Thursday, December 30, 2004

The Tata Indicom Maxi Fair 2004-2005 - Curtain Raiser



The 26th edition of the MAXI Fair is being held on the 2nd of January 2005 at XLRI Jamshedpur. The principal sponsor for the event is Tata Indicom , a Tata group company which has just rolled out its telecom services in the Jamshedpur region. The co-sponsor for the event is BPCL, and the associate sponsors are Agrotech , AIDA and Tata Steel.

As an accredited research tool, the role of the MAXI Fair is to conduct research for companies, and some of the big names in this year's edition are Colgate Palmolive, Reckitt Benckiser , Tata Indicom , BPCL and Cholamandalam Finance. A new entrant is the French fragrance company, Givoudan .

As usual, the MAXI Fair promises to be a day of fun for the Jamshedpur public, with prizes at stake for all the games, and a free gift hamper for all the visitors.

An Insiders' View

The scene at XLRI Jamshedpur :26th December 2004 :

Visitor: Where is the Maxi Fair taking place?
Student: It is being held on the 2nd of January at the XLRI Grounds.
Visitor: I see. It used to be on the last Sunday of the year for the last few years, so I thought I'd check if it was being held today.

This was a conversation that took place between a Jamshedpur resident and a student of XLRI Jamshedpur. Surprising? Not really. The annual Marketing Fair, or simply, the MAXI Fair (MAXI : Marketing Association of XLRI), is older than most of the current students of the institute, but has continued to be an occasion the whole of Jamshedpur looks forward to year after year. The Fair is now over 25 years old, and there are folk who have attended each and every edition of the Fair. Again, not surprising, for the Fair has never failed to entertain the people of Jamshedpur , who turn up in hordes year after year.

The Maxi Fair is different things to different people. To the public, it is an occasion of fun and frolic, of games and prizes. To the participating companies, it is accredited research tool, whose results have played launch pad to some of the best known brands in the country today. To the students, it is more than just a research project - it is an occasion where the seniors and juniors sit down, put their heads together and come up with creative solutions to the marketing conundrums posed to them by the companies and in the process, strengthen the legendary bonding between the students that XLRI is so famous for. To the administration and faculty of the institute, it is a full-credit course in the Marketing area.

The Tata Indicom MAXI Fair '04 -'05 promises to be all this and more. Some of the participating companies in this year's edition are Colgate Palmolive and Reckitt Benckiser , besides Tata Indicom , the principal sponsor. The campus, always bustling with activity, is more alive than ever, as the students work towards meeting two needs - entertaining the visitors, and providing the companies the research they require.

The XLRI grounds is clearly the place to be, on the 2nd of January 2005 .

Sunday, December 26, 2004

The 2004 XL Bangalore X'mas bash !

Bangalore Chapter brought in Xmas with the XL Family on 17th December at Cubbon Park

Click For More Details

grax was exchanged by all and sundry...and some snatches ofconversation that Scooperizer was able to catch were:
"So this XLer after making his HR consulting firm one of the biggestin India has chucked it all up and is starting it all over again inSingapore !"
"Seen some great tech startups recently? We'd like to invest some seedcapital.."
"Being a freelance consultant has its ups and downs , but I am enjoying it...."
"I'm thinking of buying a Toyota Camry, the Accent feels small these days.."
"The politics after the merger caused the partners to leave...pure culture clash , y'know"
"How come my competitor gets to be in the top employers of the country with 32% attrition and my organization doesn't make it , with half that rate"...
"I tell you, I joined this organization just to move to Bangalore, andthey have a horrid work/life balance...I can't even go to Styx to chill out on Saturday night!"
"Guess what, slowly and surely our batch has 10 IRs inBangalore...maybe we can have a small batch meet!"
Ahem! I'll stop here before I spill any dangerous beans , but I hope you get the general idea ;-)

Of course, the drinks were flowing (since they were free till 7.30 pm,we had quite a few early birds there !), with yummy snacks like Chicken Tikka, masala peanuts and pineapple, cheese sticks!
The food took the cake (no pun intended!) with some great Mangalorean fish, Chicken Chettinad, Pulav, Rotis, Palak Paneer, Bhindi and Salad!
Yum !

The kids discovered the adjacent park to the party venue and so quitea few XLers had to move there to keep an eye over them as they went berserk on the swings and slides there !

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

Congratulations Shantanu Das - 98 PMIR

Shantanu of the 98 batch has just moved to Shaw Wallace Breweries Limited (an affiliate of SAB Miller) as Head- Corporate HR

Congrats Shantanu.

98/99 xlers will know him as the guy behind the 98 year book.

Tuesday, December 21, 2004

XL Celeb Watch - Bijou Kurien

Thanks GG for this nugget :

Well on the XL bang X'mas bash one prominent XLer was missed...

The President of the XL Bangalore Alumni Committee , Bijou Kurien was apparently kept busy by his previous commitment to be a keynote speaker at the Deccan Herald conference of Advertising where he was speaking on 18th Dec on "Building a Titan"...

Then next day we saw him in the paper again,... launching Titan's new device called CalTrack ! check here http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2004/dec/18titan.htm

The 2004 Bangalore XLers' X'mas bash !

Thanks to the XL bangalore alumni committee and Nelson Cordeiro, the kids and the not so kids had a great X'mas bash on the 17th !

Fittingly it was Nelson, who sponsored the evening who also got a chance to dress up as Santa and hand over the gifts to the kids.

The settings of the Century Club in Cubbon Park was apt for the XLers and their families who turned up to celebrate the spirit of the holiday season.

Of course, grax was exchanged by all and sundry...and some snatches of conversation that Scooperizer was able to catch were:

"So this XLer after making his HR consulting firm one of the biggest in India has chucked it all up and is starting it all over again in Singapore !"

"Seen some great tech startups recently? We'd like to invest some seed capital.."

"Being a freelance consultant has its ups and downs , but I am enjoying it...."

"I'm thinking of buying a Toyota Camry, the Accent feels small these days.."

"The politics after the merger caused the partners to leave...pure culture clash , y'know"

"How come my competitor gets to be in the top employers of the country with 32% attrition and my organization doesn't make it , with half that rate"...

"I tell you, I joined this organization just to move to Bangalore, and they have a horrid work/life balance...I can't even go to Styx to chill out on Saturday night!"

"Guess what, slowly and surely our batch has 10 IRs in Bangalore...maybe we can have a small batch meet!"

Ahem! I'll stop here before I spill any dangerous beans , but I hope you get the general idea ;-)

Who were there?

Well the who's who of Bangalore, Titto, David, both the Georges (Olapally and Selvam), Kuru, Thomas , Zo, Anuja, Mojo, Surya, Sujitesh, Mervyn, Jabez, Kumar, and even Apprameya of the 2005 batch amongst a lot of others too :-))

Of course, the drinks were flowing (since they were free till 7.30 pm, we had quite a few early birds there !), with yummy snacks like Chicken Tikka, masala peanuts and pineapple, cheese sticks!

The food took the cake (no pun intended!) with some great Mangalorean fish, Chicken Chettinad, Pulav, Rotis, Palak Paneer, Bhindi and Salad !

Yum !

The kids discovered the adjacent park to the party venue and so quite a few XLers had to move there to keep an eye over them as they went beserk on the swings and slides there !

Till next year folks, hope you all have a great holiday season and a rocking start to 2005 !

The Scooperizer,
GG

Monday, December 20, 2004

Vanitha Swaminathan - BMD 90

Thanks KNV for this detail :

On a serious reading of Prof Prithwiraj Nath' article and its references, I did find an interesting article referred therein by Vanitha Swaminathan (BMD90), my esteemed batchmate:
http://www.ascusc.org/jcmc/vol5/issue2/swaminathan.htm

Vanitha's article in turn references Dr Atul PArvatiyar, one of our
Marketing Profs when we studied at XLRI (BMD 1988-90):

"Sheth and Parvatiyar 1995" vide
Sheth, J., N., & Parvatiyar, A. (1995). Relationship marketing in
consumer markets: Antecedents and consequences. Journal of the
Academy of Marketing Science, 23 (Fall), 255-271.
==============================
FYI, Dr Vanitha Swaminathan is now with the Katz School of Business
in U of Pittsburgh. Vanitha can be reached from: http://www.katz.pitt.edu/fac_pages/Swaminathan.htm

Formerly she was the Assistant Professor of Marketing at the
University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Her research interests focused
on branding strategy and electronic commerce. Prof. Swaminathan has
published in the Journal of Marketing Research, Advances in Consumer
Research and in the proceedings of the American Marketing
Association, Association of Management and Relationship Marketing
conferences.
-------------------
Dr. Atul Parvatiyar is the President of iCRM and is the Robinson
Research Fellow & Associate Professor of Marketing at Georgia State
University; Atul can be reached from:
http://www.parvatiyar.com =============================================

Congrats, and keep it up - Vanitha, and Atul!

KNV

Congrats, Prof Prithwiraj Nath!

the following paper by Prof Prithwiraj Nath, Marketing Area faculty, XLRI
features in the list of Outstanding papers - Management titles
of the Literati Club of Emerald, and got the Award for Excellence 2004

http://miranda.emeraldinsight.com/vl=664118/cl=24/nw=1/rpsv/literaticlub/winners/
International Journal of Bank Marketing
vol. 21 no. 1
"A model of trust in online relationship banking"
Avinandan Mukherjee (Nanyang Technical University, Singapore)
Prithwiraj Nath (Xavier Labour Relations Institute, India)

Congratulations!

Saturday, December 18, 2004

Please pray for Dr. E M Rao and his family

Dr Prof EM Rao lost his son, Aditya, in a road accident on 15th night in Pune.

Those passing out after 1999, will know Prof Rao - he was also the previous Dean (Academics) at XL)... Aditya, in his early 20s, was his only son.

One of Aditya's colleagues, Nishant, is the contact person. His mobile is 98500 68192.

For those who want to contact Dr. Rao directly :
His mobile no is: 9431181318
Email : emrao@xlri.ac.in

Please pray for Aditya, that he may rest in a better place. Please pray for Dr. E M Rao and his wife that they may have the strength to withstand their loss and the courage to face each new day.

Friday, December 17, 2004

Move for J Jayaraman 87 batch

J Jayaraman (87PMIR), has recently shifted from Rane to Parryware(Murugappa Group) as the Head of HR at Chennai.

