Prameya Issue 18: WeSchool Bengaluru Campus Life by Prameya

Foreword ‘Design 5.0 - Your Launchpad to Success’ was the theme for ‘NEEV 2019’- the 3 weeks long Foundation Programme at WeSchool Bengaluru Campus. Each year Foundation Fortnight is held to celebrate the commencement of the new academic year and to welcome the new batch into WeSchool family. The world of business is undergoing rapid changes. The ﬁve forces that drive the growth of an organization in this VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) world are Design Thinking, Sustainability, Innovation, Global perspective and New age technologies like machine learning and artiﬁcial intelligence. Therefore, undoubtedly, the future of MBA also revolves around these 5 forces. NEEV ’19 was inaugurated by Dr. Kalpana Gopalan, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Youth Empowerment & Sports, Karnataka. Each day of Neev 2019 was engaging as students listened and interacted with leading personalities from the industry. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Dean, WeSchool Bengaluru Campus has shared her thoughts on campus life and the institute’s objectives and goals for each and every newcomer. The ‘Guru speak’ article by our faculty member speaks about the relevance of Gandhism in management discipline. We are glad to map entrepreneur Ms. Chetana Koulagi’s journey on sensitizing people about the differently abled persons. Her passion and dedication would surely encourage the youngsters. This issue also briefs about various programmes and initiatives by the Management Development Cell and Career Management Cell, and offers a glimpse of students’ and faculty members’ achievements. WeSchool Bengaluru celebrated the Independence Day and there is ‘talent corner’ where students showcased their writing skills. Happy Reading!! Signing off till we meet again with the next Issue

Faculty Editorial Team

Student Team

Chief Editor

Dr. Karishma Chaudhary

Copy Editor

Ms. Ishani Chakraborty

Student Contributors Team

Magazine Design

Mr. William Dayabaran

Ms. Neha Samudrawar Ms. Chhaya Govil Ms. Arkana Kashyap Mr. Shantanu Sagar

Contents

Foreword

Group Director and Senior Dean & Director

Messge From

Articles 11

Neev 2019

13 16 22

From Dean's Desk - By Dr. Madhavi Lokhande Dean, WeSchool, Bengaluru Campus

Guru Speak: Mahatma Gandhi - By Dr. Sowmya C S Associate Professor – HR WeSchool, Bengaluru

Entrepreneur article Article on Entrepreneur Wenture, WeSchool, Bengaluru

Achievements — Faculty & Student Achievements

Events 14

Management Development Centre

Summer Internship Contest 2019

Celebrations - Independence Day

Talent Corner

Students’ Prameya Experience

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” - Benjamin Franklin Prof. Dr. UDAY SALUNKHE GROUP DIRECTOR, WeSchool

Knowledge can be explained as summation of facts, information, and skills acquired through various experiences. Industry 4.0 is knowledge driven; where information is used to get thorough understanding of the fundamental business needs and the process can be enhanced further by implementing artiﬁcial intelligence. Knowledge is that crucial element that can distinguish a leader from the rest. Thus, educating yourself as well as those around you is the best investment in the future that one can make. WeSchool reinforces the importance of expanding people’s mind, integrating life-long learning into every aspect of life. WeSchool provides a wholesome approach to education through the state of art facilities such as innovation lab, learning resource centre, a transformative and intensive curriculum, dedicated faculty members and an opportunity of collaborative learning among students that come from diverse cultural and professional backgrounds. The basic principle is to be aware of the changing industry needs and equip our students with conceptual knowledge, application tools and shape them as globally responsible citizens capable of addressing the industry needs. I believe the learning expedition at WeSchool will help students transform as ardent learners in life with an analytical mind and empathetic heart. I welcome the students of the new batch 2019-21 to our WeSchool family. Best wishes Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe Group Director, WeSchool

“The goal of education is the advancement of knowledge and the dissemination of truth.” - John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Prof. Dr. ANIL RAO PAILA

SENIOR DEAN & DIRECTOR, WeSchool, Bengaluru Campus

Education is an endless process. We continue to learn, unlearn and re-learn in search of truth. Overall, the goal of education relates to acquisition of intellect, ethics and moral values, and knowledge. The world is changing rapidly and industry 4.0 is all about smart digital technology. In this new era, it has almost become indispensable to hone the capacity to think analytically to solve problems and train the mind for continuous learning. Our strength lies in our ability to adopt a balanced approach towards education that encourage teamwork, help developing complex thinking skills and focus on future needs of the industry. WeSchool Bangalore campus has grown signiﬁcantly under the directional leadership of our Group Director Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe. Our approach emphasizes that students learn by doing. The students are encouraged to participate in various international and national competitions/programs under the guidance of faculty mentors. Prameya- the campus magazine is a students’ initiative supported by faculty members that captures the details of our events, activities conducted, latest trend in the external environment, as well applauds the achievement of both students and faculty members. I welcome all to read Prameya issue 18. Best wishes

Prof. Dr. Anil Rao Paila Senior Dean & Director, WeSchool, Bengaluru Campus

Event | Neev 2019

‘Design 5.0 - Your Launchpad to Success’ was the theme for ‘NEEV 2019’- the 3 weeks long Foundation Programme at WeSchool Bengaluru Campus. The world of business is undergoing rapid changes. The ﬁve forces that drive the growth of an organisation in this VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) world are Design Thinking, Sustainability, Innovation, Global perspective, New age technologies like machine learning and artiﬁcial intelligence. Therefore, undoubtedly, the future of MBA also revolves around these 5 forces. In line with these thoughts NEEV 2019 focused on DSIGN 5.0 – preparing the students for what lies ahead for the next two years. NEEV 2019 started with great zeal and enthusiasm on 27 June 2019, in the esteemed presence of Chief Guest - Dr. Kalpana Gopalan, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Youth Empowerment & Sports, Advocate Shri S. K. Jain, Chairman, Managing Council, S. P. Mandali Trust and Local Managing Committee, WeSchool, Shrimati Madhuritai Misal, Member, Managing Council, S. P. Mandali Trust, along with Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe, Group Director, WeSchool, Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Sr. Dean & Director, WeSchool Bengaluru campus and Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Dean WeSchool Bengaluru campus.

