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EXPRESSNewsline I
NEWS
NEW DELHI l WEDNESDAY l MAY 9 l 2012
TheIndian EXPRESS www.indianexpress.com
Traffic police find one way out of Karol Bagh chaos, trial project on
ONE YEAR LATER ■ Plan to make Karol Bagh pedestrian-friendly underway, new traffic circulation system enforced ANANYA BHARDWAJ
WALKING IN PEACE
NEW DELHI, MAY 8
M
ORE than a year after it was conceptualised, the plan to make the streets of Karol Bagh pedestrian-friendly has reached the implementation stage. The authorities have barred the entry of vehicles on some of the busy lanes of this shoppers’ paradise for a trial period, depending on which the project will see full implementation. The plan approved conceptually in 2010 was stuck on the drawing board as the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the traffic police, the main implementing agencies, could not reach a consensus on many specifics. Last week, the traffic police closed entry of vehicles on Ajmal Khan Road, as the work of improving pedestrian facilities in the area started simultaneously. The new traffic plan allows vehicular movement in a squarish loop around the Karol Bagh market. Vehicles cannot use Ajmal Khan Road, thereby also restricting their entry into the inner roads. According to the traffic circulation plan of the area, there are two main parellel roads — Gurudwara Road and Saraswati Road — which are connected by Pyarelal Road and Take Road. The traffic movement on all four roads has been made one-way only (see map). “We have started the trial run and it has been going on well. No major conflict has been observed. It will take some time for people to get used to the new pattern. We have given a go-ahead to authorities concerned and told them to sort out the parking issues. Once the parking area is finalised, we will make this circulation system permanent,” said Satyendra Garg, Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic). The Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (Planning & Engineering) Centre (UTTIPEC), an autonomous body whose approval is mandatory for any infrastructure project in Delhi, has give its nod. “We aim to create an atmosphere where people move around freely, with hawkers sitting on the roadside, cafes on the one side and some people playing music on the other. We are working on complete revitalisation and urban renewal,” Ashok Bhattacharjee, Director of UTTIPEC.
MAHARANA PRATAP ROAD DESH BANDHU GUPTA ROAD
HARDHYAN SINGH ROAD ARYA SAMAJ ROAD PADAM SINGH ROAD
KAROL BAGH TANK ROAD
The one-way circulation plan was implemented last week.
Towards Jhandewalan
RAVI KANOJIA
PL ANS ON PARKING MCD OFFICE: A three-level stack parking, with capacity of 150 cars, will be provided at the MCD office. The fourth floor of the facility will be the MCD office.
Quotes
“We have started the trial run and it has been going on well. No major conflict has been observed. It will take some time for people to get used to the new pattern.” SATYENDRA GARG,
Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic).
“We aim to create an atmosphere where people move around freely, with hawkers sitting on the roadside, cafes on the one side and some people playing music on the other.” ASHOK BHATTACHARJEE, Director of UTTIPEC
“This market is popular for its wedding shopping. Everyday there are a transactions worth lakhs, why would a person want to park their vehicle so far away and walk with so much cash VINNI, a shopkeeper in Karol Bagh
CORPORATE ASSOCIATE DIARY
JESSE RAM HOSPITAL: A stack parking for about 60 cars will be provided at the hospital parking area.
SHASTRI PARK: It will also be used for a seven-storey multi-level parking, which may be reviewed as a threelevel parking lot.
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
THE authorities have started work decongesting Karol Bagh, but the traders and the market association of the area are not convinced. President of Karol Bagh Market Association Murli Mani said the implementation of the new traffic plan has affected sales. “After people enter the loop, they cannot come into the main market but remain on the periphery. It often leads to traffic jams, and thus people avoid coming to the market. This has affected sales,” Mani said. The market association has proposed some changes in the traffic plan and, along with the RWA of the
E D U C AT I O N, C E L E B R AT I O N S, E V E N T S
CONVOCATION (AIMSR)
CONVOCATION (FIIB) Fortune Institute of International Business, recently held its 16th convocation for the 20102012 batch. Nitin Seth, Country Head – India, Fidelity Worldwide Investments, was the chief guest on the occasion. The Institute conferred PG diplomas in business management on 116 students. Radhika Shrivastava, Executive Director of the Institute, welcomed the chief guest, members of the Governing Board and Advisory Council, President (FIIB), chairman, alumni, faculty, staff, graduating students and their parents. Shrivastava also shared the achievements made by the institute during the past six months.
