Goodbye Ahmedabad….hello again Gurgaon

This is probably my last blog entry from the IIM Ahmedabad campus, as I start off on a 900+ km drive tomorrow morning to my hometown and my old job. As I say goodbye to the eclectic PGPX class of 09', this beautiful campus, and my very warm apartment, the last 12 months just whiz past my eyes. Here are some moments that will always stay with me…

The D-Company is born…

Cohesive D-Group family...

Unending lectures…

Chit-chat chai time…

Block 11 MSH…

T-Nite chaos…

Krishnav arrives…

Short trip to Amsterdam…

Chillaxing with Krishnav…

Holi time at IIM…

Much treasured morning walks...
Goodbye PGPX, IIM-A

And a new one begins after a few blank pages…

Now that the PGPX course at IIM is over, I am finding myself blogging more often. And boy am I glad!

These last few days are like blank pages between two chapters (close to the climax) of a best-seller. As the reader flips these pages, while he is still thinking through the gripping closing paragraph in the last chapter, there is anticipation about the direction the story may take in the subsequent chapter.

Next few days at the campus will be uneventful yet very hectic. On one hand life is dull on campus as people are wrapping up their course deliverables and busy finalizing their jobs, on the other hand there is a lot of action as people make arrangements to move to new locations; movers and packers are having a field day on campus.

I am trying to tie all the loose ends as I plan my move back to Gurgaon. Well I am excited to go back, but the one thing that I am not looking forward to is the 900+ km drive back home. Though the road is great and I really enjoyed driving to Ahmedabad, the same drive seems like a drag now; I guess sadness of leaving this super-cool campus (and friends) coupled with anxiety about future uncertainty is weighing heavy on me.

Anyways, I am sure the future has a lot of exciting surprises in store for each of us. The economic downturn presents a wonderful opportunity for each one of the PGPX’s 77 aces to test their managerial astuteness in solving some real-world business problems.

Yet another chapter ends…

Just submitted my last pending assignment (individual Capstone exercise), and phew… I am done with the PGPX coursework! So, no more night-outs, report writing, case reading, and quiz prep.

I had been waiting for this moment for several weeks, but now that I am done with all the course work, I am not feeling too good about it! In fact it saddens me to think that after a few days I will bid goodbye to IIM-A, and (re)enter the big, bad, hectic rat race of the corporate world.

Though I am certainly happy to say goodbye to the PGPX class room (CR-11) and endless lectures, I will surely carry fond memories of the “D-Company corner” (as it got to be known) near the stairs where out group converged for endless conversations in between the classes (see pic), and our group syndicate room (Synd. 6) which almost became a second home for all in group D.

IIM-A journey will be memorable. Had some great fun moments, found some wonderful friends, cracked some crazy business problems, and kept pace (at least tried to) with the famous IIM-A rigor comprising endless stream of quizzes, presentations, reports, assignments, end-terms (and other "torture weapons").

Starting tomorrow the focus will be on relocation planning, packing, wrapping up administrative requirements, etc.

Next Piece of Bread...

Men in black and women all natty
Put-on smiles and appearing to be chatty
Rushing to meet recruiters with a sense of dread
Confident, yet worried about the next piece of bread

Shades of grey, yet bundle of nerves
Years of toil, yet still negotiating life’s curves
Running in a race to enter the management hall-of-fame
Wanting to hang their boots, but still playing the game

The “buyers” are pickier than ever before
Rejecting “ware” at the slightest “nick” in the core
The economy going south is aiding the “evil”
Cause or result, no doubt it is causing upheaval

Sitting on the sidelines I witness and wonder
Is this hassle worth letting your life get torn asunder?
With creditors knocking doors, ready to flog the “almost dead”
In life’s pecking order nothing precedes the next piece of bread!

By Sunil Puri
(Inspired by the current employment scenario in India; wherein all – even the smartest and the most experienced – are desperately searching for good opportunities)

Waltz in the class…

Lights-ppt deck-action I see often in my class
Audience are bored and presenters are crass
Whether finance or marketing, the performance looks the same
“Waltz in the class” is what I call this game

The judges ever so often do not care about content
Body language and “style” define intellectual dent
“Time cop” is the only person often glued to the “dance”
So that the next guy is not too late to take his stance

Grades are sadly the only performance driver
Audience are indifferent, heaps of print the only survivor
The dancer often does not connect with the class
Not that the audience minds giving him a pass

The dance often ends with a loud applause
Rarely in appreciation, often sadly without a cause
Clapping no doubt does create a feel-good sound
The energy dissipates, yet participants remain bound

Is this what education is all about, I ask?
Dancing to the slide-deck, wearing a knowledge mask
Sadly I guess we need to play along till the system halts
Flick our limbs, and get ready for our turn to waltz!

By Sunil Puri
(Inspired by a session on project presentations in the class)