XLRI to host the Management Festival -"Ensemble 2009" (Nov 13-15)

http://www.xlri-ensemble.com/


New Delhi, 2009: XLRI School of Business and Human Resources is hosting its management festival Ensemble 2009, from November 13th to November 15th 2009. This 3 day long festival entails exciting events and activities.

Ensemble 2009, now ISO 9001 certified, is poised to become even bigger. "In keeping with the sweeping change in the world of management, where the need for accountable & ethical managers is being felt more than the need for over-ambitious & aggressive managers, the theme for Ensemble 2009 is 'Integrity & Initiative'. The theme also resonates with the principles and ideals of XLRI as it celebrate its 60th anniversary this year", said Meesam, the General Secretary of the Students Council.

In keeping with XLRI's image as a b-school run by students, the events of Ensemble 2009 have all been organized by the numerous committees on campus. The games vary across all business verticals, and enthusiasts of Finance, Marketing, Operations, Information Systems and Human Resources will find something of interest at Ensemble 2009. Apart from the management events, there will be events for adventure-lovers, budding entrepreneurs quizzing enthusiasts & even aspiring actors. The latest updates about Ensemble 2009 can be obtained at http://www.xlri-ensemble.com

A major event of Ensemble 2009 is the Idea Summit - which is expected to draw experts from different walks of life to share their experiences with the students. Prominent personalities from the world of academia, business, media, sports and politics will be coming for the series of sessions based on the theme "Integrity & Initiative". Idea Summit will include speaker session by eminent personalities spread across three days of Ensemble. The speakers are Mr. N Sivaraman, Executive Vice President (Financial Services), L&T, Mr. Tapan Mitra,Chief HR - Apollo Tyres, Mr. Micheal Ferreira, four time winner of world billiards Championship, Mr. U.P.Agarwal, President, ICAI.

The previous edition of Ensemble had the theme of "Magis: Delivering Excellence". The Aditya Birla Group was the principal partner. Other notable Corporates associated with Ensemble'08 were Cognizant, Nokia, L&T, Nestle, and Human Capital. Ensemble '08 had prize money aggregating over INR 1 million. The principle sponsor event, ABG Board-Room gave the single largest prize money ever in any B school festival of INR 250,000 and created a buzz in the B-School circle. In all, close to 200 students from 21 top Indian B-Schools institutes including the IIMs and ISB Hyderabad participated in the annual event. The online events saw as many as 1000students participating from almost all B Schools in India.

Beginning in 2000, Ensemble has grown to become one of the most awaited showpiece events in the B-School circuit. Over the years, students from across the elite B-Schools of India have participated in a wide spectrum of business plan contests, case studies, online simulation games, across all business functions like Consulting, Marketing, Finance, HR, Systems and Operations. In terms of corporate partnerships and finances, the event has grown over 14 times since its inception.

Posted By The Theme to XLRI Jamshedpur - News and Latest Updates at 11/10/2009 02:35:00 PM

XLRI Ranked #5 on CNBC TV 18 Rankings

From mbauniverse.com

Consolidated CNBC TV 18 A of B Rankings released; IIM A, IIM B, IIM C are top 3 B-schools

MBAUniverse.com Bureau

Nov 16, 2008

India's leading business news channel CNBC TV18, along with India's leading management portal MBAUniverse.com and global research agency TNS, have announced the final consolidated CNBC TV18 'A of B Ranking'.

The consolidated rankings presents a holistic, multi-stakeholder picture on India's Top B-schools by combining inputs from quantitative data submitted by top 70 B-schools, and perception poll amongst MBA aspirants, students, alumni and employers. On these consolidated tables, IIM A, IIM B and IIM C have captured the top three positions.

In a first of its kind research and analysis, the 'A of B Ranking' survey looks at three different viewpoints to present the complete 360 degree picture on which are India's leading B-schools. While rigorous data-driven analysis uses information and data provided directly by IIMs and other 70+ B-schools, perception poll on MBAUniverse.com brings perspectives from the MBA students, aspirants and alumni; and, recruiter's poll on Jobstreet.com bares the mind of HR community.

While Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM A) is the # 1 B-school, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIM B) and Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta (IIM C) has been ranked as the # 2 & # 3 B-schools in India. Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM L) is ranked at #4. Jamshedpur based Xavier's Labour Relations Institute (XLRI) is pegged at #5 position.

Mumbai based S. P. Jain Institute of Management & Research, Faculty Of Management Studies, University Of Delhi, Delhi, Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, Indian Institute Of Foreign Trade, New Delhi and Jamnalal Bajaj Institute Of Management Studies, University Of Mumbai, Mumbai complete the prestigious Top 10 B-school rankings table. (See consolidated Ranking Table below)

Which are some other non-IIM B-schools that have managed to show their strengths on this league table. Narsee Monjee Institute Of Management Studies University, Mumbai, Symbiosis Institute Of Business Management, Pune, Department Of Management Studies - Indian Institute Of Technology, New Delhi and Xavier Institute Of Management, Bhubaneswar are four B-schools that are part of Top 10 Non-IIMs B-schools league table.