JINDAL GLOBAL BUSINESS SCHOOL Jindal Global Business School offers a two year post graduate degree programme ‘Master of Business Administration’ (MBA). JGBS has successfully placed all eligible MBA students of 2010-12 batch in organisations such as Fortis Healthcare Ltd, Deloitte (MT Track), Sodexo, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, Luxottica, Jindal Power Ltd, ARSS Group and Genpact. Students have found employment in consulting, operations, sales and marketing, and HR. According to Prof. (Dr.) Michael J Barnes, Dean, JGBS, and a Stanford alumnus, “For a Bschool to achieve such success in second year of its existence is no small task”. Similar success has been achieved for summer internships wherein
PU
SA
RO
AD
TWO WAY TRIFFIC MOVEMENT
GURUDWARA ROAD Only one-way traffic, which turns left on Pyarelal Road, and goes to Saraswati Road ONE WAY TRIFFIC MOVEMENT
Shoppers buy in bulk, carrying goods to vehicles will be a problem: Traders NEW DELHI, MAY 8
Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda, recently organised its 1st Convocation. Prof Yogesh Chawla, Director, PGIMER, Chandigarh, was the chief guest on the occasion. Prof S C Chopra, Dean Academics, administered the Hippocratic Oath to the young doctors being inducted into the medical professional wherein they committed themselves ethical practice of medical profession to the best interest of humankind. The new graduates received their degrees from Dr GPI Singh, Director Principal, AIMSR. He also presented the annual report in which he highlighted the evolution of Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research.
Satyam Fashion Institute recently organised a fashion show 'InDepth’12. Nearly 40 students showcased their collection at the fashion show. The theme of the show ‘Unforgettable Hues’ - Colour has the power to take all things mundane and make them special. Abdul Halder was the chief guest and jury guest for the show was Varija Bajaj. The collection included kids wear, party wear, and street wear, Cocktail, semi formal, club wear, adventure wear, resort wear, evening dress. Convertible cocktail was also showcased. More than thirty industrialists, principals of school and many well known dignitaries were present at the event.
AJMAL KHAN ROAD Entry for vehicles closed for the road
PYARELAL ROAD
NOTICE BOARD
Event (SATYAM FASHION INST)
SARASWATI MARG
area, has sent a letter to the authorities suggesting that the intersection point of Gurudwara Road and Pusa Road should be made an entry/exit point. They have also asked that the right turn towards Gurudwara Road should be allowed from the Arya Samaj Road. “Exit from Gurudwara Road circle to Pusa Road was allowed earlier. It should be opened again. The customers and residents coming from St Thomas Lane cannot exit directly and have to take a 1.5-km-long loop to exit from Arya Samaj Road,” Mani said. Lack of parking space is another issue that the market association has highlighted. There are also a few who feel that the concept of pedestrianising Ajmal
NEW DELHI, MAY 8
Course (IP UNIVERSITY)
all the students have opted for sectors and projects of their choice. Students of 2011-13 batch are presently interning with organisations such as Axis Bank, Axis Auditing, BHEL, PepsiCo, FRS Global, E&Y, KPMG, LG, Nokia, Studio Moderna, UB Group, Makemytrip.com and several others. Around five students have even had the opportunity to pursue projects from overseas (Dubai and Europe). According to Assistant Dean (Academics), Dr Shounak Roy Choudhary, an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur and IIM, Ahmedabad, “This is a conscious step towards globalising the MBA experience at JGBS. We already have a unique mix of faculty members at JGBS and overseas internships together with global Immersion further strengthen the global focus of the MBA programme”.
PRITHA CHATTERJEE NEW DELHI, MAY 8
WITH the CBI registering cases against five current students of AIIMS for manipulating their entrance exam answer sheets, the institute is now working on measures to step up its examination security system. The outsourced private scanning machine for Optical Mark Reader (OMR) sheets will be replaced. The machine was found to be the source of the alleged manipulation of answer sheets. Now, AIIMS is purchasing its own machine with expert help from IIT and the National informatics Centre. “We have set up an expert committee to come up with the specifications. The committee has representatives from IIT and NIC,” said Dr Y K Gupta, AIIMS spokesperson. The expert committee has had three meetings over the last two months to decide the specifications of the machines. Answers to all objective-type questions are fed into the scanning machine, which is programmed to “check” the papers by identifying the correct options. Sources said the investigative agency found that the private agency was manipulating the machines by rigging the pre-fed answer keys or answering more questions in the sheets before scanning them. Meanwhile, Union Health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Tuesday announced in the Rajya Sabha that the “OMR answer sheet has been improvised for better accuracy”. The institute has issued notices for cancellation of admissions to all students who have cases against them. The examination cell and authorities from the academic and administrative sections are expected to meet on Wednesday to take a final decision, after the students’ representations. While four of the students gave their entrance in 2010, one appeared in 2011.
