GliMPse - The much awaited Second Issue!

The last couple of months have been fun and we are excited to present to you the second issue of the GliMPse Magazine 2011-12. This issue comes with enhanced design features, ease of access and diverse range of content - viewpoints and special-interest articles, interviews of faculty and alumni, some fun stuff, GMP batch and campus events.


And many thanks to our generous supporters who have responded with feedback, and told us ways of improving what we do with the magazine.


We hope you enjoy this issue and do drop in a line or two at glimpse@xlri.ac.in to let us know what you think! We always appreciate your feedback and support. Wish you all a very happy new year. .


http://www.scribd.com/doc/76595225


GliMPse Committee 2011-2012
General Management Program
XLRI Jamshedpur

XMAS at XLRI!

It goes without saying that at XLRI we celebrate and rejoice at the drop of a hat! Pasted below are some awesome photographs of the Christmas Decorations on campus.

Merry Christmas!!

We’re looking forward to bringing the New Year already.

Photographs by: Venkatesh Iyer (GMP 2001-12)

Transition from Contracting to Consulting. Can a MBA degree help?

The joke goes, "A consultant is a person who provides a rationale for what the management wants to justify!" But jokes aside – Do we really understand what consulting is and what it takes to be a good consultant? I for a very long time had some very false notions about consulting until I got a consultant’s view on consulting. As they say, straight from the horse’s mouth. Whether I will become a good consultant will remain to be seen.  

I worked for close to six years in the IT Services Industry and for about three years in the US as a systems analyst and as a project lead, and I have always introduced myself for the sake of simplicity as an “IT Consultant” to folks at the apartment office, insurance agent and even during Immigration. And I actually believed I was one.

During that time I worked very closely with a colleague, an MBA who worked as a business analyst and was actually designated as a “Consultant” within the organization. He was versatile, a very quick learner and had great people skills as well as niche domain skills. We had developed a good working relationship and over our many conversations realized that he was very disgruntled and frustrated because of the fact that he wasn’t getting any real consulting engagements. And that caught me a bit by surprise. I asked him, “Aren’t you a Consultant”? He said to my bewilderment that while I am designated as a consultant, what I really do is contracting. And he went on to explain to me the difference between contracting and consulting.

A contractor usually works under someone’s supervision, to help complete part of a larger project. And he or she is told what to do, how to do, and when it needs to be done. Contractors, he said really are focused on a single type of mid-level activity—such as programming in a specific language or with a specific tool. They work on specific tasks and often are unaware of the scope, business goals, or impact of the overall project. Contractors generally fill a void in the skill sets of their clients or provide additional resources for accomplishing a goal. Often, these contractors really like what they are doing, are good at it, and don't have a desire to change roles. 

               
While a real consultant analyzes the business/technical problem and decides how to solve it, often using methods or tools that the client hasn’t even thought of or wouldn’t even have been exposed to. And the consultant is self-directed and does whatever it takes to deliver the solution that meets the client’s needs. Consultants aim to get an understanding of the overall scope and goals of a project, make sure that they understand the deliverables, and offer specific suggestions when it makes sense. A consultant should provide an increase in the breadth and depth of technical skills, an improvement in analytical skills, and the ability to clearly and concisely communicate important information in a timely manner.

While you might be good programmer, technical writer and so on, you are essentially following directions to create good work, which is a far cry from being creative, having initiative to assess a client’s needs, and determining the best way to solve the crisis. And I reluctantly accepted the fallacy of the idea that I was working as an “IT Consultant” and digested the reality which seemed a little harsh after 4-5 years in the industry.

Next up on our discussion was, given an opportunity to do consulting, how do we make the transition from being a contractor to a consultant?

First develop a niche and don’t be just another consultant. Once you develop expertise in a particular segment of the industry, there is rarely a paucity of work that’s profitable and interesting. Spend a lot of time learning as much as you can in one area, while not ignoring the other related areas. But how do pick your niche? Usually, it picks you. Go with something that interests you, especially if little is known about it and if there is a lot of growth potential.

Desire to Learn Continuously - Slowly and cautiously add more services and expertise to your "inventory” which requires continuous learning of new things. Most consulting projects are going to put you face-to-face with situations or contexts in which you must learn (and learn fast) in order to succeed.