Congratulations on the move ! !

featuring Prash - 99 batch n his music

Musika Originale

Five years after graduating with a specialisation in Marketing, Prashant Vadhyar (99BMD) - or "Prash" as he is known - decided to go full-time into what he enjoys most - Music.

Check out his feature on Madshuk's Blog of Famous XL Alumni

Thursday, December 16, 2004

Dr Shukla Co-edits a Book from McMillan India

Dr Madhukar Shukla Co-edits a book on "Developing Leadership for the Global Era: HRD Perspectives and Intitiatives" along with Dr Uma Jain and Dr Udai Pareek (published by McMillan India, 2004).

We know this is his third book, the other two contributions are Understanding Organizations Prentice Hall of India (1996) and Competing Through Knowledge :Building Learning Organization, Response Books(Sage), 1997.

Our hearty congratulations to Dr Shukla!!

Wednesday, December 15, 2004

Christmas Party at XLBang

It's better than regular parties...It's X'mas !
No Schmoozing - No Networking - No Fist Pumping
It's Christmas time!

This is the time for our friends, families, and especially our kids.That's what this programme is all about. Good fun for the kids and us parents.
Santa Claus, carols, gifts, cake, chocolates, time with the kids, fun, fun, and more fun.
Thanks again to the generous sponsorship from Nelson Cordeiro of iPeople India (Executive Search & Selection - Mob:+91-93428-55611),for making this happen.

Friday, Dec 17, Century Club (Cubbon Park), 7:30 onwards.
Dinner'sincluded.
Please send in your confirmations ASAP with your children'snames and ages for us to buy gifts for them (kuruvilla@gmail.com /98451-41464).
Rates:Families/Couples -250
Singles - 150
Guests - 200
Kid guests - 100
Drinks/Beer - 50 each,
Booze is FREE till 7:30pm.

Answers to your questions:

1. Dinner is included and will be served at appropriate times for thechildren/grownups.
2. Snacks & softdrinks are free
3. The venue is semi-closed so clothe the kids appropriately
4. Yes, you can bring guests at Rs 200 each. If they are kids (Rs100), please send me their details so gifts can be arranged.
5. Century Club is in the middle of Cubbon Park.

Do you need Driving Directions ?

Tuesday, December 14, 2004

XL a second rung institute ?

Subir Nag posted :

"Unfaithful" IIM recruits force SBI to tap B-schools
Poornima Mohandas / Mumbai December 14, 2004

The State Bank of India (SBI) has decided to change its campus
recruitment turf from the Indian Institute of Managements (IIMs) to second-rung business schools as more than half of its IIM recruits have quit within the first year of working with the bank.

"This year we have decided to concentrate on the second-rung B-schools such as S P Jain, ICFAI, Jamnalal Bajaj, SCMHRD, K J Somaiya, MDI and XLRI. With what we pay to get the bottom layer of students from the IIMs, we can get the cream from these B-schools," said a bank official.

The country's largest commercial bank offers packages varying from anything between Rs 2.75 lakh and Rs 5 lakh. "Out of the 20 MBAs we recruited last year from the IIMs, 11 have already left. They gain experience from SBI, and seek new challenges, more money and move to multinational companies and banks. Attracting talent and maintaining it is increasingly becoming a difficult task," he pointed out.

This year SBI has already inducted 10 MBAs from ICFAI&5, specialised in banking and finance, from the National Institute of Bank Management. The bank, with a work force of over 2 lakh employees, has plans to recruit about 40-50 management trainees in the current year, which is more than double that of last year.

The bank, typically, places management trainees in the departments of treasury, project finance, corporate accounts group, information technology, marketing and personal business.

The compensation packages of MBAs are structured differently from that of the regular 59,700-strong officer cadre.

The management trainees get a better take home salary but do not get benefits such as residential accommodation, which the officers enjoy.
In addition to recruitments, the bank also takes in trainees for
summer internships.

The bank has taken 30 plus students during the months of October, November and December for a stipend of Rs 8,000 per month.



Madhukar said :
first of all, thanks to Subir Nag for posting this - it kept the jobless junta on grax group occupied throughout the day, drew some out from the woodwork on xl94, and even managed to stir - even if only for a brief minute - that sleeping behomoth, The "xl_amchimumbai" group;0)

secondly, I think that there is a BIG opportunity for Recruitment Consultancy in SBI - obviously, an organisation which clubs all the mentioned b-schools in this news item into one category needs some help from professionals;0)

For general gyan of junta, SBI caps has been picking up people last few years, and to my knowledge/memory SBI never came/recruited from the campus - till last year, when SBI did come to the campus - wanted to pick-up people by truck-load, but got only one (I am not sure if Kaushik is still there, or if he also joined his "unfaithful" brethrens from IIMs;)

just as a side info, it is somewhat ironical that the Chairman of SBI, Mr AK Purwar, happens to be on the Board of Governers of this "second-rung" (!!!?) b-school to which all of us belong... along with some others, like Yogi Deveshwar (ITC), Arun Maira (BCG), Burkhardt Stumpf (Timken), Rajive Kaul (Nicco), Sanjiv Lamba (BOC), etc...

... since this info, obviously, will float in XL, I guess SBI - even if they don;t get the cream - has got "creamed" in the CRP ;0)


Sudip Malik suggested :
I've recently seen this from another angle.

Many tutorial companies in the MBA entrance exam prepration business also club IIMs (ABCLIK) all at the top rung.

I guess we all individually need to do a little 'funda clearing' of those students, recruiters, etc. who may not be very fortunate to know who's the best. One idea is to meet with students of Career Launcher, TIME, IMS, Professional Tutorials, etc around the time that the XAT registrations are on. Now this is where the Alumni Associations can pitch in.

What say ?!

Sudip Mallik
BMD '87

Band Baaja for Pooja Agarwal 2001batch

Pooja Arora of the 2001 batch is getting married on 29th December in Delhi to Rahul Aggarwal.

All the best to Pooja & Rahul. Wish you a very happy Married life.

Sunday, December 12, 2004

xmas stories

If u r interested in the origin of some of the standard symbols associated with xmas, visit my Muser Blog

Saturday, December 11, 2004

KAIZEN ::: 7 bands to rock Jamshedpur ::: at XLRI's Tata Audi

Most of you must remember Manasi (Bitti), Mad Shuks daughter from campus days. Well she has grown since you left campus and is now in the 12th standard. But she is doing something, all of us can learn something from. She has taken major responsibility in organising "Kaizen" to raise funds for a literacy program. She has worked hard on all fronts, securing location, getting bands to play, organising sponsorship among others.

The XL band "Bodhi tree" will also be playing.

Quick xl fact u may not have known : The band of the juniors is called "Bodhi Sapling" What was the band called in your stay on campus ? Add comments...

The concert has also been covered in the rock street Journal. Read More

Friday, December 10, 2004

Navision To Set Up Excellence Centre At XLRI

Navision To Set Up Excellence Centre At XLRI
ARINDAM SINHA
Posted online: Tuesday, December 09, 2003 at 0000 hours IST

JAMSHEDPUR: Navision India, the exclusive distributor for Microsoft Business Solutions in the country, is planning to set up a ‘centre for excellence’ at the XLRI campus here.

According to XLRI External Linkages Cell executive member S Sindhuja, Navision announced the opening of the ‘centre for excellence’ at the recently-concluded National IT Seminar at the XLRI.

Scheduled to commence from the third week of January 2004, the centre would start a course on ‘integrated business solutions’, which would become a part of the XLRI curriculum.

On Navision India providing an educational licence to the B-school allowing it to incorporate the course in the curriculum, students of marketing, operations, finance & HR streams of the institute would be able to take ‘integrated business solutions’ during their summer projects.

The move is basically to ensure that young managers graduating from the institute are tech-savvy and are exposed to business solutions and the role of IT in an organisation.

According to Navision India managing director Yash Nagpal, “An understanding of integrated business solutions, particularly from the stable of Microsoft, should start at the grassroots level and not at a late stage in a professional’s life.”

Worldwide, over 2,70,000 customers are currently said to be using Microsoft Business Solutions.

Did you know this about XL ?

About Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI)

Xavier Labour Relations Institute, widely known as XLRI was born out of the vision of a Jesuit Priest, Father Quinn Enright.


It was founded in 1949 in the Steel city of Jamshedpur, Bihar. Since then the Jamshedpur Jesuit Society has nurtured the growth of XLRI in keeping with its commitment to "Magis" (excellence in everything).


Over the last few decades, XLRI Jamshedpur has contributed its best to the professional growth and management of innumerable institutions that serve the public, especially organized industry, labour, service agencies engaged in rural development, education, health and other public systems.


Besides the focus on developing managerial competence among the pupils through acquisition of specialized knowledge and skills, the Institute emphasizes the importance of developing a sense of social justice with right attitudes and values of discipline, dedication and commitment among all its members.

Over the years, XLRI has developed its own unique culture. "XL is thy name"! The culture of XLRI is such that it accelerates the members' passion for achieving excellence in everything they do. While informality, flexibility, humaneness, and espirit de corps are the hallmarks, growth and development of the whole person with integrity and ingenuity are the 'summum bonum' of the culture in XLRI.

B-school take on tourism

Jamshedpur, Nov. 29:
The 14th annual JRD Tata Oration on Business Ethics, held at the Tata Auditorium this evening, was an enriching experience for the students and faculty of the Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI).

The discussions held in due course of the evening provided them with tips on how tourism can be used as an effective tool to promoting business ethics.

Father James J. Spillane, a professor of Sanata Dharma University, Indonesia, who delivered a speech on “Tourism in developing countries: Neocolonialism or nation builder”, said the tourism industry employs about 240 million people and earns a revenue of 3.4 million dollar across the world.

(From left) James Spillane, professor of the Sanata Dharma University, Indonesia, Tata Steel managing director B Muthuraman and director of XLRI Fr Casimir Raj at the 14th annual XLRI Dr JRD Tata Oration on Business Ethics. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Full Story

Tuesday, December 07, 2004

Nils finds her special Nagporewalla

Niloufer Irani of the Batch of '99 pm&ir (currently working in HR dept at KPMG Mumbai) is getting married on 17th december

to Yezdi Nagporewalla (grax has it that he's a partner at KPMG;-) )

at Seth Jeejeebhoy Dadabhoy Agairy, Afghan Church Road, Mumbai

Chennai Chapter Get-together on 27th November

Heard there were 35 XLers ranging from 68 to 2003 batch who attended.

