Prameya issue 12

BATCH 2015-17

ISSUE

12 BATCH 2014-16

@prameyaWESchool

/prameyaweschool

Foreword Here we come with our Issue 12 of Prameya that captures the various events, achievements and happenings at WeSchool, Bangalore campus.

The theme article ‘Power of Branding’ brings forth how marketers are unleashing various forms of marketing tools to engage with the brand.

Our Institute Brand ‘The WeSchool’ has evolved and strengthened its brand equity in the Silicon Valley of Bangalore since its inception in 2007. The Idea Contest 2015-16 conducted by us speaks of this success story. This Idea Contest provided a unique platform for developing ‘Ideas’ that resonated with Late Dr. Abdul Kalam’s vision for building a vibrant nation by leveraging young minds.

In Guruspeak series – we bring to our readers an article on ‘Predictive Analytics’. At WeSchool the academic curriculum is embellished with global learnings. The WeSchool Global Citizen Leaders Program, conducted in collaboration with Center for Creative Leadership, USA was an innovative engagement for students and faculty members.

The MPower Club of Marketing, The Arthkul – The Finance Club and Innowe Mathan Series of Business Design & Innovation Program and CII – Yi talk are forums for student learning and engagement with industry experts.

The WeSchool Assessment Center process conducted with support of industry professionals talks about our systemic process with an aim of holistic student development.

The academic culmination with ‘Executive Placement’ – a forte of Career Management Cell (CMC), WeSchool provides the efforts done by the CMC supported by CMC student council.

Management Development Center has yet again been successful in designing customized management programs for new clients such as E&Y and Biocon India Limited.

The Rotaract Club of WeSchool hosted the Aarambh 2016 and the campus had the privilege to host the Annual Conference 2016 of Rotaract Institute Zone.

The Farewell party – ‘Oscar Nite’ gives us a peek into the colorful event hosted at the campus for the class of 2014-16.

The Prameya’s success lies with the young team of student supported by faculty members who put their best foot forward through the year. As monsoon arrives in India and as farmers await eagerly to sow seeds. The faculty Prameya team, yet again look forward to welcome the new student editorial team for the academic year 2016-17.

Faculty Editorial Team

Editor

Prof. Dr. Sonia Mehrotra

Assistant Editors Ms. Shilpa Pathak Ms. Asha Mathew

Student Editorial Team

Student Editors

Ms. Flinky Sharma Mr. Harshal Nandurkar Ms. Samriddhi Jaiswal Mr. Sino Mohanlal

Concept and Design Mr. Roman Rathod

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Contents 1

Foreword

3

Group Director and Dean & Director’s Address

The Power of Branding 4

By Ms. Shilpa Pathak Assistant Editor, Prameya

Events 10

Global Citizen Leaders Program — Center for Creative Leadership, USA

18

WeSchool Idea Contest 2015-16

13

Pre & Post Union Budget 2016

14

Life of Marketer & Career in Marketing

Grande Finale at WeSchool

Articles 8

16

InnoWe Manthan

23

Blue Ocean Strategy - ‘Finding Untapped Markets’

By Prof. Dr. Murli Mohan Sr. Associate Dean, Operations

24

Assessment Center Process

25

Career Management Center

27

Management Development Centre

28

Experience of Lifetime

17

Exploring Grass Roots

29

Achievements

— Arthkul (The Finance Club)

— MPower (Marketing Club)

Predictive Analytics

By Prof. Dr. Jai Raj Nair Professor – Head IT Vertical

By Prof. Anuradha Mahesh Head – CMC

By Prof. AKN Prasad Head – MDC, Executive Education

By Ms. Aishwaraya Nambiar PGDM (Business Design & Innovation) Batch 2015-17

— Business Design & Innovation, WeSchool

— Talk Series (Business Design & Innovation, WeSchool) — Faculty & Student Achievements

— CII – Yi Talk (A Case Study Workshop)

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30

Aarambh 2016

31

Rotaract Zone Institute Annual Conference 2016

32

Oscar Nite

— Rotaract Club of WeSchool

— Farewell Party (Class 2014-16)

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Talent Corner Prameya Team

Group Director and Dean & Director’s Address

Prof. Dr. UDAY SALUNKHE GROUP DIRECTOR, WESCHOOL

Prof. Dr. ANIL RAO PAILA

DEAN & DIRECTOR, WESCHOOL - BANGALORE

“ A BRAND IS NOT A JUST A LOGO, A WEBSITE OR YOUR BUSINESS CARDS…. IT’S AN EXPERIENCE ”

BE SO GOOD, THEY CAN’T IGNORE YOU. - Steve Martin

At Weschool, we put our best efforts to do exactly this - create a learning experience for our students in their two crucial years with us. The education imparted using multiple methodologies of concept based pedagogy, experiential pedagogy and application oriented experiences results in a holistic socially connected individual ready for the real world challenges.

WeSchool has always believed and followed this philosophy in their initiative taken forward. It is my pleasure to share that WeSchool, Bangalore campus has grown leaps and bounds under the directional leadership of our Group Director Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe. Recipient of Best B-school award 2015 by Bangalore Management Association, our focus has always been to impart learner centric education.

The campuses are the learning hubs with data, science and design all unified to provide a series of inspiration. The state-of art infrastructure and facilities such as innovation labs, learning resource centres, discipline clubs, an intensive curriculum, dedicated faculty and peer learning opportunities contribute to an individual’s learning experience. The students are encouraged to participate in various national and international competitions for which they are mentored and guided by my faculty colleagues.

Our strong industry interaction often translates in fruitful opportunities for our students. They are provided the platforms to qualify for international internships as well as international placements.

WeSchool is a learning expedition and I invite all the stakeholders from parents, industry professionals, colleagues and of course my dear students to experience and be part of this expedition.

Our campus boasts of state-of-art infrastructure, prototype and innovation labs, case development centre, learning resource centre and runs AICTE approved PGDM, PGDM E-business and PGDM Business Design & Innovation programs. Our dedicated set of faculty mentors, robust industry interface and other global initiatives such as Global Citizen Leaders Program provides students various kinds of learning opportunities.

Prameya- our quarterly campus magazine captures the details of our events, activities conducted, maps the latest industry trends as well applauds the achievements of both faculty and student.

I welcome all to read our Prameya Issue 12.

Best wishes Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila Dean & Director, WeSchool, Bangalore campus

Best wishes Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe Group Director, WeSchool

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Theme Article

POWER OF BRANDING “Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out’

By Ms. Shilpa Pathak Assistant Editor, Prameya We are all bombarded with advertisements – 365 days a year and there is no recourse or obliterating advertisements from our mind and lives – they enter our subconscious mind.

Located on Neeladari Road, in Electronic-City Phase 1, Bangalore, ‘Samosa Singh’ is an exclusive outlet, which caters to customer who loves to relish this ethnic Indian Snack – Samosa.Their signage with crimson Yellow logo with black mustache will catch everyone’s attention.

In India, back in the 13th century, samosas used to be eaten exclusively by Royal clans, usually as part of a massive feast and thus originated the vegetarian samosas in Uttar Pradesh.

Today the same samosas are being branded - sounds unbelievable?

According to Mr. Shikhar Veer Singh, the founder of “Samosa Singh” – marketing and branding is imperative for any venture. Samosa Singh does it in their own unique style. He says “The crispy and healthy samosa at our restaurant is the reflection of the application of scientific knowledge of the basic cooking and food”. With over eight years of Research and Development (R&D) experience, he strongly believes that science can be applied everywhere and he believes that taste, hygiene and quality & authencity are the attributes to build a good product.On being asked on the the popularity quotient of samosas at his outlet, he confirmed that – the classic aloo samosas are the most popular and even the expatriate customers visiting his outlet savor the taste.

According to him, ‘A brand is created when it instantly clicks with the audience with a great recall’. The repeat customers and new customers visiting the outlet demonstrates that brand loyalty is slowly being established. He further states that the differentiating factor of “Samosa Singh” from its competitors lies in the innovative recipes that are developed after scientific research in terms of tastes and nutrition.

He cites the example of latest Chocossa range of Samosa, which has become a big hit among the young target audience of children. People were initially skeptical about trying a sweet filled – chocolate –caramel, chocolate –orange Samosa. However, the consumer tastes have been altering and and now everyone is appreciative of the delectable Chocossa samosas.

According to market research firm Nielsen 92% of consumers believes in recommendations and suggestions given by their family and friends, as compared to the other forms of advertising.

To further understand the power of Word of Mouth (WOM) in business & marketing, we met up with Ms. Geetu Baweja, who started the franchisee for Ferns N Petals (FNP) in 2012 at Ajmeera Avenue, a high end commercial complex located in Electronic-City Phase I, Bangalore.

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Theme Article - Power of Branding So, on being asked that as a franchisee, did she incur huge investments to build awareness for her store? She confesses“Being associated with a renowned brand which is known at national and international level – the necessity of promotion was minimized. However, she reiterates that WOM has played a huge role in drawing customers to her outlet.

Our customer engagement involves ‘EMOTIONS’. Citing an example she said, A ‘Rose’ bouquet delivered to a loved one or wife or to a friend is not mere bunch of flowers – it depicts the emotions of an individual. We strive to ensure that we deliver the sentiments associated with our product with utmost care and perfection”. She further added that the business is driven by APPRECIATION, this is reflected by the large number of prominent clientele that FNP brand draws. Some of her customers include Tata Power Ltd, Bosch India, Golden Tulip, Schneider, Crown Plaza Hotel and many more. 90% of business transactions are with corporate clients and the remaining business is generated by walk-in customers seeking branded gifting products for their dear ones.

Packaging plays an imperative role in branding of the product. Each ‘Mali’ who is hired by corporate HR team of FNP has a mandate to undergo training for a period of one year. On successful completion of the training session he is assigned/deputed to a franchisee outlet across India.

The Mali undergoes training to understand the botanical & floral language associated with florist business. They learn the art of floral configurations & design, shape, cutting and sorting flowers, and theme in floral arrangements, art of embellishing the flower vase with ribbons and etiquettes in customer service.

According to Prof. Sachidanand B S, Assistant Professor - Marketing, WeSchool, “Packaging plays a very important role in marketing. Customers are attracted to a product by the packaging, when it is displayed on the shelf of stores.

In perfumes and cosmetics and high-end chocolates, brands distinguish themselves by the unique and stylish design which helps to craft brand positioning in the mind of the customer and it triggers a desire in a customer to possess the product”.

Cricket has always been termed as a game of gentlemen and inspired by the popularity of the game Amir Khan, the famous Bollywood actor produced the film Lagaan in 2001. This movie had young unknown faces with Amir playing the ‘Lead Role’– the only saleable star in the whole cast.

The resounding success of the film in domestic and international market re-affirmed the power of ‘Amir’ as a mega brand in the Bollywood industry and it has risen steadily over the years.

Talking of ‘Fans’ – the cricket fever that one witnessed leaves one dumbstruck. The closure of IPL VIVO League 2016 was at Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bangalore on Sunday, 29th May, 2016. The stadium witnessed 40,000 fans – mainly young fans who had congregated to witness the epic battle for the prized IPL Trophy money – INR 150 million - between Royal Challengers Bangalore (Red Army) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (Orange Army).