Strong Interpersonal Skills - The essence of consulting is communicating, generating trust, and getting information from people who don't even know they have it. This requires the necessary interpersonal skills to know when to press, to be aggressive, to just listen, and much more. And above all, you need to get along well with people. No matter how technical your field, if you don't like working with people, and lack the required people skills, you'll have an uphill battle in the consulting business.

Be flexible - Consultants are subject to a great deal more uncertainty as to when and where they’ll be working. Some weeks they may be fully utilized, having a lot more to bite than they can chew, and other weeks they may be doing nothing. Consultants have to manage several relationships, and balance the needs of a group of clients to try to make sure everybody gets what they want.

Do some marketing - Market yourself well. Build a brand, a reputable one at that, and look for ways to get your name around and build your credibility at the same time. Conferences, publications and web sites are good mediums for raising your profile and establishing your credibility. A well-received presentation at a workshop one day might generate leads several months later.

Make some friends - The most powerful source of business for any consultant is networking. A personal recommendation from a friend or colleague to their client or employer carries a lot of weight.

Commitment to Personal and Professional Integrity - Consulting lifeblood is based on reputation and that is built on integrity, honesty, and ethics. Unless you set the highest standards for yourself, your customers and prospective customers will find out.

The qualities enumerated above would be applicable to consulting of any kind – management consulting, strategy consulting, operations consulting or any other niche domain within the industry (like corporate finance consulting). But how would an MBA help you develop the mindset required for a consultant?

A MBA curriculum provides the right kind of intellectual stimulation - exciting projects and case studies that help you develop a systematic approach to problem solving, and put in practice the knowledge, tools and techniques. Overall helps you build a strong foundation which you can only improve upon. And most importantly you will get to study with top-notch, talented peers from across various industries. You might also get an opportunity to rub shoulders with senior management (often CEO/CFO level professionals) and develop fantastic networks that can propel your career northwards.

I am sure we have only scratched the surface here and there ought to be a lot more to learn about consulting, but if you get the basics right, then there will always be plenty of time to learn the ropes as you go along and find a way of working that suits you best.

An MBA degree might not equip with you all the qualities that you need to become a good consultant, but it would at least open a few doors for an aspiring consultant. And as always it would be the attitude that would open the last door.

Authored by:

Hrishikesh C

GMP 2011-12

References:

·         Meredith Little, “The difference between contracting and consulting and why it matters” - Website: http://www.techrepublic.com/article/the-difference-between-contracting-and-consulting-and-why-it-matters/1028405

·         Chip Nickolett, “Are you a consultant or a contractor?”  - Website: http://www.techrepublic.com/article/are-you-a-consultant-or-a-contractor/5059462

·         Robert Bacal, “Consulting: Prerequisites for Success” - Website - http://www.informit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=29048&seqNum=5

XLRI GMP 2011-12 Placement Brochure

The General Management Program's Placement Brochure can be accessed from the below link:

http://www.xlri.ac.in/downloads/GMP_Brochure.pdf

The GMP Placement Committee can be contacted at: gmpplacement@xlri.ac.in

Our Affair, with New Orleans.

We were already imagining the aromas of Creole food wafting in the air, and live jazz bands playing to packed bars. This was even before our long journey to New Orleans. She (New Orleans is definitely feminine, beautifully lady-like at times, but nevertheless filled with all the enthusiasm of a teenaged girl) beckoned to us invitingly, and we couldn’t wait to be there! The excitement in the air was palpable, almost electric.

For many of us, the visit to New Orleans and to the United States was a first and we were eagerly looking forward to a new business climate, myriad cultures and of course sinking our teeth into meaty challenges at work. For the uninitiated, New Orleans is unique and crazy in a bunch of ways. She was hardly like the other American cities that some of us had visited; certainly not a bunch of glass-and-steel structures, a few eateries and cafes, and a street of nightlife. She had something that very few American cities can claim to possess. Culture.

The riverfront “South” mixed with French sophistication coupled with African-American energy (quote: Wikitravel), makes her truly mesmerizing.