Anyone willing to give more details ?

Saturday, December 04, 2004

The need for a good work-life balance - WHAT THEY DON`T TEACH YOU AT B-SCHOOL

The need for a good work-life balance - WHAT THEY DON`T TEACH YOU AT B-SCHOOL

By Ronald C Sequeira, from Business Standard, November 23, 2004

If you ever want to see several happy people in one place, visit any leading B-school campus just after the placement season is over. What a sybaritic feeling. A business school stamp behind your name and a dream job ahead of you. The B-school grad has learnt all that is there to learn. Could it get any better?

Going back to my own first day on campus, we were told by the legendary Father McGrath, “XLRI is not a place but an experience and an opportunity.” Now we had been through the experience and were on the threshold of seeking opportunities to apply all the teachings that a business degree offers.

As we waited with our packed bags in the foyer of the institute to say our last goodbyes, Father Maggie (as we referred to McGrath) in a soft tone said to me “Ronnie, I hope and pray that all of you get a very good first boss.” At that time one did not fully comprehend the meaning of that message.

Read the Full Story



Ronald C Sequeira is vice president and head, human resources, Tata Power Company Limited. He graduated from the Xavier Labour Relations Institute, Jamshedpur, in 1984

Friday, December 03, 2004

X-Factor Rejuvenated

The X-factor, is a monthly e-newsletter for both alumni and current students of XLRI.

The X-factor aims to address a long felt need for sharing and disseminating news/views across the XLRI community - alumni, students and faculty.

We would love to have your feedback, suggestions and contributions for the forthcoming issues. Please write back to us at:
editor.xfactor@gmail.com

Happy Reading!
and Kudos to - Mohit, Surya, Allen, Deepti, Kushgara, and Sheshank - the X-factor Team!!!


You can download the X-factor - from:

http://xlalumni.blogspot.com/
[warning it is 377kb pdf format]

Thursday, December 02, 2004

XLRI Student Exchange Programmes

The student committee POISE (Program for International Student Exchange, XLRI), is pleased to announce the signing of MoUs for Student Exchange programmes with the following universities:

* Malardalen University, Sweden
* Asian Institute of Management, Philippines

Malardalen University is a rapidly expanding university with 15000 students undergoing more than 50 degree programmes in its twin campuses. AIM has been ranked in the Top 3 BSchools in Asia consistently by various organisations, including Financial Times and Asiaweek.

The programmes shall commence with the batch of 2004-06. Details of both programmes including financial are being worked out and will be made available soon.

We would like to extend our gratitude to our Director Fr. N Casimir Raj, Dean (acads) Prof. Venugopal and Prof. ISF Irudayaraj (Faculty coordinator, POISE) for helping us at every crucial step in the process.

Heartfelt gratitude also to our erstwhile Director, Fr. P D Thomas, and Dean (acads) Prof. EM Rao, Anubhuti Sharma (XLer working in Delhi) who were extremely encouraging and helpful in our efforts. Lastly, thanks also to the POISE members from 2002-04 batch especially Nakul Gupta (secy).

And what else is POISE doing?
* Planning an online management competition with participation from foreign business schools in an effort to increase the awareness of XLRI on campuses abroad
* Tying up with another couple of colleges for exchange programmes (in the pipeline...)
* Trying to make it easier for the students to avail of the programme by way of loans/scholarships

Any help/suggestions/questions are welcome from all.

Thanks and Regards
Vikram P. Dhunta (Secy, BM 2005)
On behalf of POISE:
Arun Vijayragavan (BM 2006)
Puneet Sandhu (BM 2006)
Gayatri Raman Iyer (PM&IR 2006)
Anonna Barua (PM&IR 2006)
Elizabeth John (PM&IR 2005)
Aditya Singh (BM 2005)
poise@xlri.ac.in

Until the Cops Arrive

Until the Cops Arrive

The usual, but with a pinch of Bombay Masala

Check out my pal Sharky's blog. Its a hilariuos comment on life in Mumbai.

Sarwar Ahuja wins Z cine star

Thanks everyone for voting for Nitin Bajaj's cousin Sarwar. He is the final winner of the Zee cine star contest.

prof madhukar's sketches

Check ou the bearded professors sketches at
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/madhukar_shukla/album?.dir=/671d&.src=ph

MVS Badge of Honour

MVS is pretty clued on to "point", that matters! :0)... and more than "engaged" in discussion, he is actually walking the plank... er... sorry, getting married day after (3rd) in Varanasi

Mayank Vir Saxena is also the person to contact for more details regarding the MVS Badge of Honour.

Anyone from the 2003 batch care to comment on that here.

Sunday, November 28, 2004

FIREX has its own Blog

Forum For Industrial Relations @ XLRI maintains this blog.

The Looking Glass of Employee Relations

Recent topics covered, include
Government To Emphasize On Employment-Led Growth
China: Wal-Mart and the ACFTU, will they or won't they?
Press workers protest dismisal of 362 Hindustan Times workers
Assured Job Is the Best Social Security
Improvement in Financial and Social Condition of Child Labour
Recognizing the Potential of Unorganized Sector
Raising India’s Work Force to International Levels
Everything is Evidence
Productivity Improvement and Labour Relations in the Tea Industry in South Asia
Labour relations - Hyundai style

Saturday, November 27, 2004

XL Celeb Watch - Harish (B) Balan - 2001

Page three of ET Corporate Dossier - article about Avendus' success as a boutique investment bank has Harish Balan (BMD 2001) grinning in all his glory.