Strike by Air India pilots grounds passengers’ schedule EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (IP University) has launched the Post Graduate Diploma in Educational Management (PGDELM) under the University School of Education (USE) from this academic year. Admission Brochure – X related to the course was released by Vice-Chancellor Prof D K Bandyopadhyay. Prof Bandyopadhyay said on the occasion that the course will go a long way in making leaders of the future how to foster goodwill and commitment during times of transition to create and maintain a high performance organisation, discover how to design and manage change more effectively, gain an awareness of principles used to address people’s readiness and capability for change, and learn how to make people more receptive to and prepared for change. He further added that the course will prove to be a trendsetter in the field of Educational Leadership and Management setting benchmark in training the leaders of the 21st century. This one-year (two semesters) regular course is designed to prepare professionals for managerial roles within the primary, secondary and tertiary education sectors. Prof. Saroj Sharma, Dean USE was also present at the event.
Khan Road is not a practical and feasible. Vinni, owner of an optical shop in the area, pointed out that Karol Bagh is a market for heavy goods. Stopping entry of vehicles will affect the loading and unloading of goods. “This market is popular for its wedding shopping. There are more than a dozen gold jewellery shops here. Everyday there are a transactions worth lakhs, why would a person want to park their vehicle so far away and walk with so much cash,” Vinni said. He said shoppers buy in bulk and carrying the goods to their vehicles will also be an issue. “This project is not feasible at all. We have been working here for more than 20 years and experience tells us this will not work,” he said.
AIIMS answer sheets fraud: Institute to buy own OMR machine
HOURS before Air India derecognised the agitating pilots’ union — Indian Pilots’ Guild — the national carrier officially had canceled only three early morning flights operating from Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport till Tuesday afternoon. Three more flights were cancelled later in the day, two of which were scheduled to fly on domestic routes. Passengers of the three early morning flights on Tuesday — AI-101 to
New York, AI-187 to Toronto and AI127 to Chicago — had been provided accommodation in various hotels. Air India officials were unable to provide a clear picture as they were waiting for the agitating pilots to report for duty. “Normally, the pilots are expected to sign in three hours before the scheduled departure of a flight. Most of our international flights operated on schedule, other than some which experienced minor delays. By afternoon, the scenario was clearer and we cancelled the Singapore flight scheduled
to depart just after midnight and two other flights. A schedule for Wednesday has also been issued,” said an airline official. Officials said passengers whose flights were cancelled are being given a choice between hotel accommodation, tickets for a later flight or a ticket in another airline depending on availability of seats. If passengers unsure of the status of their flights get their tickets cancelled, they will have to buy expensive tickets and pay cancellation charges on the Air India ticket.
Few opt for NE women’s hostel, rent cut EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, MAY 8
A HOSTEL for working women from Northeastern states has been built in Jasola, “in view of the increasing assault against the women of Northeastern states in Delhi and NCR area”. A joint venture of the ministries for Women and Child Welfare and the Ministry for Development of Northeastern region (DONER), the sixstorey hostel is now accepting applications for accommodation. “The hostel is meant to provide safe and affordable accommodation to working women from Northeastern states. Women who are in the capital for training programmes can also apply,” said Jayashree Mukherjee, Joint Secretary, Ministry of DONER. The ministry has appointed the YWCA (Young Women’s Christian Association) of Delhi as the operator of the hostel to take care of its running, the Joint Secretary said. The hostel, which can accommodate 501 residents in 167 three-bedded rooms is meant for working women from the Northeastern states who earn a maximum of Rs 30,000 per month. To
The rent was reduced from Rs 3,000 to Rs 1,500 per month.
aid working mothers, the hostel will also provide a creche facility on payment. Though the rent for the hostel rooms was initially fixed at Rs 3,000, the lack of applicants has led to the rent being slashed to Rs 1,500 per month, said officials from the Ministry of DONER. A hostel management committee
RAVI KANOJIA
comprises an Under Secretary (Working Women Hostel) of the Ministry of Women and Child Development, one representative from DONER, one representative from National Women Commission, the operator, one representative from residents, three members of civil society organisations working for cause of women from the Northeastern region.