L-R: Dr. Anil Rao Paila, Sr. Dean & Director, WeSchool Bengaluru campus, Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe, Group Director, WeSchool, Dr. Kalpana Gopalan, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Youth Empowerment & Sports, Advocate Shri S. K. Jain, Chairman, Managing Council, S. P. Mandali Trust and Local Managing Committee, WeSchool, Shrimati Madhuritai Misal, Member, Managing Council, S. P. Mandali Trust, Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Dean WeSchool Bengaluru campus

Event | Neev 2019 In the ﬁrst two weeks of NEEV 2019 students had valuable interactions with eminent industry experts. Day2 started with an engaging session with Mr. M Ramani, Managing Director, Load Controls India Pvt. Ltd. His session focused on the fact that in this modern era “the manager should have a global mindset”. He cheered up the students saying “life is not like a frog in the well” and each of them should have the mindset of becoming a global manager. However, to reach our goals, moving ahead in the right direction is much more important than the speed. We need to have clear perspective of our goals and why we are taking certain actions. He concluded his talk encouraging students to follow a self - discipline routine on daily basis that should be comprised of compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, visualizing and blessings.

Mr. Philip Varughese, VP, Accenture and Dr. Sowmya CS, Faculty Member, WeSchool Bengaluru

Mr. M Ramani, Managing Director, Load Controls India Pvt. Ltd.

Next guest speaker was Mr. Philip Varughese, VP, Accenture. His session focused on introduction to new age technologies. Mr. Philip introduced big data, data processing and internet of things (IOT) to the students in details. Artiﬁcial intelligence and data analytics is helping ﬁrms to cut costs and save time for recruiters. AI helps processing information in real time for decision making. Block chain is going to be the next big things in the market. The session gave insights into advanced concepts like wearable devices and self-healing machines.

On Day – 4, Mr. Anish Philip, AVP, MindTree, started his interaction by asking students if MBA was just a degree on a piece of paper or much more than that. Remembering his own days at the management school, he reiterated that interaction with the industry and business professionals deﬁnitely makes an MBA program worthwhile. While faculty and college provide all the necessary things to make an MBA life successful, a lot depends upon the individual students, their drive, passion and curiosity. Mr. Anish Philip, AVP, MindTree and Dr. Jyoti Pant, Faculty Member, WeSchool Bengaluru

Event | Neev 2019

Next speaker, Ms. Priya Madhavan, Director - Industry Development at Data Security Council of India spoke on this digital era of modern times. The technological sphere around us is changing every other day. On one hand information is easily available to us and on the other hand data security has become utmost important. Things like cyber warfare is a reality now. She addressed the issue - ‘Changing Enterprise Landscape due to Digitization’. Ms. Priya Madhavan

Mr. Sunay Bhasin, Chief Marketing Ofﬁcer - MTR Foods

Next day, students had an enlightening session on “Marketing in The VUCA World and how to Succeed in it” by Mr. Sunay Bhasin, Chief Marketing Ofﬁcer - MTR Foods. He shared his opinion that creating an impactful brand does not have any speciﬁc rule or mantra. It is ‘remarkability’ that separates a great brand from the ordinary ones, and ‘credibility’ and ‘consistency’ makes them impactful. Like those great brands, students should also aim for being remarkable and impactful. The success mantra in this VUCA world is to “have a clear purpose and knowing your core” - was his parting remarks to the students.

Our next guest speaker was Mr. Arun Bhardwaj, the Founder & Chief Mentor of Happiness Technology, an organization that inspire people to realize their full potential and live a meaningful life. His message was that the students need to make the right choices to enjoy a happy and meaningful life. While the traditional mindset says – “work hard – achieve success and – live happy”; the happiness mindset says – “live happy – work smart and – experience success”. Mr. Arun Bhardwaj, the Founder & Chief Mentor of Happiness Technology and Major Vinita Thakur, Sr. Manager, WeSchool Bengaluru

Event | Neev 2019

The next guest speaker was Mr. Vinod Subramanian, CEO - Logo Infosoft. Logo Infosoft is a global leader in software solutions for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and among the top 4 in GST solutions, with its roots in Central Asia. The company’s mobile friendly app “Vyapari” is a big hit in India as it is easy to implement, and much affordable as the cost of ownership is roughly half that of the global competitors. For the future managers and entrepreneurs his parting message was - “Grind in your 20s, Build in your 30s and chill in your 40s”. Mr. Vinod Subramanian, CEO - Logo Infosoft with WeSchool Faculty Member and Students

Our next guest was Dr. Ramachandran GN, CTO, Nexshore Technologies. He delivered an insightful session on “Integrating Technology with Management”. The session was interactive as he started with questions such as “What is Management”, “What is Technology” and what students understand about integrating technology with management. His parting words to the students was – they should use technology judiciously in a business so as the business should solve the end customer’s problem or need. Dr. Ramachandran GN, CTO, Nexshore Technologies

Next guest, Mr. S. Varadharajan, Vice President, Learning and development, Micro Labs, delivered an insightful session on “Learning from Digital Age”. He stated that in this age of digitization, some kind of battle of brains is going on amongst two generations - the baby boomers and the generation Y. Generation Y is way ahead in adopting technology. On the other hand, these two generations need to work in synergy to succeed. His parting words to the students was to follow 3 golden rules of professional life - Treat others as you like to be treated, Ask questions to get clarity, Learn together. Mr. S. Varadharajan, Vice President, Learning and development, Micro Labs

Event | Neev 2019

The endmost speaker of the speaker series Mr. Avesh Jha, Senior Vice President - ODPM at HGS - Hinduja Global Solutions, explained students the concept of design thinking and problem solving. A successful design thinker needs to use a combination of head and heart when looking at problem solving. One needs to take decisions by combining intelligence with emotions. He urged the students to keep their natural tendency to ask questions alive and kicking which human beings lose as they grow up. Mr. Avesh Jha, Senior Vice President - ODPM at HGS - Hinduja Global Solutions

Besides, there were panel discussions on crucial issues such as sustainability and budget analysis. The Panel members for the Panel Discussion on Sustainability were Dr. Dakshina Murthy â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Associate Dean, Operations, WeSchool, Mr. Ramanathan N CEO & MD, 4R, and Mr. Dayananda L, Bosch Ltd.