Way to go Balan!
Here's the Link

Friday, November 26, 2004

Summer Placement coverage in the Hindu

You need to scroll down a bit, if you visit the page.
~~~
The Xavier's Labour Research Institute (XLRI), Jamshedpur, has added yet another feather to its cap. After a successful placement sting for the 2004 batch, it is the turn of the 2006 batch with 189 students - 126 in Business Management and 63 in Personnel Management and Industrial Relations to enjoy their summer placements.

Taking the lead was IBM, which picked up 13 candidates followed by HLL and ICICI Bank, which have taken 11 students each, while BPCL was close behind with nine students. The FMCG Sector - comprising Arvind Brands, Asian Paints, Cadbury, Castrol, Coke, Colgate Palmolive, Gillette, Godrej, HLL, ICI, ITC, Pepsi, Reckitt Benckiser, Seagrams and Titan - was the top recruiter picking up 54 students (30 per cent of the batch).

While the number of offers accepted from consulting firms like Accenture, Ernst & Young, Hay Group and Hewitt among others saw an increase of 67 per cent over last year, the IT/ITES Sector accounted for 22 per cent of the batch. The core sector picked the next highest numbers with 36 offers made in all by Aditya Birla Group, BPCL, Murugappa Group, Shree Cements, TAS and Tata Motors.

D Ray - 74 batch - best paper award

D. Ray, a bummer of 1974, has been awarded the 'Best Paper' Award for his paper titled 'Managing Human Resources in the Reforming State utilities: The Role of training'.

This was published in IJTD vol XXXII, No. 1& 2 Jan - June 2003 issue.

His email ID is dray@vsnl.net
=======
Thanks to Gaurav Tyagi for unearthing this.

Madhur and Upasana getting married ! (both 2002)

Two XLers in Bangalore (batch of 2002) are getting married in Delhi later today.

You can wish Upasana and Madhur Upadhyay by calling on 9886724203, 011-26526782 or mailing at madhurupadhyay @yahoo.com


Thursday, November 25, 2004

Record summer placements at XLRI

Jamshedpur, Nov 23 (UNI)
IBM has emerged as the biggest recruiter, picking up 13 candidates in the summer placements of the batch of 2006 of the premier B-school Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI) here.

HLL and ICICI Bank followed closely to pick up 11 candidates each while BPCL managed to recruit nine candidates. The FMCG Sector - comprising Arvind Brands, Asian Paints, Cadbury, Castrol, Coke, Colgate Palmolive, Gillette, Godrej, HLL, ICI, ITC, Pepsi, Reckitt Benckiser, Seagrams and Titan - was the top recruiter, picking up 54 students (30 per cent of the batch) while ITC and Gillette took 7 and 6 respectively. The Pharma industry was represented by Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Ranbaxy.

The number of offers accepted from Consulting firms - which included Accenture, Ernst & Young, Hay Group, Hewitt, Mercer and PwC - went up by a whopping 67 per cent compared to last year.

Informing this to the mediapersons here today director of XLRI N Casimir Raj said the cent per cent placement was an indication that XLRI was recognised as a brand name in the corporate world. He said this was rated as one of the best summer placements in recent memory.

Placement Coordinator Dr Sabyasachi Sengupta expressed his pleasure commenting, ''The positive response from companies this year is heartening: this is evident from the growing number of Companies visiting XLRI with every Placement session. The enthusiasm of Companies also strikes an optimistic note for the final placements scheduled this February.''

I want to do MBA with my own money

At least the Eco Times knows which the top 4 B Schools are :

KOLKATA:
A growing population of B-schoolers are lapping up education loans these days. Though there is no compiled data, students cutting across the three premier IIMs — A, B, and C — and XLRI, Jamshedpur, confirmed that in percentage terms, the numbers range anywhere from 45% on the lower side, to 70% in the upper rungs.

Full Article

Booming economy reflects at XLRI’s record Summer Placements

FMCG Sector picks up 30% of the batch
Number of Consultancy offers goes up by 67%
IBM emerges as biggest recruiter taking 13; HLL and ICICI Bank are next with 11 each
The Placement Committee of XLRI added another feather to its cap as the Summer Internship Process was completed successfully with the batch being placed over the very first weekend of summer placements. After a hugely successful Final Placement for the batch of 2004, the confidence that the Corporate world reposes on XLRI was reinforced, with students securing summer internship in the finest names. By consensus, this was rated as one of the best Summer Placements in recent memory. The batch of 2006 has 189 students – 126 in Business Management and 63 in Personnel Management and Industrial Relations.

The biggest recruiter was IBM, which picked up 13 candidates; this was closely followed by HLL and ICICI Bank, which recruited 11 each and BPCL with 9. The FMCG Sector – comprising Arvind Brands, Asian Paints, Cadbury, Castrol, Coke, Colgate Palmolive, Gillette, Godrej, HLL, ICI, ITC, Pepsi, Reckitt Benckiser, Seagrams and Titan – was the top recruiter picking up 54 students (30% of the batch). In sync with the boom witnessed by the economy, the process saw bulk recruitments in the sector - HLL picked 11 students, while ITC and Gillette took 7 and 6 respectively. The Pharma industry was represented by Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and Ranbaxy.
The number of offers accepted from Consulting firms - which included Accenture, Ernst & Young, Hay Group, Hewitt, Mercer and PwC – went up by a whopping 67% compared to last year.

The IT/ITES Sector accounted for 22% of the batch, with 37 accepted offers from Cognizant Technology Solutions, EXL Services, IBM, NSE-IT, TCS, Texas Instruments, WeP and Wipro. The Core Sector picked the next highest numbers with 36 offers made in all by Aditya Birla Group, BPCL, Murugappa Group, Shree Cements, TAS and Tata Motors.

19% of the batch was picked up by Banks and Financial Institutions (BFI): after ICICI Bank, the next highest numbers in this sector were from GE, which took 8 and Citibank with 6. The sector also comprised ABN Amro, AIG, ICICI Prudential, SBI, Standard Chartered and UTI Bank. Major recruiters from the Core sector like Murugappa, TAS, Aditya Birla Group saw 13 offers being accepted.

In all, there were 45 companies participating in the process. The highest stipend offered was Rs 64,000 by Hay Group, the international consulting firm, which was on campus for the first time. XLRI welcomed first-time participants in Arvind Brands, CRY, Ranbaxy and Shree Cements. Cadbury India and Titan returned to Campus after a short break.

Technology played a major role in the placements this year with companies such as Cadbury making use of Video Conferencing for recruitment. A number of Companies also used the integrated Online Placement System for various stages of their recruitment process: it may be noted that XLRI was among the first B-Schools to take the Process online early this year.

The Placement Coordinator, Dr Sabyasachi Sengupta expressed his pleasure commenting, “The positive response from companies this year is heartening: this is evident from the growing number of Companies visiting XLRI with every Placement session. The enthusiasm of Companies also strikes an optimistic note for the Final Placements scheduled this February.”

Harshvardhan Ratanpal Singh, Secretary, Placement Committee of XLRI summed up Summers 2005 saying, “The summer recruitment for this year has been marked by heavy recruitments by our regular recruiters, and increased participation by companies in the Consulting and FMCG sectors. This is an indication of the belief corporates have in the unique talent being groomed at XLRI, and a reaffirmation of the highly rigorous selection process of XLRI with a selection ratio of 1:158.”

Best co's 2 work for - Busibness today features Nitin Dheer - 98 Batch

BT SPECIAL
The Best Companies To Work
For In India, 2004
Software services companies dominate this year's listing. Then, that shouldn't surprise anyone; the business is booming.
By Nitin Dheer and Megha Sahni

You build your organisation's good name inch-by-inch, day-by-day. Reputation cannot merely be a matter of mere coincidence, but is deliberately shaped, and adequately controlled with the participation of all members of the organisation using various avenues of communication. How, for instance, does a company engage with stakeholders, while at the same time managing expectations internally? While a significant aspect of The Best Companies To Work For In India focussed on employee perception, importance was also given to the perception of the labour market and industry environment.

Some companies do innovative things like renting a cruise ship and taking people away for a week. That's great, but when the company isn't doing well and when the 'market is down', people don't want such things; they are more interested in the basics, something to add to their motivation. The best companies to work for offer these basics, but they all have something unique- things that make employees feel that the company is thinking about them and values them; things that show employees that this is not just another company. The best companies to work for are not only places where employees trust the people they work for and enjoy the company of the people they are working with, but also places in which people can't wait to show up at work and make a difference; places that inspire them with a sense that the work is valuable and worth doing. They are companies whose former employees think back fondly on 'the good old days'.

The companies that have emerged the winners in The Best Companies To Work For In India are those whose strong market performance is reflected in sustained financial results and those committed to sharing the gains by sustained investments in the development of employees. They have effective people processes and policies that are tracked and measured, foster employee satisfaction and have a satisfied and supportive alumni that advocates the organisation and sets an example of an aspirational employer in the company's targeted labour market.

With these considerations in mind, we set off on our quest to identify the best companies to work for in India. The study focussed on seeking inputs regarding participating organisations on four areas and used proprietary Mercer tools to elicit information.

Employee Perception: Today, investments in employee-related plans and programmes must do more than satisfy employees. They must be able to provide a measurable return on investment. We used a survey tool based on extensive Mercer research in organisations across the world on the next generation of employee diagnostic instruments; this, besides seeking perception on parameters such as employee satisfaction and commitment, are also grounded in the direct factor impact on business success. This instrument elicited employee feedback on some of the critical aspects of organisational success such as communication, culture and alignment between organisational objectives, and individual aspirations. The instrument also sought feedback on two direct aspects reflective of people management practices in an organisation-hr processes and the hr function.

HR Processes and Policies: Mercer successfully completed a unique hr Transformation Survey across the Asian marketplace in 2003. The study showed that while traditionally concerned with the operational side, hr is increasingly expected to deliver results as a strategic partner by taking new steps to create value and drive change through hr transformation. The report stressed that the hr function of the future must be successful in four distinct roles: as a strategic business partner, change agent, employee champion and administrative expert. A comprehensive hr audit instrument was administered as part of the second phase of The Best Companies To Work For In India study to assess the degree of evolution of the hr processes in the participating companies.







Rule 1: Hygiene issues (such as a well-appointed food court at Infosys, left) and regular open-houses (an interactive session at HCL Comnet, right) matter


HR Metrics: The people management processes in organisations have been non-quantifiable, driven by perception and individual experiences to validate effectiveness and the success of its activities. Traditionally, there is no absolute measure of effectiveness; for instance, the effectiveness of a training plan is but a consolidation of the individual experiences. HR managers face comparison with number-driven functions such as sales and finance all the time. In the hr function, internal benchmarks are now prevalent as many hr managers have developed measures within individual companies. They have successfully provided quantifiable results in many defined circumstances. However, the success of an organisation is defined by its ability to grow beyond its existing boundaries and to keep in sync with boundaries defined by the market it operates in. It is, therefore, critical for companies to define quantified measures of success for its people management agenda. In this regard, an important aspect for consideration was the evaluation of the hr metrics and attrition levels of the participating companies. Indeed, attrition was considered relevant enough to be an independent parameter while arriving at the final list of companies.

Stakeholder Perception: The final aspect under consideration was based on the tenet that it is not enough for a company to manage its internal labour market, its employees. It is equally important for any organisation to be perceived by its environment as a great place to work. The perception of the stakeholders was elicited through a dipstick study focussed on seeking responses from five key constituents of the labour market of the company: new recruits, former employees, campuses, search firms and industry fora. This provided feedback from stakeholders and opinion makers who are not completely inculcated into the company culture and helped provide a unique perception of the company.

A critical aspect of the methodology was that strong performance on any one of the above quadrants was not sufficient for a company to succeed in The Best Companies To Work For In India. Each of the quadrants had clearly defined weightages and balanced performance across the quadrants was essential for any organisation to succeed.








Rule 2: Fun (Salsa class in progress at Hughes, left) and freedom to interact with the senior management (Rama Raju, Satyam's MD with his team, right) matter too


A Look At The Winners

A key highlight of the companies that have emerged in the top 10 of The Best Companies To Work For In India, 2004, is commitment towards investment in people development. All these companies have robust hr functions and policy-driven people management processes. hr management is no longer considered an art, the domain of a few experienced practitioners. It is slowly, but surely becoming a scientific activity supported by younger, leaner, hr functions with an increasing emphasis towards building specialist skills in managing sub-processes. The winners have dedicated professionals responsible for specialised activities like resourcing, compensation, training and development and the like. A key characteristic of the winner is that the sub-processes, although specialised, do not operate in isolation. In most of these companies the organisational objectives, both long and short term, drive the people management strategy and each process is integrated with the others. Some of the companies have actually brought in unique practices like using external review committees to vouch safe process integrity. The organisations represented in the list do not just pay "lip service" to concepts like transparency; they also ensure process awareness and treat their employees with the respect that professionals deserve. Some of our winners actually communicate compensation levels, to everyone in the company. Employees in these organisations do not need to depend on the company grapevine to know how much their contemporaries make, they just need to access their email. These companies also have detailed grievance resolution and consequence management mechanisms to deal with the discontent that this level of transparency is likely to result in. Another refreshing aspect that emerged is the degree of automation in the processes, a testament to companies using technology to reduce the administrative role of hr. There appears to be a clear movement towards people management becoming more consultative in organisations, and hr striking the right balance between its various roles.

The proof of the pudding lies, however, in the eating and thus, the feedback from the employee sample carried the highest weightage in our analysis. The companies represented in The Best Companies To Work For In India survived a tough filter on this aspect. A consistent theme across the winners is the degree of positivism expressed by employees on the company culture and the alignment between individual and organisational goals. Employees in these companies feel that they work in environments that foster teamwork, co-operation, respect for individuals and initiative. They also feel a strong sense of commitment and pride since their contribution is aligned to the organisation's purpose and rewarded and recognised by the employer. This feedback clearly indicates that the best companies to work for in India cater to the higher-level needs of employees.







Rule 3: At the end of the day, however, the quality of work (coders @ work at Patni, left) is as important as the quality of play (employees sweating it out at HDFC's gym, right)


One unique facet of this study was the perception of stakeholders on the company as a workplace. The constituents of this feedback group were either external to the company or were not completely inculcated into the company culture. Ratification of the company's success came from this medium. The companies that form a part of this list have managed to build employment brands that attract talent; they have been able to assimilate the talent into their way of working through seamless transition processes and have also managed to retain the goodwill of alumni. These companies manage and sustain their image with their stakeholders by regularly conveying focussed positive messages to a select audience.

In conclusion, it is important to appreciate the fact that no company is perfect. Some firms that offer the most progressive benefits only do it out of necessity because jobs are so demanding that they need to make their workplaces as attractive as possible or the industry that they operate in has demand-supply gaps in terms of talent. A 'one size fits all' approach cannot be followed; what might be supposedly right in one company could be utterly wrong in another setting. But what is common to The Best Companies To Work For In India is the fact that they have ensured that the repertoire of policies and practices actually impacts employees, that defined metrics track and measures success of processes, and that all stakeholder relations are appropriately managed to ensure a positive employer image.

Nitin Dheer is a senior consultant and Megha Sahni, a consultant at Mercer's New Delhi office and part of the Performance, Measurement and Rewards practice

HOW WE DID IT
The methodology behind The Best Companies To Work For In India.




The Mercer Team: Nitin Dheer and Megha Sahni


Four years ago, Business Today pioneered the concept of workplace surveys in India. Three editions of the survey down the line, we've tweaked the methodology some, changed partners, and pioneered what we believe is a process that will set the benchmark for all future qualitative surveys.
The spectre of conflict of interest looms large over all qualitative surveys that involve domain expertise and, consequently, a research partner with the requisite proficiency. Business Today partners with premier consulting firms for expertise-based surveys such as this one. However, the same consulting firms work with the companies participating in the survey, very often in the same areas.

That explains why The Best Companies To Work For In India, 2004, has three partners. Mercer Human Resource Consulting, an international hr consulting firm developed the methodology and arrived at the shortlist of companies. However, the entire front-end of the survey, and the data collection and aggregation was managed by international market research major TNS' Indian arm. The research firm presented summary reports for shortlisted companies on an anonymous basis to Mercer. The consulting firm presented a list of proposed rankings to Business Today that put names to numbers, and presented these to a jury that decided the final ranking.

The eligibility criteria ensured a threshold level of complexity (read: workforce strength) and maturity (read: years in existence). Proprietary Mercer tools were applied to elicit responses on the various facets of the study. The initial contact with participating companies was established through a Company Overview questionnaire. The hr Head of the company was contacted as the next stage and a comprehensive hr audit tool was administered through which the facets of the human resource management policies and practices were elicited.

An employee diagnostic tool "The Internal Employee Perception" questionnaire was administered in parallel, to a random sample of employees. The performance on this parameter was used as a filter to determine the shortlist of companies.

Checkpoints on the effectiveness of the hr processes were brought in through the analysis of the hr metrics at various stages of the survey in order to bring in tangibility into the processes efficiency claims. The last phase of the study involved seeking feedback from the stakeholders of the company through questionnaires administered to new joiners, alumni, campuses, search firms and industry fora. As a final step, an independent jury ratified the winners of The Best Companies To Work For In India, 2004.

Wednesday, November 24, 2004

Chennai Chapter Get-together on 27th November

Venue-Boat Club,Near Park Sheraton

Date-27th Nov,Sat,700 pm ONWARDS

Dress Code--Casual but T-SHIRTS shd be collared

Spouses welcome

Cost--Rs 250 per head for dinner--Includes aerated soft drinks

--Whiskey/Rum--Rs 40 per peg inclusive of Soda/Cola

--Beer-Rs 75 per bottle


Please pass on this info to all other Xlers .

RSVP--Suresh Reddy-9840082526
PNS--9884077222
Shilpa/Sridevi/Vishal of 3RDEYE -24331341/59


Looking forward to meeting you

PNS
On behalf of the Chennai Alumni Chapter

Oct25 - Nov 7, Business India. XL ranked 6th below MDI !!!

XLRI is 6th (MDI is 5th)

The number of student intake at XLRI is mentioned as 120 (?).

Besides..

.. The institute is also acutely (?) aware of the competition building up in its exclusive HR domain, in which it had held a near (??) monopoly since the 1950s. Apart from SCMHRD, Pune (???), MDI has also girded up to provide an effective (????) threat with its new PGHRM programme..