The 18 of us from the General Management Program at XLRI took classes on Strategic Consulting at Tulane University. We were taught by Professor Michael Wilson, a renowned consultant himself. We had also been assigned projects at different organizations. Now, these projects were essentially “problems” that the organizations faced, and we were roped in to help as consultants (how fancy!). Our schedules were in such a way that we alternated between school and work. At school, Professor Wilson taught us concepts substantiated with examples from his personal consulting experience, and guided us on the projects as well, and at work we attempted to practice what was taught to us. The schedule helped us bridge the gaps between learning and application.

The bunch of us with Professor Wilson

EMHStrategy, a consulting firm, acted as our liaison with the organizations and helped us in procuring the projects. A perfect example of the different people that we met during our 3 week stay at Tulane is Francisco Robert, nicknamed Paco.

Paco (who is of Puerto Rican descent) was an MBA grad at Tulane University. Before enrolling in business school, Robert was “chef de partie” at Alinea, the celebrated Chicago restaurant and a graduate of the famed Culinary Institute of America. Paco was interested in full time consulting as well, and hence decided to pursue his MBA at the Freeman School of Business, Tulane University. Today, as a consultant with EMH Strategy, Robert specializes in helping restaurants and food-related businesses manage change and prepare for growth. Picture that for an interesting life!

Francisco “Paco” Robert and Duchess, one of three chickens he and his wife are raising in the backyard of their home on Panola Street.

We had our fill of Ghost tours, Jazz bars on Frenchmen Street, Coffee & Beignets at the famed Café Du Monde, the French Quarter and the Flea Market, Swamp and Alligator Tours, Absinthe hallucinations, Country music on Decatur Street, Voodoo shops (complete with voodoo toys and dream-catchers), 25 cent martinis on Commanders, and all-night-long parties in the sinful Bourbon Street!

           The 3 weeks went by in a flash, and the return journey felt like a rude awakening from a fantasy filled dream. Indeed, she (New Orleans) is either partying or recovering from a party. She will be missed sorely by all of us!

Role of Business Administration in Partisan Politics -Dr Ajay Kumar

MP,Dr Ajay Kumar,in his first visit to Xlri Jamshedpur this year, also the first after his being a MP instilled sheer confidence and self-awareness among the budding managers .He started the evening with a full house of 150 odd audience at the stipulated time of 7 pm sharp. His pivotal message to the students and which was subsequently the theme was -- to be ‘socially and politically’ active. Even if not contending in an election , being part of a socially active issue like Anna Hazares’ , being articulate in writing petitions ,taking part in candle light marches contributes to the global political cause , thus having the potential this butterfly’ wing flapping to cause a tsunami of social change. This also helps to be connected with all the ubiquitous social environment and its gradual transformation or better , being the change it self .This might also someday champion the distant cause of cracking the political animal of election , as was in his case.
It is very important to be Goal oriented and sensitive to people around, their issues and their day to day problems, he added. It is not audacious anymore to think ‘out of the box ‘ to be event planner or resource manager of a political party as a role in post MBA engagement. Creative thinking at least.On another note,he also added that simplest generosity really helps the society ,being lucky the umpteenth time to reach these coveted positions in career we should be sensitive towards social causes and voluntarily take up noble causes like sponsoring a child , creating a family fund for charity or even some social volunteering for an NGO .These helps , in a bigger way to liberalize from commercial aspect of social grid.

He also depicted his long journey as a talented young Doctor at Jipmer, after he got through 1st attempt this medical seat to joining Indian Foreign Service. He cracked IPS and joined Patna as an assistant SP.During one accident he was shot in the thigh and nearly lost his leg, a surgeon at a nearby district hospital saved his leg by freezing it in ice.These varied experiences brought him closer to the masses , whose cause he is adeptly championing today. He later joined Tata Sons in Mumbai and after that he moved up with many different roles to being a CEO of Max Neeman.Finally he contested the election here at Jamshedpur with limited resources and came out with flying colors .He talked about leadership in every sphere and accepted that he has donned many roles which helped his structured thinking adding to part of being what he is today.
As an MP he is actively steering for solar lighting initiative in 1500 villages around Jamshedpur.He stressed for better medical facilities and depicted how a badly effected patient of squamous cell carcinoma during a ‘dharna’ spurred his holistic impetus to work for the desolates.
Finally ,he gave multiple incidences of how his daunting friends topped all his smarter classmates and became head of Adobe India , how passion drove Harsha Bhogle (his senior) to be one of the most successful commentators and how his ‘not so smart’ friend became one of the most successful Doctor Shantanu Narayan practicing in Usa.
As he concluded ,we gave him a standing ovation, which of course he deserved from every angle. By his structured yet spontaneous speech he was really able to touch upon many hearts ,flooded with spirit , altruism in the truest sense and vibrantly positive energy.It really showed the true mettle of a successful Doctor , turned
IPS ,turned CEO turned MP , all in a single lifetime ! Dr. Kumar , all the good luck to you.

