MBA placement season 2009

The tough decision for this month's column was whether to write about the prognosis for consumer demand in India, post the global meltdown, India slow-down, e-sops (as the ET elegantly described vote inducing election expenditure); OR whether to write about what lessons placement committees (mostly comprising students) of top tier MBA schools ought to learn and act on, after the 2009 stressful placement season. This column opted to discuss the latter, because we want to urge future leaders of India Inc. to use their intellect and education to courageously depart from the past and do things differently for the different world of the future. If they are content being status-quo-ist in their placement models with the justification of "hamare khandaan ke purane rivaaz hain", they are out of step with the mindset that winning companies of India Inc. and the world want and need.

Closer home, students running placement at top MBA schools will run two risks if they do not review and revamp the whole placement game as it exists today. They will be scrambling harder as students' numbers increase each year and nimbler, smaller, challenger institutions, with no baggage re-write the rules of MBA campus placements.

The current placement game is all about rationing scarce resources, iron clad rules about which company comes how early, rules for how students must bid for jobs and choose them. This model was perfect for the 80s and 90s - low competition, few students, low heterogeneity in the batch, and total predictability of the hirer market. If several customers were upset, too bad, let them go, there are too many of them anyway, and the batch size is small. But let's take this year. Graduating class sizes are larger, the most popular category of employers, Wall Street, consulting companies, foreign banks are not recruiting or recruiting in diminished numbers. The placement 'business managers' have responded to this new world by not altering their rules of the game in terms of doling out day wise slots to companies, determined by majority votes, discouraging off-campus interviews, and by not questioning the old belief that "how early placement finishes = how good the placement season/ institution is". There have been no new innovative customer friendly propositions to widen the net of companies that could participate, no encouragement to students to seek to widen the net through pursuing "off-placement" jobs and bringing them into the placement fold for the future and so on.

In fact the response has been "more of the same", with more pressure and better cosmetics on courtesy. Wonder what these students would say about a case study where the airline industry is going through severe turbulence and perhaps being changed forever, and the leadership team of a leading airline decides to (a) distribute more fliers on the routes available, to crowds at every shopping mall and (b) change the uniforms of the crew and add an extra mint free in the menu.

This is also a good time to look at the placement fee imposed on companies. The logic of the fee was that there had to be an entry price paid for access to a privileged pool of candidates, and also that if headhunters charged a fee why should institutes not do so. Today, there are limited takers for the access to a privileged pool and the need is to re-examine the price elasticity of demand; also when the tide is not rising in overdrive, it is a good time to look at things truthfully. Other than logistic support on campus, no real search-firm like services was being provided by the institutions. No advice, no pre-interviewing and feedback in terms of fit with the company, no help in decision making or selling jobs to chosen candidates etc. Paying for placement isn't where money needs to be charged - it is paying for "advertising" (pre-placement talk or any other form of advertising and relationships building) that potential recruiters should be made to do.

Why have on campus interviewing at all in these days of technology and several flights a day to most destinations? Looking at it 'outside-in", it is pretty tough to get calendars synchronized for travel of any group of people from a company. It is a lot easier to do it via a conference bridge. Perhaps placement offices should contract with Reliance web worlds to get up several extra bridges for placement season - and get employers to pay for the use of them. Why have day slots in terms of how popular companies are? On the contrary, in these days of management theories on the 'long tail' and 'n=1', life is not about the bulk buyer getting preference. If two or four students want a product design job in an automotive company then they should be allowed to interview on day zero with companies of their choice. Even more worrying is the non sturdy academic legs that the receding tide is showing up. One recruiter said that in one of the institutes, he found that the majority of students had very narrow course specialization making them less than literate in other disciplines. And since jobs pertaining to that specialization were not available this year they were not even able to think (or talk!) their way through interviews for jobs in other verticals. That is worrisome because good managers must have a 'T' knowledge base - a decent knowledge of all disciplines and a deep spike in one or two chosen ones. Clearly the academic system needs to tweak the rules of course choice to ensure that there is enough choice for specialization but also creates a 'T' knowledge base. Perhaps the US liberal arts college system is one model, mandating a minimum number of credits in each area. From the students and placement point of view it de-risks them from the likes of events that we have just seen.

Even if the final steady state of the new world in 2012 is 60% similar to the old world of 2007, if the legacy systems and business models are of the 1980 and 1990s, it is time to dismantle them and build anew. That's what India Inc. has done post liberalization and World Inc. is doing today - so why should their suppliers of talent be stuck in quota/ license-permit raj and not move to a free market economy?

