5 Companies to look for......!!!!!!!

As the placement season kicks off, there is a whole lot of frenzy about the preparations, the company to target, the required competency, meeting the criteria. Everyone comes across a whole lot of questions and found themselves confounded into the large sea. Bereft of proper guidance, I thought of writing a small article on companies to target in the upcoming placement season. My choice is based on an assumption that these companies would be visiting the campus this year too and it may vary accordingly.

Let’s look at the list below:

1. S&P CAPITAL IQ: Setting criteria of bare minimum of 70% in high school and higher secondary, this company offers Research Associate profile. Hailed as a behemoth in its own field, this company should be the best bet for people aspiring to make their forays into corporate world. Having been to the last round of this company, I can surely say it requires sound knowledge of financial terminologies and basics to crack the company. The selections are not huge but the one who gets selected will break the jinx of IMS. So keep your head high, I am waiting for that guy to unfurl the flag of IMS.

2. UJJIVAN FINANCIAL SERVICES:  A micro-finance company and one of the best places to work in Economic Times Survey, this company comes with the profile of Management Trainee and has a good reputation in the market. The advantage with the profile is that you will get a lot of responsibilities and anyone considering a long-term future in the company should focus on it. You might have tough time initially if you don’t like the job. Hence, detail about the profile from the seniors’ working there before spoiling a seat.

3. DELOITTE US INDIA: Only an option for Commerce students, this is yet another bet for people aspiring to have long-term stint in the corporate world. The profile offered is Tax Consultant where in you will be assigned to work for US Taxation and its regulations. A sound accounting knowledge and good communication skills is a must to crack this company. No compromise on communication skills though.

4. COMPUTER SCIENCE CORPORATION: Offering a profile of Business Analyst, CSC demands a sound knowledge of Insurance concepts. The profile is closely related with Insurance and hence, it is the bare minimum competency. The written test is quite tough but with good preparations, life can be easier on D-day. The location is possibly Indore but it may vary.

5. MAHINDRA FINANCE: The profile offered is Management Trainee and mostly in MP&CG, this company is a well-known organization in its sector. There might be tough days initially as the job is scattered across field and office work, people aspiring to have a white-collar job should wait and given next person a chance to enter into this prestigious organization.

I would love to add L&T Finance into this list but their criteria can be different and hence, it should be looked upon. These are the companies which, according to me, should be the one to target. But, no job or no profile is petty if you love the work. So, keep your heads high, stay away from negative people and focus not on the basis of money, but look into futuristic terms. Because:

“Don’t do anything which does not have a futuristic potential…….”

(P.S: The views are personal and may differ from person to person. Also, the list is not rank-wise because i am no one to rank companies.)

7 tips to become a Good Senior......!!!!!!!!

The period of transition has arrived as the time comes closer for juniors to become seniors and seniors to become mentors’. Being “senior” to somebody is not only about demanding respect but is about earning it. It is not about creating a fanfare, an entourage of sycophants around you but is about giving them the helping hand, giving them the right advice. But what makes merely a “senior” a “good senior”.

Following are the tips which can make you a good senior, though not the most coveted one:

1. BREAK THE ICE: Don’t wait for them to reach out to you. Remove that inherent ego and open the lines of dialogue with them. Meet them in person; let them feel good about the place and the field of study. In nutshell, break the ice.

2. GIVE RESPECT, TAKE RESPECT: The more you give it, the more you receive it. It works according to Newton’s Law which says that “every action has an equal and opposite reaction.” So, make them feel dignified, respected and you will receive it abundantly.

3. BE FRIENDLY: Don’t try to be an authoritarian, the one who impose orders and inflicts command. Be friendly with them but maintain a certain level of distance to not allow them to touch upon your personal lives. The closer you are, the more destructive it might become.

4. BE UNBIASED: It might feel very nice to generate a fanfare among few, to have sycophants around you, always pampering you with sugary words, Facebook likes and tags but look at a broader picture. Help everybody in an equal sense, having bias towards somebody speaks about your own character. Take care of that.

5. MAKE STRONG NETWORKS: Connect with them, less virtually and more socially and bang upon those strong networks whenever needed. You might find a business partner, a friend in the need or someone who can change the course of your future. Hence, build strong networks with everybody and never boast of those networks.

6. HAVE FUN: Involve them, have fun with them, form clubs, make them feel connected to you and it can add to your fun. Enjoy, celebrate and have tons of fun together.