Panel Discussion on Sustainability

A panel discussion was organized to discuss the Union budget passed on July 5th. The impact of the budget on various sectors was discussed by 3 subject matter experts and practicing chartered accountants namely CA Mr. Vivek, CA Ms. Vishakha Pai and CA Ms. Aishwarya Ravi.

Panel Discussion on Budget Analysis

Event | Neev 2019

Management is not limited to large corporates, rather covers every aspect of life. Keeping in mind this aspect, NEEV 2019 offered students a platform to interact with successful entrepreneurs who are living their passion and created a niche for themselves. Ms. Tamarai Selvi took a session on the Power of Storytelling for the students. She reiterated that management across disciplines requires creating and sharing compelling stories. Ms. Tamarai Selvi in action

Dr. Vasanth Kiran

Students had an interesting interaction with Dr. Vasanth Kiran who is a dancer and also a professor in the ﬁeld of Marketing. “Art & Artists: What can Business & Management Learn from?” – was his topic and he insisted that artists have better imagination and are continuous learners. It is rightly said that Art has become the “Door to the World” and “Business World is a Stage and all the Managers are the Actors”. He then encouraged the students to introduce themselves in an unconventional manner that helped them to unwind, ﬁnd out lesser known characteristics of themselves and enjoy the rest of the day.

WeSchool alumnus Mr. Ankit Piplali, a popular radio jockey and anchor, motivated the students in his session “Discover the Little Spark in You”. Students should start “doing” something about their passion rather than keep thinking “oh…it is interesting”. ‘Just begin to write your own story’ was his message for the students.

WeSchool alumnus Mr. Ankit Piplali

Event | Neev 2019

Students were happy to interact with Mr. Prateek Madhav, Co-Founder and CEO, Assistive Technology Accelerator (ATA) and one of the key force behind the Samarthanam Trust, and Padma Shri Shekhar Naik, the former Captain of the Indian National Blind Cricket Team. Padma Shri Shekhar Naik, shared his encouraging and extraordinary life journey. Mr. Shekhar started from a very humble background as a farmerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s son in a village in Shimoga district of Karnataka and went on to receive the Padma Shri award in 2017 from the Government of India. The takeaway for the students were the three core messages from the guests: 1) Limitations live only in your mind 2) Opportunities are endless 3) Play bigger

NEEV 2019 was fun-ďŹ lled and activity oriented. Students had a workshop comprising Paper Engineering, Clay modelling, Painting and Theatre. Also, there were sessions on Zumba and Yoga.

In the third week, students visited various organizations in and around electronic city to get an understanding of their operations. Volvo (Manufacturing), BOSCH (Technology & Services), Toyota (Manufacturing), Wipro (IT), Big Basket (Retail), 3M (Electrical services & Safety), PIKKOL (Logistics) and Akshaya Patra (NGO) were some of them.

Mr. Prateek Madhav and Padma Shri Shekhar Naik with WeSchool Faculty Members

From Dean's Desk

Dr. Madhavi Lokhande Dean, WeSchool, Bengaluru Campus Q: Maám, being the Dean of WeSchool Bengaluru campus, how do you prepare to welcome the new batch that is high in diversity with students from different parts of the country? M: The best part of being in educational institution is that everyday is a new day, you can start with a fresh board everyday. There is no "carry forward". Every year it’s a new set of students, and our expectations with the students and students' expectation from the institute is also fresh. Moreover, there has been a change in the mindset of the students which means that the students who passed out in 2010 are so different from those who passed out in 2015 or those who are going to pass out in 2019. Each of them comes with a different mindset and I think as it is required in every business, we are very agile so we are able to adapt with the changing expectations. The way I look at it is less of pressure and more of anticipation and looking forward to saying “let's see what’s going to come with this new batch”. Q: What do you think about the batch of 2018-20 in general? M: For 18-20 batch, I have had lots of mixed responses from the faculty members. Many faculty members feel that there are some students in this batch who are extremely well prepared as to why they have taken the program, which means there is maturity in terms of the way they think but at the same time there are also some freshers who perhaps are a little bit lost still as to what they want out of this program, so, it’s a mix. We aim to create the right learning environment here as I know there are certain expectations and aspirations from the students and for many of them this will be the last educational qualiﬁcation. Nonetheless, It ultimately depends on the Individual student as to how much she/he can leverage the system for their learning. Q: Any advice you would like to share with this batch on playing the role of a senior a year later? M: Many of you have to come out of that little shell that you have created around yourselves. When we get a new batch of students we usually see that they are very excited, they want to do a lot of things but somehow in your batch (2018-20) the excitement to do new things is on the lower side in terms of the volunteering or taking part in institution level activities. I am hoping that when you guys will move to the 2nd year, you would come up with your own Ideas to receive your juniors and help us in organizing the Foundation Fortnight. We hope to see a little bit of more initiative, more proactiveness more enthusiasm. Q: Can you please describe this batch in one word or a sentence? M: Very mature but very quiet and subdued. Q: What has been your most memorable experience as a teacher so far? M: There has been many such moments but the one I remember very well is with the batch of 2010-12. The students were performing on the Independence day celebration where the students were all singing and suddenly they asked the faculty to join in and we had no clue, it was so nice it was very participative and I think a lot of faculty including me really enjoyed it a lot. Q: What strategies did you use to be successful in your college days? Like what was your 'college mantra'? M: I enjoyed my graduation and Post Graduation which I think every student should do and I think it was a little bit of effort or hard work. I was good in my studies. I was never at the top of my class but I would always participate in whole lot of events in the college be it the debate, essay writing - whatever used to happen in the college I use to be a part of it. I had studied in St. Francis college which was a missionary college so it used to be very strict. I also have had my share of jumping over the walls getting caught by the principle etc…etc.. so it is much memorable for me. The 'college mantra' is - never lose focus as to why you are here and at the same time never stop having fun, both should co-exist. Q: How would you rate the importance of soft skills and academics?