Leadership Lessons, In Uniform!

Hosting CEO’s and having them talk about Leadership and challenges with MBA Grads is not uncommon in business schools. The leaders share their experiences and enlighten the students about various topics that range across Human Resource Management, Strategy, work-life balance and life in general. However, to have a highly decorated Lieutenant General from the Indian Army, dissect the concepts of leadership and tear apart the notions held by the students about corporate leadership, is definitely not a common happening!

XLRI Jamshedpur, proudly played host to Lieutenant General Vijay Kumar Ahluwalia, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Central Command, Indian Army. A recipient of the Ati Vishisht Sewa Medal, Yudh Seva Medal and the Vishisht Seva medal, the Lieutenant General is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and has had a long, distinguished and meritorious career. The session was attended by Professors and students from the General Management Program, Business Management and Human Resource Management programs, the three flagship programs of XLRI.

Photography by Sandeep Kashyap

The Lt. General was in a particularly reflective mood and began by telling the students about his role model Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, and reminiscing about a speech given by the Field Marshal during a parade of which the Lt. General was a part of. Interestingly, the Lt. General followed by highlighting the current “Age of Turbulence” (referring to rising unemployment, poor economic conditions and the like). The emphasis was on “fighting the fog of war”, a metaphor to the shakiness of the turbulent times, through six leadership mantras.

The talk progressed to discussing about the Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (abbreviated to VUCA) environment that was further complicated by the lack of emphasis on a long term vision in the corporate offices. Through his past experiences in the famous Kargil and Tiger Hills, he provided valuable insights and helped emphasize the importance of leaders understanding and effectively managing their teams.

Photography by Sandeep Kashyap

Citing numerous examples and anecdotes, the Lt. General sent a strong signal on the importance of having a long term vision that looked beyond just profits and revenues. He also drove home the points on the far reaching benefits of training people and having a skilled workforce.

Photography by Sandeep Kashyap

The Lt. General concluded his speech by expanding on the 6 leadership mantras namely Compelling Vision, Character, Competency, Communication Skills, Innovation and being Technology Savvy. It is but human nature to warm to somebody with whom we can relate, his humility was palpable in his final quote “A leader is all because of teams”. And there was as much food for thought for all of us after the address as there was admiration for the man!

Diversity, the new Homogeny!

Picture this: An Entrepreneur who owns a mining unit, A Healthcare Administrator, a Chartered Accountant, a Marketing Country representative, a HR Manager, a Radiologist, an Operations Manager at a nuclear plant, a Product Lifecycle Management specialist, an Investment Banker and an IT Salesman having an avid discussion on Organization Behavior and Business Ethics!

For those pursuing their General Management Program at XLRI, this is not an uncommon sight.

The classical saying ‘birds of a feather flocked together’ holds no water when it comes to the 2012 Batch of the General Management Program (GMP, a one-year fulltime flagship MBA program) at XLRI Jamshedpur!

Originally conceptualized for the promising middle-level managers TATA Steel for a faster climb up the corporate ladder, XLRI broadened the scope of the General Management Program by extending it to professionals from other industries as well. XLRI in its admission process places a strong emphasis on choosing prospective students not only based on the relevance of their job experience, but also ensures diversity within the class. The GMP has evolved over the years and boasts of a class profile now that spans across industries.

Students from sectors such as Media, Medical & Healthcare, Energy (Nuclear, Oil and Gas, Petrochemical) , Manufacturing, Information Technology, Fast Moving Consumer Goods, Human Resources, Business Consulting, Telecommunication, Steel, Mining, Apparels, Banking, Textiles & Fashion open up to subjects such as Management Accounting, Economics, Marketing, Ethics and Corporate Sustainability to obtain a holistic perspective of a business.