However, the branding strategy of selecting players and team work is similar as depicted in the movie “Lagaan” .Here the parallel connection ends. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is about glamour and flamboyance.

Youth has always been the prime target for marketers.

VIVO, won the bid for sponsorship title for IPL League 2016 for INR 1200 million and paid a premium to acquire the title rights. It has reserved INR 1000 million for marketing & promotion activities. It also signed Mr. Ranveer Singh, the popular and energetic young Bollywood star to endorse the brand due to his rising brand appeal among youth.

VIVO chose the two premium platform to endorse and build brand recall in India’s Mobile Handset Market – where Samsung has the highest market share and brand recall. VIVO is keen to establish its premium credential positioning among the target audience and it has introduced two new models in the Indian market which are priced between Rs.17,000 – Rs.25,000/- The higher pricing is part of the brand strategy to disassociate the VIVO brand from ‘ Low quality’ & ‘Mass market’ perception synonymous with Chinese products.

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Theme Article - Power of Branding *By 2020, India is set to become the world’s youngest country with 64 % of its population in the working age group of between 20 to 35. With the West, Japan and even China aging, this demographic dividend offers India and its growing economy an unprecedented edge that economists believe could add a significant 2 % to the GDP growth rate.

The business processing outsourcing service and other emerging service industries have lowered the age group of working youth and high disposable incomes are other desirable factors which makes the youth the ‘Favored’ target segment for brands across all sectors.

IPL League tournament is the biggest platform for branding to Generation ‘Y’ in India.

Nothing excites Indians like cricket! IPL league teams and brand associated are leveraging on traditional and digital media platforms to grab eye balls and build brand recall.

Despite being dogged by scandal and controversy the Board of Cricket Control of India – the sports authority of India and the owners of IPL Brand that was conceived in 2008 has been spending in millions to attract and build loyal IPL fan base.

The IPL audience is dominated by young, middle class city dwellers, which are among India’s high spending consumers. The viewer’s comprise of not just men in the population but 45% of viewers are women as well. IPL fever is alike among young children, influenced by parents and friends.

The frenzy for IPL starts in April each year, with the onset of IPL auction where franchisee vies to grab the best and popular player in the cricketing world for astronomical amounts such as INR 30 million to INR 90.5 million.

IPL has become synonymous with glamour & razzmatazz that leaves a viewer and also a non-cricket fan spell bound as seen in the Opening Ceremony of IPL 2016, held at Mumbai with Bollywood and international artists that entertained the cricket fans.

Sony television bagged the broadcasting rights for the 9th edition of IPL, and it expected to earn advertising revenue of about INR 1200 million. A 10-second ad spot in IPL ranges from INR 0.55 million to INR 0.575 million on standard definition channel. Sony Six, marketing strategy was to telecast Tamil, Telugu and Bengali language feeds with the hope to capture 500 million viewership during this season – an important market for FMCG brands and other brands.

To further enhance IPL brand – this year VIVO IPL FAN Park 2016 initiative, as a promotional & branding strategy to build new fan base in tier 2 towns of the country. It is estimated around 3,00,000 fans congregated to watch IPL matches in open–air parks in Bilaspur, Amristar, Meerut, Kangra, Surat, Allabhabad, Gawilor, Panipat, Nashik, Gurgaon, Solapur, Goa, Guntur and Patna.

The IPL franchise team – Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians and the two new teams – Gujarat Lions and Rising Pune Super Giants, stepped up the brand engagement on online space: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and on You Tube. IPL teams every year devise new strategies during each IPL season to connect with fans.

The Bengaluru team unveiled its team anthem, RCB PlayBold Anthem, composed by Salim Merchant, while the whole event was live streamed on the team’s official Facebook page.

The franchise from Bangalore has always been one of the most glamorous sides in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and that trend seems set to continue in the enthralling competition. They launched New jerseys this year designed

by Michael Foley and manufactured by Zeven. The all new black and red jersey with two designs for home and away matches priced at Rs.949 were sold online on RCB website to fans.

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*Source : The Hindu April 17th 2013 .

Theme Article - Power of Branding If one visits, the Fan Page of RCB – you will see videos of the star players – Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle – dancing on Bhangra number to celebrate, the win of RCB in the semi- final qualifier match against Gujarat Lions held in Delhi.

Scroll down on each fan page of IPL teams – fans expressing their happiness, sadness or anger with emojis and teams have millions of fans following and likes on the fan page.

Yes, IPL teams are leveraging on social content as a strategy to build the fan base. The constant stream of media updates of youngster’s social networks and on their mobile phone means that they are always aware of what their friends are doing and their friends know what they have been doing. Gen Y fuses their social lives in technology and content is the number one social currency for them.

Research reveals that brand affection and self-identification with the brand is built during adolescence age as a result of brain development.

For IPL fans – IPL tournament is a 3-hour of ‘Happy Entertainment’. Celebrities have always had a big appeal to the general audience and the extravagant display of money and glamour makes the event intoxicating for fans.

To break the perception of ‘Entertainment’ - The VIVO IPL 2016 league was branded as ‘EK India Happy Wala’ as the tag line. IPL is striving for National & Emotional bonding with billions of Indians who forget the political and religious difference as seen during the World Cup series. Perception drives brand engagement.

Despite acknowledging the fact that IPL’s sheer scale and magnitude provides a brand to connect with consumers.

PepsiCo India; severed its association from the glamorous tournament this year because it was unable to justify to its internal management for spending INR 400 million each year for marketing and promotional activities and have been unable to achieve ROI (Return on investments).

Yet, every other brand – Vodafone, Yes Bank, Ceat Tyres, Free Charge, Ultra Cement, Idea, Lloyd, Bolt, and a host of numerous brands were seen vying to build brand recall at VIVO IPL season 2016.

The hype surrounding IPL – which has international linkages signals to global community that Indian economy is on growth/stable path?

According to Prof. Aparna Krishnamoorthy, Assistant Professor of Economics at WeSchool, “IPL or any other such sporting event that has had some measure of stable success over a period of a few years essentially bodes well for the economy. It signals that people have the ability and willingness to spend on leisure activity. Government of India should play a role in terms of encouraging sports but with limited intervention as it could be hard to recover if red-tape becomes a norm in this sector too. That being said, IPL has managed to create a recognizable brand across India. Also, major sporting events across the world such as NBA, NFL World Series BaseBall etc in the USA or the Premier Soccer League, in Europe etc, all have been a major booster to the local economy and economies of the state involved”.

Branding has existed in India since aeon.

Emperor Ashoka, is considered one of the greatest brand marketer.The contents of Asoka's edicts make it clear that all the legends about his wise and humane rule are more than justified and qualify him to be ranked as one of the greatest rulers in India.

The edicts “Beloved-of-the Gods, King Devanampiya Piyadasi’ written in Pali language were inscribed on rocks and pillar across India as issued by Emperor Ashoka.

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Guruspeak

Prof. Dr. Murli Mohan Sr. Associate Dean, Operations WeSchool Bangalore

Predictive Analytics (PA) INTRODUCTION: If one were to study the nature of mankind, one of the things observed is that everyone craves for the power that helps them see the future. Therefore, there is a collective obsession with prediction. It may take many forms, such as, people empty their pockets for palm readers, to those who read their horoscopes, and there by adoring astrology. In today’s business and competitive world, there is a demand for computerized prediction based on past data (a reflection of behavior of individuals, customers, etc.) that can impact organizations and individuals on an everyday basis way organizations plan their strategy, action plans etc. and the way individuals’ experiences/actions are captured in many undetectable ways as one is driving, shopping, watching TV, and so on.

In his book titled ‘Predictive Analytics’, Eric Siegel defines PA as ‘Technology that learns from experience (data) to predict the future behavior of individuals in order to drive better decisions’. Analytics is essentially the process of using computational methods to discover and report influential patterns in data. Hence the goal of analytics is to gain insights which will facilitate better decision making. Data is basically historical information and therefore analytics examines and analyses historical data. Incidentally, analytics as a term came into prominence since 2005 mainly due to introduction of Google analytics.

Behind the success of PA lies the strength of predictive modeling. This can be described by the analogy of a threelegged stool. Each leg is vital for the stability of the stool. The three legs of predictive modeling are (1) domain experts, (2) data or data base experts, and (3) predictive modeling experts. Domain experts play a vital role in framing of the problem in such a way that will provide value to the organization. Data base experts are required to figure out what data is available for predictive modeling and how it is to be accessed and normalized. And finally predictive modelers are required to develop models that achieve the business objective.

Therefore, the success of PA depend on the strong collaboration and team work among the above three entities.

Analytics as a subject is not of a new origin and has existed over last several decades and called by different names, viz, cybernetics, data analysis, neural networks, pattern recognition, statistics, knowledge discovery, data mining, and now by the name of data science.

HIGHLIGHTS OF PA: As mentioned earlier, PA involves discovering interesting and meaningful patterns in data. In this process several disciplines come into picture like pattern recognition, statistics, machine learning, artificial intelligence and data mining. There are two major ways PA differs from other types of analytics, namely, (a) PA is data driven, which means that algorithms derive key characteristics of the models from the data itself rather than from assumptions made by the analyst, and (b) PA algorithms automate the process of finding the patterns from the data. For instance decision trees algorithms learn which of the candidate inputs best predict the target variable in addition to identifying which values of the variables to use in building predictions.

In essence PA does not do anything that an analyst cannot accomplish using pencil and paper or a spreadsheet given enough time. For instance if pattern recognition requires examining two variables at a time, the same can be done with the help of a scatter plot. The way complexity arises is when the number of variable involved increases to say 50, in which case it requires 1225 scatter plots to be examined.

However, if the exercise involves examining three variables simultaneously, one needs to examine 19,600 3D scatter plots in order examine all the possible three-way combinations. These two examples have been cited to illustrate the challenges that arise when faced with situations involving many variables for analysis. Some of the tasks may be humanly impossible to solve besides involving a very huge time element. This is where algorithms come into picture, as they can sift through all the potential combinations of data inputs and patterns, and identify which ones are the most interesting and all this in a very small element of time.

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Guruspeak CHALLENGES: The other aspect pertains to challenges in using PA. There are several factors involved. First one relates to ‘Obstacles in Management’. Deployment of predictive modeling requires significant shift in resources for an organization and therefore support of the management is required to make transition from research and development into operational solution. If the required support is not forthcoming then PA will not be successful. The second relates to ‘Obstacles with Data’. Predictive models require data in the form of a single table or flat file containing rows and columns. In case of transactional data bases, proper keys need to be identified to join data from data sources to form a single table. In the absence of proper keys PA projects can fail. The third one is ‘Obstacles with Modeling’.

This refers to ‘overfitting’ (using more variables than required).

This results in model becoming too complex and lacking in reliability in interpretation. The last one is ‘Obstacles in Deployment’ which is on account of lack proper skilled people in the team. The model has to be encoded in a programming language that can be called by the system using a higher level language, such as, SQL, C++, or Java to name some. If the model is not translated correctly, then it becomes useless operationally.

USERS OF PA: In the 1990’s and early 2000s, the use of advanced analytics, which is referred to as data mining or computational statistics, was confined to only the most forward looking companies with deep pockets. At that time many organizations were struggling with data collection, let alone trying to make sense out of the data using advanced techniques. Today the use of analytics has moved beyond the who’s who of the Fortune 500 and others, namely, Chase, IBM, HP, Google, HP, Target, U.S. Bank, Tesco, and more, to mid-sized organizations. Just like computers have become ubiquitous today and can be seen used even in very small organizations, the day is not far off when PA will be used across all organizations irrespective of the size.

