Friday, January 8, 2010
Ab Bas!
>The post having been selected for NewsLetter consideration (competition) has been removed from public consumption; Sorry about that...anurag
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Already Nostalgic
>IMPX 2010-11 results started trickling in couple of days back. Moments of ecstasy for some, of agony for others, but what's in it for me? Plenty, I realize! Time flew by at IIM Lucknow Noida Campus and it never dawned upon me that my time here is almost over. A wave of nostalgia hits me, hits me hard!
Around this time in 09, I was on PG trying to seek guidance from IPMX01, fellow admits and a few I-know-all-kinda-puys. Here I am in Jan '10, the enthusiastic IPMX03 admits.That I wanted to join L was crystal clear to me; however, the last moment butterflies-in-stomach syndrome troubles even a Tendulkar when he nears a century :=)
How wrong I was to visualize myself hitting a century when I received an admit- admission was actually taking fresh guard. Coming months of Feb n' March will reveal if I score a big century or not (alignment of dream job to actual offer).
2/Feb/09 it was when my resignation was deemed to have been submitted, although I sent my mail on 31/Jan (no credits for reasoning why). April Fools' day was my last day at office. The events are so fresh, the people then are so very part of my today's life, Pune still is the home for my children who believe they're on a vacation, my (ex) landlord just chatted with me yesterday......hey, come on, that 1 year has gone by ain't possible!
Sadly, the year has flown by...How we try hold on to happy associations...listening to 'Puraani Jeans aur Guitar' over and over does not introduce a 'Ctrl-Z' in life.
There shall be no case preparations, no group projects, no Prof's taking sessions, no preparation for exams, no pattey-shattey, no late night binges, no more student driven activities, no Tot mall, no Winsor street-Shipra mall, no more travel hassles to Delhi-Gurgaon, no Gulab Jamuns in mess, certainly no Non-Veg 4 times a week....certainly not in the IIM L Noida campus settings.
Anurag, it is time to move on; time to get your dream job; time to say goodbye to all; time to packup here and unpack somewhere else; and do not forget that time waits for none.
Thank You IPMX...you've transformed my life...you are now a part of me, try as much as this world to separate us...
...Three cheers for IPMX...Ready yourself to conquer the big bad corporate world...
Around this time in 09, I was on PG trying to seek guidance from IPMX01, fellow admits and a few I-know-all-kinda-puys. Here I am in Jan '10, the enthusiastic IPMX03 admits.That I wanted to join L was crystal clear to me; however, the last moment butterflies-in-stomach syndrome troubles even a Tendulkar when he nears a century :=)
How wrong I was to visualize myself hitting a century when I received an admit- admission was actually taking fresh guard. Coming months of Feb n' March will reveal if I score a big century or not (alignment of dream job to actual offer).
2/Feb/09 it was when my resignation was deemed to have been submitted, although I sent my mail on 31/Jan (no credits for reasoning why). April Fools' day was my last day at office. The events are so fresh, the people then are so very part of my today's life, Pune still is the home for my children who believe they're on a vacation, my (ex) landlord just chatted with me yesterday......hey, come on, that 1 year has gone by ain't possible!
Sadly, the year has flown by...How we try hold on to happy associations...listening to 'Puraani Jeans aur Guitar' over and over does not introduce a 'Ctrl-Z' in life.
There shall be no case preparations, no group projects, no Prof's taking sessions, no preparation for exams, no pattey-shattey, no late night binges, no more student driven activities, no Tot mall, no Winsor street-Shipra mall, no more travel hassles to Delhi-Gurgaon, no Gulab Jamuns in mess, certainly no Non-Veg 4 times a week....certainly not in the IIM L Noida campus settings.
Anurag, it is time to move on; time to get your dream job; time to say goodbye to all; time to packup here and unpack somewhere else; and do not forget that time waits for none.
Thank You IPMX...you've transformed my life...you are now a part of me, try as much as this world to separate us...
...Three cheers for IPMX...Ready yourself to conquer the big bad corporate world...
Sunday, December 13, 2009
50 jobs in 50 weeks: US man's economic odyssey
>This article has been taken from Economic times dated 23rd March 2009.