From Dean's Desk M: I think if you are good in academics, let's say 60% and 40% in soft skills, you would still do well, like I said I was never at the top of my class but I would make sure I play on my strengths. B-School education is not only about academics but an overall development. Students should maintain that 60% in academics as that is what most companies ask for. However, be good in other things as well. Being an all-rounder is more important than being a book worm. Information/content Is easily available today but if you have not understood life skills, then that’s a challenge so I think in terms of soft skills 40% and above. We are not looking for an excellent orator but you should be able to communicate your ideas and thoughts - that’s a must. Q: What’s the best part about being a professor? M: In academics you get to work with young minds; you get to meet new sets of students every year so your social network grows year after year. The youngsters come with a lot of vibrant and new ideas so you can learn a lot of new things from them. Also, it helps to continuously learn and think because what I have learnt 20 years ago doesn’t work any longer. To be able to talk to a batch, you should be able to talk relevant things so you spend a lot of time on yourself to learn, unlearn and relearn as every new batch comes with a new set of aspirations. I can’t end up saying that I don’t know about blockchain or I don’t know about the new technologies simply because I have not studied those. So it helps you to grow as an individual and as you are working with young minds and also keep your mind and thinking young. Every day you get to start with a fresh board. Q: Who do you regard as your idol in the professional world? M: My favorite has always been Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam for the kind of background he has for what he has achieved and the kind of humility he had. The values he held on to till the end - I don’t think in post -Independence era in India we have looked up to someone else with so much of regards and respect like we have for Dr. Kalam. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, Dean, WeSchool Bengaluru Campus, was interviewed by Mr. Santanu Sagar, Student, PGDM EBiz 2018-2020 Batch.

Guruspeak

Dr. Sowmya C S Associate Professor – HR My earliest memory of Mahatma Gandhi is the story that my grandfather used to tell me during holidays. This story was about a lady who took her son to meet Gandhiji. She wanted Gandhiji to advise him to stop eating sugar, as the boy loved sugar and he was obese. Gandhiji told the lady to come back after two months and meet him again with her son. Perplexed, the woman went away. She returned with her son after a gap of two months to meet Gandhiji. And this time, Gandhiji told the boy to stop eating sugar. And the boy made a promise to Gandhiji to stop eating sugar. Happy but curious, the mother asked Gandhiji that he could have told her son the same thing two months back. Gandhiji replied that two months back he was still eating sugar. The story and Gandhiji stuck with me forever. When I became a management faculty and started taking classes, I realised that this story was all about authentic leadership. It is authenticity in a leader that attracts followers and creates a sense of trust and belonging in the organisation. Not only that parenthood taught me the value of that story. Very often, we tell our children to do many things, but as parents we may not follow them. This story made me realise that a true leader must walk the talk. Just like as parents we need to walk the talk, in an organisation it is vital for the leader also to walk the talk. If in India, Chanakya is regarded as the ultimate expert in strategy in helping Chandragupta Maurya to win and consolidate an empire, Mahatma Gandhi is no lesser than that. Nowhere in the world do we see an example of the kind of non-traditional leadership strategy adopted by Gandhiji. His leadership strategy of non violence, non cooperation and boycott of foreign goods is very innovative. Today we talk about innovation in management in the VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) world that we live that. But during freedom struggle, the environment was equally volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous. In spite of that, he was innovative in his leadership style and the strategies that he adopted were very unique for that time. It is very important for a leader to connect with his people. The greatest demonstration of this, perhaps, is the Dandi Salt march. No other leader in history has approached an issue so radically. With his Dandi Salt March, his actions demonstrated the need of the common man. So much so, that his actions gained international attention. Even leaders like Martin Luther King were influenced by Gandhiji after this incident and the manner in which he connected to his people. A good leader must have the ability to influence his countrymen. This was demonstrated by Gandhiji in the manner in which he influenced the Khadi movement. What is astounding is that nowhere in the world has a fabric made so much impact. In India, Khadi became the symbol of India’s freedom struggle against colonial rule and Gandhiji influenced his countrymen to spin their own yarn and inspired the Swadeshi movement. When I saw the movie ‘Gandhi’ by Richard Attenborough, what stunned me about Gandhiji was the scene when Gandhi reached London for the Round Table Conference wearing loin cloth as his only dress. It is a scene which is not so easy to forget. I can only say that Gandhiji was very brave to wear that simple dress which represented India for that meeting. It is the mark of a good leader to be brave and stand by his decision in spite of the ridicule that comes from all quarters. Last but not the least Gandhiji represents visionary leadership, builder of a new dawn. He had a vision of a free India, his eyes were always on the horizon. He was good with actions as well as words and there by transformed the lives of millions of Indians. No wonder, in leadership literature there are ample examples of him as a transformational leader. A leader becomes a leader only if he has followers. And Gandhiji has followers not only in India but for other world dignitaries too he is an icon of inspiration and motivation. Famous personalities like Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King have acknowledged the influence of Mahatma Gandhi. To accept Indian people as ones own flesh and blood is no mean task for anyone and Gandhiji was a rare personiﬁcation of this indeed. Even in management, for Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Mahatma Gandhi was an inspiration as someone who changed the world. I fully agree with all my heart the statement made by Albert Einstein about Gandhiji, "Generations to come, it may well be, will scarce believe that such a man as this one ever in flesh and blood walked upon this Earth.” Reference https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/131951

Management Development Centre

Two Day Seminar for Karnataka State Reserve Police on “Unleashing Human Potential” on 1st and 2nd March 2019 at Karnataka Police Academy, Mysuru. The objective of the program was to improve organizational effectiveness.

“Executive Leadership Development Program” for Sivantos was launched on 5th to 7th April to September 2019. 15 participants attended the program. The purpose of the program is to enable leaders to identify problems in advance, evaluate alternative solutions and achieve the desired goal based on the optimal solution.

InfosysBPO JMLP (Junior Management Leadership Program) is a unique corporate education program by We School. JMLP aims to provide a broad based management education to the employees in the JL2 / JL3 cadre to equip them to move into the next layer of management and also provide a broader view of the business to help them understand the concept of outsourcing and meet customer expectations.

