Week 9 !!!

I am free today.. Thats a rare scenario in ISB !!! I have ample time to pen this down ...Probably because what just passed by was the most hectic week ( scheduled) of term 2 ...

We had DMOP case study on monday , GLEC prelims report on tuesday , Markstrat decision on wednesday , DMOP homework on thursday , Midterms on Friday and Markstrat decision on saturday...
Sunday had to be free :-)

We survived and even submitted everything on time ... every time ...
Apart from that this week was last class of Proessor Bhardwaj and Professor Kale
Felt bad but change is constant and in case of ISB faculties it is inevitable .. Our section A was pissed off with Eco mid term paper (prof actually copied questions from his sample set) as it was so easy it did not make any sense ... and people actually mocked as to why did they study ..
DMOP too was a disaster in itself and people again thought why did we study.. it did not make any big difference anyway...
If the same thing continues we will probably have to read only 2 subjects to prepare in end terms .. MarkStrat and CompStrat..

Next week should be great because we have professor Jagmohan Raju coming to teach us ... Lot of expectations already .. Should be fun ...

Life never rests at ISB ..

Good Bye Prashant Sir !!

This is sayonara to Professon Prashant Kale. He was another one after Mohan sir to ensure a place in my blog. So that whenever i revisit ISB year in my life I can recall him and smile.

Awesome !!! Simplicity , intelligence personified. He had an exceptional ability to dissect the case from several angles and yet present to us a new perspective everytime. He did every case in a way that none of us ever thought off. His class had a lot of "AHA" moments. Everytime we were stumped and reckoned
"Oh yes !!! What he is saying can also be deduced from the case"
"Ohh!!! I dint look at this fact this way"
"Oopsss!!! Where was this the case"...

He left us speechless everytime.... I just wish I had him for the whole term.

Coming to his other abilities... He dint need name tags even on day one. He knew everyone's profile before stepping into class... He knew beforehand which student would be right at which point of time ( based on profile ) to carry forward the discussion ... He overheard a collegue talking to her husband and could deduce that it was anniversary and started the class by wishing her....

Stumped us everyday !!!

If I have to compare him to anyone i adore... I would make the decision based on his ability to minutely observe everything and uncanny capacity to interlink each word spoken in the class and relating one point to another in a fantastic manner.... When he carried home the point we always felt this was so easy and obvious ... The decision would be easy..

He definitely is Sherlock Holmes of Competitive Strategy...

We gave him a send off on his last class by dressing as school going kids and I rocked the day when i came from pee pee and asked him " Sir please may I come in" .. Everybody was in splits !!!

P.S. --> I thought I would write a post comparing Mohan Sir and Prashant Sir but I believe they uncomparable .. Flawless in their respective fields ...

I personally liked Mohan Sir more because he taught a boring subject yet made it most interesting one in term 1..
Prashant Sir did the same to comp strat in term 2...

ISB mast jagah hai yaar !!!!

Week 8 !!

We did even worse in Markstrat. 2 periods gone and we are rock bottom.
High hopes riding on our new products for next two periods.

Apart from that this week was not really different from usual ones...
Monday to thurday classes.. prereads ( which we dont do anymore !!) , CP ( which i cant do anymore) ..and assignments ( which are fun for a change in this term) ...

Weekend we did lotsa assignments .. next week is rocking. We have a submission everyday and we have managed to finish 2 of next weeks 5 submission thsi weekend. Great job I wud say.

Gives us time to study next week for the term 2 mid terms .. best part of mid terms .. only 2 papers.. need to prepare both ..

DMOP i feel comfy but eco is bad .. we got a raw deal n our prof.. 6 sections have a prof referred as GOD and we got one who makes us feel we are reverse ... well not litellay but he definitely tharashes all our hopes of learning a great subject per se..

thats ok still !!
part of the game !!

ISB still rocks !!

Ha ha Ha !!!

This happened during Eco sample question discussion.

Shouvik - What is output per hour worked ?
Deep - यार , एक घंटे में कितना काम किया ये बताता है ।
Shouvik - Thank you yaar. (Superb timing for sarcasm !!!! )

Pranay - ROTFL gasping for breath.

GMAT Gyaan !!

If you dont know I should tell you I am never going to write gyan articles.. I cant write them but I can provide links for many good articles becaus googling was what I did the most in my application days.

Here is a great post for GMAT preparation !!!

I will try and find my links repository and post it here !!!