======================================================
It's tough enough to find or even keep work in today's frazzled US economy, but one man has drawn inspiration from the biting recession and landed not one, but 50 jobs, across the country.
After failing 40 interviews in a row, University of Southern California college graduate Daniel Seddiqui, 26, got creative and launched a mission to cross all 50 states in 50 weeks, rolling up his sleeves in each one with some kind of employment. "I went through hell almost. I invested so much time and effort in my university, and yet I did not get anything. It was pretty frustrating. Then I was persistent enough to land 50 jobs in 50 states," he said. "It's kind of helping me decide what I want to do with my life." The economics graduate applied for any post he could, no matter how seemingly irrelevant or far removed from his first choice of career in the finance industry. "Persistence pays off," he insisted, shrugging off the 2,000 rejections he got. Seddiqui, from Los Altos, California, was surprised by how many employers supported his experiment, even though he only stayed for a week and had little on-the-job experience to offer. "Dan is probably one of the most adaptable people I've ever met," said Randy Cruse, business manager at the Boilermakers Local 83 union in Kansas City, Missouri. "He was quick, smart ... He's enjoyed it and the guys enjoyed having him," he said after Seddiqui trained with them in January. Cruse said the young boilermaker apprentice "said right up front" when he first contacted the union that he would only be working for a week. The union paid him 710 dollars as well as hotel accommodation, travel and food. "I am glad that he's going around the country and getting the message out that there are jobs out there," Cruse told AFP. "Everyone's concerned we are heading for another depression like 1928, but with people having good experiences, people are hopefully starting to understand that we can work our way out of this." More people are losing their jobs every day in the United States as the country faces its worst crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. But Seddiqui has been undeterred, even though he has yet to settle on one profession.
"I'm showing people that if you take a chance and try new things, there are jobs out there," he said, after government data revealed 651,000 jobs
were lost in February, propelling the unemployment rate to a 25-year high of 8.1 per cent. Seddiqui has already worked as a logger in Medford, Oregon, a border patrol agent in Tucson, Arizona and an archeologist in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Most employers have paid him or offered to hire him full-time. Halfway through his mission on week 25, he was working as an auto mechanic in Dearborn, Michigan, home to the Big Three US automakers Ford, Chrysler and General Motors
. "This is my 25th state, I'm halfway there and I've seen a lot of different things," he said, describing how one man had pulled out a gun in the auto repair shop just outside Detroit, considered America's most murderous city. Seddiqui launched his driving tour in September 2008 in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he worked at a Mormon humanitarian center. He then headed to Colorado, where he took on a hydrologist job, before donning cowboy gear to be a rodeo announcer in South Dakota. He wanted each job to have a link to its state. "When you think of Texas, you think of oil and gas, so I was a petroleum engineer. This week in Detroit, I am working in the auto industry, because it's huge here. Last week, I was working for the train in Chicago because if you are there, you can't avoid the train," he explained. Seddiqui set up most of the jobs in advance and found places to stay on the road, most often with his employer or a co-worker. "I've stayed with all kinds of people, from cowboys to Indians to Arabs to rednecks to just about everybody," he said. Seddiqui, who said he wants to make a documentary and write a book about his journey, had a sound piece of advice for students struggling to launch their careers. "I recommend to network and travel. Be willing to try anything. Nowadays, you can't be too picky, especially if you are a new grad," he said. "It's going to be hard, you are not going to get your dream job on the first day. Step out of your comfort zone."
======================================================
It's tough enough to find or even keep work in today's frazzled US economy, but one man has drawn inspiration from the biting recession and landed not one, but 50 jobs, across the country.