JMLP Batch 13, Jaipur, convocation 28th June 2019

This is a 400 hours program for front level BPO employees to help them move to the next level of management. The course covers subjects under General Management, Operations, HR, Finance and Marketing. The program was run across locations, Bangalore, Pune and Jaipur. Completed the 13th Batch convocation at Jaipur on 28th June 2019 and 14th Batch has completed 9th month program at Pune

Management Development Centre JMLP Batch 14, Pune started on 14th December 2018

Negotiation Skill - Program conducted for middle to senior level, delivered as a 2-day program with 2 competencies being addressed for Synthite Industries Ltd, Cochin on 23rd & 24th August 2019. 23rd August 2019 Synthite Industries Ltd, Cochin

The WeSchoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Executive Education Management Program (EEMP) is a unique opportunity for successful executives to accelerate their potential in preparing for new challenges by infusing advanced knowledge. The challenges in global and local businesses create a need for exceptional general managers who can deal with complexities and take on greater responsibilities. The program helps develop core business skills and competencies that would equip participants to handle issues involving cross-functional areas. The professional coaches allow participants to tailor their learning journey to suit their speciďŹ c needs, helping them propel their organization to success. EEMP facilitates high peer learning as participants from diverse backgrounds, skills and experiences are a part of a cohort. The participants of the program learn through case studies, discussions, role-plays, simulations and other participantcentered learning tools. They beneďŹ t immensely through continuous learning and networking with peers from different backgrounds, during and after the program. The one-year program comprises of 50 hours of instructions that strengthen business fundamentals, helps identify emerging business trends and encourages individuals in creative ways to think of new perspectives.

Entrepreneur Article

“The desire to leave this world better than what it is now!” -Chetana Koulagi

Chetana Koulagi Wenture

The desire to do something for the unfortunate touches the heart of every compassionate soul, but only few of them like Chetana are courageous enough to put their heart and soul into action. She is a kind, compassionate and self-driven woman. My ﬁrst interaction with Chetana was when she took a session during Neev, the foundation program of 2018-2020 batches. She had conducted a sensitization workshop on disabled people at that time. She also familiarized her venture LetsTagOn which is a blended, online-offline platform for youth to experience the joy of contributing to social development and honing their skills in the process. It offers many social immersion, internship and volunteering opportunities for youth and in turn enables the NGOs and social enterprises to scale through the power of youth participation. Chetana comes from a small town called Dharwad in North Karnataka. She has completed her studies in Dharwad, did graduation in Engineering and moved to Bangalore for job. Along with the job, she also did her M.S from BITS Pilani through Distance Learning. Then she moved into various roles in software development, progressed to project management and consulting roles. She had worked at Sonim, Intel, Nokia and Infosys. Most of her IT career has been at Infosys, and mainly into Project Management, Education and Risk Management Consulting. The social disparity and questions like, why the underprivileged are still living on the street and why no one is doing anything about it, used to trouble her a lot. She used to visit an orphanage with her friends and spend New Year eve or other festivals with them, an effort from her side to do something for the people who deserve the same respect and love that we do, but then her responsibilities at work and home kept growing and she was unable to go there in her available time, so she started contributing to the social sector, monetarily. In last 5 years, she had been doing volunteering at a local government school. She used to go there on Saturdays and give them spoken English lessons. The joy she felt when those children came running after seeing her, could not be expressed in monetary terms. In parallel, she also started volunteering at professional institute namely Project Management Institute (PMI). Through the years, she realized that she had been gaining the most from these volunteering activities. Whether it was networking, the skills or the joys of contributing, it was her who believed was the biggest beneﬁciary in the process. That’s when she started wondering how she can get more and more people to contribute. As they say, where there is a will, there is a way. She knew what she wanted to do, so she joined the NSRCEL at Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. It’s an incubator that gives rise to fresh ideas like LetsTagOn. That’s the genesis of LetsTagOn – a platform to ‘Tag’ youth to the social sector. Winning the Women Startup Program gave the much needed impetus to her to take the risk to quit job and plunge into it full time. When asked what could be the key challenges faced by her in the journey of this business, she narrowed it down to the following: 1. Pursuit of the problem: Given the space that it is and the various stakeholders and various problems each of them face (NGOs, Youth, Educational Institutes, and Corporates) it has been a challenge to zero in on the ‘Problem’ that LetsTagOn should address as a ‘Core’ Problem. 2. Building organization around the idea: For an idea to pick up and serve its purpose, it is not at all about the idea. It is about how we can build an organization around the idea, how we sell the idea, how we make it sustainable!

16 16

Entrepreneur Article On personal front, 1. Being Flexible: For an organization to start scale and sustain, as a founder you can’t just do what you like. There are many things that you have to do and yes, you as a founder, have to do all the work initially. Many of such things were against her personality – for example: showcasing what all you have been doing! She wasn’t even on Facebook, WhatsApp before she started LetsTagOn. 2. Getting used to the new ‘You’ – After having a corporate career of 18+ years, she had gotten used to a certain routine, certain comfort of having money in the pocket! Here it was a totally different routine – a day completely on road, a day completely at home, a day attending several meetings, and another day doing nothing! One day a technologist, one day a marketing professional, another day a project manager! While it sounds exciting, it is always tough to answer the question of what’s your plan for the day and tougher to answer her mother whether she would be around for lunch at home. 3. Money – that’s another big change! In spite of not having the burden of running the family, every time she had to take out her credit card, she would wonder whether she would have the money to pay it! Despite all these she was able to overcome all challenges or can say that she is still learning. The one thing that makes us apart is our-mindset and attitude, so no matter what the challenges are if you want to do it, you will do it. So, the mentoring, discussing with more and more stakeholders, interaction with the peer group of founders, etc. helped her sail through this journey. One thing that Chetana mentioned for all those who wanted to start their career in the social sector was to figure out the problem first and channel all their efforts towards solving that problem. It is very easy to get distracted and get lost in myriad of problems in the sector. Be focused on what you can do and don’t get carried away by the several problems you see all around. Be ethical, do the right thing even if no one is watching you. Take opportunities that comes your way and do your work with sincerity and commitment and you will definitely thrive in your venture. Also, be prepared for a long journey as nothing substantial comes without hard work. According to Chetana, even if you believe that there is a right time to start a business, it is actually an individual perspective. Even though she had an edge over others by having financial and career stability, as she started after 18+ years of professional career which has definitely been an advantage on various aspects for her, she believes if you believe in yourself and have the courage to start, you can definitely create the path leading to the creation of your vision. LetsTagOn is a ‘go-to’ platform to find opportunities for youth to connect with the social sector. They have 250+ volunteer registrations and 2000+ hours of volunteering effort achieved through LetsTagOn. Let’s hope this project follows an incremental growth of a life cycle. This brings to the next part of the question, which is, “In one word, how Chetana would like to describe herself?” To which she answered as Resourceful. Having worked in the corporate sector, she met a lot of people which she could connect with a lot other. So, her personality is actually in tune with the idea behind LetsTagOn. She connects one side of the population to another. Starting her career in the engineering field and moving up to the operations department where she took many leadership roles, determined that not only is she a compassionate soul but a thoughtful leader. She also has excellent communications skills. Giving up her IT career to carry forward her legacy with LetsTagOn, tells us what a leader should have, which is primarily: Resilience, Patience and Perseverance. She, along with her team is working with 15+ NGOs right now in the causes of Education, Livelihood, Environment and Disability. India is known for its strong cultural values, yet as a community we fail to include all sections of our population. Dealing with all the issues that we as a country are facing requires a lot of time and commitment and it primarily could not be a one man/woman job. When asked, does she ever lose hope and even if there are so many NGOs and startups in the social sector, then why as a community we still are failing, why as a community don’t know how to live in harmony with each other? To this she responded,” It is our mindset and attitude that makes us different from the rest. If we get struck in the analysisparalysis stage, we won’t be able to create the substantial growth that we are hoping for. So, one has to do what they can do, in the available time and with the available resources.”