Bridge collapse on Mumbai-Goa highway

APPLICATIONS OF PA:

The application of PA has been across a wide spectrum. Some of them have been mentioned below as an illustration.

• Hollywood studios predict the success of a screenplay if produced.

• U.K. grocery giant Tesco, the world’s third largest retailer, predicts which discounts will be redeemed in order to target more than 100 million personalized coupons annually at cash registers across 13 countries.

• Target predicts customer pregnancy in order to market relevant products accordingly.

• H.P. earmarks each and every one of its 300,000 employees worldwide according to ‘Flight Risk’ score which indicates the expected chance an employee is likely to quit the job, so that managers can proactively intervene in such cases to minimize the attrition rate of employees.

• Insurance companies predict who is going to crash a car or hurt themselves another way (ski accident, etc.).

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATION REQUIRED: What educational background is needed to become predictive modeler? There is a need to have academic background in statistics, mathematics, computer science or engineering. To meet the demand for PA skills, dozens of US universities offer master’s degrees in PA. Besides, there are master’s degrees offered in data mining, marketing analytics, business analytics, or machine learning. Despite all these, curriculums have not evolved fast enough across the globe. As per US-based thought leader and HR consultant, Jason Averbook ‘in addition to maths and statistics, there is also requirement for people with marketing communications. It is this combination of maths and marketing communications that’ll create storytellers so that data can be used and turned into a story’.

THE GOLD MINE: Given the demand for PA in the modern day business world, it is but expected there is bound to be huge demand for people with appropriate skill sets suiting PA domain. In the recent May 2016 Times of India publication titled ‘Data Scientists earning more than CAs and Engineers’, it is mentioned that Harvard Business Review named data scientists the ‘sexiest job of the 21st century’. Further it states that according to TeamLease, a staffing solutions company, data scientists (a term that covers mathematicians, statisticians, database/data warehouse engineers, data miners, and IT professionals with data warehousing skills) with around 5 years of experience are earning over Rs. 75 lacs per annum as compared to CAs (Rs. 8-15 lacs per annum) and Engineers (Rs. 5-8 lacs per annum) with equivalent experience, and in the US data scientists get upward of US$ 200,000 per annum. It further states that India faces a demand-supply gap of 200,000 analytics professionals over the next three years.

As per McKinsey’s forecast there is a near tem shortage in US of 140,000 analytics experts and 1.5 million managers ‘with skills to understand and make decisions based on analysis of big data’. As per LinkedIn the number one ‘Hottest Skills that got people hired’ is statistical analysis and data mining.

With such a golden opportunity prevailing globally, are you ready to cash in?

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Global Citizen Leaders Program

INNOVATIVE SOCIALLY AWARE COURAGEOUS COLLABORATIVE BOUNDARY SPANNING CHALLENGES

TRANSFORM

ORGANIZATIONS CREATIVE CONTINUOUS LEARNING EMPATHIZE POSITIVE MINDSET

GLOBAL CITIZEN LEADERS PROGRAM On 1st November, 2015, WeSchool, Bangalore introduced ‘The Global Citizens Leaders Program for the student batch 2015-17 in collaboration with Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) USA. The CCL headquartered in Greensboro, NC, is a top ranked global provider of executive education that accelerates strategy and business results; by unlocking business potential of individuals and organization. It also has offices in Brussels, Moscow and Singapore.

Global Citizen Leader program is aimed to provide individuals the ability to transform corporations, or merging social enterprises while transforming themselves. A Global Citizen Leader, is a continual and agile learner who is able to step into new environments and empathize from multiple perspectives. A GCL seeks to transforms the world with a positive and collaborative mindset and acts as a representative of the global community – not confined by local paradigms – when developing solutions.

The post graduate management students of WeSchool, Bangalore (2015-17) batch: PGDM, PGDM–E Business & PGDMBusiness Design and Innovation and faculty participated in the GCL program. The module was integrated and implemented as part of a three month program of the academic curriculum.

The GCL program’s founding principles are: Observation, Empathy, Listening, Brainstorming, Ideation, Prototyping, StoryTelling and Design Thinking.

The students were emphasized on the importance of team work & collaboration and self-assessment to achieve success in project.

The student and faculty were introduced to the concepts of Design Thinking during the program.

Under the GCL framework – student groups each comprising of 10 members worked on a live project associated with a real time company under the guidance of a WeSchool faculty mentor.

During the three month program the faculty and the student team had weekly interaction with their respective corporate partners.

Brainstorming and Ideation at Global Leaders Program session

Smart City : Electronic City Industrial Township Authorty Study and understand the Traffic flow in e-city today and in future.

Waste Management Awareness Drive in e-city.

‘Transport Service’ for citizens of Bangalore

by ELCITA .

The regular interaction enabled both the corporate partners as well the WeSchool student and faculty members to come up with mutual learnings as to find logical solutions to the challenges faced by the companies.

Study the e-city zone (Phase 1) and identity the spot for Littering and to install e-toilets.

The program was executed by team members : Mr. Anand Chandrasekar and Mr. John Lewis from CCL, USA.

AdsTrak : Digital Marketing for SME industry in Bangalore.

The student team worked on diverse range of projects:

Start Up India :

Digital India:

Mind Tree: Small Villages Trade within Grassroots level & Create Financing Model to build 1,00,000 villages.

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Global Citizen Leaders Program Maya Organic: To promote the Channapatna Handicrafts in India.

Ethino Sofware: Low Cost Women’s Fashion ECommerce.

Market Research: HasiruDala: Market Sizing, Segmentation and Buyers Need Research.

Sweet & Swirls: Conduct Market Research to understand the F&B market opportunity for Ice cream.

Pikkol’s Digital Marketing Prototype exhibited at The GCL Showcase & Exhibition

Marketing & Branding :

Online Education: Planet Ganges : Establishing C2C business Model in education space via crowd sourcing.

Barefoot Consultancy: Branding exercise game to promote “ Signtist’ puzzle game in Domestic and International markets.

The 3 month long program ended with celebrating the GCL Day on 1 April 2016 at campus where the students showcased their working prototypes and posters as part of the GCL Day exhibition. Industry professionals were invited to WeSchool on the GCL Day. The showcase exhibited some core area functionalities at E-City Phase 1 such as sanitation and waste management. The students did detailed study of the e-Toilets at E-City and provided inputs on increasing its usage by making it more user friendly and publicizing the location of the e-toilets to all the citizens.

The waste management project showcased the work done by the students in implementing segregation at eateries near the IFIM College by creating awareness through distribution of bins and establishing a collection system.

They had conducted a detailed study of waste management at E-City and the need to increase the green cover by planting trees at the Bettadaspura School, with the compost made from the food and garden waste at e-City.The display of their project highlighted the need of the hour - waste segregation.

Some Perspectives: “The students had taken keen interest on the projects assigned by ELCITA. In spite of their busy academic schedule they have prepared a very detailed project report which will be useful to ELCITA. The main content of the project report was exhibited in an excellent manner in the exhibition held in the campus. I wish the students all the success in their future endeavors.” said Ms. Rama N.S, CEO, Electronic City Industries Association (ELCIA),

Ms. Rama N.S, CEO, Electronic City Industries Association (ELCIA), at the GCL Showcase & Exhibition 2016, WeSchool

"It was an overwhelming experience to see Welingkar students put together the stall for AdsTrak. The prototype of the company product was very positive and clear demonstration of out of the box thinking” Ms. Anjali Goel, Director, AdsTrak.

“GCL poster was a window to the learning space which students experienced as a group while dealing with both corporate world and other college activities. When the GCL program was in final stages, students had to map their experiences and journey right from realizing problem statement to proposing solutions for the same on an A0 size poster. Students were exposed to new digital publishing software coral draw while designing the posters, some students with hands on knowledge of coral draw conducted a small in-class session for other students under Digit (a student initiative at WeSchool, Bangalore).”- Roman Rathod, student PGDM–E BIZ batch 2015-17

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Global Citizen Leaders Program The showcase was followed by the ‘Global Citizens Leaders’ Graduation Ceremony to appreciate the young students and faculty mentors’ efforts. The students received the ‘Certificate of Appreciation’ for successful completion of their GCL program.

Prof. Christer Nygren, Lecturer- School of Innovation, Design & Engineering, Division of Innovation Management, Malardalen University, Sweden, was the Chief Guest for the event. In his address he appreciated WeSchool Bangalore, for introducing this innovative program that would open up the students to design thinking tools of solving problems.

Prof. Christer, accompanied by his faculty colleagues Prof. Mona Tjarnberg and Prof. Anette Stromberg, too expressed their delight to be present on this occasion and appreciated the WeSchool’s efforts towards such education initiatives.

Prof.Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Senior Associate Dean - Academics, Finance and Organization Ecosystem WeSchool, heading this initiative said, “Designed around the philosophy of leading self – leading others and leading change, the GCL program nurtures the next generation leaders. The program was designed to develop leadership, innovation and social engagement in the next generation of business leaders in India. The program aimed at nurturing student competencies of interpersonal skills, self-awareness, innovation and provide them an opportunity to apply their learning to real-life corporate/social challenges”.

Prof. Vijay Kumar, receiving the GCL Certificate from Prof. Christer Nygren, Malardalen University, Sweden, at the GCL Graduation Ceremony, along with student team.

The program was appreciated by the industry professionals, they expressed their appreciation on how industry and academic collaboration on a new innovative program can help to broaden one’s outlook and play a pivotal role in shaping the society.

Seated on chair (L-R) : Mr. John Lewis & Mr. Anand Chandrasekar, Center for Creative Leadership, USA, Prof. Christer Nygren, MDH University, Sweden, Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Palia, Dean & Director, WeSchool, Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Sr. Associate Dean - Academics / Finance & Organisation Ecosystem.

Standing ( L-R) Asst. Prof. Deepak Shyam, Marketing, Prof. Dr. Jai Raj Nair, IT & Systems, Prof. Aparna Krishnamoorthy, Economics/Examination Cell, Prof. Mohan Chandra, Business Design, Prof. Prakash Unakal, Business Design & Innovation & Prof. Dr. Sonia Mehrotra, Center of Excellence for Case Development, Seated on stage (L-R) Asst. Prof. Anita Pillai, IT & Systems, Prof. Dr. Hema D, Finance, Prof. Vijay Kumar, Finance, Prof. Dr. Savitha GR, HR, Asst. Prof. Jyoti Pant, HR, and Ms. Shilpa Pathak, Sr.Manager-ADC / Organisation Ecosystem.

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Arthkul - The Finance Club Pre Union Budget 2016 Arthkul the finance club of WeSchool, Bangalore hosted a Pre- budget session on February 29th, 2016. The aim of conducting the session was to instill among the students the significance of Union Budget and its impact on the economy and simultaneously how it impacts their daily lives. Its growing significance, which is usually highlighted by media that strives to, put forward the expectation of the industry and common man to the public.