After failing 40 interviews in a row, University of Southern California college graduate Daniel Seddiqui, 26, got creative and launched a mission to cross all 50 states in 50 weeks, rolling up his sleeves in each one with some kind of employment. "I went through hell almost. I invested so much time and effort in my university, and yet I did not get anything. It was pretty frustrating. Then I was persistent enough to land 50 jobs in 50 states," he said. "It's kind of helping me decide what I want to do with my life." The economics graduate applied for any post he could, no matter how seemingly irrelevant or far removed from his first choice of career in the finance industry. "Persistence pays off," he insisted, shrugging off the 2,000 rejections he got. Seddiqui, from Los Altos, California, was surprised by how many employers supported his experiment, even though he only stayed for a week and had little on-the-job experience to offer. "Dan is probably one of the most adaptable people I've ever met," said Randy Cruse, business manager at the Boilermakers Local 83 union in Kansas City, Missouri. "He was quick, smart ... He's enjoyed it and the guys enjoyed having him," he said after Seddiqui trained with them in January. Cruse said the young boilermaker apprentice "said right up front" when he first contacted the union that he would only be working for a week. The union paid him 710 dollars as well as hotel accommodation, travel and food. "I am glad that he's going around the country and getting the message out that there are jobs out there," Cruse told AFP. "Everyone's concerned we are heading for another depression like 1928, but with people having good experiences, people are hopefully starting to understand that we can work our way out of this." More people are losing their jobs every day in the United States as the country faces its worst crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. But Seddiqui has been undeterred, even though he has yet to settle on one profession.
"I'm showing people that if you take a chance and try new things, there are jobs out there," he said, after government data revealed 651,000 jobs
were lost in February, propelling the unemployment rate to a 25-year high of 8.1 per cent. Seddiqui has already worked as a logger in Medford, Oregon, a border patrol agent in Tucson, Arizona and an archeologist in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Most employers have paid him or offered to hire him full-time. Halfway through his mission on week 25, he was working as an auto mechanic in Dearborn, Michigan, home to the Big Three US automakers Ford, Chrysler and General Motors
. "This is my 25th state, I'm halfway there and I've seen a lot of different things," he said, describing how one man had pulled out a gun in the auto repair shop just outside Detroit, considered America's most murderous city. Seddiqui launched his driving tour in September 2008 in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he worked at a Mormon humanitarian center. He then headed to Colorado, where he took on a hydrologist job, before donning cowboy gear to be a rodeo announcer in South Dakota. He wanted each job to have a link to its state. "When you think of Texas, you think of oil and gas, so I was a petroleum engineer. This week in Detroit, I am working in the auto industry, because it's huge here. Last week, I was working for the train in Chicago because if you are there, you can't avoid the train," he explained. Seddiqui set up most of the jobs in advance and found places to stay on the road, most often with his employer or a co-worker. "I've stayed with all kinds of people, from cowboys to Indians to Arabs to rednecks to just about everybody," he said. Seddiqui, who said he wants to make a documentary and write a book about his journey, had a sound piece of advice for students struggling to launch their careers. "I recommend to network and travel. Be willing to try anything. Nowadays, you can't be too picky, especially if you are a new grad," he said. "It's going to be hard, you are not going to get your dream job on the first day. Step out of your comfort zone."
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Tunde Kebab and Lucknow
>Association TEST
Word : Lucknow
Answers: Nawab, pehle aap/pehle aap, Tunde kebab and IIM
IIML Noida campus may give a misguided perception of one being deprived of word L (Lucknow). I blog today to dispel this belief.
Let's start with tunde Kebab: We (a group dozen) savored on "tunde kebab" around campus Noida Campus. Probably we even traveled lesser distance in relative assessment of Sitapur-tunde kebab centre than IIMLNC - Tunde kebab centre. The mouth melting kebabs (with and without rumali rotis) were ...........(short of words) !
Second comes IIM : The other group (another set of total batch) spent whole day at Samvit'09 at Lucknow campus with leaders like Ms Kalpana Morparia, Mr Pramod Bhasin. The delight of sharing your call (on future) of the markets with such leaders is as exhilarating as tunde kebabs.
Penultimate: Another set of batch were present today at Noida Stadium for WALK with Ms Kiran Bedi (in Nawab style) for the noble cause of awareness on breast cancer. We thank to Fortis for allowing to associate with the event.
Ultimate (pehle aap/pehle aap): Some people are aggressively preparing for the Delhi Marathon next week. The participation from IIMLNC is to promote the cause. Going by our pehle aap/pehle aap, we might be among the few to end the event (at finish line), but ...(yes, but) the cause must be supported.
IIML Noida Campus might be away from Lucknow but in no way compromise for a true Lucknow experience.