~~~
How much can these surveys be trusted ? What's your point of view ?

Article in BS - by Ronald Sequeira - 84 batch

Xler's Article in BS - Ronald C Sequeira (VP & Head HR),TataPower

The need for a good work-life balance
WHAT THEY DON`T TEACH YOU AT B-SCHOOL
Ronald C Sequeira / Mumbai November 23, 2004

If you ever want to see several happy people in one place, visit any leading B-school campus just after the placement season is over. What a sybaritic feeling. A business school stamp behind your name and a dream job ahead of you. The B-school grad has learnt all that is there to learn. Could it get any better?

Going back to my own first day on campus, we were told by the legendary Father McGrath, "XLRI is not a place but an experience and an opportunity." Now we had been through the experience and were on the threshold of seeking opportunities to apply all the teachings that a business degree offers.

As we waited with our packed bags in the foyer of the institute to say our last goodbyes, Father Maggie (as we referred to McGrath) in a soft tone said to me "Ronnie, I hope and pray that all of you get a very good first boss." At that time one did not fully comprehend the meaning of that message.

Look back at your own experience over the years. Identify the number of times a young career was made or shattered by the early mentor(s) who had strong influence over a new arrival to the workforce.

Research and surveys have established that the single biggest reason for loss of talent is "the boss": not the organisation, not the compensation nor any other seemingly obvious reason. Strangely, no course on campus teaches you this, nor did any course say that in time one would need to be the good first boss/mentor.

Having left campus and arriving into the corporate world, you quickly adapt to excelling within a structure in order to earn your rewards. Despite B-school teachings, "strategy" and "out-of-the-box thinking" take a backseat and the "activity trap" takes control of your life. After all, you have joined the rat race and you learn, like Pavlov's dogs, that rewards follow a pattern. Suddenly, 15 or more years go by and there is a paradigm shift and no more patterns.

You are now assessed on your ability to deal with ambiguity. Your free and frank views — once appreciated as "fresh thinking" from a young B-school grad — are now marked down as "lack of political astuteness". Could your B-school education have predicted this?

Yes, they did teach you about change management, but dealing with ambiguity requires you to deal with and adapt to discontinuous change. Who do you think survives the torment of poor mentoring and transcends the Pavlovian-dog experience?

It is not the brightest (and they are all bright) but the ones who have the highest emotional intelligence, better known as EQ. This is brought out lucidly in Robert Cooper and Ayman Sawaf's book, Executive EQ.

They refer to the emerging research that suggests "...a technically proficient executive or professional with a high EQ is someone who picks up — more readily, more deftly and more quickly than others — the budding conflicts that need resolution, the team and organisation's vulnerabilities that need addressing, the gaps to be leaped or filled, the hidden connections that spell opportunity, and the murky, mysterious interactions that seem most likely to prove golden — and profitable." B-schools do not measure for EQ nor do they lay much emphasis on this subject.

One item on all CEOs' agenda is organisational transformation. Yet, the same gentlemen, when on campus, paid little heed to subjects such as organisational design and development or management of people and change. Should not B-schools emphasise the importance of these subjects?

Recently a former colleague's husband remarked, "Work-life balance is inversely proportionate to the number of cars you see in the office car park late in the evenings." But in B-schools, there are no marks for guessing the value of a good work-life balance.

"Son, remember, when you grow up, never be a receiver of stress, always be the giver." No business school teaches you this either. Yet, see how easily you are able to relate to this comic strip of Hagar the Horrible in real life.

Once you leave B-school, the degree and the education you received become a thing of the past, but the network you build can stay with you for life. In time you will be able to leverage of this network in enhancing the quality of your professional and personal life.

Finally, B-schools fail to teach you the most important thing in life — the need to give back to society what you have received from it. Astonishingly, the business side to this philosophy is rarely understood on campus and almost never taught.

For instance, providing sustainable livelihoods leads to increasing the earning capacity of the poor. This in turn leads to increased spending power, which then translates into a greater demand for goods and services. Contributing to the improvement of society is a must. After all, successful businesses need successful societies to survive.

Ronald C Sequeira is vice president and head, human resources, Tata Power Company Limited. He graduated from the Xavier Labour Relations Institute, Jamshedpur, in 1984
-------------------
Thanks to Vikas Monga for bringing this article to attention

Tuesday, November 23, 2004

XLRI Students Organize Medical Camp in rural Jharkhand

Plan to make this a continuing affair
IMA and SEEDS throw their weight behind the students.

They might not be managers yet, but they are already aware of their social responsibility. The students of XLRI, in collaboration with SEEDS (Socio-Economic and Education Development Society), an NGO, set up a Free Medical Camp in a primary school in Korashol village, 65 Km from Jamshedpur on 21st November, 2004. The event coincided with the Pulse Polio Camp held at the same location today and hence there was a huge turnout of women and children.

“As the medical facilities are virtually non-existent in this place, we decided to help the villagers out by organizing this camp.” Said Shilpi Nanda, the brain behind this initiative. “I hope the authorities take prompt steps to improve the plight of the people.”

The villagers are mainly paddy field workers, contract labourers in mines, or employed in cottage industries such as bamboo basket making. The village, once a sprawling township, is seeing darker days since the closure of the many copper mines in the locality. There is only one government dispensary operating in the block as of now, woefully inadequate for the requirements of the block.

Shilpi Nanda, first-year student at XLRI identified the medical requirements for the block, took the initiative for the camp, and organised it with the help of her friends in XLRI. It materialised with the immense support of Dr Arun Kumar [President, IMA], Mr Manish Kumar [Central Excise Commissioner, Jharkhand], and Dr Shubhra Dwivedi [CEO, SEEDS]. The doctors who gave their voluntary services for the camp were Dr Raut [Mercy Hospital, Baridih], Dr U K Pati, and Dr C R Sardar of TSRDS. A number of eminent doctors also contributed by giving us medicines, which were distributed, at the camp free of cost [Dr R L Agarwal, Dr T G Mukherjee, Dr Unmesh Luktuke, Dr (Col) Raul, Dr Umesh Khan and Dr Raut].

“For further camps, we are looking forward for corporate sponsorships.” said Shilpi. As Jamshedpur is an industrial town, we are looking at the corporate sector to help us out to conduct more camps of this fashion. Also, we would be grateful if any of the local civic associations in Jamshedpur help us out.

“We are very thankful of the co-operation of the Doctors in this endeavor and hope that more of them would associate with us in the future.”

Interested organizations can contact Ms. Shilpi Nanda, on ph no: 9835369895, or mail her at shilpyn.06@astra.xlri.ac.in

Premji at the Alumni Homecoming

No sustainable business sans ethics: Premji

From The Financial Express, November 22, 2004

JAMSHEDPUR, NOV 21: Even though all the three eminent panelists spoke in favour of ethics in business it was the Wipro Corporation chairman, Azim Premji, who was most straightforward in saying that there could be no sustainable business without ethics.