Mr. Balakrishnan, senior manager, Business Finance, Microland

This year “Arthkul” invited Mr. Balakrishnan, a senior manager,Business Finance and Chartered Accountant from Microland.The session commenced with a brief presentation by finance studentsclass of 2014-16, who shared their perception and expectation on the forthcoming budget. It was followed by a discussion on Union Budget and Mr.Balakrishnan, spoke on his expectation from Union Budget 2016. During the session, he briefly touched upon topics such as revenue budget, capital budget, consolidated fund, contingency fund and public account. He gave an overview on Union Budget and listed the schedule of internal discussion and debates which are held at the Finance Ministry office in Delhi before it is released to the public by finance minister in the parliament.

The presentation was followed by Q&A and the finance student expressed their appreciation to have an expert from the industry visiting the campus and sharing his outlook.

Post Union Budget 2016 Arthkul the finance club at WeSchool, Bangalore hosted a panel discussion on post budget session on 3rd March, 2016. The objective of the session was to deliberate the UNION Budget 2016-17, which was released on February, 29th, 2016 by the finance minister, Mr. Arun Jaitely.

Eminent professionals from the finance industry were invited and panel discussion was moderated by Prof Vijay Kumar Nistala, Assistant Professor, Finance Vertical, at WeSchool, Bangalore.

Mr. Vivek Mallaya, a Chartered Accountant and US CPA, consultant in his opening remarks, discussed the impact of cars becoming costlier and his disappointment with the current budget especially in the wake of the favorable economic environment.

Prof. Vijay Kumar Nistala & Mr. Vivek Mallaya, US CPA, Addresing the session on UNION Budget 2016-17

Mr. Aruni Mahapatra, RBL Bank, at the outset shared his rich experience in the areas of International Banking, Corporate Banking, Capital Markets and Trade Finance and discussed about the rise in the allocation of budget for Agricultural Sector.

Mr.Ashwin Talwalkar, ICICI Bank Ltd, discussed what the budget has in store for the banks and how it would affect the economy as a whole.

Arthkul The Finance Club - Class 2015-17

Mr. G.N.Venkatraman, an ICWA and Ex-President of ICWAI and he regaled the audience with his witty comments. He shared his experience as a part of the budget process in the earlier years and predicted how the 51st Budget had the potential to enable India emerge as a better economy.

The panel discussed regarding the impact of Union Budget 2016-17 on: Make In India, Bullet train and technologies, FRBM Act, Nine Pillar Plan, JAM Benefits, Subsidies for Food, Oil Petroleum and Agriculture and also the drawbacks of the budget. The panel discussion was followed by a Q&A session with the students. The students were enlightened by the knowledge they gained by attending the session.

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MPower | Life of Marketer

Life of Marketer On February 17, 2016, The MPower club hosted a talk session on ‘Life of a Marketer’ by Mr. Samar Singh Sheikahawat, Senior - Vice President, Marketing, United Breweries Ltd. The excitement and anticipation was visible on the faces of the young marketing students assembled in the classroom. Mr. Samar Singh regaled the students by narrating real life experiences which helped him shape as a ‘Marketer’. The students also witnessed his talent for mimicry and the young audiences were in splits during the talk session.

He spoke about ‘Diversity’ and how important it is for a marketer to understand this concept.

Diversity exists in geography, culture, demographic, habits and taste which affect the marketer. While speaking on ‘Diversity of consumer choice’ he cited the example of Food & Beverage category which is evolving at a faster phase in India. As a future marketer of FMCG, it will be more developed during the coming years and hence one should be aware of change that will impact your category of business.

Mr Samar Singh Sheikhawat, Senior - Vice President, Marketing, United Breweries Ltd.

He cited Parle G is the world’s largest selling biscuit brand and how the brand is perceived by consumers. A mother will end up buying a Parle biscuit for her child because it is perceived as a quality food. Perception matters – you are what consumers perceive you as. Today there are premium biscuits category in the market but Parle G brand position continues to be dominant. Diversity thus can be in form of ethnicity, language, choice of products among others.

A wise marketer knows that appearances can be deceptive and not to fall prey to deception. He advised the student as future marketers, it is imperative to distinguish between Trends & Fads prevalent among the consumers. He cited the example of Gangam Style dance video, by South Korean performer PSY, became a rage overnight with billions of hits on Youtube and to dance like PSY became a ‘Fad’ among youth.

According to Mr. Samar Singh, a marketer is the favorite whipping boy in his/her company. To elucidate his point, he mentioned that when the company launched a new campaign for their beer brand, he received advice from the peon to janitor, on whom he as marketer should have hired as a ‘Brand ambassador’. Speaking on ‘Celebrity’ endorsement Mr. Samar Singh, said fatigue among consumers is rising because a celebrity is associated with numerous brands and over a time the brand recall in consumers starts diminishing.. He spoke about the ‘Airtel4G girl’ Ms. Sasha Chettri who has became an instant hit and she has bagged new modeling assignments including a role in a movie. In his opinion, however, over time a celebrity becomes too popular, the brand attraction graph goes down. Today, companies are using unknown faces to connect with their brand.

He advised to be a successful marketer one needs to drop ego and be open to criticism and feedback. It is important to learn the art of sales in the early days of career as it helps to understand finer nuances of sales & marketing.

He further emphasized that if one aspired a sales & marketing career, it is important to develop hard core numerical & analytical skills, including statistical knowledge. He also advised students to travel and read about new culture and be interested in sports and to be willing to learn and to have an inquisitive mind and to sharpen your observation skills The MPower team of 2014-16 was applauded for their enthusiasm in conducting events and it was followed by announcing the new team of 2015-17 class which briefed the audience on the upcoming events to be organized by MPower club.

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MPower | Career in Marketing

Career in Marketing

Mr. AMIT KUMAR

DGM, MARKETING MOTHER DIARY Ltd. The talk session of second MPower Club, at WeSchool, Bangalore on the topic ‘Marketing Concepts’ was held on March 26th, 2016. Mr. Amit Kumar, DGM of Marketing, Mother Diary Ltd, was the invited speaker.

In his address he emphasised on significance of product and its core values, which could extended to other categories of brand. He also spoke of the relevance a product/brand should be able to communicate and the story it can unfold. He discussed a case study on 3M Ltd, and the 80 -20 rule that it follows.

He further gave insights on how to make best use of Concept Used Test, Consumer Conversion Funnel, Branded Creative Record and different types of channel techniques and then elaborated on how the stage gates are used in innovation funnel. He cited the example of Parag Food Ltd, and how the company strategy is all about volumes than value In his closing remarks his advise to our budding managers was ‘Trade is never loyal. Consumer is Loyal’.

The marketing students of batch 2015 -17, appreciated the session, as it provided them with new insights on branding strategy that can take a company to success.

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Events/ InnoWe Manthan

Mr. MAYANK AGARWAL

CO-FOUNDER OF GEEK ONLINE VENTURES Pvt. Ltd

Talk Series

InnoWe at WeSchool is an initiative of PGDM Business Design & Innovation Program for churning innovative ideas through various activities such as talk series, collaborations, workshops, competitions, etc., in order to nurture an innovation ecosystem.

‘InnoWe Manthan’ series of talks is delivered by professionals from the fields of design, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

The 10th episode of this talk series was delivered by Mr. Mayank Agarwal - Co-Founder of Geek Online Ventures Pvt. Ltd. on 4th February 2016. Geek Online Ventures is a digital creative agency dedicated to find creative solutions for their clients through strategy, engaging content, innovative design and technology.

The company focuses on brand-led creative solutions for youth-oriented mass brands. Mr. Mayank, shared his story of how he, in his profession, plays multiple roles, that of Creator, Ideator, Solution Provider, Serial Entrepreneur, Business Developer, and Ecologist, combined with a deep interest in recycling projects, marketing, and advertising. He spoke about how brands tell stories and create meaningful conversations with the user or potential buyer.

Mr. Mayank, in his talk highlighted the power of ‘listening’- ‘listen, engage, measure’. He also shared that the media space that he works in itself is categorized into ‘paid space, free or earned space and owned space’.

This interactive talk series was a great learning experience for WeSchool students and faculty.

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Business Design & Innovation | Exploring Grass Roots EXPLORING GRASS ROOTS PGDM Business Design & Innovation The PGDM Business Design & Innovation students of batch 2015-17 batch were introduced to ‘ Exploring Grass Roots’ -a field study to explore flagship program of Central Government at the grass roots level in the state of Karnataka.

For this program, the students were accompanied by the faculty and Business Design and Innovation program team to rural area – Gubbi Village, in Tumkur District, Karnataka.

The student had the opportunity to experience the community living in the area for a period of one week starting from 23rd to 27th Feb, 2016.

Following flagship programs were considered for study with objective to explore the relevance, prospects and challenges of the following schemes @ grassroots level: (1) Digital India (2) Start-up/Stand-up/Make in India (3) Skill India (4) Pradhan Mantri Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana Each team comprised of four students; who were assigned to study the schemes with the objective to conduct a study, survey and feasibility of implementing the schemes at the grass root level.

In Start Up scheme - A Poultry Farm Startup was studied and explored as Initiative of Agro-rural business in Gubbi Villages. This was a franchise based business set up. The challenges among many were to maintain the right temperature conditions inside the poultry farm so that no infection spread to the poultry stock.

It was enriching experience for PGDM Business Design & Innovation students in terms of application of ‘Design Thinking & Innovation’ methodology at the grass roots level and improve the livelihood opportunity and skill development in the rural areas.

A visit to Training Institute for Rural Entrepreneurs

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Events | Idea Contest - 2015-16

Creative Thinking Inspires Ideas. Ideas Inspire Change.

The Grand Finale of Idea Contest 2015-16 on the theme - “Think India Transform India’ was held at WeSchool, Bangalore campus, on 5th and 6th March 2016.

The contest theme inspired by Late Dr. Abdul Kamal’s vision for India 2020 was dedicated to honor the great scientist who had always encouraged the young minds to dream big and build a new future for India.

The Idea Contest 2015-16 was conducted in two phases. In the first phase, the regional rounds were held at the institute/college and two best ideas were selected from each institute. The WeSchool, faculty played the role of jury in selecting the innovative ideas in the first phase of competition.

This Finale of Idea Contest 2015-16 conducted at Campus was spread over two days. The shortlisted students of the preliminary rounds from colleges across Karnataka, Seemandhra,Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu participated in the finale.The ideas were to be presented on themes such as ‘Make In India’, ‘Smart City’, ‘Swachh Bharat’, ‘Digital India’, ‘Skill India’, ‘Start Up India’, ‘Stand Up India’ and ‘Incredible India’.

Mr. Dattatreya Gaur, Senior Vice President & Head of BU at Robert Bosch Engineering & Business Solutions Pvt. Ltd, India.

On the first day of the finale March 5, 2016 an inaugural ceremony was conducted with, Mr. Dattatreya Gaur, Senior Vice President, Head of Engineering & Business Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Robert Bosch India, as the Chief Guest of the ceremony. In his inaugural address he said “Today’s bright young minds have more opportunities to explore career options. The Government of India is enabling the youth to come forward and present their ideas that can solve prevailing issues in a collective manner. The initiatives such as ‘Make in India’, ‘Start up India’ have created an environment for budding entrepreneurs in the country. He appreciated the initiative taken by WeSchool, to encourage youth to work for a national cause”.

The excitement and curiosity was visible on the faces of young audience; some of them had travelled to Bangalore for the first time to participate in the competition - a first of its kind.

