Saturday 7 July 2012

Orientation Program 2012 : Four days of non stop all round lectures and activities


Indian institute of Management Raipur organized a four day induction program for third batch of Post Graduate Program in Management (PGP) and first batch of Fellow Program in Management (FPM) from June 29th, 2012 to July 2nd, 2012.
The students started the days with Yoga session by Dr Sidhi Sharma which helped them maintain their energies to develop mental thoughts throughout the day. The program comprised of activities for the intellectual and physical development of the students. The aim was to nurture the corporate athletes of tomorrow. Shree Sunil Kumar, Chief Secretary, Government of Chhattisgarh inaugurated the four day induction program. The Chief Secretary addressed the students to start the six guest lectures series on first and last day of the program. The lectures were aimed at ascension of thought process of incoming batch.
Apart from chief guest Shree Sunil Kumar, the inauguration was graced by the presence of Mr. Sandeep Dhar, CEO, Tesco HSC and Mr. Pankaj Gautham, CEO, Bhilai Steel plant.
The guests were welcomed by the Chairman PGP, Prof Ajit Prasad, who highlighted the objectives of orientation program, a four day program aimed at aligning students with industry expectations and making them capable leaders and ambassadors of the state of Chhattisgarh. The idea behind the orientation is to promote holistic development of the students through a mix of activities like Yoga, Outbound Training and Interaction with Spiritual leaders.

Image: Shree Sunil Kumar, Chief Secretary, Government of Chhattisgarh, Interacting with students during inauguration
Mr. Dhar, in his inspiring speech, elaborated on the role of managers and motivated the students to be the intellectual resources for the state. He advised the management students to think about the big picture and focus on the business proposition to develop as entrepreneurs. Mr. Pankaj Gautam in his speech enforced the need of adaptability in the field of management. He stressed that the managers should have the ability to unlearn and relearn administrative techniques depending on the market requirement.
Shree Sunil kumar emphasized that the IIM Raipur should not be a replica of other premier B Schools, but instead should develop an unique culture of its own. He said that efficient manager is one who is capable of voicing the underprivileged sectors of the society. He wished the faculties to nurture a new generation of managers with high intellectual skills and high ethical standards.
Mr. Arvind Jain, the Founder and Chairman of BEC, in a session on Opportunities and Challenges in Chhattisgarh, highlighted the journey thus far and urged students to look at opportunities present in cities like Raipur, Bhilai etc. He wished them a good future and hoped that they live up to the high expectations of the society and the industry.
The first day programme concluded with a Welcome Dinner hosted by Prof B S Sahay , Director, IIM Raipur.
The Second day of the orientation ceremony saw a mix of activities aimed at developing the personality of the students and also promoting team building, participation etc. The institute had roped in India’s leading outbound training consultancy, Praxis EXL, for the same. The day long activity saw students undergoing psychometric tests for assessment of their personality as well as lessons on spirituality from Swami Satyarupanandji from Ramakrishna Mission, Raipur.
The students were first introduced to basics of personality and behavior to get an overall idea of their own personality and then were acquainted with the various facets of their personality traits. The objective the exercise is to provide a framework to analyze one’s own personality and help in better decision making as well as identifying careers suited to the same. The trainers from Praxis EL have trained the leading corporate across the country and apart from that they have specific programs for MBA students who are budding managers.
The students then had a series of outdoor trainings aimed at developing leadership skills, teambuilding, coordination, communication etc. The students had a series of fun filled activities which lasted for over 3 hours. The incoming batch took the training hands on and displayed enthusiasm and endurance for the outbound training. The trainers of the sessions were Mr. Shubhang Raturi and Mr. Kumar Abhishek who have a rich experience in training students and corporate.

Later in the evening the students had the opportunity to attend to the discourse by Swami Satyarupanandji from Ramakrishna Mission. The session was a break from the business world and Swamiji encouraged students to explore within themselves. His wisdom and profound understanding of the human condition especially in the context of present generation resonated with the audience. The other areas Swamiji touched upon were self management and appraisal along with ethics and principles.

The third day of the orientation ceremony of had activities aimed at providing a real time experience of management challenges related to operations and strategy. The day long activity saw students undergoing simulation games well as lessons on entrepreneurship from Mr. Saurabh Chaubey, an entrepreneur from the first batch of IIM Raipur. The day ended with social and spiritual insights from Swami Vyom Pada Das ji from ISKCON, Bhilai.
Praxis Training ltd continued from where they had left a day before and created an excellent simulation environment. The simulation game was carried out in order to encourage the students to work together as a team, plan ahead and find a way to achieve the goal despite the many obstacles that were presented. The game was in the form of a treasure hunt wherein all the students were divided into teams with each team representing one ship of an armada. Each ship had to reach a treasure island by selecting one of three possible routes and return from there with maximum amount of gold. The resources were limited and students had to use them in most optimal way to reach the destination.
 The entrepreneurship thought was instilled into the minds of students elegantly by Saurabh when he compared life of an entrepreneur with the early days at IIM Raipur as the pioneering batch created systems and procedures in the institute. 
In the last session of the day, Swami Vyom Pada Das ji informed about the Akshaya Patra program which has become a milestone in itself by feeding 1.2 million children every day. Swamiji urged students to give meaning to their lives by doing something that may be good for the masses. He told that students can bring about considerable changes in the society by using their excellence and abilities. He learnt much more about life at Akshaya Patra than what he learned at Motorola, a corporate organization where he worked for quite a time. 


The fourth day of the program was graced by the presence of renowned speakers like Mr. Dilip Cherian, CEO Perfect Relations, Mr. John Hunter-Murray, chief Executive Coach, Trainer and Founder, TAM NLP Academy and Mr. Rajeev Mehrotra, Managing Director, RITES.
 Mr. Cherian, India’s Image Guru down poured his charisma and charm in IIM Raipur campus with his elegant style of articulation. A communications consultant by profession, Dilip Cherian is the former editor of Business India magazine. Perfect Relations is the stalwart company to introduce the conception of image management in India. It also offers consultancy in diversified areas such as Crisis Management, Digital PR, CSR, Strategy & Planning etc. He is member of the Board of Governors in Advertising Standard Council of India and on the Governing Council of the National Institute of Design. He is also member of the Central Board of Film Certification.
Mr. Cherian by dint of his interactive session with the students discussed about the importance of communication skills. He conferred about the qualities required for a practicing manager. It was a great learning experience for all the future aspiring managers to make out how to work on weak points in the coming days. He also shared illustrious inputs about the exciting field of marketing and about his journey.
IIM Raipur even saw dignitaries from abroad to mark this occasion. John Hunter Murray, an MA (USA) in Adult Education was the honorable speaker who came from Australia to share his experiences with the students of IIM Raipur. He is trainer of international repute working in Australia and he has served prestigious clients like Microsoft and IBM. He spoke on Leadership qualities. A leader should learn from his mistakes and not repeat them, create win-win situation for all, dream big and should have right attitude. His real life examples inspired students to achieve a lot in life. 
Mr. Rajeev Mehrotra, Managing Director, RITES stressed on productive hard work, smart work and its efficient execution. He encouraged all the students to take up challenges without fear and enlightened with a mantra that there are no shortcuts for success. He inspired students to set high goals and then travel on the path that leads to their goal. He emphasized on the importance of integrity of thought along with integrity of actions. He inspired young managers to take up CSR projects in the future to add greater value to the existing value system.

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