Participating in the panel discussion arranged by the XLRI Alumni Association here on Saturday evening on whether “ethics in business is an oxymoron”, Mr Premji minced no words to convey that after what has been seen “particularly over the last three-four years, there is no doubt that there could be no sustainable business without ethics”.
He was alluding to collapses like that of Enron and the consultant group, Arthur Andersen.

“The simple truth is that business revolves around trust; we need to have the trust of our customers, trust of our shareholders, partners and suppliers,” said the Wipro chairman, who had earlier in the day inaugurated the B-School’s e-business centre.

His recipe for building a successful company was that “one had to build it on a bedrock of integrity”.

“No regulatory or legal body can ever impose trust and no Act by itself can ever guarantee its implementation; it can only be addressed by an effective leadership that pervades the entire organisation,” said Mr Premji.

Financial markets take notice of well-managed ethical companies and reward such companies with a higher value rating, he observed. Leaders must understand that their primary job is as much to build profits as to build a culture of values, “as with embedded values business becomes easier,” he said.

“Values help attract for a lifetime those people who want to do business with you, at the same time repelling those whose values may not be the same as yours,” said the Wipro chairman, adding that “values can create certain strong anchors that help weather the uncertainties of business”.

Earlier, speaking first, the young and charismatic Mr Suhel Seth, CEO, Equus Red Cell, underscored that “ethics is ultimately about being responsible not to society, not to stakeholders, not to shareholders, not to Sebi, not to RBI but being responsible and honest to one’s own conscience”.

“And that’s the question we need to answer,” he said, “it is time we are accountable to our own inner conscience, it is time we are accountable for the kind of life we wish to lead”.

Underlining the fact that the practice of ethics has been going on in business since ages, Mr Tapan Mitra, ex-chairman of Indal and Haldia Petrochemicals, said: “if the history of business says that business has survived and prospered by creating and maintaining trust then ethics in business in not an oxymoron, it is an essential ingredient”.

“Churning out rims as reports on corporate governance is not ethics, but living that spirit is ethics,” Mr Mitra added.

Read Full Story

XLRI to assist ICSE affiliated schools

From Business Standard, November 22, 2004

The Association of Schools for Indian School Certificate (ASISC) will tie up with the Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI) here from the next session for a total quality management (TQM) project in various ICSE-affiliated schools across India.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the ASISC executive committee at the Kerala Samajam Model School premises.

It is expected to be taken up again at the national conference of ASISC to be held at St Joseph’s Public School in Hyderabad from 24 November.

“Quality in education has become a deciding factor for the survival of any institution. A team from ASISC visited Turkey earlier this year where tie-ups with management institutions have yielded good results. ASISC has held preliminary talks with XLRI director Father Casimar Raj and will be holding detailed talks in this connection soon,” said Brother Thomas Thanical, ASISC secretary and principal of Cambridge School, Cuttack.

Initially, workshops will be conducted for different batches of academicians from ICSE-affiliated schools on a first-come-first-serve basis. The ICSE Council in New Delhi has authorised ASISC improve systems relating to sports and extra-curricular activities besides taking up development training of teachers and principals at affiliated schools.

The ASISC project would be aimed at principals and vice-principals. In case they were unable to attend workshops, they would nominate a senior teacher to attend the workshops, which would be held at regular intervals from the next session, according to Sudhir Sampathy, ASISC vice-president and principal of Siva Sivani School, Secunderabad.

The classes will be held either at Jamshedpur or in other institutions depending on the availability of XLRI faculty. The class size will be restricted to 30.

Read Full Story

Pathfinders Award - HR Professional- Anand Nayak 73 batchaman - XLRI

Anand Nayak, Executive VP - HR, ITC of 73 batch won one of the 3 Pathfinder Awards in the HR Professionals Category.

He joined ITC from Campus and has been working there for the last 31 years.

Pathfinders Award - Best CEO - Muthuraman - XLRI

Mr. Muthuraman an XLRI Alumnus, MD of Tata Steel has won many awards including the Tata Gold Medal in 2002. He has now added another feather to his cap.

The National HRD Network has awarded him the Pathfinders Award 2004 in the CEO category.

Monday, November 22, 2004

XL Alumni Association on LinkedIn

We now have our own group on LinkedIn. Its called the XLRI ALumni Association group. Any Xler can sign up bu pointing thier browser to https://www.linkedin.com/e/gis/692/43EF8A10E492/

Of course, you will have to be approved by one of the moderators same as any yahoo group.

But do sign up and tell other Xlers about it.

Hyderabad meet up 21st Nov

We had a lovely meet up earlier this evening at Ten Downing Street.

We had 14 Xlers turning up with an almost equal split between the 70's and the 2k+ batches. The amazing part was that everyone blended so well together, that by the end of the evening, there was no noticable age difference between any of us.

The guys from the 70's batches regaled us with a couple fo stories of the good old days and the fresh grads (I graduated in 99, so u guys r fresh grads.... Don’t mind me )coerced the rest of us into boogeying away to the music. Some of the techno stuff wasn’t really foot tapping material but, because we were on the floor we kind of shook our bodies.

Thank you, to Hari, CP, David, Joseph, Nandkumar, and Ramesh for your enthusiasm and warmth in welcoming the juniors. Thanks to Mukul, PD, Rohit, Sabya, Sohini and Saurav for your infectious energy. I also must commend you on the respect you gave the seniors. Thanks David, for giving us a reason to get together. Everyone definitely enjoyed themselves. And we partied till 11:30, after which we older folks (me included) decided it was time to put tata/bye-bye and split.

Personally, I was so happy to see an entire bunch of enthu juniors, ready to put daaru and dance. The seniors put even more enthu and Im sure each one of us will remember this evening for a long time or at least till the next gathering. We totally adhered to the agenda of having fun, so guess we should keep that as the agenda for the next one too with a promise by each to rope in at least 2 more xlers into attending. Lets give Bangalore alumni junta, a run for their top slot. Going by todays enthu levels, Im quite certain that we can.

Will give everyone, enough notice before the next Alumni gathering. Tentatively in February. Dec and Jan being busy months for most people.

So lets get rocking !!!!

In the meanwhile do send me contact details (esp email) of xl junta in Hyderabad so I can add them to yahoogroups. It’s a very low volume group. 1 or 2 mails a month. So sign up your Hyderabad based batchmates / xl colleagues in Hyd.

Below is a list of people who attended with contact details.

S. Harinarayana
BMD 74
CEO
Fortuna Consultants
Recruitment Consultancy Exclusively for Hr Professionals

C P Suresh
BMD 75
Sr. General Manager (Marketing & Exports)
AGI Glaspac
SBU of Hindustan Sanitaryware & Industries Pvt Ltd

David Dcosta
BMD 76
CEO
Pure Water House

Joseph Fernandes
BMD 76

S Nandakumar
BMD 76
President
Vnvision
Holistic Management Consulting

Y Ramesh Reddy
BMD 92
VP - Operations CellExchange

Karishma Pais
PMIR 99
Consultant & Trainer

N R Jayanarayanan
BMD 2002
Asst Manager - HR Shared Services
GE Capital

Mukul Anand
BMD 2003

Prashant Dayal
BMD 2003
ASM - Coastal AP
Reckitt Beckinser

Rohit Munjal
PMIR 2003
Infosys

Sabyasachi Ray
PMIR 2003
MT - HR
Coromandel Fertilisers
Murugappa Group

Sohini Sinha
PMIR 2003
Accenture

Saurav Majumdar
BMD 2004

Sunday, November 21, 2004

Center for e-Business@XLRI

Center for -Business
http://www.xlri.ac.in/cfeb/
was inaugurated at XLRI on Nov 20th, 2004
by Mr Azim Premji

==========================
What is this "Center for e-Business" ?
The main objectives of the center are to:

1. Provide leading edge research and practical solution to issues related to the area of e-Business;
2. Establish innovative multidisciplinary and international curriculum and programs to train students, industrial and government leaders in the area of e-Business;
3. Help clients to leverage the wealth of new business opportunities; and serve as a facilitator for virtual companies.
4. Increase awareness among SMEs regarding the viability of e-Business.
5. Provide students with a functional experience of the latest technology for integrating it into business operations.

For more information please visit
http://www.xlri.ac.in/cfeb/

Hyderabad chapter meeting 21st November 2004

Time : 8:00 PM
Place : 10 Downing Street
Address : Lifestyle building, behind lifestyle
Dress: Smart Casual, shorts & slippers may not be allowed in
Attitude : XL
Music : Retro
Damages : Each Man/Woman for himself/herself
Family : Spouses welcome but its not really an apt location for small children on a sunday night.
Bring : Yourself & an appetite.
Confirmed people : David Dcosta 76, Anindya Kumar2003, S Nandakumar, Prashant (PD) 2003, Ramesh Reddy 92, Kim 99

Come on guys, Im sure v hyderabadis can get out of the laid back attitude and put fight to be there.

Based on mood post meet up, we may drive to old city for Biryani or any other place depending on consensus.

Friday, November 19, 2004

Meet up in Hyderabad ? 21st Nov ?

Hi everyone,

Trust you are all back safe and sound after enjoying a wonderful
dasherra, diwali and id long weekends.

Anyone interested in meeting up, ad hoc ? David from 76 batch is going
to be in town this weekend. And he's been prodding me to organise a
get-together so he can meet up with Hyd Alumni. David has been an
essential and integral part of the Banglaore Alumni committee for more
than a decade.

Sunday, 21st November seems most suitable to his program. Considering
meeting at Ten Downing Street in the Life Style Building unless someone
has a better idea, where we can get food and drinks at better rates.

This get together is quite spur of the moment so each one will have to
settle their own bill. No summer trainees around to offload the
financial management to

Do reply with suggestions and whether you would like to join up by
Friday evening, so I can get a table set aside for us or something like
that. Basic preparation types.

Luv
Kim
For XL News, visit http://kimelody.blogspot.com
For Jobs for MBA's visit http://mbajobsindia.blogspot.com


Wednesday, November 17, 2004

XL celeb watch - Raja on CNBC

Did anyone manage to see the panel discussion on CNBC with XLer S. Varadarajan (A.k.a. Raja!) Head of Talent Engagement & Development Wipro Spectramind on 14th Nov at 6.30 pm ?