Chetan Bhagat gives away awards to the best in Indian education May 31, 2011, 14:48 IST XLRI, IIT Delhi, Indian Institute of Finance, MDI Gurgaon, Fore School of Management, Fortune Institute of International Business among winners Brands Academy, one of India’s leading brand management and consulting companies, organized Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards Ceremony to felicitate India’s leading private educational institutions that have displayed exemplary excellence as education providers to the young generation of India. The awards were based on a comprehensive market research study and opinion surveys conducted by BIG Brands Research, one of the top market research agencies in India. Mr. Chetan Bhagat, India’s most revered author was the chief guest at the gala ceremony and gave away the award certificates to the winners, which included prominent universities, colleges and institutes from all across India. The names of the Best Engineering Colleges included Quantum School of Technology (North India), SUS College of Engineering & Technology (Punjab), Yamuna Institute of Engineering & Technology (Haryana), Satyam College of Engineering (UP), HR Institute of Technology (Ghaziabad). Special awards were given to IIMT College of Engineering (Academics) and P.M. College of Engineering (Industry Collaboration). The names of the Best Management Institutes included NIILM (North India), Jagannath International Management School, JIMS Kalkaji (Delhi) and Rawal Institute of Management (Best Infrastructure). Other prominent winners included Samalkha Group of Institutions (Professional College), Scottish High International School (International School), Heritage Institute of Hotel & Tourism (Hotel Management), Institute of Advanced Medical Studies (PG Medical Preparatory Classes), Galgotias University (Private University) and Lovely Professional University (Best Placements). Renowned institutions like XLRI Jamshedpur, Indian Institute of Finance, Fore School of Management and Fortune Institute of International Business also won prominent awards for being The Best in their respective categories. On the occasion, Mr. Chetan Bhagat, said, “This initiative from Brands Academy to promote Education Excellence and recognise the achievers is a commendable effort. No one can dispute the fact that quality education is what will actually contribute towards India developing into a global superpower. And you are the people who will be amongst the real contributors in India's progress. I sincerely hope that your achievements will not only see greater heights in the times to come but also motivate others in the industry to follow suit!”
Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards have been instituted by Brands Academy to recognise the contribution made by the private sector in promoting excellence in professional education in India. The company conducted this research study over a period of 6 months with more than 100 field executives conducting the opinion surveys amongst students, parents and education consultants from different states apart from collecting the opinion of industry experts and prominent educationists. The primary objectives of this study were to identify and recognize education excellence, associated education innovations and best practices that lead to exemplary performance and to highlight the importance of innovation in the competitive and ever-evolving environment in the education industry. According to Mr. Sanjay Kumar, Vice President - Marketing, Brands Academy Pvt. Ltd., “The winners have exemplified Educational Excellence amongst the private educational institutions in their respective regions. Almost all the winners scored extremely well in our study due to their dedication to enhance their course pedagogy through practical orientation and make it industrially relevant. As per our study, highly qualified and experienced faculty, quality infrastructure and active industrial interface are the primary reasons for these institutes to achieve sustainable placement records. We hope that other private institutions in the region will try to emulate their success story and give them tough competition next year.” “Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards are the most authentic assessment of the ability of the participants to consistently deliver upon the expectations of the students and their parents besides making noticeable contribution towards the progress of India’s various industries in terms of delivering worthy manpower, an aspect that’s crucial for success of their business operations,” concluded Mr. Kumar.