The diversity and variety is not restricted to Sector representation alone.

Students have held various corporate positions and wide ranging roles and responsibilities such as Regional Managers, Design Specialists, Operations Managers, Portfolio Manager, ERP consultants and Project Managers.

The GMP boasts of a wide range of student age groups with the youngest class participant being 26 years old and the oldest, 38 years, as well as participants who have worked across geographies and multiple locations.

Where does all of this lead to?

Both Raja Marthandan (27), the youngest entrepreneur in the batch who runs a Manganese Ore mining unit, and Siddhartha Agarwal (38), unquestionably the wisest member of the class, an importer and exporter of textile goods are able to correlate the curriculum and their knowledge gained in running businesses.

For the class participants, interacting with members from other organizations and sectors and listening to their perspectives of subjects is an eye opener.  The result being that the program provides the managers with not only a substantial exposure to the theoretical foundations in management but also a comprehensive view of business. This in turn helps them shoulder responsibilities that come up as they move up the hierarchy. In sum, the GMP re-emphasizes that the value of an MBA education lies also in things learned outside the classroom, in the relationships established with others in the community and fellow students and most importantly in the importance of the age old mantra ‘Unity in Diversity’.

The Dining Etiquette Lab , with a Fatherly grace ...

Reeling pressure, suffocating heat of sarcastic surprise quizzes , overlapping assignments and tests , technically summarized as ‘rigor’ may drive the experimental GMPians of XLRI to a dreadful, invulnerable donuts but also pushes them to par excellence . When red eyed early morning classes from late night rattas , dropping heads in half understood lectures becomes the order of the day , the dining etiquette lab of our beloved Father A. C. Jesurajan punches in a fresh lease of optimism and desired variation from the stereotyped rigor-, where we not only get good food,free booze but also plenty of dining etiquette tips and a chance to dress and oops ! Impress.

Prior to this lab, in Father’s class the Indian whiskey's myth is broken, beware our desi ‘single malt snobs’. According to Him, Indian whiskey is nothing more than a bi-product of second stage fractional distillation of molasses and hence a mere cohort of not so friendly chemicals. How acid (alcohol) reacts with base (soda) to form salt and water and lowers our mighty ego was clarified with scientific precision. Wine glasses’ use , the choice of restaurants across the world , the cuisines , the pre dining etiquette , table mannerism, time constraint … were all splendidly explained with a true cosmopolite elegance.

Tonight, this practical lab showcases His genuine effort to crystallize these theories into practice and a crisp controlled array of sequential mannerisms, filled in with the right ambience and a li'l nervousness of over drinking ..

Being informed well ahead where to go , and aware of the fact that we are simply thrown out of class had we been 1 minutes late , cheerful yet cautious junta arrived at the stipulated time , all dressed up gentlemen and ladies ,to be greeted generously by Father , his assistant Freddy, and the softly played country numbers ..the fillers .The scene somehow reminded me of a famous cat-mice cartoon sequence !! Conspicuously, the evening started well. We were guided to our seats, and directed to go over the counter for beverages. Blenders pride , Rum and Smirnoff were served in measured 60 ml pegs (just the opportunity we were waiting for , in spite of its whatever chemistry ) . The snacks (chicken, mushroom and mixture )were excellent and the liquors, as always ,didn’t let us down .

After a couple of drinks ,as expected there were no more order or round robin in getting alcohol from counter , alcohol has somehow always worked to coalesce humans to the same emotion level (proportional to the number of pegs). Then there were photo sessions ..for ,with and by the Father .Just at the right moment when we thought that we should venture our 4^th peg of alcohol , we were asked to join the dinner at the ground floor.