Mukesh Ambani, Lakshmi Mittal among world's top ten billionaires: Forbes

Mukesh Ambani, Lakshmi Mittal among world's top ten billionaires: Forbes
IANS, Mar 11, 2010, 09.06am IST
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Tags:Mukesh Ambani|Lakshmi Mittal|Forbes List|world top ten billionaires|Carlo Slim Helu|World Billionaires
ET Now: Mukesh, L Mittal among world's top ten billionairesWASHINGTON: Indians Mukesh Ambani and Lakshmi Mittal figured among world's top ten billionaires as Mexican tycoon Carlo Slim Helu beat Americans Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to become the wealthiest person on earth.

Besides fourth ranked Reliance Industries chairman Ambani and fifth placed steel czar Mittal, four other Indians were among top 50 in 2010 Forbes list of the World's Billionaires released Wednesday with as many 49 Indians joining company with the planet's 1,011 richest people.

With his fortune swelling to an estimated $53.5 billion, up $18.5 billion in 12 months, Slim surged ahead of Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates, who had held the title of world's richest 14 of the past 15 years, the US business magazine noted.

Gates, now worth $53 billion, is ranked second in the world. He is up $13 billion from a year ago as shares of Microsoft rose 50 percent in 12 months. Buffett's fortune jumped $10 billion to $47 billion on rising shares of Berkshire Hathaway. He ranks third.

Eleven countries have at least double the number of billionaires they had a year ago, including China, India, Turkey and South Korea.

Fourth placed Mukesh Ambani with a fortune of $29 billion has global ambitions, Forbes said. So has his younger brother Anil Ambani ranked 36 with a $13.7 billion fortune.

Fifth ranked Lakshmi Mittal with a fortune of $28.7 billion is "looking to expand in his native India; wants to build steel mills in Jharkhad and Orissa but has not received government approval," Forbes noted describing him as "London's richest resident" who oversees ArcelorMittal, world's largest steel maker

Azim Premji with a fortune of $17.0 billion was ranked 28. "Software czar chairs $5.5 billion (revenues) Wipro, country's third-largest software exporter. Reported jump in net profits in last 2 quarters, signaling a rebound for US-dependent outsourcing giant."

Shashi & Ravi Ruia brothers took the 40th spot with a fortune of $13.0 billion. Their "$15 billion (revenues) Essar Group has weathered downturn and embarked on an expansion drive in all its businesses, including steel, oil and power."

Last among the Indians in top 50 was Savitri Jindal, ranked 44th, with a fortune of $12.2 billion. She took over as head of OP Jindal Group after her husband died in a helicopter crash in 2005.

Among other Indians on the billionaires list were Kushal Pal Singh (74), Kumar Birla (86), Sunil Mittal (87), Anil Agarwal (113), Adi Godrej & family (148), Shiv Nadar (201), N.R. Narayana Murthy & family (616), Rahul Bajaj (880) and Vijay Mallya (937).

Investment Banking Sector Does The Highest Placement At IIMA

Just after the completion of the placement process for this year at the IIM Ahmedabad, it has been revealed that the Investment Banking sector has done the most recruitment for the year. It has also been found that salaries for both national and international levels have gone up substantially.

This year, IIM Ahmedabad had started a new process called the Cohort based placement process, under which mechanism the companies were placed in groups and placement process carried out on weekends.

110 firms participated in the placement process this year for 289 students .

The Investment Banks who participated at this year’s placement process include Deutsche Bank, Morgan & Stanley, UBS, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup.

According to sources, Deutsche Bank had offered the highest salary of 1.4 crore this year.

The top banks that offered the most include Yes Bank and ICICI banks, which made 13 offers each.

More than 40 firms also participated in the lateral placement process and extended more than 100 offers. It is a four-fold rise over last year.

Among the different sectors, Marketing and consulting firms recorded an increase in offers this year. However, the finance sector saw a decrease in offers with only 27 offers this year. Last year, it had got 34 job offers.

This year, the average domestic salary offered was 14.94 lakhs as compared to 12.17 in 2009. Similarly, the salaries for the international placements were 110,750 USD in average as

NOIDA MBA JOB OPENING

NOIDA MBA JOB OPENING-IDC TECHNOLOGIES
December 23rd, 2009 Posted by VFreshers

Job Title : Recruitment Executive (Noida) (BPO)

Company name : IDC Technologies Sol. (I) Pvt. Ltd

About Company :
IDC Technologies, based in Silicon Valley, USA is a leading IT services provider in staffing, deployment and consulting arena currently servicing fortune 2000 clients.
In its quest to build a high performance team, IDC Technologies is expanding its operation in India and is looking forward to hire the right candidates; this position will be based at Noida
With a global database of applicants and state of art technology and process to Identify the best and brightest, IDC is committed to provide customer satisfaction through commitment and highest standards of service.