I invite all to spend time with us at NOIDA campus to evaluate and experience this satellite experience rather than to believe some third persons' words.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Leaders Interaction Series 2009 - Snapshots
IIML - IPMX invites Corporate leaders from various industries under its Leaders Interaction Series programme, on a regular basis. Leaders Interaction Series 2009 is aimed at building a strong industry academia relationship and provide a platform for interaction between the Industry Leaders and students. The interaction program allows students to discuss Market Innovations, New Management Concepts and issues relevant to the industry in the current scenario.
Ms Charu Sehgal from Deloitte Consulting
Dr Praneet Kumar from Fortis Healthcare
Mr Shubhinder Singh from Reebok
Mr S Udupa from PWC
Mr S Mitra from Maruti Suzuki
Mr Benjamin from MARTThursday, September 10, 2009
Half Truth and Half Truth...Dil Se
>
A renowned strategist spoke to the attention of an engrossed audience (yours truly IPMX2). He had them spellbound while he put to swords all established principles / jargons / processes of conventional management. And then the masterstroke - "whatever I speak is just the half-truth; the other half that I am so confidently bashing is also the truth".
Yeah I know - there are no untruths; whatever is untrue for one is true for other.
as they say "There are truths on this side of the Pyrenees, which are falsehoods on the other."
Irrespective, I am here today to speak dil se...truth or the lack of it be damned.
My boss once explained to all what a blog means (blog was still in the process of taking birth) - "Bakwaas, that's what it is. Room pe baith ke karo tou bakar, internet pe karo tou Blog".
I am fascinated by the unconventional names I have recently come across. I'll pick up few - any resemblance to anyone living or dead is purely coincidental.
PagalGuy was where I came across this possibly NRI / second generation Indian: Mukes Seth, a la Vikram Seth. Location set to USA, I had no doubt this dude was some Harvard / Wharton aspirant. Out here on IIM admission forums to advise the lesser privileged. I would picture this gal as some bomb (mukes - nukes) in absence of any profile photo. One fine day, however, his status changed to Mirzapur and his posts clearly conveyed that he was HE. That's when it stuck me that Ms Nukes may probably be Mr Mukes (w/o an "h").
Sample my friend's name: Kumar Achal Bharti. 'What's your first name?', asked our strict ManAcc Prof. 'All of them, Sir.', replied KAB.
Then I have a friend (family friend) whom Uncle-Auntie named Ashay भारतीय (indian), a la Chandrashekhar AZAD. I wonder how many of us realize we denigrate the whole of our motherland everytime we shout भारतीया or भारती; I'm sure he himself does not recall the patriotic fervor with which his parents named him.
Now if you have a perfectly harmless conventional name like मयंक Gaekwad with no strings attached, you'll still find a half-lost intellectual calling him "मैनक" {Mayank ==> Maynak} everytime he calls out for attendance. Finally, some of us with names that everyone loves (Koresh Chopra) insist that they be called "KC", or else...
So you now sure understand why I included my ex-Boss' definition of BLOG.
All righty, time to wrap up this internet bakwaas, have some tea and re-resolve to start preparing for the OM quiz later in the day.
...Marishka Hargitay...
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
IVF
>Guess from the title of this post what I'm gonna talk about = exactly correct guess places you alongside Einstein on the IQ prowess; incorrect / no guess place you with me :-)
I was tired of de-signification of the word "I" in the corporate world I left behind on 1-Apr-09. Sample the alternatives and pick up the one you like:
[1] Together everyone achieves more (kyon bhai, doosra dekh raha hota hai tou you start working).
[2] Whole is greater than sum of parts (kewal Ram-Lakhan mein).
[3] It's a win-win: you win, I win, all win (court marshal for the losers, yeah?)
[4] It's a team game: you look after my back and I look after yours (because I have not anything better to do).
[5] A job worth doing is worth doing together (for sure that's true of 1 activity, kar lo guess).
[6] None of us is as smart as all of us (kyonki smart tou hum sab paida hee huye thhey).
More senior you climbed in the mgmt ladder, more often you are expected to preach all of the above; by that virtue I must confess I had to say all this with a poker face. Wonder why not "we" get promoted or "we" get a fabulous raise or "we" get an award!