Chetan Bhagat gives away awards to the best education providers India Infoline News Service / 16:23 , May 30, 2011 Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards have been instituted by Brands Academy to recognise the contribution made by the private sector in promoting excellence in professional education in India. Brands Academy, one of India’s leading brand management and consulting companies, organized Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards Ceremony to felicitate India’s leading private educational institutions that have displayed exemplary excellence as education providers to the young generation of India. The awards were based on a comprehensive market research study and opinion surveys conducted by BIG Brands Research, one of the top market research agencies in India. Chetan Bhagat, India’s most revered author was the chief guest at the gala ceremony and gave away the award certificates to the winners, which included prominent universities, colleges and institutes from all across India. The names of the Best Engineering Colleges included Quantum School of Technology (North India), SUS College of Engineering & Technology (Punjab), Yamuna Institute of Engineering & Technology (Haryana), Satyam College of Engineering (UP), HR Institute of Technology (Ghaziabad). Special awards were given to IIMT College of Engineering (Academics) and P.M. College of Engineering (Industry Collaboration). The names of the Best Management Institutes included NIILM (North India), Jagannath International Management School, JIMS Kalkaji (Delhi) and Rawal Institute of Management (Best Infrastructure). Other prominent winners included Samalkha Group of Institutions (Professional College), Scottish High International School (International School), Heritage Institute of Hotel & Tourism (Hotel Management), Institute of Advanced Medical Studies (PG Medical Preparatory Classes), Galgotias University (Private University) and Lovely Professional University (Best Placements). Renowned institutions like XLRI Jamshedpur, Indian Institute of Finance, Fore School of Management and Fortune Institute of International Business also won prominent awards for being The Best in their respective categories. On the occasion, Chetan Bhagat, said, “This initiative from Brands Academy to promote Education Excellence and recognise the achievers is a commendable effort. No one can dispute the fact that quality education is what will actually contribute towards India developing into a global superpower. And you are the people who will be amongst the real contributors in India's progress. I sincerely hope that your achievements will not only see greater heights in the times to come but also motivate others in the industry to follow suit!” Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards have been instituted by Brands Academy to recognise the contribution made by the private sector in promoting excellence in professional education in India. The company conducted this research study over a period of 6 months with more than 100 field executives conducting the opinion surveys amongst students, parents and education consultants from different states apart from collecting the opinion of industry experts and prominent educationists. The primary objectives of this study were to identify and recognize education excellence, associated education innovations and best practices that lead to exemplary performance and to highlight the importance of innovation in the competitive and ever-evolving environment in the education industry.
According to Sanjay Kumar, Vice President - Marketing, Brands Academy Pvt. Ltd., “The winners have exemplified Educational Excellence amongst the private educational institutions in their respective regions. Almost all the winners scored extremely well in our study due to their dedication to enhance their course pedagogy through practical orientation and make it industrially relevant. As per our study, highly qualified and experienced faculty, quality infrastructure and active industrial interface are the primary reasons for these institutes to achieve sustainable placement records. We hope that other private institutions in the region will try to emulate their success story and give them tough competition next year.” “Brands Academy Education Excellence Awards are the most authentic assessment of the ability of the participants to consistently deliver upon the expectations of the students and their parents besides making noticeable contribution towards the progress of India’s various industries in terms of delivering worthy manpower, an aspect that’s crucial for success of their business operations,” concluded Kumar.
The number of seats in the full time PGDM program is 120 and that of the part time PGDM program is 60. Fortune Institute of International Business (FIIB), the Delhi based B-School, is one of the first institutes to introduce the international perspective into generic MBA curriculum. The institute saw its inception in 1995 and 16 batches have graduated since then. The B-School is currently conducting the admission process for the batch of 2011-13. FIIB offers two year Full Time PGDM program and three year Part Time PGDM program. Both the programs are AICTE approved. The last date to apply for the two year full time PGDM program is Thursday, May 31, 2011 and that of the three year part time PGDM program is Monday, August 15, 2011. The selection for the full time PGDM program takes place through CAT and MAT scores. The cut off score for CAT is 80 percentile and that of MAT is 650. The admission for the part time PGDM program takes place on the basis of work experience.
The number of seats in the full time PGDM program is 120 and that of the part time PGDM program is 60. The fee of the full time PGDM program is Rs. 7.5 lakh and the fee of the part time PGDM program is Rs. 3 lakh. Talking about the USP of the B-School, Radhika Shrivastava, Executive Director, FIIB told MBAUniverse.com, “Apart from being one of the first institutes to introduce the international perspective into its generic MBA curriculum, the B-School is also known for its faculty exchange and joint research arrangements with academic institutes in other countries, cross continental projects on real issues faced by MNCs.” Regarding the cross cultural projects, Radhika Shrivastava said, “The student members of the project team are selected from FIIB and also from our foreign-institution partner. Over a course of four to six weeks, the students work in tandem to devise solutions for the sponsoring organization.”