The competition was open for undergraduate’s students of Commerce, Science & Arts, Engineering and all other undergraduate streams.The competition adopted a new format culminating students from diverse qualification backgrounds,that were given an opportunity to present their ideas on the same platform.

WeSchool believes in the philosophy of nurturing creative minds at the campus. Hence, to ignite the creative minds of the young

WeSchool Faculty, Staff and Students at the inaugural address of Idea Contest 2015-16 Grand Finale

participants a ‘Poster Making Workshop’ was held on the first day of the finale. Prof. Mohan Chandra, Dean Business Design and Innovation said, “Think India, Transform India’ showcased the vision of undergraduate students - our future generation - their ideas and concepts to create a new order for our nation towards a clean, skilled, digital, smart, and incredible India. The poster making contest brought out the visualization skill of the students on a poster with repect to the sub-themes of the contest”.

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Events | Idea Contest - 2015-16 The jury for Poster competition comprised of Prof. Mohan Chandra, Major Aditi Mohan, VP-FNF India and Mr. Shailesh Gaurav, Head –HR, Strides Shashun.

Mr. Sriram S, student of New Horizon Engineering College, Bangalore was the selected winner of this ‘Poster Making’ competition.

Students at Poster Making Workshop

Major Aditi Mohan said, “I was truly impressed with the ideas, concepts and the brilliant innovative minds of the students that came together from across states to help change the world and the environment. It also gave a feeling of pride that our youth was

so deeply concerned about how life and our earth can be saved and made a better place to live. It was not only my honor to have attended this but I ended up taking back some very beautiful thoughts and learning’s for self too”.

The ‘Poster Making’ competition was followed by ‘Management Games conducted by the WeSchool students, at campus Amphitheatre. The games were designed with the objective to impart basics of management concepts.

The students were delighted to participate in the management game and showcased their aptitude and skill to solve the management problems. During the game, rancorous cheers filled the amphitheatre, parents who had accompanied their wards watched with awe the game session and some even participated in these games.

Students Showcasing their Aptitude at Management Games

This followed a performance by ‘Dhwani’ – the music band of WeSchool.The acoustic performance on Guitar accompanied by songs in Hindi and regional languages set the mood for the evening.

All enjoyed the sweet melodies played by ‘Dhwani’.

The young minds needed some respite from the fierce on going competition amongst the peers to win the coveted prize award. And also have the privilege and distinguish that the Winners Ideas will be presented to the State Government for further deliberation and implementation with support of WeSchool.

Performance by ‘Dhwani’ – the music band of WeSchool, Bangalore

Students Enjoying the Performance at Amphi Theatre, WeSchool, Bangalore

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Events | Idea Contest - 2015-16

Creative Thinking Inspires Ideas. Ideas Inspire Change.

On 6th March, the second day of the Finale witnessed heightened sense of curiosity, excitement and tension that prevailed among the 200 participants from 100 colleges/institutes from South. Students were streaming into campus and were seen busily engaged in assembling their prototypes and posters in the classroom and busy summarizing their final presentation to the jury.

Sharuk Ahmed Mazumdar, from Coimbatore Institute of Technology had come up with an application that could help locate missing people in the aftermath of natural calamities like earthquake, floods.

Prototype Displayed at the Idea Contest

Priyanka Vijay, from BMS College of Engineering, Hubli talked of drone designed and equipped to help police force in identifying the suspects in a particular location. It had face recognition feature enabled with the attached camera which could do real time processing. There were ideas that talked of waste management, traffic management, green energy in rural settings, connecting the talent to and ventures appropriately. Another interesting fervor that found expression in the forum was young participants evangelizing for indigenous goods and their promotion in markets.

Ms. Maimuna. B, East - Point College of Engineering for Women, Bangalore.

Poster on “Swachh Bharat�

The adjudged 9 semi-finalist winners were selected based on the parameters of Originality, Innovation, Communication, Feasibility and Creativity. The semi-finales jury panel comprised of eminent industry professionals with rich and diverse background. Dr.Rupande Padhki, Consultant and Research Expert, P and P Consulting, Ms. Aparna C, CEO, Twam Global, Mr. Virkam Rai, Co-founder and Regional Director, Sattva, Ms. Dhairya Sheel Pawar, Head, Business Development, Wipro Ltd, Ms. Ajita Panshikar, Executive Director, VxCEL, Mr. Raghunandan, Founder Member, MHTR Global, and many more.

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Events | Idea Contest - 2015-16 The finalists as selected were Mr. Akhilesh, PSG, College of Technology, Coimbatore, Mr. Sathyanarayann, PSG College of Technology, Coimbtore, Ms.Vishnu Priya, Karpagam College of Engineering, Hyderabad, Ms.Sharath Teja D, St Martin’s Engineering College, Hyderabad, Md. Farhan, PSG College of Art & Science, Coimbatore and Mr. Anand N, Adi Shanara Institute of Engineering & Technology Cochin, and Mr. Francis Mondal, VIT Vellore.

(L-R) Mr.Shiva Kumar, Assitant Manager Marketing & Mr. Shobesh Ranjan, Deputy Manager, Marketing at WeSchool, Bangalore

These finalists presented their Ideas to a final panel comprising of Mr. Ajay Nanavati – Ex MD 3M Ltd, Mr. Sudeesh Ventakesh, - CHRO, Azim Premji Foundation, Mr. Surendra Shahi – Founder, Street Appy, Mr. Sanjay Anandaram – Venture Capitalist, Mrs. Revathi Ashok-CEO-BPAC.

Each finalist had 5 minute window to present his/her Idea followed by Q&A by the jury .The Award function for this Grand Finale was presided by Mr. Ajay Nanavati, Retired Director 3M and Guest of Honour - Ms. Aruna C Newton, Associate Vice President and Head – Global Delivery and inclusion, Sustainabiliy Reporting and Governance, Infosys Technologies Ltd. Mr. Ajay Nanavati, in his address said, “He felt honoured to witness this event and said it is important to filter ideas.

The idea should not be just a cool stuff but it should have the ability to scale up, be relevant for commercialization and transform into reality. He further advised the young students that it is important to re-invent your-self and not to be emotional rather critical about one’s ideas”.

Ms. Aruna Newton, in her address said, “It is a fabulous experience to see large number of participants presenting their innovative ideas and advised the students to continuously learn and develop. She also encouraged the students to focus on sports because it helps to develop and strengthen one’s mind”.

Mr. Sathyanarayann – student of PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore bagged first prize worth rupees two lakhs, for presenting the idea of a walking stick for visually challenged people with voice assistance. His Internet of Things (IoT) enabled walking stick would act as a travelling aid for visually impaired. This idea was presented under the ‘Make In India’ theme.

Mr. Francis S. Mondal, VIT Vellore won the second prize worth rupees one lakh presented the Idea: A Solar cell with a Brain at the Idea Contest 2015-16.

Mr. Sathyanarayann shared his emotions on winning the Grand Trophy and he said, “First of all the efforts taken by WeSchool Bangalore is appreciable The hospitality shown

(R-L) Mr. Sathyanarayann, PSG College Of Technology Coimbatore, Winner of Idea Contest 2015-16 and Mr. Francis S. Mondal, VIT Vellore won the Second Prize

by the institute is unbelievable. They were so concerned about our environment around us. The Idea contest 201516 conducted by the Institute helps to bring out the ideas of young minds; seriously the contest triggered us to think in an innovative manner. The contest encouraged us to develop ideas as well as future products for India”.

I presented my idea under Make In India theme. The concept of ‘Make In India’ brought out by Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi has set fire in young people’s mind. As we develop a product in India, it helps to develop our economy. The idea I proposed is IoT based smart walking cane for Typhlotics with voice assistance. It is an electronic traveling aid for visually challenged people. Over 15 million people in India are blind. So it is of utmost importance to develop a product for visually challenged at a low cost and of optimum performance.

Mr. Francis S. Mondal, said, “ First and foremost I would just like to take the opportunity to thank WeSchool, Bangalore for arranging this wonderful event that gave us students a platform to showcase our ideas and innovations for a better and smarter India. I hope the institute will continue providing more opportunities to students.

He further said, “There is only so much that we can learn in classrooms. Events such as Idea Contest give us the opportunity to deal with real life problems and actually solve a lot of issues that complicate our day to day living. It is nice to see so many wonderful ideas and solution to problems. I hope there will be more response from the industry, investors and even universities to take the ideas forward into innovative product or technology”.

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Events | Idea Contest - 2015-16 In his valedictory address Prof. Dr. Anil Rao, Dean & Director, WeSchool Bangalore said, “The Idea Contest 2015-16 was envisioned to spread awareness on the challenges and social issues existing in the country. At WeSchool, we strive to develop design thinking, entrepreneurial skills and creative mindset among our students. We hope the young participants who attended the Grand Finale have been able to assimilate the thought process. Also, the much talked about demographic dividend can be dividend in the real sense only when leveraged pragmatically. We need to create traction for brilliance and creativity. Such idea fests serve the twin purpose of resourcing brilliance and creativity and very same purpose along with aligning education to the goals of nation building and demands of civic issues. Innovation ascendancy is possible only if we encourage ideators.”

Seated on chair from L- R ( Mr. Sanjay Anandaram, Venture Captalist, Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Palia, Dean & Director, WeSchool, Bangalore, Mr. Sudeesh Ventakesh, Director, HR, Azim Premji Foundation, Mr. Ajay Nanavati, Ex Director, 3M, Ms. Aruna Newton, Associate VP and Head – Global Diversity and Inclusion, Infosys Ltd, Mr. Surendra Shahi, Founder Street Appy and Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Sr. Associate Dean - Academics / Finance & Organisation Ecosystem, WeSchool, Bangalore.

(Seated on the stage) Winners: Mr. Sathyanarayann, PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore (In the centre with the Idea Contest Trophy) and Mr. Francis S Mondal, VIT, Vellore, (seated right – second runner up at the Idea Contest).

9 Semi finalist: Standing behind the jury.

The WeSchool Idea Contest 2015-16 received stupendous support from the institutes and colleges across the five states. The Principals and Directors of the various institute applauded WeSchool, Bangalore initiative which aligned to bring a difference to society as envisioned by Government of India.

The core team of this event comprised of Prof. Dr. Savitha GR, Prof. Dr. Hema Doreswamy, Prof. Anita Pillai, and Prof. Vijay Kumar Nishtala, and were supported by Mr. Shiv Kumar and Mr. Shobesh Ranjan, the Managers from Marketing Department, WeSchool Bangalore.

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Events | CII-Yi Talk

A Case Study Workshop Blue Ocean Strategy – Finding Untapped Markets’

On March, 1, 2016, WeSchool, Bangalore in association with CII-Yi hosted ‘A Case Study Workshop on – Blue Ocean Strategy’. The objective of this workshop was to enhance the participant’s awareness; on how the adoption of Blue Ocean Strategy can bring about transformation.

The Blue Ocean strategy, developed by Professor W.Chan Kim and Reenee Mauborgne, at INSEAD, France, has been adopted by large number of companies across the world.

Dr. Kaushik Murali, the Head of Department of Pediatric Ophthalmology, Vision Rehabilitation and President Medical Administration, Quality & Education at Sankara Eye Foundation, and also the Chair for Entrepreneurship at Young Indians, Bangalore was the invited speaker for the session.