Entrepreneur Article

Usually it is said that “It is easy to start your own business if you don’t have any ﬁnancial constraints”, Although that is true to some extent since using founder’s own asset as seed capital reduces the risk factor, still the time, energy and effort needed to start a business will always demand persistence and hard work and LetstagOn is the live example of that. So, LetsTagOn with Chetana Roulagi and join hands with her on her vision to make this world a better place.

The world we see now is the result of what we had worked upon, The world we will see later will be the result of what we will work for, Life is a one-time journey, so make your efforts count, Leave this world a better place by solving the issues that are prevailing around! Thank you By Chhaya Govil

Event | Summer Internship Contest

Summer Internship Contest 2019 at WeSchool Bengaluru Campus

Summer Internship is an important career stepping stone. It can be a career deciding factor in a student’s professional life. It provides students with conﬁdence and experience in working in the real world. The feedback from the corporate, where a student completes his summer internships is often used as an input for curriculum upgrades. We-School has a special focus on regular interaction of our students with the Industry through projects, seminars and competitions. In this pursuit, every year WeSchool organizes “Summer Internship Contest” for our Post Graduate Management Students (from all specializations) to develop excellence and competitive spirit among the students. This year, it was held on 28 August 2019.

Summer Internship Contest 2019 Panelists, Winners and CMC Team Members on dais

Event | Summer Internship Contest Total Students :168 Sector

Number of Companies

Number of Students

Analytics

Automotive

BFSI

Consulting

Ecommerce

FMCG

Manufacturing

Media & Entertainment

Research

Retail

186

Grand Total

Number of Students 186

In Bangalore

Outside Bangalore

116

Shortlisting Process :

1st Round: Evaluation by Internal Faculty members 2st Round: Recommendations of Top (1 from 10) students by Specialization Heads 3st Round: Preliminary Round – Evaluation of top 20 projects by Internal judges 4st Round: Final Round – Evaluation of top 9 presentations by Corporate Panelists

Panelists

Jagannath PSK Deputy General Manager, Aditya Birla Retail Ltd.

Arun Pingaley Chief Information Ofﬁcer, Labour Net Services India Private Limited

BP Ravi Prasad Practice Head , Wipro Digital

Event | Summer Internship Contest

Panelists :

Evaluation Criteria: The ďŹ nalists were judged on the following parameters: 1. Presentation 2. Content/Depth of Understanding 3. Clarity of Objectives/Q&A (Performance) 4. Methodology 5. Feasibility of the suggestions (if any) The score is from 1 to 5. 1 being the lowest, and 5 being the highest.

WINNERS The winners of the Contest are as follows: Winner

: Shivansh Chopra (Jio Studios) (PGDM-E Business Marketing)

1st Runner Up

: Prathamesh Jadhav (HDFC Bank) (PGDM Finance)

2nd Runner Up

: Varsha Jha (L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering) (PGDM Operations)

Best PPT

: Shivansh Chopra (Jio Studios) (PGDM-E Business-Marketing)

Best Content

: Anjela Anthony (V Space Network Pvt.Ltd) (PGDM-E Business Marketing)

Best Methodology : Shivansh Chopra (Jio Studios) (PGDM-E Business Marketing) Most Popular PPT : Abhishek Waghmare (Volvo Constuction Equipment ) (PGDM-E Business Operations)

Conclusion: The event witnessed the participation of 9 ďŹ nalists who were judged by a competent panel of judges from different industry verticals and domain specializations. The event was a success as judged from the immense learning and participation of students, active involvement of We School faculty and raving reviews of the panel of judges.

Faculty Achievements

Dr. Madhavi Lokhande Dean, WeSchool, Bengaluru Campus Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande, was a speaker at the 'Sparking Business Agility' conference (September 18-19, 2019). Sparking Business Agility is explained as the ability of an organization organization to create and respond to change through the customer-focused, a holistic embrace of the Agile mindset, principles, and practices from individual teams and programs to the portfolio level, and across the entire enterprise. The conference looked at agility outside the IT sector. Dr. Madhavi spoke on the topic on the topic, ‘Changing Mindsets'. The talk was in a unique format with a sparking mix of #NOPPT, hands on deep dives and 18 minutes of the Art of possible stories.