Experience: 1 – 2 Years

Job Location: Noida

Education : MBA/PGDM

Job Description :

Screen and shortlist candidates for potential employment.
Sourcing the candidates through references and consultants.
Create & Manage the Database of Prospective Candidates for International BPO/KPO hiring.
Desired :

Post graduate in Human resource with minimum 1 yr experience in handling recruitment for international BPO.
Knowledge of sourcing candidates through hiring websites.
Excellent verbal and written communication Skills.
Address:
IDC Technologies Sol (I) Pvt Ltd
C-22/26, Sector – 57,
NOIDA,Uttar Pradesh,India 201301

Apply : Email ur cv to vishal(at)idctechnologies.com

Email Subject : Profiles from vfreshers.com

Ways of Getting Internship and Placement in a Targeted Company

1. emailing the targeted company finding out who is in charge of recruiting. Emailing your application to the general email will rarely be met with interest, as it is usually checked by a non-decision maker, or a person who just can't be bothered.

2. Checking the spelling and grammar of your email and don't forget to attach your CV. Don't ever use the SMS shorthand for writing emails. It looks very unprofessional.

3. Doing some research on the company in question so that your email doesn't sound generic or disinterested. Explain in your email why you'd want to become an intern for them.

4. Being prepared for the internship to be unpaid: after all the company will invest a lot of money in training and supporting you, and you will get a reference at the end of it. So do make sure you can afford to be an intern for several months, especially if you are going to be based in another country or even continent.

5. Cheking the company out. Ask about working conditions, location, insurances and working hours. See if you could be put in touch with previous interns who could tell you more not only about the company, but local attractions, accommodation and customs.

6. Following up with a phone call and arrange for a telephone interview. It is important that you clarify any issues of concerns before you commit yourself to the internship. Ask the company about the internship program: they should be able to email you a questionnaire or a work plan, to help you in making sure you are making the right decision.

7. Checking whether your training institution will endorse the internship and if so, how will they liaise with your employer. Do they have any specific requirements?

8. Following up with an email thanking the company for their time and keep in touch regularly. Ask about a duty statement, internship plan or position description. Who will you be reporting to? How often? What happens in case of problems?

SECTORS HIRING FRESH MANAGEMENT DIPLOMA HOLDERS

IT and ITES- If we have a specialization in Systems, we can be hired as a Project Analyst. we can also be absorbed as a Business Solutions Developer, Engagement Manager, Project Manager or Solutions Architect (from a business point of view). In ITES sector, several companies hire fresh Management diploma Holders as Customer Care Executive, Junior Operations Manager or Senior Operations Manager.
Financial Services- Several Freshers jobs are available for Management Diploma Holders in Finance and Banking sector. They are recruited as Management Trainees, Business Development Executives as well as Relationship Associates for development of Clients. we can also be hired as a Financial Analyst.
Marketing & Sales- we can be hired as a Sales Executive or a Marketing Executive in several organizations. Companies also look for Fresh Management Diploma Holders to be employed as Data Analyst. we can also be recruited as a Management Trainee for Business development, promotion of Brand management and developing marketing strategies.
Retail- Many fresh Management Diploma Holders are hired for marketing and back-end operations in the Retail sector. Many companies also recruit Management Trainees for Operations and supply chain management.
Hospitality & Tourism- For an entry-level job position in Hospitality or Tourism sectors, you can apply for the post of an Executive Trainee. Management Trainees are also recruited for customer management and Operations.
Administration and HRM- A Management Diploma Holder can also apply for the post of a Client Relation Executive. You can get hired as a Management Executive to deal in Operations and logistics. Fresh Management course pass-outs are also recruited by many companies for Recruitment-related research process and human resource management.

Some Behavioural "Unfavourable" Aspects In Placement

* Lack of personal or career goals
* Lack of enthusiasm and confidence
* Not owning up responsibility for mistakes
* Self-justification, aggressiveness
* Lack of emotional maturity
* Negative and cynical attitude
* Over-reacting to questions
* Lacking sense of humour
* Complaining about various things and previous employeers

Decoding the Interviewing Process and Job Placements

What is the interview process we may ask ourselves in simple sense? 

As a matter of fact there is more to things or in that capacity interviewing than just meet the eyes to start with. Again there is no difference when it entangled the manner in which interviewing process can take shape in the contemporary society, especially within the domain of growing technological communication. Mass media have given a new definition to the conventional methods of the interviewing, hiring and placements among job seekers.

Let’s start with the job interviewing process or for the better part placements that consultants facilitate. There are no sure shots tips in matter of decoding the interviewing and placements process. 

However, the first thing that job seekers should consider is researching on the company background for clarity of the overall process, starting from detailed job requirement, course of personal interview and how placements take place vis-a-vis.

Secondly, taking short steps such as researching and addressing the reporter’s questions, of why, what, where and how the system work should assist individuals to build up a solid mindset that set the tune for the bigger picture of the interviewing and job placements process.Considering the same, the viable point of representation should reflect the core HRM methodology and HRD in the individual context. 