In the first session; the participants were introduced to the concept of Red Ocean VS Blue Ocean to understand the dynamics of Blue Ocean Strategy. A Red Ocean represents all industries that are in existence today and a Blue Ocean denotes industries that are not in existence. A Blue Ocean is primarily an unknown space yet to contested or untapped. During the workshop the participants were imparted with principles of how to create Blue Ocean.

Dr. Kaushik Murali, the Head of Department of Pediatric Ophthalmology, at Sankara Eye Foundation, Addressing the Audience

Blue Ocean Strategy Create uncontested market space Make the competition irrelevant Create & capture new demand Break the value-cost trade off Simultaneous pursuit strategy of differenitation and low cost

* Source Blue Ocean Strategy by Prof. W.Chan Kim and Reenee Mauborgne

The participants were also introduced to the concept of: “The Eliminate-Reduce - Raise - Create Grid” which is an important framework in the creation of blue oceans.

During session live examples of companies that have adopted the strategy were cited to participants so as to enable them to absorb the concept with ease.

Prof.Sunali Talwar, Manager CMC & New initiatives/Assistant Professor Marketing handing over a memento to a particpant at the CII -Yi

The session was attended by student and faculty of WeSchool and by members of CII-Yi. Prof.Sunali Talwar, Manager CMC & New initiatives/Assistant Professor Marketing, co-ordinated the event and expressed her appreciation for the large participation of members at the workshop.

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Academics | AC Process

ASSESSMENT CENTRE PROCESS WESCHOOL, BENGALURU CAMPUS, MARCH, 2016 Prof. Dr. Jai Raj Nair Professor & Head IT Vertical WeSchool Bangalore An Assessment Centre (AC) Process is a method for assessing aptitude and performance; applied to a group of participants by trained assessors using various aptitude diagnostic processes in order to obtain information about applicants' abilities or development potential. The assessment centre focuses on a set of varied exercises, which are designed to simulate different aspects of the work environment. The AC exercises assess how closely the demonstrated behaviors, match with the ones required for a particular role.

WeSchool is one of the few B-schools in the country that conducts an AC for its students. Typically, an AC is conducted in organizations to identify & groom the most competent employees to take on bigger roles. However, the purpose of conducting an AC for first year students at WeSchool is two-fold: • To help students identify their key strengths & key areas of development • To groom students to match industry needs The AC process was conducted for batch 2015-17 in the month of March 2016. The students were assessed on six intrinsic competencies (leadership, innovation, critical & analytical & integrative thinking, communication skills, and global perspective). A few more competencies, specific to students of HR and E-business courses, were added in this year’s process. These competencies were assessed using four interventions namely, Group Discussion Exercise using case study, Role Play, In-basket Exercise, and Behavioral Event Interview.

The purpose of the AC is to facilitate holistic development of each student in a way that matches industry needs.

In order to achieve this, the assessors, through their feedback and introspection, were required to identify two competencies for each student that had to be worked upon by the particular student. Subsequently, each student was asked to prepare a Development Action Plan that comprises details of the actions he/she would take to improve on their respective 'gap areas’ in order to get industry employable ready on completion of their PGDM program.

The AC was conducted over three days with more than 50 external invited industry professionals as assessors from a plethora of reputed companies such as Société Générale, ITC Gardenia, CSC Corp, Ingersoll Rand, Mantri Developers, Guhring India, Bharat Electronics Ltd. etc.

The process was co-ordinated and smoothly conducted under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Jai Raj Nair, Professor & Head, IT Vertical WeSchool Bangalore.

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CMC | Executive & Summer Placements

Prof. Anuradha Mahesh Head - CMC, WeSchool Bangalore

PLACEMENT SEASON 2015-16 ……LIGHTS , CAMERA AND ACTION ……

Come June and monsoon frenzy begins. At WeSchool Bangalore campus, it is as well the beginning of a new Academic year. New Academic year for the campus means new young faces-the new students, new initiatives and of course the return of our summer interns of the previous batch.

At the Career Management Cell ( CMC), WeSchool, June 2015 was a different excitement as myself and Prof. Sunali welcomed new members to our team. Maj. Vinita with her defense services background, Ms. Vinoda with IT /ITES and Ms. Tina with her BFSI background joined us; to make it truly a team with diverse backgrounds.

Our team took to work like fish to water and initiatives started sailing smoothly. Sunali with her grace and patience, Vinita with her organizing skills, Vinoda with acumen of spotting new opportunities and Tina with her charm and elegance all were geared to take on the task of yet another placement season.

As a team, we decided to stick to our role of being catalyst in bringing the most relevant opportunities for our students by connecting with best of corporate and thereby enhancing our Institution branding. We decided to work towards visible milestones -a cornerstone strategy of a Business School.

Our initial challenges included that of some of our corporate partners not having a campus hiring agenda for the year; conglomerates such as Tata Group had put hold on campus hiring as a result of their internal reshuffling.

Rather than getting discouraged by these external environment uncontrollable variables, we decided to tap new premier companies, strengthened our relations with our other Group companies and followed diligently with startups and e- Commerce companies . Few start-up companies such as Zipotel, Zoomcar, Urban Tailor, Home Shikari and Gludo were pursued. The empanelment process for all the companies was methodically carried out as per the scheduled CMC norms.

An important agenda for the year was to get companies that could offer higher annual salary packages and also appeal to existing partners for revision in their present packages offerings. After continuous follow up Deloitte US India our foremost partner agreed to visit our campus, it was indeed a moment of pride for all. We had fabulous co-operation from our student placement secretaries and deputy placement secretaries as well as the Data Managers .Through our reach out program and focused networking, this year we managed to reach out to over 150 companies; of which 95 companies visited our campus. Companies such as QuessCorp, Happiest Mind, Feedback Consulting, Treebo, Maini ended up doing multiple campus visits. Previous years efforts to bring premium companies like Deloitte India, ICICI Bank, HSBC to campus resulted in positive outcomes with these companies visiting our campus this year. This did generate a lot of excitement among the students adding yet another achievement feather to the CMC/Campus initiatives.

As the placement season began in the month of November, the tension among the students was visible and all of them were engaged in interview preparation, co-ordinating with the administration team on logistics and of course with faculty members for their continuous support on academic aspects.

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CMC | Executive & Summer Placements As the companies started coming in after every visit there were good news on the student placements that got done and students sharing their happiness by distributing sweets across to the WeSchool family members. Companies such as ABRL, Deloitte US India, Halma, Reliance Jio, Volvo Construction, Happiest Minds had intense processes before final placements, where as companies such as Qikpod, Gludo, Treebo, Geek advertising had adopted different processes for placements. This year for the first time students Aditya, Madhavi Kotha, Harsh Joshi, Raina, Anirudh Kaushik, and Siddhanth Jain received Pre-placements offer (PPOs), making us all feel proud and happy.

I am confident that this trend will continue in the years to come. Hearty Congratulations to the team at CMC , would like to put on record special thanks to students Minal Holkar, Akshay Agnihotri, Shruti Saraf, Ankita More , Madhavi Kotha, Krishanu Jha, Priyanka Mishra, Pratyaksh, who wholeheartedly supported CMC team to ensure placement processes were conducted smoothly and seamlessly. HR team of many companies such as IBM, HSBC, HDFC , Dell appreciated our students co-odinators’s efforts. The support that came from Alumni Abhijeet Jaiswal, Pragyan Paramita, Dilshad Kothawala, was highly valuable for our season placements.

As we commenced in the second phase of our final placements for batch 2014-16 as well beginning of Summer Placements for batch 2015-17, we had few banks, E-commerce and start-up companies that visited our campus and selected students final placement while some others with intense project and good stipends awarded students with summer internships.

As I write this article, I am proud to state : • 98 % of students have received final placement • 12 Lakhs is the highest salary package for the academic year 2014-16 • 100 % students of batch 2015-17 have received summer placements.

• The average summer stipend is INR 8800 per month- with the highest touching INR 45000 per month.

Few learnings to share from our experiences of season 2015 -16 placements: • Companies are offering exciting opportunities and roles but they put huge emphasis on the capability i.e. knowledge, so one needs to be thorough in their domain subjects.

• Roles are blended i.e. require multiple skills, Operations role with IT, HR role with operations, Finance role with Business development etc • Some important musts: IT awareness, understanding of new business trends such as Analytics, Prototyping Design thinking , Finance fundamentals to crack the interview.

• Like George Bernard Shaw said “ He knows nothing and thinks he is everything. That points clearly to a political career.” So if you are unprepared you will have to opt out for politics as career choice. However in today's scenario unprepared politicians become butt of jokes in social media.

• Prepare ahead of the season. Be it your CirculumCurriculum Vitae, your ward robe and even your looks. Eat well, sleep well, and feel confident about yourself.

• Preparation, preparation and preparation is the mantra. Positivity pays in the end.

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Management Development Centre Management Development Centre (MDC) WeSchool, Bangalore Prof. AKN Prasad Head, MDC - Executive Education WeSchool, Bangalore MDC, WeSchool Bangalore has been focussing on delivering customized business management courses to the corporate sector.

The process involves understanding business pain points with customers and designing a suitable course and delivering the same. These customized courses span different area.

• • • •

Warranty and service revenue management Supply chain management Brand equity measurement Building leadership pipeline etc.

Further, executive educational courses have been delivered on regular subjects in management such as: • Finance and Accounts • Business analytics • Service delivery management and others to clients requiring an in depth understanding of the subject to help their executives perform better on their jobs.

MDC clientele include reputed companies such as Infosys, Robert Bosch, Titan, EY, Biocon, HP, Dell, ITC infotech, National University of Singapore, Fiat, Nongwooseeds Korea, Radha Regent Hotels and many others.

MDC, WeSchool Bangalore, has been the chosen partner to deliver a customized 400 Hrs course to Infosys BPO executives located at their Bangalore, Pune and Jaipur centres. The program called JMLP (Junior Management Leadership Program) has been so successful that currently the 11th batch is going on with an average intake of 40 executives in each batch.

MDC has maintained an excellent track record in the quality of their executive education delivery which has resulted in many clients coming back for repeat programmes.

All participants undergoing executive education programmes receive appropriate certificate on completion of the programme.

MDC is headed by Prof. AKN Prasad and supported by Asst. Prof. Kalpana Garde, IT & Sr. Manager- MDC and Mr. Bharath Vikram, Manager Business Development The department’s backend activities are driven by senior executive assistants Ms. Archana Vishwanath and Ms. Shilpa Shreekantachari.

Inaugration of Certifcate program for EY-GSS, Bangalore

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Global Exchange Study Program Experience of Lifetime

Ms. Aishwarya Nambiar PGDM- Business Design & Innovation (Batch 2015-17) at WeSchool Bangalore.

WeSchool, offers it students various study abroad and exchange programs.

“Linnaeus Palme Scholarship Program” offers an opportunity for Indian students to study in Sweden at Malardalen University (MDH), Vasteras for duration of 3 months.The scholarship program seemed an interesting opportunity to me as well to my other batch colleagues. The selection process for this scholarship comprised of interviews and assessments. Along with me, two other students from our Mumbai campus were selected for this scholarship. We were all extremely delighted on our achievement.