Thanks GG for bringing this to attention (albeit a little late )

XLer winner of short story competition

Anuradha Chakrabarti (Kumar)(IR94) (or Anu Kumar) has been named as one of the winners in a global short story competition. Read the news item at http://www.cba.org.uk/awards/short_story.html

Also her first novel is about to be published and will be out middle of next year. Some of you may not be aware that she also came out with a collection of short stories "The making of a raja".
Great show Anu.

The URL of the CBA Short Story Competition Award Announcement is:
http://www.cba.org.uk/awards/short_story.html

(with Anu's Photograph)

The name of Anu's book is "In Search of a Raja".

The Commonwealth Short Story Competition is sponsored by the Commonwealth Foundation and administered by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association. The 26 winning stories have been recorded on CD and are available for sale.

For more information on the Short Story Competition or to receive a copy of the CD please send your request with the subject line 'Short Story Competition' or 'Short Story Competition CD'. This can be emailed to cba@cba.org.uk or sent by fax to +44 (0) 20 7583 5549

Homecoming 2004 20th/21st November 2004

Dear Friends,

We have often heard that the Alumni Association needs to generate more events where every one should participate. One such event is coming up shortly where participation from each one of you is a must. The event we are planning is an annual one called Homecoming. This year, it will be rechristened Homecoming 2004 and will be open to Alumni all across the country.

Homecoming 2004 has been planned on November 20th and 2lst at Jamshedpur. The format of the event is as follows:

Saturday, 20th November, 2004
11.30 AM Discussions amongst the Alumni on
> Connecting up
>What Alumni can do for the institute
> What Alumni can do for the present students
1.15 PM Lunch with the Faculty at MDP
3.00 PM Interaction with students on what they do not teach you at XLRI
6.00 PM Panel Discussion on ‘Ethics in Business is an Oxymoron — panelists include:
Mr Azim Premji, Chairman, Wipro
Mr Suhel Seth, CEO, Equus Red cell
Mr Tapan Mitra, Ex-Chairman, Indal and Haldia Petrochemicals

Sunday 21st November, 2004
6.00 AM Golf Tournament at Beldih Club/Golmuri Club
12.30 PM Prize Distribution & Beer — Beldih Club

I am sure you will find this a good opportunity to connect up with the institute and rest of the alumni once again. I would request you to please make sure that you attend and make this event a successful one.

With warm regards & best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
Rana Sinha
President


Tuesday, November 16, 2004

Can anyone help this Xler from currrent batch ?

From: Surabhi Loshali [mailto:p03059@astra.xlri.ac.in]
Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2004 4:48 PM
To: XLRI International Activities
Subject: XLRI Research Group on Leadership:XLRI International Activities

Dated: Nov1 , 2004

Dear Sir/Madam,

Subject: Sponsorship Proposal for IYLC,2005

Greetings from XLRI!

It is a pleasure to inform you that I, a final year MBA student of XLRI, have been the only student from India to have been selected for the 8th International Youth Leadership Conference in Prague, January 3rd to the 8th, 2005 organized by Civic Concepts International (CCI).

The objective of the conference is to enhance leadership traits amongst the youth and develop cross-cultural awareness by fostering international relations and global citizenry for the world's future leaders thereby acknowledging a peace-filled future. The 5-day conference would involve 117 management students representing different countries across the world. Various multinational firms are sponsoring student representatives for this mega event that is taking place after 2002 (HP, PwC, Czech Airlines and others) (http://www.czechleadership.com/2005.php)

My institute has been encouraging enough to sponsoring a part of my trip. Various corporate houses and private firms are being requested for scholarships and sponsorships for the same. In lieu of the financial help, the sponsoring organization would benefit in the following ways:

A survey on “Transformational Leadership” in your organization, conducted by the XLRI Research Group of which the participant is a member.

A formal presentation to The Board of Directors of the organization, on the Key Findings from the Conference.

At the IYLC conference, your business gets their name recognized in a formal announcement at the opening and closing ceremonies.

Your organization name and/or company logo will appear on the official conference textbook and official conference itinerary, as well as on the conference web site.

Your organization would be an inherent part of any press release (national and international) or an article contributed by the participant and those published after the conference.

Effective mode for creating Presence amongst the Business School community.

Information to be published by different academic bodies of Government of India would carry your company name as official sponsor to the Initiative to encourage cross-cultural sensitivity, youth leadership and global citizenship in India.

The financial expense heads for the conference visit is as follows:

Conference Attendance + Accommodation + Official Visits
Rs 25, 000/-**
Travel (Round Trip tickets)
Rs 45, 000/-
Daily Allowance + Other Heads
Rs 25,000/-
Total Amount for Main Sponsorship
Rs 95,000/-

** The student has been awarded 50% as scholarship (Original Amount was 750 Euros) from the conference on the basis of an essay competition on “Leadership in Modern Enterprises”

Your organization could be a main sponsor or a co-sponsor.

The above amount for a student is difficult to be borne, however for an esteemed organization like yours, the money is being put to good use--you are investing in the future leaders of the modern world.

Kindly let me know about your interest in the same, so that we could start the communication with you in greater detail. The Director, XLRI would be glad to send a letter of recommendation, in case you find the proposal to your interest.


Looking forward to your encouraging response.

With best regards,
Surabhi Loshali
Mobile Contact: 09835371868
Email: sloshali@yahoo.com, p03059@astra.xlri.ac.in

Wednesday, November 10, 2004

XLRI wins best overall institute trophy at IIM Bangalore

From: "Chandrakanth Pai"

Date: Sun, 7 Nov 2004 23:48:11 +0530
Subject: XLRI Wins Best Overall Institute Trophy at IIMB

Dear Sir,It gives me great pleasure to inform you that XLRI hasbeen awarded the best overall institute award at IIM Bangalore intheir annual management fest "Vista 2004" held over this weekend.
Our students have performed exceedingly well in thevarious competitions during Vista and have won this overall trophy.
Thanks,
Sincerely,
Chandrakanth Pai.

Monday, November 08, 2004

XLRI Wins Best Overall Institute Trophy at IIMB

From: Chandrakanth Pai
Sent: 07 November 2004 23:48

...It gives me great pleasure to inform you that XLRI has been awarded the best overall institute award at IIM Bangalore in their annual management fest "Vista 2004" held over this weekend.

Our students have performed exceedingly well in the various competitions during Vista and have won this overall trophy.

Thanks,
Sincerely,
Chandrakanth Pai (G-Sec)

Sunday, November 07, 2004

Directors Visit to Delhi on 9th Nov 2004

From: Pramod Mehra

November 2,2004

Dear Fellow Alumni

The new Director Fr Casimir Raj & the National President-Alumni
Association Mr.Bushen Raina along with faculty will be visiting Delhi on
November 9, 2004 and have expressed a desire to meet the Delhi based
alumni.

Accordingly a get-together has been organized as per details below:

Date: Tuesday November 9, 2004

Venue: International Management Institute ( I.M.I)-10, Qutab
Institutional Area, New Delhi 110016 (In close proximity to E&Y, IIFT,
Sitaram Bhartia Hospital)

Program: 6.30-7.00 pm Fellowship over High Tea
7.00-8.00 pm Address by Director, XLRI
Address by National President
Interaction with Alumni

All Alumni are cordially invited.
A confirmation from those who plan to attend the get-together may kindly
be conveyed by email or phone to the undersigned.
Pramod Mehra [mailto:pc_mehra@yahoo.com]

Looking forward to seeing you.
Yours Cordially,
P.C.MEHRA
BMD 1971
Chapter coordinator
Tele: 26961437-38-39 Extn: 3215
Mob: 98104-98689

XL Diro and others in Bangalore today evening!

XL Diro @ XLBang Happy Hours! Friday - Nov 5th
Hi folks, long time no schmooze & booze!

We are happy to have with us for this month's Happy Hours:
* Fr N. Casimirraj, S. J., Director of XLRI
* Bushen Raina the National President, XLRI Alumni Association
* Rana Sinha, President of the Jamshedpur Alumni Chapter.

We're also having some adult games like Dumb Charades for entertainment.

Venue: KGA Poolside or Party Hall if it rains
When: 7:30pm, Friday (Nov 3)
Host: George Ollapally
**Free drinks served till 7:30pm.**

Bring your batchmates and see you there!

Yours,
Kuru
98451-41464

Get the XL Bangalore Alumni news at http://xlbang.blogspot.com

XLer in Intel wins coveted award !

From : GG
Fyi, Seema is from the batch of PM&IR 94
Seema P Nair, recently got a very coveted Department Recognition Award
for her work as the India Diversity Champion

XLRI proposes EPFO revamp

From: Allen Ebenezer Eric [mailto:b03004@astra.xlri.ac.in]

XLRI proposes EPFO revamp
From Business Line, National Edition, November 6, 2004

XLRI Jamshedpur, mandated by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) to suggest reform measures, has proposed sweeping changes in the organisation's structure.

The B-School, which has already sent in its report to the PF authority, has divided its recommendations into two sets, one titled Organisational Restructuring and the other, Cadre Review.

The first, said Dr E.M. Rao, who has coordinated the project on behalf of XLRI, relates to both staff functions (areas such as human resources and legal) and core functions (such as subscriptions).

The report refers to the need to address a number of issues pertaining to the organisation's spread through multi-level offices. In particular it has proposed the creation of offices that are empowered in a far more effective manner. While there should be a certain uniformity of workload, the office that stands at the lowest rung of the structure should also be the one closest to the customer, suggests the report.The second part of the report — Cadre Review — advocates the introduction of variable pay to add value to the existing fixed-pay system to provide better customer satisfaction.

The report's second half will be significant in view of the PF organisation's wide coverage, especially because it will require more skills and knowledge (on the part of its staffers) in order to maintain its standards in future. An improved system of recruitment monitoring will also be important.

The suggestions placed by XLRI are crucial to the growing stature of the organisation in India, particularly because of the Government's willingness to reform it and bring in a more transparent mechanism, Dr Rao, Professor - Personnel Management & Industrial Relations, told Business Line.