Dr. Madhavi Lokhande at the 'Sparking Business Agility' conference

Dr. Savitha GR Assistant Professor – HR Specialization Dr. Savitha G R was Awarded ‘AIMS Ramaswamy P Ayer Best Young Faculty’ on “Management Education 4.0: Strategies for Global Competitiveness” at 31st AIMS Annual Management Education Convention 2019” held during 29th – 31st August, 2019 at Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies-Technical Campus (VIPS-TC), New Delhi. Dr. Savitha G R receiving ‘AIMS Ramaswamy P Ayer Best Young Faculty’award

Dr. Anuradha Mahesh Professor - Retail & Head Career Management Centre Dr. Anuradha Mahesh- Chaired Research Paper Presentations at National Institute of Personnel Management (NIPM) Conference on the theme ‘India’s Changing Paradigm: Skills and Entrepreneurship for Global Competitiveness’, during September 25-27, 2019. CONFERENCE-September,2019. NIPM is a National Body of Human Resource Specialists dedicated to develop the people’s potential to impact business fortunes of Companies. Dr. Anuradha Mahesh at NIPM Conference

Faculty Achievements

Dr. Hema.D Associate Prof-Finance Dr. Hema D was invited as a contributing expert to the National Conference on Bharatiya Management being organized by Centre for Educational and Social Studies, IIM-B, IIM-Trichy, and Reva University with the support of AICTE on 18 and 19th of October 2019 at Bengaluru.

Student Achievements

Sr.No Name of the students 1.

Deepak Gulve Naveen Jalan Mrudul Amritphale

Zeus Gheewala Juibala Bobade

Rajat Bindlish

Batch

Date

Remarks

PGDM 2018-20

6-8 September, 2019

Atharva Fest -2019 IIM Indore

2nd Runner Up

PGDM 2019-21

29th to 31st of August 2019.

AIMS Students Best Paper

1st (Winner)

PGDM 2019-21

23rd sep,2019

Maria Philip Memorial Annual Inter Collegiate Statewise Debate Competition 2019-xime

Runners up-Regional Rounds Award: CertiďŹ cate and cash prize 10k

PGDM 19-21

28th Sept-29th Sept

XIMB-Gladiator, a flagship business simulation event of Xamboree'19.

1st Runner Up

BD & I 19-21

18-20th October,2019

Avenues'19, a flagship business simulation event of SJMSOM, IIT BOMBAY.

1st Runner Up

Juibala Bobade Prerna Gupta

Competition

Talent Corner

How to choose a specialization? A lot of us are confused about if there is a way to ﬁgure out which specialization to choose. Should you go for Operations, HR, Marketing, Finance or Business Analytics? How to decide and stick with one option?

Chhaya Govil PGDM, 2018-20

The first thing you will do after reading this is go to your seniors and have a talk regarding this and will realize that they were as confused as you are right now but then something clicked with them, when they were deciding and that made them choose a particular specialization. Now you might be wondering, how to find that something, that clickthings in place? Interesting isn’t? If only there was a method that tells you on certain inputs, you should choose this specialization. I talked to a lot of people regarding this and one thing that was common among all was “your decision should depend on your likes and your interest. This is possibly a career change for some, so decide on what fuels the fire within you, what ignites your engaging thought process and what kind of thoughts keeps you up at night. You want high salary, and then the question of choosing a particular specialization is nullified as you can choose which ever has the best placements and try to keep up with the aptitude skills for the subject and you are good to go. But, this post is for those who want high salary and a career profile that makes them feel alive. After some secondary research, I found that people with certain attributes goes in certain specialization. Few other key points to remember while choosing a specializationThis all depends on your interest and aptitude. It’s important to be self-aware that you can handle the course that you are interested in and you also have the aptitude to deal with the nuances of a particular specialization. Find out your strengths, weaknesses and personality type and whether you want to continue with your education background or uproot it entirely in a different direction. Figure out your values and whether your values align with the company will help you decide for how long you are going to stay there. The personality traits of each specialization are more or less the same, the difference likes in the domain and your passion for that subject matter. If you like numbers and have an analytical bend, try your hand at Analytics. If you like to know, manage, control, improve your finances, go for finance. If you like sales, go for Marketing (because remember there is no marketing without sales, all the marketing executive started the journey with sales), if you like efficiency and accuracy, go for operations and by all means choose HR, if you want to manage people. Now all managerial jobs require managing people, then what is so different about in HR. Well, HR is the set of all these sub-sets. So, HR people know about sociology, psychology of human beings. They will help other managers to effectively manage their team. They are responsible for setting up the culture of the organization. They are the ones that needs to understand the business inside-out and then plan ways to set the right direction for the employees. Before joining the MBA program, I was so sure of taking HR as my specialization as I knew, how I would like to use my skills and improve the course of an organization but after looking at the placement scenario and the no. of people opting for HR, I thought I should stick to what I know. Having 2 years of experience in the IT operations sector, I start deviating towards that, since I love project management, I couldn’t go wrong with that decision. But, somewhere in the back of mind, I still wanted to go for HR, I still do not want to give up on people management. So, what to do? So, I thought an internship would be a perfect way to introspect my interests in HR or Operations and in the end what should I take. Stay tuned to next Prameya article, to know what happened next…

Talent Corner

A Journey to remember

Divya Shridhar

PGDME-Biz , 2018-2020

Turning the pages of the calendar to a few months back in time when a lot of anxious faces carrying multiple bags of luggage and entering the hostel was a sight - anyone could have guessed that they are ‘the newbies’ of the college. The corridors of the hostel echoed with chaos. Somewhere someone was unpacking their suitcases, someone else was trying to strike conversation with their newly found classmates whereas others were crying at a secluded corner of their rooms as their loved ones left after dropping them off to the hostel. After a few days, there were some who had felt a sense of freedom as they had left their homes for the first time whereas others were still grieving as they missed their hometowns. Eventually everyone came over their preconceived mindsets and got adjusted to their new home. The first day of college involved exploring the nooks and corners of the campus infrastructure. Everyone was interacting with each other and trying to find like-minded people. After all, it was a matter of surviving for 2 long years. Regular lectures began and classes went on smoothly. At the same time, at the back of the minds, a lot of judging kept happening. Right from what is the level of potential competitors to how are the people dressed. After spending an enormous amount of quality time with people, we get to know the true colors of people. But at the end of the day, it’s a human tendency to live together and be with each other in times of good and bad. No man can live in an isolated island. So as classes go on, we get bogged down by presentations and assignments. By the end of the day, we become sleep deprived souls. We complain, but do we have a choice? There is a common goal that we are here for. And this goal is completely practical which seeks rationality and that is, we need to be better than others. Be it in the eyes of the professors or grabbing the best of jobs. As Charles Darwin said that it is the survival of the fittest. There is a sad reality here though. Marks become more important than learning. Intelligence is judged on the basis of marks that you score in exams. People want to work with companies that offer the highest pay package not caring about what kind of job they are getting into, whether it interests them or not. After all, it is a matter of social prestige. What people think of us is what drives us in doing what we do. It is sad but true. I hope that the life that we are living right now, we make the best use of it and make amazing memories during this time. After all, 2 years from now who knows who is going to be in which corner of the world!