For God's sake, why do we forget the normal "I"s, as in 'eye' / 'aai' (shapath) / 'aayee' (tu chal, mai aayee) / aai-yoh (jab chot lagti hai)....so on so forth.
Before I tell you my tryst with the "I" that has currently enamored me, lemme expand the post-title: It's about "I" and "We" factor :-)
The new "I" is the Ipmx; for once this "I" lives upto its reputation. "International" is the name of this program thereby making sure that all courses imparted necessarily have that flavour:
[1] Law course has to be Legal Environment in INTERNATIONAL business.
[2] Finance has to include full blown credit course on INTERNATIONAL finance (taught by INTERNATIONAL faculty).
[3] The HRM / OB kind of subjects have to focus on INTERNATIONAL culture.
[4] Marketing and Operations need not be INTERNATIONALized explicitly because all authors n cases are so much INTERNATIONALly inclined that you are suddenly translocated in the western world.
[5] Economics without INTERNATIONAL perspective is 'baniagiri', won't it?
[6] Ahh! even the communication course is INTERNATIONAL business communication.
Lest you start dreaming of an INTERNATIONAL jetsetting lifestyle, lemme emphasize the basic "I" of the course = INDIAN. You are being groomed to be an INDIAN manager with INTERNATIONAL perspective (you knew that, didn't you?).
I did miss out the key ingredient of the program- INTERNATIONAL immersion.
However, I do not miss out on INTERNATIONAL cuisine which they do not serve here because I love all varieties of Indian food.
Till we meet again, why don't you decode my "bye / take care" phrase w/o googling?
Marishka Hargitay...anurag
PS
I came across this site (spam mail); I love the name: oktatabyebye.com
I was tired of de-signification of the word "I" in the corporate world I left behind on 1-Apr-09. Sample the alternatives and pick up the one you like:
[1] Together everyone achieves more (kyon bhai, doosra dekh raha hota hai tou you start working).
[2] Whole is greater than sum of parts (kewal Ram-Lakhan mein).
[3] It's a win-win: you win, I win, all win (court marshal for the losers, yeah?)
[4] It's a team game: you look after my back and I look after yours (because I have not anything better to do).
[5] A job worth doing is worth doing together (for sure that's true of 1 activity, kar lo guess).
[6] None of us is as smart as all of us (kyonki smart tou hum sab paida hee huye thhey).
More senior you climbed in the mgmt ladder, more often you are expected to preach all of the above; by that virtue I must confess I had to say all this with a poker face. Wonder why not "we" get promoted or "we" get a fabulous raise or "we" get an award!
For God's sake, why do we forget the normal "I"s, as in 'eye' / 'aai' (shapath) / 'aayee' (tu chal, mai aayee) / aai-yoh (jab chot lagti hai)....so on so forth.
Before I tell you my tryst with the "I" that has currently enamored me, lemme expand the post-title: It's about "I" and "We" factor :-)
The new "I" is the Ipmx; for once this "I" lives upto its reputation. "International" is the name of this program thereby making sure that all courses imparted necessarily have that flavour:
[1] Law course has to be Legal Environment in INTERNATIONAL business.
[2] Finance has to include full blown credit course on INTERNATIONAL finance (taught by INTERNATIONAL faculty).
[3] The HRM / OB kind of subjects have to focus on INTERNATIONAL culture.
[4] Marketing and Operations need not be INTERNATIONALized explicitly because all authors n cases are so much INTERNATIONALly inclined that you are suddenly translocated in the western world.
[5] Economics without INTERNATIONAL perspective is 'baniagiri', won't it?
[6] Ahh! even the communication course is INTERNATIONAL business communication.
Lest you start dreaming of an INTERNATIONAL jetsetting lifestyle, lemme emphasize the basic "I" of the course = INDIAN. You are being groomed to be an INDIAN manager with INTERNATIONAL perspective (you knew that, didn't you?).
I did miss out the key ingredient of the program- INTERNATIONAL immersion.
However, I do not miss out on INTERNATIONAL cuisine which they do not serve here because I love all varieties of Indian food.
Till we meet again, why don't you decode my "bye / take care" phrase w/o googling?
Marishka Hargitay...anurag
PS
I came across this site (spam mail); I love the name: oktatabyebye.com
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