It was a wonderfully lit room , each table smitten by candles whose fluid light was ecstatic for the already intoxicating evening ..We settled in our positions ( or should I say already reserved tables) and began our dining …

Using napkin, cutleries - outside in ,from course to course, guided by father at every possible steps effused perfection and His tremendous commitment to us .We learned to be managerially efficient hosts with proper etiquettes in the best possible way (well almost ! we heard few forks and spoons dropping down the floor ) .After the soup , starter, salad , interesting main courses we passed one over another to the end of the session to finish up with a beautiful dessert .Father’s announcements between the dinner courses channelized the flow and did let us know what we were doing. Again a pleasant surprise was evident. We had two birthday boys and the details didn’t go unnoticed by Him. Two delicious cakes glided in , were cut by the birthdays babies ,photographed and justice done by us to the cakes .In short every moment was savored.

Like all splendid spells, this also came to an end and it was called off with an introduction of the serving staff , who were not only hospitable but were extremely efficient to manage 60+1 odd of us (not everybody in the best of their senses after intoxication) seamlessly . We concluded by thanking the maestro of perfection, the ‘Communication Guru’ with a standing ovation ….

Thus we wrapped up one of our best nights at XlRI,a night marked by the epitome of dining etiquette connoisseurship,a lesson learnt in the finest details, a knowledge that will definitely remain ever embedded in our empirical etiquette DNA.

The Web Is 20 Years Old Today

It was twenty years ago today/ Tim Berners-Lee taught the world to play/ Although 20 years ago he would have sworn/ That there wouldn’t have been so much porn. That’s right – the world’s first website, a placeholder page written by Sir Berners-Lee way back on August 6, 1991 in the then-nascent Hypertext Mark-Up Language, is celebrating its 20th birthday today. And, on this important anniversary, we ask what hath the web wrought?

In the past two decades we’ve been given ecommerce and spam, we’ve torn down the music, news, and publishing industries, and we’ve LOL ed at more CATS than we can count. We’ve surfed the rise and fall of empires , the dissolution of the line between public private , the end of enforceable copyright . We’ve seen new modes of communication drive out unwanted regimes at home and abroad and we’ve heard the endless howl of a million voices calling out at once, most of them in comments on this site.

We’ve also seen lots of the aforementioned porn.

The original page is mirrored here and it’s a fascinating look at the seed crystal that catalyzed change to the world as we knew it in those heady pre-Internet days.

Happy birthday, Internet Web. Here’s to another 20 happy, healthy years.

~amen

Life, seen through a different lens.

Some of us from the General Management Program actually presumed that the Rural Exposure Program at XLRI, would be a relaxed affair with plenty of time to catch up on our overdue rest and sleep. Little did we know that our minds and hearts, hardened by the hustle and bustle of a life in the city and in the corporate world, would undergo a profound transformation.

A mind blowing metamorphosis!

Every year, XLRI together with NGO’s functioning in the villages of Jharkhand arrange for batches of students to be sent to different villages, accompanied and guided by rural development societies. The objective of this program is to ‘expose’ us to a lifestyle, that very few of us have witnessed firsthand. We, the students, get to see the cooperative functioning of a village, the hardships and struggles faced by the residents, the aspirations of the next generation within the village and the ideas supplied by an enterprising few.

On a damp Friday morning, 15 of us left for the Tagore Society of Rural Development located at Patamda, East Singhbhum district. The village was originally a part of West Bengal and the local language was Bangla. Luckily, we had a couple of Bengali colleagues with us, which proved to be vastly useful. Though Patamda was only 50 kilometers away from the XLRI campus, rains and bad roads played spoilsport and it took us a good 2 hours to arrive at TSRD’s gates. Mr. Akash from the NGO passed on a copy of our itinerary for the next 3 days to us, and the realization that the visit was not about fun and sleep, sunk in slowly.

Visit to Patamda Village, by the GMP junta at XLRI (Collage by Venkatesh Iyer)

Mr Akash had an infectious enthusiasm which roused us as well. We started by visiting the Dhadkidih village which had a population of close to 800 people. The school was our first point of visit, and we spent time talking to children and their interests. It was also obvious that the schools found it quite difficult to attract children to come study. The midday meal scheme was very much in existence and played its part in ensuring that the children stayed until lunch.

To TATA Steel Rural Development Society (Collage by Samarjit Mazumdar)

There were two things that struck us almost immediately when walking through the village. One was the lack of electricity, and the other was the prevalence of mobile phones (despite the unavailability of electricity) and the occasional Airtel Dish TV connection. We later understood that the village did fall under the electricity grid, but the availability of electricity was dismally sporadic. To our disappointment, there was just one single determined lady from the whole village who was pursuing her Masters at Jamshedpur.