Team Prameya organized a PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST on the theme “ Campus Life”. Ms. Sneha Srivastava of PGDM BD&I 2018-2020 Batch won the cntest and her photograph is displayed inthe BACK COVER of this magazine.

Talent Corner

Divya Shridhar

PGDME-Biz , 2018-2020

PGDM, 2018-20

The Best Friend

It’s Just a Phase

Dupatta gets stuck to his wrist watch, Isn’t that a moment every girl wishes for? Giving butterflies in my stomach, Something that he can’t cure.

Well it’s gonna be great... If you set your mind straight! There are times when you don't feel good,

We study together, hang out together, Best friends? Oh, I wish there was more. He has found the girl of his dreams, I didn’t have a score.

Chhaya Govil

You feel like you are totally screwed! But believe it, Life is a series of phases... Where you could even blossom like daisies! Nothing's is constant just like your age,

Cold night, he gave me his jacket, Returning to my room, I said goodbye. Words intertwined in my tongue, I couldn’t confess, Hugging his jacket, a teardrop falls from my eye.

And you will soon gonna forget this diminishing phase! People will try to crush your soul...

Dancing with her on the prom night, Helpless, my heart quivers. I step outside, feeling every drop of rain on my body, Trying, but the pain, it even more triggers.

Live your life with a purpose,

I see him at the subway, years go by, He is married. I am waiting, always will, This heart will never be wearied.

You just have to trust your own inner voice! You might not succeed, but that doesn't matter...

But never let their words to touch your goal!

And you shall be amazed with your new grownup culture! Being happy or sad is your own choice...

What's important is you still have a Life to explore for better!

Independence day “One individual may die for an idea, but that idea will after his death, incarnate itself in a thousand lives. Jai Hind!” -Subhash Chandra Bose On the auspicious day of 15th August, 2019, the patriotic zest of the students was apparent when they came to the college early morning to give final touches to the decoration for the celebration of India’s 73rd Independence Day. Early in the morning, all the passionate volunteers and even the non- volunteers came forward to embellish the campus with tricoloured rangolis’ and other handicrafts. This year’s theme was Baapu ka Chashma. The celebration kickstarted with the escort of the renowned Chief Guest, Ms. N.S. Rama (CEO of ELCITA), Prof. Dr. Anil Rao (Sr. Dean and Director) and Prof. Dr. Madhavi Lokhande (Dean). This was followed by the flag hoisting ceremony and Ms. Rama’s propelling speech on how an individual’s small contribution can add to collective responsibility, thus, initiating social and economic change. Having played a significant part in Electronic city’s infrastructural development herself, she was the perfect example of the idea she was endeavouring to inculcate in the minds of young people. The message of women empowerment underlying in her emboldening speech was reinstated by the singing of nationalistic songs by the first year girls of the college. They reminded the audience of the indispensable part that women warriors played during our freedom struggle. Thereafter there was a skit on how abundance of Indian holidays hampers productivity. It also demonstrated how we Indians remain united despite our diversity and ideological differences. Adding more patriotic vibes to the air, next came the dance performance by the vibrant first year students of the college. The audience’s thorough enjoyment in the performance could be judged by their constant cheers and applauses. They could not control their fervour for too long and soon they commenced jiving on the beats of Rang-de-basanti. In no time, the seated audience comprising not only the students but also the faculty members drove to the stage and joined the dancers, filling the air with joyous vigour blended with patriotic spirit. Overall, the toil of the Cultural Committee members and the volunteers resulted in a memorable Independence day celebration. Reported byEashta Gupta PGDM - Ebiz 1 2019-21

Students’ Prameya Experience

Neha Samudrawar PGDM (2018-20) " As an avid reader and writer, joining Prameya team was the best decision I took. My team members were as amiable asHackathon they were2016 creative. While working for this magazine, I inculcated in me, the qualities necessary for team building, generating knockout ideas and making it a reality. I will always cherish my time as being a Prameya Secretary with these incredible people. Thank you Prameya for providing me this marvelous opportunity."

Chhaya Govil PGDM (2018-2020) "It was fun being part of Prameya team, the best part-they were open to ideas and implementation. Time to time discussions, editing directions from Ishani/Karishma Ma’am and whatsapp conversations on fulﬁlling the roles and responsibilities by the deadlines, were what made a learning ﬁlled journey with Premeya, a memorable one. "

Arkana Kashyap PGDM EBiz (2018-20) Prameya is a platform where one can have a conversance with the utmost events in the college. This platform gives every student a chance to pen down their event participations and winning different competitions across many colleges and institutions which is a great learning to other students and motivate them to inculcate fair competitive and learning skills in the professional world. One of the main motive of this committee is to provide opportunity and nurture future authors. I am really contented being a member of the Prameya committee which acts as a medium for the students to showcase their literary skills.

Shantanu Sagar PGDM EBiz (2018-20)

Joining the Prameya committee was always about my love of writing and the freedom of expression writing can give you. Just like a picture is a tool to capture memories and relive them later when we see it, writing is a way to capture experiences in a way that’s completely unique to oneself. Despite of what the Prameya committee was, I personally had a completely different idea about it, for me it was more like a voice of WeSchool, a platform where the students can express and relive past experiences from the writers perspective. I think the most important thing was the freedom that Ishani Ma’am and Karishma Ma’am gave us. They welcomed all our ideas and I could say that indeed press is free at WeSchool. Overall it was a great experience and I hope the new committee would utilize the great platform in their own unique way.

S. P. MANDALIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

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