We were informed about the cold and freezing climate that prevails in Sweden and I was keen to experience the weather and new environment. I looked forward to the opportunity to make new acquaintances in a new country along with two of my fellow batch mates from Mumbai.

The campus of University of Maraldren, Sweden is beautiful, with mesmerizing building and a large library. We had the choice to select the subjects of our interest. Prof. Christer Nygren, Lecturer -School of Innovation, Design and Engineering, Division of Innovation Management, was our mentor and he was extremely accommodating and supportive.

Sweden is ranked as the top most innovative countries in the world. So, as a part of our curriculum we chose to study Innovation & Creativity Management, which gave us great insights regarding how innovation is viewed and approached differently in this country.

The campus of Maraldren University, Sweden

We also took up a course to study Swedish language as it is always beneficial to learn a foreign language. Under our “Global Citizen Leadership Program (GCL)” of Welingkar which requires us to work with a company on a particular project, I decided a GCL project on the aspect of learning, how Sweden works on Innovation and Creativity and understand the government role in supporting the same.

I was informed that faculty at MDH University, Sweden had the opportunity to work with few municipalities which facilitates training for the municipal employees. Referring these cases helped me in progressing well with my project.

I also got a chance to refer to The Swedish government’s work on ‘Innovation Project’ – termed as “ Vinnova”. These enabled me to progress steadily and apply the learnings to my project.

While in Sweden, I got the opportunity to interact with international student fraternity as we were housed in same complex for our accommodation. We also had the opportunity to travel in and around Sweden as well visited Paris, Barcelona, Geneva. People at Sweden had different opinion about few of our Indian customs. I am glad that we were able to change their outlook towards India and our culture .

These 3 months in Sweden would not be a cakewalk with out the guidance, I received from Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Prof. Mohan Chandra, and also Prof. Indu Mehta, from Mumbai campus was in constant touch with us.

Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila-Dean & Director, WeSchool Bangalore, motivated me throughout this journey.

Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe, Group Director, WeSchool encouraged us tremendously. It was his sheer belief and confidence in us that made us to work towards this scholarship opportunity and I am extremely obliged to “WeSchool” to for this golden opportunity.

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Faculty Achievements

Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande Sr Associate Dean - Academics, Finance and Organization Ecosystem Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, received the ‘Roll of Honours 2016’ award for being one among the top women employees at an event ‘Abhinandana 2016’ organized by Electronics City Industries Association (ELCIA), Bangalore. This event organized to commemorate ‘Women Achievers’ took place on 1 May 2016 at ISBR campus, Electronic city, Bangalore.

Prof. Jyoti Joshi Pant Assistant Professor - HR Prof. Jyoti Joshi Pant, was an invited speaker at the ‘Trainer Festival’- an event conducted by ‘Strengthscape’ for Learning and Development Professionals and HR managers on 6th May, 2016. She spoke on Generational Diversity and the Millennial Generation sharing the personality assessment of Gen Y and its implications for learning and development.

Prof. Dr. Savitha GR Associate Professor - HR Prof. Dr. Savitha GR, was selected by WeSchool Management - to attend Linnaeus-Palme a Swedish exchange programme, at Malardalan University, Sweden. This 3 week duration program is intended for teachers and students at undergraduate and master's level of higher education and aims at strengthening co-operation between institutions of higher education in Sweden and developing countries. Malardalan University, Sweden has partnered with WeSchool on this initiative.

Student Achievements Mr. Vinit Jadav and Mr. Siddesh Uppin PGDM batch 2015-17 were winners at - ‘AnalyptiQ’ a national level event organized by Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Hyderabad on 20th March, 2016.

The event tested the participant’s quant and logical skills in multiple rounds. The students were accorded ‘Certificate of Appreciation’ and a prize voucher of INR 8000/- for their achievement.

The student team receiving the certificate of appreciation from the jury at the competition held at Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Hyderabad.

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Event | Rotaract Club of WeSchool ROTARACT CLUB OF WESCHOOL AARAMBH 2016 To Commemorate World Rotaract Week

To commemorate International Rotaract Week, Rotaract Club of Welingkar organized AARAMBH 2016.

Aarambh 2016 was inaugurated on 8th February by Award-winning Actress Samyukta Hornad who was the Chief Guest ;PDRR Rtr. Karthik Kittu, the Guest of Honour and Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Dean & Director, WeSchool.

In the afternoon cultural competition was organized. The competition included FootLoose (Dance), Band Wars (Band event) and FlavourBurst (Fireless Cooking).

Actress Samyukta Hornad, Chief Guest, PDRR Rtr. KarthikKittu, the Guest of Honour and Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Dean & Director, WeSchool, Lighting the Lamp, AARAMBH - 2016

On 9th February, ‘National Make a Friend Day’ students visited Omashram Trust, a charitable trust founded with the objective of providing care and support to the old. Students donated food items and ration. They put up a cultural event showcasing dance performance and songs of different genres. The senior citizens obliged the students request by joining them in the festivity. It was a memorable experience that students would cherish.

Students were dressed in traditional attire to celebrate the traditional day. Roses were presented to non-teaching staff as a 'Thank you' gesture. Students clicked pictures with interesting props and placards at Selfie Corner. An online competition “Selfie Time" was organized in collaboration with MPower Club to select the best solo selfie and group selfie.

Cultural and Tradtional day Celebrated during the closing ceremony of Aarambah - 2016

In the evening, teachers and students came together for a series of fun filled activities. On the spot nominations were considered for "Grace the Red Carpet" event which were judged by Prof. Dr. Githa Heggde, Prof. Anita Pillai and Prof.

Vijay Kumar. It was a fun filled day.

Welingkar Rotaractors celebrated 11- 02 -16 as an ‘Act of kindness day’ and visited 'Save Animals India' a dog shelter in Kengeri satellite town. Students donated food for the canines.

Occasion: Organ Donation Day 13th February Gift of life is perhaps the most amazing gift anybody can give. To spread awareness about donation 47 students along with BODs organized a flash mob at Forum Mall. Post the performance students addressed the gathered audience to educate them on the importance of organ donation.

The week long celebrations concluded with Hobby Kitchen. The students exhibited their culinary skills. The enthusiastic chefs prepared lunch for 120 students, teaching and non-teaching staff. Students prepared chicken biryani for the non-vegetarians and for the vegetarians they prepared noodles, chat, chole tikkie, corn salad and shahi tukda for the desert. The raised funds would be donated for a good cause. The event was overwhelmingly successful.

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The Rotaraian visit to Canine Center in Bangalore

Events | Rotaract Zone Institute Rotaract Zone Institute Annual Conference, 22 April 2016 Panel Discussion on ‘Transforming Communities into Connected and Smart Communities’

2016

WeSchool Bangalore hosted a day’s session of Rotaract Zone Institute,during its annual South Asia Governorselect conference on 22nd April 2016. The conference was attended by over sixty governors-elect from across the Rotaract districts in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh. The conference proceedings included a panel discus-sion on ‘Transforming Communities into Connected and Smart Communities’ coordinated by WeSchool, and moderated by Prof. Mohan Chandra-Dean, Business Design & Innovation, WeSchool-Bangalore. The keynote address delivered by Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Dean & Director, WeSchool-Bangalore highlighted the synergy of integrating technology, innovation, and business to create a new society that is empowered, connected, and smart.

The panelists were drawn from diverse sectors such as medical products, healthcare , entertainment, and financial services industries. Mr. Raghu Dharmaraju-entrepreneur / intrapreneur, Dr. Devaiah Mapangada-Chief Medical Officer at Mobi Health Care LLP, Mr. Raj Narayan-Founder, Chief Innovator and Managing Director, Radel, and Mr. Govind Raja-Managing Partner at Moneybag Ventures, Bangalore.Each of them shared their journey of innovation in their respective sector, to bring about change in the society driven by technology.

ZONE I NSTITUTE

Zones 4, 5 & 6A | 21 st - 24th April, Bengaluru

Presents Panel Discussion on “Transforming Communities into Smart & Connected Communities” 22nd April 2016, 6.30pm

SPEAKERS

Govvind Raja

Raghu Dharmarajan

Dr. Devaiah Raj Narayan

Moderator Mohan Chandra

Mr. Raghu Dharmaraju, has an experience of 15 years in go-to-market journeys of path-breaking product innovations. He launched and scaled an award-winning global health innovation product - the baby warmer, in emerg-ing markets, ultimately driving adoption by governments and the WHO and helping over 200,000 babies.

Mr. Dharmaraju, shared his innovative experiences in healthcare, consumer energy, automobile, and solar technologies. Dr. Devaiah Mapangada, shared his vision to make ‘Mobident’–“The Most Trusted to Provide World Class Dental Care at the Customer’s Doorstep".

Dr. Devaiah’s mission through Mobident made positive changes in the lives of children, youth, and adults by providing highest quality affordable dental care in a mobile dental clinic with a warm and caring atmosphere following strict patient guidelines, and pursuing active learning to bring a lifelong smile on the patient, by delivering preventive and wholesome oral healthcare at his doorstep.

Mr. Raj Narayan, an aeronautical engineer turned entrepreneur with his passion for music, started Radel dedicated to his passion of music. Radel designs and manufactures music rhythm boxes, used during practice sessions by musicians.

Mr. Raj Narayan, delved on how he innovated in the entertainment systems market, creating a product from a latent need that always existed, but never resolved. As an innovator his interests included electronic product design, carpentry, aero modeling, gardening, sports, and Indian and Western music. He has won many awards in the space of music and entertainment.

Mr. Govvind Raja, is a financial investment specialist, who has worked with Technologia - a subsidiary of Etisalat Telecom, JGI Ventures, Rudra Investments, and Tyco. A chartered accountant and company secretary by qualification, he was identified as one of among the top 100 Chief Financial Officers (CFO) of India by The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). He shared his wide experiences in diverse areas of finance, investment banking, corporate strategy, and operations and processes. He also shared his experiences as an advocate of entrepreneurship.

With active interactions from the audience, all the panelists were more than eager to share their journey, experiences, and insights in creating opportunities to solve people’s problems. They message conveyed was that innovation always existed, but it has to be democratized and spread across masses for it to be leveraged and shared by all in society.

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Event | Farewell Party

‘Oscar Nite’ Farewell Party - Class - 2014-16

OSCARS - The Hollywood Awards was the theme of the farewell party of class 2014-16 at WeSchool, Campus held on 1st April, 2016.

Everyone at the campus from students, faculty members to staff were equally excited for the evening of togetherness.

The campus had resembled a Hollywood Oscar Nite set, with red carpets, white chandeliers and shimmering lights that adorned the lawns of WeSchool. The senior batch students seemed truly delighted.

WeSchool young stars - batch 2014-16 were welcomed as they walked on the red carpet rolled out. Ladies were attired in bold & stylish designer gowns with high heel stilettos. Men were dressed in their best suites – bow tie and stylish footwear. The evening began with a ‘Karaoke’ to set the mood.

WeSchool Faculty and Staff at the Oscar Nite - Farewell Party hosted for Class 2014-16

The Oscar Award 2016 ceremony commenced with the address of Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Dean & Director, WeSchool, Bangalore who shared his memorable moments with the batch of 2014-16 and their two year journey with the WeSchool family.

