive environment, how do companies identify the right talent from the same employee pool, especially with the shrinking percentage of employable people? The discussions on talent spotting addressed this very dilemma. Acquiring the right talent is just a part of the problem organizations face. How to retain it seems to be the bigger issue as talent retention is easier said than done.  More importantly, how can companies best plan, select and implement development strategies for the entire talent pool to ensure that the organization has both the current and future supply of talent to meet their strategic objectives? Talent development plays a crucial role in every organization for this very reason.

        To address these issues on talent management, the HR Confluence 2012 witnessed HR practitioners from prominent companies in both public and private sectors such as SAIL, TVS, Renault-Nissan, Deloitte, L&T, Essar Oil Ltd., Balco and Carwale. From elucidating the concept of employee management using ’The Mahabharata’ to stressing on the need for companies to recruit individuals not just for their skills rather for the principles they carry, each speaker brilliantly put their thoughts forward. The common thread present in their speech was the cardinal principle – ‘People are important’.

           The ideas exchange that took place during the entire event was immense. The queries put forward by the students, inquisitive to know about the real-time business scenarios, were received with equal enthusiasm by the speakers. By providing the practitioner’s perspective on the questions raised, the experts helped the student panelists gain a better understanding of the realities faced by organizations. This is what ultimately resulted in the success of the inaugural chapter of HR Confluence paving the way to its second chapter in August 2013.

           Every organization spends a great deal of resources in recruiting and training its ‘talent’. Hence, it is relevant to discuss issues that deal with recruiting, developing and retaining people. However, there is much more to this story. Strategic recruiting and employee branding are equally essential for the long term sustainability of an organization. This is what the upcoming HR Confluence 2013 aims to address. Let’s see it take forward the success story of 2012 this year to a whole new level.

Future of Apple without Steve Jobs

 For a brief period of time Apple has been able to dethrone Exxon Mobil from the number one position in terms of market capitalization to become the most valuable company. Apple’s stock price has varied between $705.07 and $385.10 from Aug’12 to Aug’13 (a 45 percent change) and it clearly shows swing in the sentiments of investors. Now everybody has started asking the obvious questions about the future of Apple. Will Tim Cook and company be able to come up with the visionary products that catch the fancies of the customers? Will they continue to lead the technology market? Is the leadership at Apple as effective as the leadership of Steve Jobs?

A couple of decades ago Apple was just an overpriced beige box manufacturer with an obsolete operating system. Michael Dell had once said that the company should be sold as scrap and the money returned to its shareholders. But Steve’s return was marked by a unique vision. He lead a team of immensely talented engineers to create the future market for iPod+iTunes, iPad and iPhone.  Now Apple is the new Microsoft and it controls everything from the hardware to the operating systems to the apps. It has become the number one technology company in the world. There is no company which can match the style, design sense, attention to detail, marketing and manufacturing precision of Apple.

 Times have changed. Apple can no longer profit at the same pace in saturated markets. To keep the behemoth breathing and killing, Apple needs to create a new market- a virgin territory, a new gold rush. It appears that wearable gadgets may be the answer. Apple has been registering the ‘iWatch’ trademark across the world. The most important feature of the gadget is the ability to see new messages without taking the phone out of one's pocket. Tim Cook, Jonhathan Ive and Co. are very brilliant and capable people. But the question is, can they do it without the Wizard of Oz, the snake oil salesman and the amazingly brilliant Steve Jobs?

In recent times Apple has undergone a significant brand makeover, shaking off some of unpleasant characteristics associated with Jobs and taking on bits of the personality of its new leader, Tim Cook. By contrast, Apple from the outside has appeared more open under Cook, thanks to a number of meetings and trips to appeal to the various stakeholders i.e.consumers, investors, politicians etc. iPhone 5’s Maps app was marred by flaws such as missing features, misplaced businesses, landmarks and even towns as soon as it hit the stores. Cook apologized for this error publicly and with surprising humility which could have never been expected from Steve Jobs.

Apple has nothing much on the product horizon and new products are not expected until 2014. There is nothing to lure the investors or customers but Cook, Jonathan Ive and their latest signing Paul Deneve, the CEO of luxury goods house Yves Saint Laurent Group, are together capable enough to bring back the favorable sentiments. A constructive and sensible use of cash pile can do wonders for the company .Let us hope that Apple does not have same fate as Sony, a wonderful company, with appealing products and awesome design, but still struggling to sell phones tablets and computers just like any other company.   

References:

1. http://www.apple.com/

2. http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=AAPL

3. http://www.forbes.com/sites/dividendchannel/2013/08/01/apple-moves-up-in-market-cap-rank-passing-exxon-mobil-2/

Contributed by : Sushant Singh;PGP 2013-15. He can be reached at pgp13115.sushant@iimraipur.ac.in

Pratigya-The Oath taking Ceremony Of IIM Raipur

On 15th August 2013,IIM Raipur performed its fourth Pratigya, the oath taking ceremony, for the students of 4^th PGP batch and the 2^nd FPM batch. The event was centered around instilling a sense of necessity for good work ethics in managers-to-be with the hope of making them socially responsible citizens of our country. The intent was to give birth to a new generation of managers trained in the art of living with civic sense. This oath taking ceremony serves as a mean to nurture the sense of inclusiveness in ourselves, keeping our spirits alive as we grow into full-fledged contributors to our society, in general ranging from self growth to inclusive growth during later part of our life.

The event began with an introductory speech by the members of 'Kartavya', the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) club of IIM Raipur. Being the organizers of the event, their speech sensitized us, the audience, towards the contemporary issues which stymied the nation’s progress. Needless to say, at the end we were left inspired to strive for economic as well as social development as both are essential for the overall growth of our country. Being the future managers, we should not forget about the welfare of the underdeveloped section of our society, while fulfilling our commitments to the corporate world. We were also made aware of the importance of good values and ethics in decision making.

Inclusive growth was a term much talked about in this event. The term's projection during the ceremony was completely different from what we had come across as students or non-managerial employees. We came to understand it as a virtue that needs to be nurtured early on. Future managers are the people who will be  important and in influential positions in our society, and as future managers we need to be aware of what changes we can bring about. This event was exactly what was required to trigger our thought process in that direction. 

The speech was followed by the ‘diya’ lighting ceremony performed by all 130 of us. In the presence of our seniors, who surely were feeling nostalgic about their ceremony a year ago, we arrived at the central hall. We stood around a beautiful rangoli in a circle, where a few lit candles provided to some of us were passed on to the others after lighting our respective 'diyas'. We cheered for some as they enlightened a part of the colorful creation and applauded for others. After each of us had lit a diya, we stood around in a circle again to pledge our commitment towards our society to the best of our abilities. 

This was the first occasion that brought us to the realization of our responsibilities to the society as a whole but more importantly to ourselves. This realization seemed to seep into the air; the diyas radiating a comfortingly powerful aura affecting all of us with its golden hue. Surely, a better timing to commit to the moment could not have been imagined for such an important occasion. 

We never felt so motivated for something that would happen in the future. The central hall echoed the 'responsibilities' and 'honours' that we spoke of, replacing the usual void with our conviction. At that moment they ceased to be just words- they characterized what all of us would stand for when our time comes.

Contributed by : Devasheesh Nautiyal and Chanyo Y.L.; PGP 2013-15.