“In the span of 15 years, FIIB has been able to create a niche in the corporate and academic circles for its innovative approach to MBA education, and is ranked high among the top management institutions in India. Accreditation by the National Board of Accreditation (NBA), recognition of PGDM by AICTE are testimony to the quality education being imparted at FIIB,” she added. Talking about the location advantage of the B-school, Radhika Shrivastava said, “The institute is located in a convenient location in South Delhi and is close to the airport. There are several advantages that are associated with major business hubs.” According to Ms Shrivastava, FIIB has close association with numerous companies. In the placements 2011, the finance sector recruited the most. The major recruiters included ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Citibank and Yes Bank. Consultancy companies like Copal Partners, Capital IQ, Grail Research, Deloitte Consulting, KPMG and Genpact also made offers to students. “The remuneration received by students has been continually and steadily rising at FIIB, as was reiterated this year as well. During this placement season, FIIB yet again saw a huge talent pool of young managers with a well-developed capability to manage and lead change,” stated Ms Shrivastava. She also shared with MBAUniverse.com the various MBA course fee financing options for students. When it comes to financing the students, the FIIB admission policy ensures that the deserving candidates are given all opportunities to fund their education. “Towards this aim, we have relationships with banks like HDFC, Axis Bank and Credila Financial Services. The current maximum interest rate in these banks for an education loan is 15 per cent for HDFC and Axis, and 14 per cent for Credila Financial Services,” Ms Shrivastava informed. FIIB offers scholarships up to 20 per cent for the fee for the outstanding students with excellent academic and extracurricular record, demonstrating aptitude for a career in business management. “We also offer need based scholarships,” Ms Shrivastava mentioned. For more information on FIIB, visit the MBAUniverse.com micro site: http://www.mbauniverse.com/admissions/progress.php?institute_id=604 Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more updates on MBA Admissions 2011.
Published On: 08 Apr 2011
An interview with Ms. Radhika Shrivastava, Vice President of Fortune Institute of International Business (FIIB) Q1. Please tell us in brief about the Institute. FIIB is an exciting place to study and grow. It is a place where thinkers become leaders. In a short span of 15 years, FIIB has carved a niche in the corporate & academic circles for its innovative approach to MBA education and is ranked high among the top management institutions in India. A highly collaborative culture, combined with a small student body creates a vigorous intellectual environment and compelling learning experience. Accreditation by the National Board of Accreditation (NBA), equivalence of PGDM to MBA by All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), ranked among the best B-schools in India, awards by major business school academies, are a further testimony to the quality education being imparted at Fortune Institute. You can read more about FIIB at www.fiib.edu.in. Q2. What are the facilities available inside the campus? FIIB’s campus, located in the prime location of South Delhi, is an esthetically designed, modern building that provides a zealous learning environment. Air-conditioned classrooms, reading and syndicate rooms equipped with modern multi-media and audio/video systems, facilitates effective learning. The Institute uses technology-based teaching to enhance the quality of learning by students. Wi-Fi, videoconferencing, Blackboard technology, online learning and teaching software have been implemented to boost individual learning outcomes. A fully computerized, bar-coded and air-conditioned knowledge management center houses over 15,000 books, 195 periodicals/journals, 750 audio-visual and multimedia formats, making learning a pleasurable experience at FIIB. Q3. If I were to ask you to mention three differentiators for your institute what would they be? 1. A global MBA with a unique curriculum that provides an international business perspective across all functional majors. 2. Heavy emphasis on building extensive connections to the business community to enhance the education experience of future business leaders. 3. Strategic collaborations with renowned international management institutions and councils for student and faculty exchange, joint research and consultancy. Q4. What makes your institute stand out among other MBA schools? Innovations in learning processes are a continuous activity at FIIB. FIIB was one of the first schools to introduce an international perspective into the generic MBA curriculum. Over the years, we has used very innovative approaches to provide these world-class global inputs that are now a major differentiating factor between FIIB and other schools. Some of these initiatives include: 1. Faculty exchange and joint research arrangements with academic institutions of repute in other countries. 2. Cross-continental projects on real issues facing MNCs. These project teams are staffed jointly between FIIB’ians and students from our foreign-institution partner. Over a course of 4-6 weeks, the students work in tandem to devise solutions for the sponsoring organization. 3. Through FIIB’s study abroad program, students get to experience life overseas and the dynamic academic cultures of countries around. Currently, we offer this program in China, USA, Singapore, Dubai and Europe. Q5. What kind of scholarships are available from the institute’s side? FIIB rewards outstanding students, with an excellent academic and extracurricular record, demonstrating aptitude for a career in business management with Scholarships up to Rs. 1 Lakh each. It also offers need based scholarships. More details are available with the Admissions Department.