The master of ceremonies for the evening was held by Ms. Mahalakshmi M acting as (Lola Kutty – the popular Channel V – VJ) and her co-host Mr.Lendl Fernandez as a (Arab Gentleman). They entertained the audience with their sharp humor and equally entertaining performances. It brought cheers and loud applauses from the audience.

Awards and accolades were bestowed on the students for their various achievements and accomplishments in their two year journey with WeSchool.

Various students from senior batch were conferred with titles as Mr. Krishanu Jha,- ‘ The Casanova’, Mr. Vaibhav Manair, ‘The Nerd’, Mr. Akash - ‘The Dapper Boy’ Mr. Yash Jain-‘ The Faculty Pet’, Ms. Riana ‘Miss Style’.

This function followed a dance performance from the hosting students batch.

The young girls on the stage dancing

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The young girls set the stage on fire; as they danced to ‘I am Sexy’ the popular Hollywood foot tapping number!

Event | Farewell Party

‘Oscar Nite’ Farewell Party - Class - 2014-16

Anushree Majumder- class 2014-16 "The farewell was such an amazing one! The Oscar theme was awesome and the way everything was set from decoration to entertainment was fantastic. It was entertaining, energetic and engaging”

Prof . Anita Pillai, Assistant Professor IT Vertical, said, “As students of batch 2014-16 move on to pursue their career; the farewell was an occasion for them to reminiscent their memorable two years at WeSchool, Bangalore and celebrate those memories. Inspite of final exams just round the corner (starting from 4th April, 2016)) the junior batch cultural team lead by Asawari and Nikhilesh did a wonderful job of organizing the event”.

Later in the evening the students were all out on the center stage at WeSchool, Amphi Theatre dancing to the tunes of Nikhil Pandey, the DJ for the evening. Nikhil churned out popular hit numbers and had every one on the dancing floor.

As the evening rolled on; some students were seen dancing to soul stirring music while others were absorbed in exchanging old memories at the campus.

It was time to say ‘Adieu’ to the WeSchool class of 2014 -16.

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Talent Corner A shloka which I learnt during school days, but I understood its actual meaning after few years. The shloka says:“Sahitya, Sangit, Kala Vihinah” “Sakshatpashupucchvishaanhinah Which means that a person without these qualities; are devoid of living an enjoyable human life and even I feel, this is absolutely true.”

Vineet Sundaram PGDM - EBIZ- Batch 2015-17 At home both my parents had a deep love and interest for percussion instruments such as tabla and harmonium.

Hence, in my childhood, I was encouraged by parents to learn musical instrument.

After undergoing training lesson in Tabla basics for two years, I slowly started devoting more time to practice the art. It invariably enhanced and increased my interest in the art. I completed my Prabhakar degree in Tabla from the prestigious institute of art Prayag Sangit Samiti, Allahabad in the year 2007.

Learning Tabla has been beneficial to me and in the process of learning this art I have understood the importance of Time Management. During my school days I learnt how to allocate time to different activities which were crucial such as academics, sports, and tabla. Now playing tabla, has become a ritual for me and helps me to destress and feel reinvigorated.

I have performed at different platforms and to large audience gatherings of classical music lovers. Their appreciation and applauds has elevated my self-confidence quotient. I have been conferred numerous awards such as ‘ Best Instrument Player of the School’, ‘ Runner-Up in Inter-college music competition and Junkyard competition and other accolades.

The most memorable achievement was on my Graduation Day ceremony at the BITS PILANI, PUNE. The college management put forward a proposal suggesting that I should be inducted to train students and faculty members interested in pursuing the art and I accepted the offer. I will be eternally indebted to my parents for their support and appreciation in my musical journey and to my Guru - Shri Anup Dubey, under his tutelage, I further enhance my learning.

Moreover, whenever I get a chance, I always entertain myself and others with my art.

“Music is all around us, all we have to do is listen” I live by this famous quote from the film August Rush……. This quote sums up my idea of music.

My rendezvous with music started at a very young age. At home, when parents would listen to music on radio/tape recorder, I would sing too. My parents observed that their daughter had a acumen for music and I joined the music class at the age of 7.

I learnt Carnatic classical for 10 years from Mrs. Saraswathi and Mrs. Anuradha Rajan. Later on, I received training for three years in Hindustani Classical from Pandit Sanjay Ram Marathe.

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Gayatri Bhandary PGDM - Batch 2015-17

Talent Corner The single strong source of inspiration for me, till date, stands to be the Mozart of Madras- A.R.Rahman. I aspire to sing for him some day.

I listen and appreciate all genres, be it Classical, Blues, Rock, Pop and R&B. Listening to various styles and genres of music have helped me in creating my own style of music and I have found my niche in the music world.

I always pursue to imbibe little nuances from all my favorite singers and try to improvise and sing in my own distinct way.

Be it Music or MBA, I have learnt that one needs to practice whatever art or subject one learns. A person needs to have the burning passion to nourish one's talent and be good at what one does. The moment the passion is lost its difficult to take any work forward. Perfection manifests only when the right amount of passion and the right amount of practice goes into the making.

I try to nurture music so as to achieve that perfection and Practice/riyaaz, along with listening to various artists.

MBA teaches us to plan, organize and juggle a lot of tasks. Music has helped me concentrate and keep me focused all along. In school, when I found it difficult to remember long answers, I would give those answers a rhythmic pattern and tune to make it easier to remember. Even now, when we have several assignments and have to give presentations on diverse topics, I like to sing my way through it. Music has always made my life seem easier.

I have performed at numerous events be it college, cultural or social events. Performing on stage always gives me a high which is beyond words, takes me to a place of ultimate joy, peace and gives a sheer sense of revelation and hope. This will always boost my passion to work harder and keep going. While people are making yoga, a way of life these days, for me, Music is a way of life. I listen to music and draw inspiration from it to carry out my day to day activities.

“Where words fail Music speaks” I recall that my musical journey commenced when I was in school and had no idea that I would develop deep interest and passion for music singing. After I joined Engineering College, I started performing at various events at the college. I observed my seniors playing Guitar and singing of composition at campus events. It lead me to join the Music club at the college.

I bought my first guitar in 2010 and I was tutored by my seniors and also attended the online lesson on internet.

Divesh Bali PGDM - E Biz - Batch 2014-16 The first performance of mine was at ‘ Enlevinia” a National Level Tech Fest organized by our college and I was accorded the first prize in Solo singing category. This achievement further boosted my confidence and I started learning and practising Guitar at regular intervals and later on many performances followed. My journey with Music continued, while I started working at Accenture.

During my tenure at the company, I won two talent shows.The most amazing experience with music started when I joined WESCHOOL. I still recall fondly the first performance I had at the Amphie Theatre on August 15th, 2014.Later on, I had the privilege and opportunity to perform at all events at the campus and I would feel exceedingly delighted when I was requested to perform.

However, my favourite performance was at WeCafe, wherein Mr. Vaitheeswaran, Managing Director and CEO of Manipal Global Education Services, invited as the guest for the evening. I sang the song “ Kya Hua Tera Wada” from the movie ‘ Yadon ki Baraat’ and it was an amazing experience for me to perform in front of a distinguished personality and also in presence of my classmates and faculty. Music has played an important role in my overall development and I have learnt many things. When I experience a bout of loneliness or stress, I pick up my Guitar, and the magic starts and I am on a different plane.

Music has helped me to build up my confidence and to become independent person. I would like to thank each and every person I met at the campus for motivating and encouraging me to pursue my passion for music. The valuable inputs and compliments have helped me to improve my art. In the end I would like to say that I will miss performing at “WeSchool”.

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Prameya Team It is always exciting for me to bring new writing in the world in the form of publication PRAMEYA that will be seen, read, appreciated and may be talked about. This third consecutive term as the faculty editor once again provided me the refreshing opportunity to interact with a new student/faculty team. This year PRAMEYA had a design facelift, some fresh and powerful topics made in-roads and a cohesive faculty team made my journey smooth and satisfying. My best wishes to all the PRAMEYA team members in their personal and professional lives ahead.

Prof. Dr. Sonia Mehrotra Editor, Prameya

PRAMEYA is an interesting engagement because your knowledge on Design, Research is enhanced. It also requires team co-ordination with internal and external stakeholders. Prameya "keeps me on my toes”.

Ms. Shilpa Pathak Assistant Editor, Prameya At the heart of Prameya lies a dedicated team of students and staff with the goal to create an incredible read. It was my maiden experience to be a part of a magazine editing team, in fact an eye opener about the effort, preparation and time spent to come up with a good magazine. I cherish being a part of Prameya 2015-16.

Prof. Asha Mathew Assistant Editor

Prameya has been a learning experience for me. I got to nurture my creativity beneath the suit of professionalism. I faced challenges everytime I tried to push my limits further, everytime I tried to do things differently. In the process, I realised how time and proper communication is important. My teachers provided me that extra cushion, and allowed me to go free spirited on the designs I conceptualized and guidance provided by Mr. William Dayabaran.

Mr. Roman Rathod PGDM - E- Business Batch 2015-17

Working for Prameya was fun!! It helped me in many ways - team co-ordination, managing the ups and downs of work, time management & basics of magazine designing. I also used this opportunity to utilise my hobby of photography to the next level. My sincere thanks to all my team members, Prof. Dr. Sonia, Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Shilpa Ma’am & Asha Ma’am for their support throughout the year.

Mr. Sino Mohanlal PGDM - Business Design & Innovation Batch 2015-17

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Prameya Team Working for Prameya as part of student editorial team was quite difficult in the beginning but thanks to Prof. Dr. Sonia and Shilpa Ma’am for their constant guidance and support, and our whole team of Prameya who made this a great experience. I was always learning something new. I really enjoyed the whole editing process.

Ms. Samriddhi Jaiswal PGDM - E- Business Batch 2015-17

It has been a pleasure for me to be associated with such incredible team, who has supported me and guided me in creating some valuable content for Prameya. I enjoyed being associated with this particular facet of WeSchool. I would like to thank all the team members who were involved in co-creating the magazine. It was indeed a great learning.

Ms. Flinky Sharma PGDM - General Management Batch 2015-17

Working in Prameya Editorial Team has been a great leaning experience. Communication and feedback played a vital role behind magazine's completion. Prameya can be seen as a finished product out of collaborative efforts by Prof. Dr. Sonia Malhotra, Ms. Shilpa Pathak, Mr. William Dayabaran and the student editorial team.

Mr. Harshal Nandurkar PGDM - General Management Batch 2015-17

For Prameya Issue 12, I would like to put on record a ‘Special Thanks’ to Mr. William Dayabaran, for his dedicated and sincere efforts in helping the Prameya team with the Design of the Magazine. Mr. William Dayabaran, your support and timely help will be cherished by our whole team.

Mr. William Dayabaran Design Associate, WeSchool The cover design of this issue as conceptulized by Roman Rathod on theme of 'Branding' was an engaging activity for WeSchool students where they were requested to post their selfies on the Prameya Facebook page. An indeed a stupendous effort by Roman Rathod.

Prof. Dr. Sonia Mehrotra Faculty Editor- Prameya

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Prin. L. N. Welingkar Institute Of Management Development & Research, Bangalore Plot No 102 & 103, Electronics City Phase 1, Hosur Road, Bangalore, Karnataka - 560 100 Phone : +91-80-42678300, 28521066/67, 28520480/817

www.welingkar.org