Week 7 - Discovering sonites and vodites !!!

Ya ya !! i know this was due yesterday but then sonites took a toll... Vodites are anticipated in 2nd week of term 2 but sonites have already attacked and captured our sleeps and thoughts ...

Only dreamign abt sonites is prohibited .. and thats because sonites does not give you enough time to doze off and you gotta start worryinhg about it before dreams land in your eyes via the helipad of black circled eyes !!!

Enough suspense !!! Sonites and Vodites are 2 products in MarkStrat marketing simulation game which we are playing in term 2 @ ISB... Even before the week started we were warned that this is the markstrat term and this is litmus test for the study group bonding made in term 1...

It was definitely fun ... we spent whole weekend on decision 2 analysinr , re-analysing data and then again checking and re-checking the decisions made and in the end flunked with flying colours when the results came out !!! We hit the rock bottom of ISB in terms of revenues .. We mocked at ourselves and I specially ROTFL recalling Shouvik's expression when he said " We had an insightful discussion" I loved the depth in the thought process we have manifested."

Coming to few other subjects which we are treating as they are no-grade subjects .. MarkStrat is the only voice echoing in ISB.

Global eco prof received brickbats after first 2 sessions but improved amazingly in 3rd one ... I m sure it will only get better ....
DMOP is quant-heaviest subject probably with the prof amazingly talented but m not sure if he is able to communicate all he knows ...
CSTR is the one I love ( and fear) the most ... Prof Prashant Kale is just awesome .. He has ability to dissect a case from various angles and show us different perspectives everytime ... The class rocks .. Fear because he loves cold calling and my turn is yet to come ...

Thats pretty much of this week ... Will b back with more one liners abt subjects and more posts on MakStrat.

Till then .. Good morning and have a Good Day .. I gotta think sonites and vodites ...

P.S. - And I heard term 2 was easier ...

Sonites and Vodites !!!

Life contains only 2 things ..
Sonites and Vodites.

Details to follow on week 7 entry ...

Term 1 results !!!

I wish I had a magic wand to revert my silly mistakes.....
It would cost me a grade in 3 subjects....

Week 6 - Term 1 hits and misses !!!

Term 1 is over. Faster than a flash. It has been only a wink since I checked into ISB and i am already 12.5% MBA.

Frantic !!!
Crazy !!!
Awesome !!!

Term exams were an eye opener to all my preparations and dedications. Accounting was ok but as usual I made some silly mistakes.
Eco was a disaster. I did not expect that anything which was given 3 minutes in class will have weightage of 6 marks out of 36. Even better something untouched garnered 3 marks weightage.
Stats was easy as expected and I made silly ones as expected. Marketing was faff and I along with everyone gave the best possible gyaan I could give in that limited time with my limited skills.

I am not expecting much...

Then came the much deserved break of 5 days .. To compound the fun mom is here ... went on for shopping , eating mom-cooked delicacies round the clock and watched a movie ( finally !!!) after 2 months ... Lotsa fun ..

Had 2 half days of LDP sessions .. 3 more full days to go ... The sessions were regular gyaan.. I attended Emotional intelligence ( which was more of emotional atyachaar) and time management ( which ended 25 minutes late) ... still there were few take aways which will see light of this blog in coming week if time permits ....

Hits of term 1

1) ISB - An amazing break after 78 months of working hard(ly?)
2) O-Week and talent nite - Seemed hectic then and now i know it was lull before the storm.
3) Elections :- Some great take aways ( my week 5 post is on this)

Misses of term 1

1) Grades :- I would be lying if I say I dint want them. Everybody wants them.
2) Class economist :- One thing I would regret. It would have been fun but alas my time-mismanagement.

Take aways from term 1

Manage time if you want the best at ISB. There is a lot to do ... Hope to use this in term 2 though I know it is tough for careless me ....

Lets C..

Term 2 is again a level playing field. It is a New beginning. New hopes , New subjects , New time table and this happens every 6 weeks.

P.S. - Have bought TT and Baddy racquets and I own a yonex lawn tennis racquet ( thanks pa) too .. So more distractions for me to learn time management ...

Stay tuned !!!

Week 5 !!!

Week 5, which btw got over last sunday, gets its due share today..... Week 6 beginning were end terms thereby bolstering my resistance to not-log-in here....