Published On: 08 Apr 2011
An interview with Ms. Radhika Shrivastava, Vice President of Fortune Institute of International Business (FIIB).. cont. Q6. What vision does FIIB foster for India? FIIB strives to create leaders who are well-prepared to take on the business and social challenges that India’s fabric poses as it steps into the next decade to emerge as a strong economic power with inclusive growth. To make this a reality, FIIB believes that Innovation is key and business school graduates have a critical, and in many cases, a defining role to play here. They are in positions that require them to make strategic investments, build organizational capacity to innovate, reinvent management processes, and more. Thus, FIIB has made a concerted effort to incorporate innovation as a critical element of its strategy. Through its CSR activities and mission, it is further sensitizing and loading these future leaders with the realities and experiences of operating in a primarily rural economy, with a completely new set of rules of engagement and challenges. Q7. B-schools in India have been propagating concepts of capitalism. Don’t you think that BSchools now need to teach sustainable capitalism- a concept which will not just address the motive of organization profit maximization, but will also ensure that corporations start moving in the direction of sustainable development? Sustainable Development is a very often talked about concept at FIIB –whether it’s amongst the students, or while designing and delivering courses, or even in FIIB’s own operations. We have a Sustainability Development Center (FIIB-SDC) as a center of excellence at FIIB wherein we have taken a consortium approach to tackling this area. Given the lack of dedicated faculty in this area, we are using a panel of experts to teach this in our curriculum and to develop new and innovative academic materials. The panel is headed by a very eminent personality, Mr. Mehmood Khan, ex Global Innovation Leader Unilever. We take the classroom experience in this particular area to a very different level, wherein we have tie-ups with many not-for profits operating in this domain for projects and experiential assignments. Furthermore to stress the importance of this area, we have made many path-breaking courses such as Engaging Rural Societies, Rural Marketing and Environmental Management now core requirements in our curriculum. Also, to live what we teach, we have committed to making FIIB a Green Building and have a clear Action Plan to move to a fully sustainable campus in a set period of time. Q8. What role can industry interface play in enhancing placements & internships of B-school and also in creating its brand name? The relationship between an MBA school and the Industry is completely synergistic. Both need the other. Specifically, industry interface includes: guest lectures, seminars, workshops, live projects, industry analysis, and industry report creation, among other learning opportunities. FIIB has strong linkages with the business community and these relationships offer great opportunity for students while they are studying and later for placements at the completion of their respective programs. Specifically, in addition to the things mentioned above, FIIB is focused on building extensive connections to the business community through its supervised consulting opportunities for students, interactive seminars, bi-weekly CEO lectures, etc. to enhance the education experience of future business leaders. Q9. How is FIIB contributing towards encouraging and nurturing Entrepreneurship? Today, innovation, entrepreneurship and sustainability together form that pivot on which the Indian economy at large, and FIIB in particular wishes to grow and evolve through. At FIIB, we have created the entrepreneurship cell called UDAAN. The cell provides a conduit by which students brainstorm newer ideas, organize the requisite support, access relevant entrepreneurial resources, network with prominent community entrepreneurs like through the NEN network, and share ideas.
On Monday, March 21, 2011, AT Kearney, which is a global management consulting firm that focuses on strategic and operational CEOagenda concerns in association with Fortune Institute of International Business (FIIB) conducted a Case Study Workshop at FIIB. The two senior managers of the prestigious firm, Sarovar Agarwal and Amit Saharia conducted a case study workshop to FIIB students in the campus. The firm also conducts case analyses workshops at the IIM's. Sarovar Agarwal is a senior manager with A.T. Kearney and has been with the firm for over seven years. Amit Saharia is a senior manager with A.T. Kearney, who has over seven years of global management consulting experience with strategy firms (including Deloitte Consulting in the US and Booz and Co. in the Middle East) spanning private as well as public sector clients. At FIIB, case studies are used frequently for teaching the students effective decision making. According to FIIB, The contribution of these two Senior Partners from A.T. Kearney, by sharing tacit and not-so-tacit facts of this art of understanding, decoding and analyzing a typical case study added immense value to management learning at FIIB. Sarovar Agarwal dealt with a case study on the topic of ‘The profitability improvement of the telecom operator store.’ With a large number of multi-purpose telecom operator stores located across the country incurring heavy losses since inception, a strategy had to be devised, to turnaround the overall store portfolio and make it profitable. Imbibing their inputs on case study analyses proved to be a great learning for students of FIIB and faculty alike. Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more updates on FIIB!