The day progressed with meeting the Village Panchayat and also understanding the economy of the village. The highlight of the day was the inauguration of the Kisan Club. The Kisan Club is a perfect example of the cooperative system in the village. Members of the club pooled in money and resources to procure equipment of better technology which could be used on a need basis by all members. The day ended with all of us analyzing the supply chain followed by the villagers for their vegetable and poultry produce trying to see if there were options that resulted in better margins for the villagers.

The next 2 days were spent in visiting the Public Health Centre as well as the village of Sundarpur. During the time spent there, Kharkhand experienced torrential rainfall and the Suvarna River swelled threateningly. Interestingly, none of us felt compelled to stay back because of the rain. Contradictory to our original plans, our inclination to rest and watch the raindrops was cut down by our curiosity to visit every nook and corner that the surrounding villages had to offer.

Other eye openers were visiting the farmers market (where one could get anything from vegetables to local liquor and open cooked chicken), meeting the school teacher and the Anganwadi representative, walking one kilometer into corn fields that were destroyed by the rains, understanding the NREGA system and its problems, and finally the talk with Mr Bakshi who spearheaded the activities of the NGO.

The change that had come over us at the end of the visit, is hard to put into words. We left TSRD with reluctance, with a feeling of leaving a task incomplete.

Days after, the feeling still lingers on.

The end result is that each one of us have turned more socially conscious in one way or the other. We had always been blinded by our wants, while the needs of many deserving people have gone unfulfilled. The urge to bring about a change in the system, finally awoke in us.

Thanks to XLRI and selfless organizations like TSRD, our eyes have finally been pried open.

Of team building, adventure trips and unexpected challenges

Belief-defying obstacle courses, man-made and natural, belief inducing team building exercises, imagination stimulating games, life in the rural wilderness, a fierce unexpected storm and tough decisions. These pretty much form the outline of a part of the adventure trip embarked upon by the students of XLRI’s GMP batch 2011-2012.

This compulsory trip, organized this year by the Raymond Memorial Welfare Trust, is a part of the General Management Programme and is aimed at fostering team spirit, increasing familiarity and bonding between the relatively new faces in college, bringing out the leaders the group, overcoming fears and instilling belief in oneself and to get out there and take in whatever life in the greenery and the earth has to offer.

Having arrived in the rustic outskirts of the village Tumung, the group of around sixty students set up camp with the aid of the RMWT instructors and launched into a host of adventure sports. The proverbial lap of nature threw up a challenge or two as teams of students tackled group tasks that tested leadership skills and trust levels within a team, imagination, spontaneity through group tasks, the ability to overcome apprehensions and fears as the group egged each other on through incredible natural and artificial obstacle courses. It didn’t matter that age was not quite on the side of many of the participants; the enthusiasm in the group was infectious, energy rubbed off among the members.

The nature-made challenges, however, weren’t restricted to the obstacle course. On the first night at camp incessant rains and cyclonic winds swept the camp relentlessly. Security and health concerns began to crop up as some of the tents were rendered unusable by nature’s fury. The inhospitable conditions tested the batch’s ability to deal with unexpected crises. Some enquiries and a quick survey revealed that there was a govt school building in the vicinity that could be used as temporary shelter until an alternative could be figured out. As there was some uncertainty about availability of shelter for 60 adults, some of the members volunteered to stay back in the tents and thus help ease logistical issues.

Conditions unfortunately did not improve into the next day and the activities had to be called off prematurely. However, the truncated trip was not without its lessons in management for the students.

The trip was a first-hand experience in:

- Realizing what rural India goes through when the weather runs wild

- Working with what you have

- Prioritization – moving people with health concerns to the temporary shelter first

- Work as a team, coordinate with each other

- When the going gets tough, it becomes all the more important for a team to keep the bigger picture in mind at all times and work towards a best possible solution under the circumstances.

- The importance of clear thinking

The adventure trip may not have fulfilled its immediate purpose, but the students did take away equally significant lessons in management. The students learned what it took to deal with a real situation the hard way; something that cannot be fully learnt in a classroom or from books!