Jammu: IIM Jammu’s day four of five Day Orientation program for MBA-07 began with the beautiful drizzle welcoming students by the Yoga and meditation trainer under the programme ‘Maximize Happiness and Mindfulness’. He performed and assisted students to perform various Yoga asanas to boost them with energy and positivity to begin with the day.
First session started with Dr. Baljeet Singh’s, Associate Professor, IIM Jammu introductory words laying emphasis on the importance of Case Studies in the upcoming Biz journey. He shared his thoughts on how to get absorbed in the IIM system and its framework while addressing the shortfalls one might face on this grilling yet cherishable journey. He accentuated the importance of Case Studies and marketing models to build a Brand and talked about the returns involved. He also quoted that one cannot be a “Freerider” to burden up peers’ pressure. According to him acceptance is the key because ‘Where there is a difference, there will always be a problem’. He also signified the importance of “Knowing the Numbers”.
A session by Dr. Barnali Chaudhary, Chairperson Student Affairs, was conducted to shed some light on Students’ Policy, Rules and Regulations at IIM Jammu. It would help them to get well versed with the roles and responsibilities of the department towards students and about latter’s duties and responsibilities towards the institution and the department. These measures are made to make students accountable and inculcate a sense of responsibility.
This was followed by a keynote session by the industry speaker, Somya Sahu, Associate Director, GEP Worldwide. She shared about her personal experiences, her ‘Expectations vs Reality’ of a B-school to keep students versed with the upcoming challenges. She talked about her first few steps towards humility, gratitude and identifying, acknowledging and learning the strengths of diversity. Her emphasis on networking and accepting the reality was insightful for students. According to her- Career is a zig-zag journey and not a straight-line path. One should make most of the ‘MBA Card’ to level up this journey because “Career is lived forward but understood backwards.” She also stated that band aid needs to be ripped off to come out of comfort zone and that being an opportunist is an essentiality while good peers and supportive people make career sustainable.
The final session before the lunch was concluded by Ms. Anshula Verma, Director and National Head- HR and Talent Acquistion, EY. She talked about five winning behaviours to the students in order to attain individuality while being in a race. She emphasised on the behavioural change and its aspects in order to maintain the composure while being in a corporate culture. She conveyed about the key characteristics of social styles-controls and emotions: analytical, driving, amiable and expressive. She also put in her kind words with respect to social style needs, orientation and growth action. Sweet spot to maintain an individuality is also a key driver. Her power-filled lecture was concluded with a Chinese proverb- “Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still.”
Post lunch, the orientation program resumed with a session on ‘Teaching Through Case’, led by the eminent faculty members ranging from Dr. Pankaj K Agarwal, Dr. Ateeque Shaikh, Dr. Rashmi Ranjan Parida, Dr. Mahesh Gadekar, and Dr. Mamta Tripathi, of IIM Jammu.
During the session, a case study was given to the students to glance over and state various findings. It was followed by a discussion on the case study with students taking initiatives to present their point of views. The faculty members iterated on the importance of reading the case study thoroughly as the solution lies in the details. They highlighted that student would get accustomed to real-life corporate problems by solving case studies and gain a sense of real-time problem-solving in the corporate world. A brief was provided as to how a case should be analyzed. This was followed by a set of interesting activities for the students to energize them. The activities were impromptu and required the students to think on their feet. The students participated actively and came up with intuitive ideas to complete the given tasks.
After a day full of industry and faculty interactions, a cultural event was arranged for the students. The new batch showcased its talent through several activities like dancing, poetry recitation, singing, and art. The cherry on the cake was senior batch’s enthralling performances.
The day ended on a good note leaving students in anticipation for the final day of the Orientation Program. The New Education Policy will strengthen India and research and innovation ecosystem in the 21st century as a stable and enlightened knowledge society.