Every year during the months of April and May when MBA students leave for their summer internship, it is time for the faculty to face blackboards and enter the learning mode.
What was previously the strength of only the very premier b-schools, a growing number of private and upcoming b-schools too are investing in Faculty Development Programmes (FDPs) in order to upgrade the knowledge, teaching and research skills of an increasingly inexperienced teaching workforce. As a side-benefit, the schools are gaining brand visibility in academic circles and some are also scoring higher in b-school ratings. Lasting between two to three days at a time, these FDPs are like boot-camps that introduce young management faculty to contemporary teaching methodologies, management research and software packages that are to be taught as part of the MBA curriculum. Usually the deans or directors of a reputed b-schools take these sessions and pass on their experience of teaching to the faculty. “A lot of young people are joining private b-schools as faculty right after they pass out of the PGDM program of a B or C grade institute. These people have no prior experience or exposure to teaching. For them, FDPs are very useful and better than on-the-job training,” says Dr Madan Mohan, Dean of the Delhi-based Jagan Institute of Management Studies (JIMS), which conducts FDPs once every three months. The FDPs are especially helpful to b-schools that are having to hire fresh management graduates from lesser known institutes as faculty, owing to a systemic shortage of experienced management faculty in India. In New Delhi for example, there is an active „FDP circuit‟ of sorts among half a dozen well-known private b-schools that trains inexperienced faculty from newer private b-schools. Delhi‟s Fortune Institute of International Business (FIIB) conducts two to three FDPs every year between April and October. Their FDPs last 2-5 days and are attended by 20-30 faculty members from all across Delhi. Similarly, the Apeejay School of Management, Dwarka at Delhi conducts three FDPs every year, one of which is funded by the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE). Well-established private Delhi b-schools such as the International Management Institute (IMI), Management Development Institute, Gurgaon and Fore School of Management also conduct FDPs. Young faculty, though knowledgeable about the course content, often know little about teaching methods beyond delivering lectures. Says Dr AK Puri, Director of FIIB, “The lecture format is basically spoon-feeding and is boring for students. So we suggest methods to bring excitement to the classroom during the FDPs. Some of the teaching methods we talk about are the case-study method, role-plays, simulation games, crosswords and outbound training.” FDPs that teach the case-study method garner the highest participation, with upto 35 participants at a time. At the Apeejay School of Management, it is FDPs on management subjects that receive the highest participation. “Our sessions on quantitative analysis and tools of management receive the best response,” says Apeejay‟s Director Dr Alok Saklani.
Other FDPs concentrate on specific areas of management such as finance, marketing or the use of statistical packages such as SPSS. According to Prof S Garimella, Chairman of IMI‟s MDP and Consultancy Committee, FDPs translate into a direct benefit for MBA students. “Many faculty members need updating and the knowledge of new pedagogical tools so that they can make their classroom sessions more interactive and make content and delivery of courses more interesting for students,” Prof Garimella says. While FDPs help b-schools make the best of the situation in what is clearly a scarcity of experienced faculty, it also brings along many side-benefits for the b-schools. “FDPs help by establishing our brand in the academic circles. It gives an opportunity for bonding among faculty of various colleges. Participants keep in touch with each other and share knowledge even after the FDP ends,” says Dr Puri. Prof Garimella agrees, “We are able to build a good network of professors due to FDPs. Sometimes we end up doing joint research programmes with faculty we met at FDPs.” However, there are some hidden benefits too. Some such as Dr Madan Mohan of JIMS openly admit that FDPs help the b-school get a better position in various b-school rankings and that is a major driver for them to conduct these programmes. Dr Puri however disagrees with this view, “In fact, your FDPs will get participation only if you have a good rank. So the FDPs are dependent on rankings and not the other way round.” Schools such as Apeejay have also found it easier to hire faculty as a result of their FDPs, says Dr Saklani. “FDPs have helped create goodwill for us in the market and often when people apply to us for faculty positions and we ask them how they came to know about us, they mention that they were attracted to us after they attended our FDP,” he says. “There is no institutional effort to help teachers in the management sector grow. We are in a situation where teachers are mostly left to themselves for their upgradation. This is where FDPs help the most,” Dr Puri concludes.
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