7. ADVICE PROPERLY: If you have committed a mistake and don’t want them to follow suit, be the first one to admit the mistake and inform them to not commit that. Don’t be biased while advising, don’t bring your personal assumptions, inferences, rivalry, liking/disliking to their knowledge. Do what is best for them………and not for you…….!!!!!!!!

Remember, don't create an impression but build a REPUTATION.......!!!!!!!! Impression fades away but reputation stands firm.

5 things to take away from Summer Internships......!!!!!!!!!

“Internship is like going to a driving school before trying out one’s hands on road………..”

The fact is, you don’t become an expert in car driving, but you know the basic manners to drive it. You don’t become perfect in it and you will further commit mistakes, but your mistakes would be less. You will not know everything about that vehicle, but you will know something about it.

The same is with Internship. You will get a glimpse of how grueling corporate life can be, you will get a hint of where you can work out and although you won’t be perfectionist in whatever you will be doing, if done seriously, it has a lot to offer.

For some of you, it might be a formality (which it is academically) but in a real sense it holds a whole lot of importance in certain areas. As you guys gear up for the upcoming placement season, here is my list of output you should take away from your Internship Experience:

1. Relationships matters:  This is one of the finest mantras of corporate life. The more networks you have, the more solutions to problems you have and the more opportunities you have. By relationships, I do not mean finding your soul mate or group of friends who can be part of your fancy Facebook posts, it means making connections with important people in that organization.

Take time and write a thank you note to your mentor, write a thank you e-mail to the concerned HR or take suggestions from experience lads there and it will build a wide array of networks for you. It can turn out to be one stop solution for you.

2. Personality Building: Considering most of you into marketing or selling jobs for a short period, this is the best time to build your personality. A sound personality should be a good leader, confident, positive, and always ready to go that extra mile. Meet new people, take their experiences, explore yourself and get out of that comfort zone of your friends/ family. The world is there to offer you a lot, go and utilize resources to build a sound personality.

3. Communication skills: This is a very true saying “Whatever you are and wherever you are is a direct result of the way you communicate”. Take a look around your problems or your animosity with people; it is a direct result of the way you communicated with them. Take a look around and you will notice people at higher hierarchy commands precisely but with authority.

Everything takes a back seat when you are a good communicator. Talk to people over the phone or in person put your point precisely yet strongly and listen to their requirements before responding. Unarguably, this is the need of the hour in modern day organizations and it's better you should develop it without wasting any further time.

4. Professionalism: In simple words, it means “the competence or skill expected out of a professional” and to grow ahead in career, it holds paramount importance. Although it varies from profession to profession, general etiquette include being punctual, formally dressed, acting in professional conduct and always taking responsibility for one’s actions.

You might say it to be above the head points but commencing a career in Deloitte, I observed this to be the requisites on the basis of which people judge you. Develop a good character, always value time and your work, the results would not be immediate but it would be long-lasting.

5. Resume-building: There might be a deadline that you met, there might be a target that you achieved, there might be a formal function that you organized, there might be an audit that you did flawlessly or there might be a tax return which you filed to the best of your capabilities. All this can add into your resume as achievements, extra-curricular etc.

Until this day, your resume might not be as good as you had wished it initially but you have not missed the bus yet, take the time to build it. Do courses which you feel would add to your knowledge (don’t assess knowledge in terms of money, I can bet one NCFM module will give you much more than 1600 bucks), determine that and start the process.

In the end, all said and my writing boils down to this heartfelt thought:

“You all had a good time till now, but now the time will come when a defeat would change friendships’, a victory would change perceptions. It is the time you move beyond those “in-hand salary” talks and build a career which rewards by default. It is the time when you prove, not to others’, but to yourself that you deserve a place. 

All the best......!!!!!!!!

A Letter to Juniors......!!!!!!!!

Dear juniors,

It was rather an enthralling (and not an emotional) sendoff that set out the stage for a perfect valediction that we can boast on forever. Last one year had been eventful, exciting and adventurous with you bunch of people. Your enthusiasm and internal zest to participate has moved me personally but lack of it has disappointed me also.

As you embark upon your final and most important year of this course, the opportunities that will knock your doors would be abundant.  The time to come would pose a lot of challenges, would be an eye opener for most of you but would give you the best moments of your college life. Unarguably, we as your seniors’ have done our part by grabbing every opportunity that came our way (without being boastful about the miraculous number of job offers we received), now it’s your turn to blow your trumpet by surpassing the numbers we created. And we would be much happy if you guys do that.