Getting a favorable call does not meant that the job is already in the baggage, however, job seekers have to find a means to channelize their competencies where the interviewing process comes as one formidable platform. Hence, interviewee is entrusted to be prepared with specific ideas based on job requirement and expectation of experts in the fields of HRM. To be precise interviewee needs to be prepared with case scenario and building a solid approach to face the reality with confidence and charm, giving attention to details and facilitating the communication process one to one that gets the attention of interviewer.

Going back to all the details, the manner in which job placements take shape is based on the solid outcome of the interviewing process. However, in recent time, the placements trends are also catching up among services providers, seen as a combination of both interview and placements in a single block. Hence, interviewee at the onset of a favorable call from interviewer needs to set the grounds work and bottom-line for interviewing itself. No matter what, as the case can be looked at effective communication gives an edge and, the process overall accounts the adage, ‘every cloud has a silver lining’.

RECESSION AND PLACEMENT

What is Recession ?

Recession means a temporary decline in the economic prosperity or economy. It is basically a fall of economy and decline in the economic condition for a small period of time . Our world is currently living in the verge of a great economic downfall or we can even consider it as a crises . It has basically effected nearly all the sectors of economy , but majorly it has effected Banking sector .

Reason for recession

..It wasn't just a day mistake which has just put us in front of this huge problem .. Few years ago US economy was increasing at a very faster rate and there was huge boom in real state and housing sector. Since rate was really high it was difficult for a common person to buy an asset for him . So, US lending institutions and mortgage firms came with a new solution of giving loans to non- potential buyers to purchase these asset with a interest rate double than what usually being taken from a potential buyer .So, gradually a huge money got involved in this business as the profit was huge . Finally non - potential buyers were unable to pay the bills and they became the lost entity of the lending institution , they recovered the asset but no one was buying them and finally situation of bankruptcy prevailed in these organization . As these institution is basic structure for nearly all the sectors a state of recession developed in whole US and Europe and gradually reached to Asian countries .

Effect of Recession on Placement in Indian Engineering colleges

Now if we think about the placement scenario of Indian Engineering colleges we should look at recession according to India's prospective . Since very few Indian banks or organization were involved in this type of practice so in this prospective , recession does not have much effect on Indian economy . But since Indian IT sector is partially being flourished by US economy and lending institution , we can't neglect it's devastating effect on Indian IT sector .
The effect is clear as top hiring IT companies has clearly stated that they will go slow on campus hiring. Most likely every college would see a decline in there placement this year. IIT's has already hit the blow and IIT Pawai has recorded only 53 % Placement this year , but yeah the fact is that actually many people opted for higher studies rather than doing a job during recession.So , Conclusion is this that even people would be getting placed during campus placement there will be a huge decline qualitatively as well as quantitatively . People should try some new options or new tactics which they have presently in this tough time . People can either go for Higher studies like MBA , MS form foreign studies , but the scholarship amount has also been reduced since the time of recession in US based Universities . People can go for their own start-ups or anything like this . But the fact is that if you get a job now, even it is below your standard , don't loose it , because as recession is a temporary condition you would be much better than the people who are not opting for job , after this temporary time get over if you would be continuing the job till that time . According to the news since Indian government and even US government is trying to raise the conditions of the financial institutions or organization, this time won't last for much . I am hoping that this time soon get over so that we can again see the flourishing economic time and better placement.

IIM Placement Under Weather, Blame It on Recession

The CAT is one of the most competitive exams in the country but aspiring students could find that admission to an IIM just might not get you that dream job
This year more number of companies called IIM Bangalore to woo students with dream jobs and hefty pay packets. The companies participating in the placement went up to almost 100 from last year's 66. But that is on invitation and not because the popularity of these schools has increased.
"Number of offers per company have gone down. We had anticipated it and hence compared to 66 or so companies last year, we had invited close to 100 companies," said the Associate Professor of Placement at the IIM-Bangalore, Sourav Mukherji.
The initial pay packages offered are by and large the same this year too but IIM-Bangalore foresees that the packages for final placements could be higher.
That's because the students are only interns for about 10 to 12 weeks and pay packets offered may increase when final recruitment happens in March.
"It would be far greater a challenge for us when it gets to the final placement because companies are not recruiting. We have to try all our means just as we did during summer to reach out to companies and ask them to come and take our student," Mukherjee added.
The CAT entrance test held on Sunday gains significance on these counts. Will aspirants then stop eying B-school listing, then?
"I don't see that happening because close to two lakh 80 thousand students will be attempting. If at all (there are any effects of the recession) perceptible thing, then maybe next year. But again, one can't say much," Mukherjee said.