XLRI, which started working on the project earlier this year, has sought to proceed with it on the basis of inputs furnished by as many as 2,000 respondents. The mandate, in fact, follows a similar project spearheaded earlier by an outfit affiliated to Siemens, which worked around the central theme named `re-inventing EPF India'.

For the full story visit http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2004/11/06/stories/2004110601590700.htm

Saturday, November 06, 2004

report on XL rock night at Ensemble 2004

From: Gautam Ghosh

http://xlcampus.blogspot.com/2004/11/amperage-sound-of-ensemble-2004-jis
hnu.html

XLRI was treated to some good old fashioned rock and roll by the grand
rock n roll daddies (and one mama) of the east - Skinny Alley.
'Amperage' the show that marked the close of XL's inter-business school
festival 'Ensemble 2004'. The JLT doesn't have a roof, or it would have
been brought down by the sheer brilliance of the veteran musicians on
stage, who belied their 40+ ages.

With a setlist as varied as mixed pickle, there was something for
everyone, from Pat Mecheny to Audioslave, from Steely Dan to RHCP, from
The Doors to ... well, let's stop there. Amyt Datta on guitar was in
blazing form with a fluid tone that draped over all present like warm
honey at times and sharp blades at others. Jeff Rikh behind the skins
was in a thunderous rage as he destroyed the Tama kit while getting out
a rock solid rhythm section that bassist Gyan clung on to and never let
go. They mixed it up nicely with their originals, notably 'Swunk' that
struck a such a chord with the ladies in the crowd that they played it a
second time, the odd-time signatures on the jazz-rock tune ending with
an explosion of coordinated pyrotechnics.

XLers got into the act as well with Skinny Alley inviting members of
BodhiSapling on stage for a jam. A total of 7 musicians on stage played
the BodhiSapling original dedicated to the mess - 'Too Many Potatoes'
with guitarists Bharat and Amyt trading groovy blues solos as Narain
took the crowd through the chorus, a song that appeals to everyone who
lines up at the mess foyer at lunch! Special mention must be made of
Poornima on drums - she was like a rock, it isn't often you see a
budding lady HR manager playing drums on a rock band, do you? But that's
what XL is about, in the end...

Amchi Mumbai chapter update

To subscribe to the Mumbai chapter, drop a mail to
xl_amchimumbai-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

From: "Promita Ray"
Subject: XL Alumni Mumbai - Lights! Action?

For meeting Bhushan Raina, current President XL Alumni Assoc, just 2 of
us turned up eventually; albeit the notice was short, and it was a
working day.

1.As a practical first step, it would be very helpful if each of us
could add at least 3 xlers we know, to join the amchimumbai
group.particularly need help of richard d'souza, akshay soni, aseem
gandhi, et al.

madhukar(shukla) would you be able to send us a list of all mumbai
alumni, so with their accord one could add their names in the database?

2. Would you be interested in
a) helping to organise a get-together this "winter" in mumbai,
preferably before christmas?
b) joining in, if someone organises it all

Would request some youngers xlers to take on the coordination role - i
shall certainly chip in with my bit of effort.

Action?
Promita 9820324740


From: Subir Nag

Well, I start with my apologies to Promita for not having posted a mail
after our evening with Bushen and his colleagues. Bushen seems to be
quite enthu in rejuvenating an otherwise lacklustre alumni association.
To start with, he is aranging an event in Jamshedpur, around 20th
November, lasting 3 days. I guess Akhtar had posted the details of the
same in an earlier mail. He queried if anyone is interested to join the
fun.

He also mentioned that Mumbai, perhaps is the least active of the all
the chapters. The reasons, we all concluded, are many, like, increased
work pressure, long distances to travel, status difference of south
mumbai and the rest ("the twain shall never meet" was the opinion of
Akshay in one of his mails; albeit in jest, I guess) etc.

however, Promita is very rightly focused on doing something to inject
life in the Mumbai chapter, and has suggested two measures in her mail.
I notice that out of 196 members, only 36 appear in the database. If we
know the details of others, can we put their entry to increase the
count?

The picnic is a great idea. I am willing to chip in with my bit, but
will require 3-4 others to share the load. Let me know if anyone's game.

Cheers

- subir


Get together planned for Alumni in Chennai on 27th Nov

A XL Gettogether is planned on 27th Nov a Sat at 630 PM.Venue will be the BOAT CLUB near the Park Sheraton.

The approx cost will be Rs 200-250 per head including Liquor.If we get sponsors there cd be some subsidies.

Please pass this message to all XLERS so that we have a decent number attending.I also request you to call anyone of the follg nos to confirm participation

If we have a majority voting for the spouses also to join we cd do so.It purely depends on the responses recieved.

WE NEED VOLUNTEERS FROM THE JUNIOR BATCHES TO HELP US OUT IN MAKING THIS A SUCCESS

Please contact

PNS-9884077222
SURESH REDDY-9840082526
Shilpa/Sridevi/Vishal of 3rdeye Consultants on 24331341/59

Thanks and hoping to have a good participation

P N S
On behalf of the Chennai Chapter
pns [pns@vsnl.net]

report on XL rock night at Ensemble 2004

http://xlcampus.blogspot.com/2004/11/amperage-sound-of-ensemble-2004-jishnu.html

rom: Gautam Ghosh

http://xlcampus.blogspot.com/2004/11/amperage-sound-of-ensemble-2004-jishnu.html

XLRI was treated to some good old fashioned rock and roll by the grand rock n roll daddies (and one mama) of the east - Skinny Alley. 'Amperage' the show that marked the close of XL's inter-business school festival 'Ensemble 2004'. The JLT doesn't have a roof, or it would have been brought down by the sheer brilliance of the veteran musicians on stage, who belied their 40+ ages.

With a setlist as varied as mixed pickle, there was something for everyone, from Pat Mecheny to Audioslave, from Steely Dan to RHCP, from The Doors to ... well, let's stop there. Amyt Datta on guitar was in blazing form with a fluid tone that draped over all present like warm honey at times and sharp blades at others. Jeff Rikh behind the skins was in a thunderous rage as he destroyed the Tama kit while getting out a rock solid rhythm section that bassist Gyan clung on to and never let go. They mixed it up nicely with their originals, notably 'Swunk' that struck a such a chord with the ladies in the crowd that they played it a second time, the odd-time signatures on the jazz-rock tune ending with an explosion of coordinated pyrotechnics.

XLers got into the act as well with Skinny Alley inviting members of BodhiSapling on stage for a jam. A total of 7 musicians on stage played the BodhiSapling original dedicated to the mess - 'Too Many Potatoes' with guitarists Bharat and Amyt trading groovy blues solos as Narain took the crowd through the chorus, a song that appeals to everyone who lines up at the mess foyer at lunch! Special mention must be made of Poornima on drums - she was like a rock, it isn't often you see a budding lady HR manager playing drums on a rock band, do you? But that's what XL is about, in the end...

Amchi Mumbai chapter update

To subscribe to the Mumbai chapter, drop a mail to xl_amchimumbai-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

From: "Promita Ray"
Subject: XL Alumni Mumbai - Lights! Action?

For meeting Bhushan Raina, current President XL Alumni Assoc, just 2 of us turned up eventually; albeit the notice was short, and it was a working day.

1.As a practical first step, it would be very helpful if each of us could add at least 3 xlers we know, to join the amchimumbai group.particularly need help of richard d'souza, akshay soni, aseem gandhi, et al.

madhukar(shukla) would you be able to send us a list of all mumbai alumni, so with their accord one could add their names in the database?

2. Would you be interested in
a) helping to organise a get-together this "winter" in mumbai, preferably before christmas?
b) joining in, if someone organises it all

Would request some youngers xlers to take on the coordination role - i shall certainly chip in with my bit of effort.

Action?
Promita 9820324740


From: Subir Nag

Well, I start with my apologies to Promita for not having posted a mail after our evening with Bushen and his colleagues. Bushen seems to be quite enthu in rejuvenating an otherwise lacklustre alumni association. To start with, he is aranging an event in Jamshedpur, around 20th November, lasting 3 days. I guess Akhtar had posted the details of the same in an earlier mail. He queried if anyone is interested to join the fun.

He also mentioned that Mumbai, perhaps is the least active of the all the chapters. The reasons, we all concluded, are many, like, increased work pressure, long distances to travel, status difference of south mumbai and the rest ("the twain shall never meet" was the opinion of Akshay in one of his mails; albeit in jest, I guess) etc.

however, Promita is very rightly focused on doing something to inject life in the Mumbai chapter, and has suggested two measures in her mail. I notice that out of 196 members, only 36 appear in the database. If we know the details of others, can we put their entry to increase the count?

The picnic is a great idea. I am willing to chip in with my bit, but will require 3-4 others to share the load. Let me know if anyone's game.

Cheers

- subir

Friday, November 05, 2004

XL Diro and others in Bangalore today evening!

XL Diro @ XLBang Happy Hours! Friday - Nov 5th
Hi folks, long time no schmooze & booze!

We are happy to have with us for this month's Happy Hours:
* Fr N. Casimirraj, S. J., Director of XLRI
* Bushen Raina the National President, XLRI Alumni Association
* Rana Sinha, President of the Jamshedpur Alumni Chapter.

We're also having some adult games like Dumb Charades for entertainment.

Venue: KGA Poolside or Party Hall if it rains
When: 7:30pm, Friday (Nov 3)
Host: George Ollapally
**Free drinks served till 7:30pm.**

Bring your batchmates and see you there!

Yours,
Kuru
98451-41464

Get the XL Bangalore Alumni news at http://xlbang.blogspot.com

Monday, November 01, 2004

XLer in Intel wins coveted award !

From : GG
Fyi, Seema is from the batch of PM&IR 94
Seema P Nair, recently got a very coveted Department Recognition Award for her work as the India Diversity Champion

Sunday, October 31, 2004

"Ensemble" in Business Line

Message
From: Allen Ebenezer Eric 
 
Meanwhile, hope you have seen the Business Line Media Partnership for Ensemble - we got two ads of a large size on the prominent page 3 for Ensemble in the National Edition, apart from a link on their site (www.blonnet.com). This was in addition to coverage.
 
Now, for NITS, Business Standard is the Media Partner. The times have never been so good. Seeing the Business Line ad, the Standard guys got in touch with us, offering a nice deal for NITS... :-) Apparently, their VP is also coming down to XL to meet the batch...  
 

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