On a personal front, my purpose of writing this letter is to communicate certain things directly to you which I felt can make you ready for a memorable year and a better life. Firstly, I would prefer you to identify your own destiny as soon as possible and be crystal clear about that. Be definite about whether you prefer a corporate job or a well-settled government job. But staying in dilemma makes no point since you miss out on a lot of opportunities and it worsens the situation. The perfect example would be Ishan Jain or a Sushil Vijayvargiya to say the least.

Secondly, never bad mouth this Institution publicly because it is your academic identity. Wherever you will go, you will be judged by the market value this Institution holds and hence there is a greater need to talk about a lot of positives rather than cribbing about anything that is out of your reach. Because somebody has rightly said, Institutions doesn’t make students, students’ make Institutions. Prime example is IIM-Ahmedabad.

Thirdly, there lies an underlying potential in each of you which needs to be identified and groomed. Justify that potential, create your own standards, live up to those standards and excel in whatever you do. This is the need of the hour to stay motivated and work hard which will give you the resolve to encash the best available opportunity. The biggest sin a student can make is not doing justice to the potential he/she has and hence, look deeper into you, arise, awake and create your own identity.

Lastly, we as your seniors’ (collectively and individually) are there to mentor you whenever the need occurs. You might not have the best of communication or a friendship with any of us but take the step to talk if you feel the need to do so. It is good to stay in touch and learn from varied experiences we possess. It will surely be a good experience. Let's create a good relationship for our mutual benefit.

One simple piece of advice, there is no turning back once you miss an opportunity and therefore, utilize every resource, every opportunity and every experience to make your life a more meaningful and memorable one at IMS……….All the Best…………!!!!!!!!

Your Friend first than Senior………

Ankit Vani

5 Things I learned from Placement Cell.......!!!!!!

First of all, it is my privilege (and not humility) to thank whole placement cell team for providing a lot of students like me an opportunity to make LIFE@IMS more resourceful one. Apart from that, all of you deserve a big applaud for the success this year, least to say, numbers speak louder than my words…….

A team led by a vibrant, soft-spoken and cool-headed Avnish Vyas Sir, whole team worked like a chained lot. Be it Chandan Arora who helped me by arranging mock interviews (which allowed me to become a final product) or a straight-forward Jasreen Wilkhoo who kept me updated with every details of S&P process or a soft-spoken Ankit Shrivastava who worked for common good or a bold, affirmative Palak Arya who eased the butterflies at the time of Deloitte’s final round or a short-heighted but well-behaved Prashant Kaushik, every member of the team deserves a big THANK YOU…..!!!!!!!!

Let’s come to a broader picture now………Due to my presence in most of the campus process (where finance students were involved), it allowed me to know their work and modus operandi from which I sought few lessons. I am sharing those with you……….

TEAM WORK:  When a lot of people are involved in anything, there can be two things, either they can mess up everything or they can make up everything possible and this team has the latter ability. A team or more precisely a group of people when come together need coherent approach to carry out any activity. The placement cell team has the one. Team work is also about working for a common goal leaving behind your personal interest and they do this every time for a common good. Their hard work produces the best results and this is a quality to learn.

COMMUNICATION & COORDINATION: Since their every word matters, I have hardly seen any wrong information being sent out or any communication gap among the members which, if exist, can lead to a bigger problem. They co-ordinate the activities properly with every individual busy in his/her own assigned responsibility and work hard to keep the recruiters happy so that they can churn out more and more students.

The whole team......and every one of them deserves a cheer......!!!!!!!

PROPER UTILISATION OF SKILLS: The team is properly chosen after new recruits are being tested at different campus processes and hence everybody comes with a specific skill set. The skill set they possess are then channelized according to the areas the whole team is expected to work in. For e.g. If somebody is good at writing mails, he/she would be assigned that particular task. That is a perfect example of proper utilization of skills.

DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY: To ensure things at right place and at right time, the authorities are delegated to each individual of the team. For a particular process, everything is being decided in advance, as to who will accompany the delegates, who will manage the students and who will look after the whole behind the scenes work. By proper delegation, a flow is being ensured which makes the whole process a flawless one.

SELFLESSNESS:  In this self-centered world where it is very easy to do something for your own but proportionately tough to do the same for others, these people do their business selflessly. They are not professionals’, they are somebody from us and they also have a job aspiration but they leave behind those aspirations when they are involved in the process. They might feel frustrated of not getting a job but it never expose out in their work which I think is one of the best professional pursuits to have.

Well, Thank you very much from whole IMS student family for giving us one of the most cherished moment of our life………..Kund Snan……..!!!!!!!!