Week 5 was adrenaline rush , courtesy the assignments due before end terms and off course the end term preparations which were supposedly in full swing .... However what I intend to pen down today is the unique experience i had in week 5 ... I ran in elections @ ISB .. It was for the post of director - alumni affairs ... Before you have an adrenaline rush let me tell you that I lost .... But it was great fun coupled with great learning ...

Elections were on Thursday and Wednesday was the soap box presentations .... Tuesday evening was deadline for drafting a manifesto .... Till monday evening i was contemplating the option whether to do it or not ... Then came the shocker mail on monday evening 7 PM which said that due to plethora of contestants the deadlines were revised and now manifestos were due tuesday morning ... I almost stepped out ... I was working on assignment with my study group and at 10 we had barely started ...

Then we started the debate of to do or not to do ... I almost convinced 2 of my study group mates for standing in elections too .. they were interested and motivated but ultimately backed out citing genuine reasons ... In the process I was sure that I would run if I am able to draft a decent manifesto ... I started it at 1 am and finished it at 5 am .. thansk to all my study group mates i could have decent reveisions too .... sent the manifesto and next up was the soap box presentations ....

Went for classes at 8 came back at 1 , had lunch and called SRK for my presentation and practice... I could do a decent practive but at the end was not too convinced of my own o/p.. and then for the moment i got panicked when i entered the khemka auditorium .. i thought i m so under prepared.. but then neha and sk wee there to boost me up .. what workes wonders for me was one line whch Shom said " What matters is the experience . This is the place to fail." I was suddenly looking forward to it. At the end i did a okayish kind of job while presenting my candidature but was happy that i atleast attempted.. the candidate who won definitely was better and deserving ... I got the experience and I was happy... I was told that my output was very good given the effort i put in the process .... 4 hrs manifesto and 4 hrs soapbox... In the end a win win for me ....

Apart from elections nothing week 5 offered fadm assignments , eco assignments etc but they were routines...

Week 6 had end terms .. details in next post ...
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This is my first ever election manifesto ( could be last too ) !!! (Thanks Adarsh!!!!)

Manifesto – Director Alumni Affairs – ISB Co 2010Pranay Raicha - 9666407210

The world is ready to give up its secrets if we only know how to knock, how to give it the necessary blow. The strength and force of the blow comes through a Vision. Take up that ONE vision. Make that vision your life - think of It, dream of It, live for It.

-Confucius, The Chinese Philosopher

When I started writing this manifesto there was a strong urge to define a vision which would carry forward the legacy of Alumni affairs. The vision that I have for Alumni Affairs council is:-

“To nurture the alum relationships by harnessing the existing infrastructure and fostering innovative ideas resulting in a resonating community.”

Below is my thought process to achieve what I have envisioned.

1) Instilling a sense of belongingness in our Alumni :- We always have expectations from our Alumni. How about giving something back to them as current students? I believe there is a need to inculcate a feeling in Alumni that they are still ISBians and that ISB is still their abode. This can be achieved bya. Revamping the Alumni site to not only act as a social networking portal but also give them more details and make it easily accessible to all ISBians.b. Inviting alums to all activities and events happening @ ISB; (incl. parties for Hyd alums )c. Releasing an Alum newsletter chronicling the happened , happening and yet to happen events alongside any relevant information.

2) Smooth alumni interaction :- Coordination is the key here. Considering that time is of essence to all ISBians I will ensure sure that all the clubs/activities requiring an Alum interaction are channelized and directed in the most efficient and effective manner possible. This will help encapsulate alum involvement and eliminate redundant efforts.

3) Tap and Build upon existing programs :- Will continue to build upon the programs like Shadow your alum, A day in work life of your alum and will stimulate similar efforts. I plan to assertively involve successful alums in mentoring current students who aspire to be follow their footsteps. I believe, by one-on-one involvement alums can bring much more to the table.

4) Be Accountable :- I aim to (a) execute recurring checks to ensure all the initiated and intended activities are completed within the designated timeframe and (b) address all concerned issues at the earliest.

Having graduated from IIT Roorkee and with a work experience of 6.5 years I have had enough opportunities and exposure to impart in me the skills that justify my candidature. I am confident of making it a better year for you, for school and last but not the least for the alumni.I had nebular mind initially but now I am sure that together we can make a difference. Together we can have the best SOLSTICE ever.What we need is passion and persistence.

Looking for your valuable support,

Pranay Raicha

“A Student this year. An Alumni Forever.”