CNBC TV 18 Consolidated B-school Rankings from Data Survey, Student Perception and Employer Perception

India's Top B-schools

1 Indian Institute Of Management, Ahmedabad

2 Indian Institute Of Management, Bangalore

3 Indian Institute Of Management, Kolkata

4 Indian Institute Of Management, Lucknow

5 Xavier Labour Relation Institute School Of Management, (XLRI), Jamshedpur

6 Bhavan's S. P. Jain Institute Of Management & Research, Mumbai

7 Faculty Of Management Studies, University Of Delhi, Delhi

8 Management Development Institute, Gurgaon

9 Indian Institute Of Foreign Trade, New Delhi

10 Jamnalal Bajaj Institute Of Management Studies, University Of Mumbai, Mumbai

India's Top B-schools – Excluding IIMs

1 Xavier Labour Relation Institute School Of Management, (XLRI), Jamshedpur

2 Bhavan's S. P. Jain Institute Of Management & Research, Mumbai

3 Faculty Of Management Studies, University Of Delhi, Delhi

4 Management Development Institute, Gurgaon

5 Indian Institute Of Foreign Trade, New Delhi

6 Jamnalal Bajaj Institute Of Management Studies, University Of Mumbai, Mumbai

7 SVKM'S Narsee Monjee Institute Of Management Studies University, Mumbai

8 Symbiosis Institute Of Business Management, Pune

9 Department Of Management Studies - Indian Institute Of Technology, New Delhi

10 Xavier Institute Of Management, Bhubaneswar

Note: For Quantitative Survey, more than 70 leading B-schools including IIM A, IIM B, IIM C, IIM L, IIM I, FMS Delhi, XLRI, MDI, JBIMS, IIT B SJMSOM participated in the survey. Key B-schools that did not participate in the Quantitative Survey are: Department of Management Studies, Pune; Fore School of Management, Delhi; ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad; IIM Kozhikode; Indian School of Business, Hyderabad; Mudra Institute of Communication, Ahmedabad; SCMHRD, Pune and Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.

In the run up these consolidated rankings, which were released on November 15 on CNBC TV 18's special television show, rankings by individual stakeholder were released. These consolidated rankings combine the three viewpoints into final rankings.

CNBC TV18 is India's No.1 business medium and the undisputed leader in business news. It delivers quality and involved audiences that comprise a comprehensive viewership base greater than similar offerings in the business space across all media. The channel's benchmark coverage extends from corporate news, financial markets coverage, expert perspective on investing and management to industry verticals and beyond.

MBAUniverse.com is India's leading management portal, reaching out to over 300,000 management students, young executives, HR managers and academicians. In a short span of 18 months, it has gained thought-leadership by partnering with knowledge organizations like CII, FICCI, IIMs, IITs and others.

TNS is the world's largest Custom Market Research Company. It provides marketing information delivered by Global Industry Sector expert consultants, innovative research expertise, in 80 countries worldwide.

XLRI bags top prizes at IIM Indore contest

More news on something I blogged about before now reported in the Telegraph

XLRI excels at turning rural dreams into reality - B-school projects Parichay & Swavalamban bag top prizes at IIM Indore contest

ANTARA BOSE

XLRI: Hub of ideas Jamshedpur, Nov. 11: Ideas born at XLRI School of Business and Human Resources have clicked again. And this time nationally. Two projects engineered by the students of the premier B-school beat 101 entries from across the country to bag the top prizes at Kalpavriksha — IIM Indore’s much acclaimed social business plan contest — on November 8. The annual event is described as a forum for self-sustainable business plans with the potential to make a difference to society and XLRI indeed made a difference. Parichay, the project that bagged the first prize, began six months ago. It is a gateway to the market for rural and tribal artisans. It was launched with the objective to revive traditional art by giving them a contemporary makeover and to ensure direct access to the market for artisans. By winning the Indore contest, Parichay has secured its place in the semi-finals of the Global Social Entrepreneurship Competition (GSEC) slated for February 2009 at Foster School of Business in Seattle, US. The XLRI project that won the second prize at the meet is Swavalamban. Under the project, students used an ox-driven generator to light up homes in remote villages. Swavalamban has already bagged orders from the Jharkhand Renewable Energy Development Agency and the Tata Motors corporate social responsibility department. The National Thermal Power Corporation has also ordered 200 units at a research level. Both the projects have been supported by the XLRI Social Entrepreneurship Trust, which was established to promote and support students and alumni of the institute. Talking to The Telegraph, Madhukar Shukla, the chairperson of the trust, said: “We are glad that the work of our students has been recognised. This will prompt us to motivate those keen on becoming entrepreneurs.” Ankur Saboo, one of the members associated with Swavalamban, said he felt very proud. “I had a gut feeling we would win because people had liked our project and we had already bagged a few orders,” he said. The panel of judges at the contest included representatives from organisations such as Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund, IndianNGOs.com and India Development Gateway. The winner and the first runner-up received cash prizes of Rs 120,000 and Rs 80,000, respectively. The members associated with the projects would also get mentorship (guidance) from IndianNGOs.com, a social enterprise, and India Development Gateway (IDG), an organisation of equity investment.

XLRI's Social Projects sweep "Kalpavriksha"

Two Projects supported by XLRI Social Entrepreneurship Trust (*), Parichay and Swavalamban were judged 1st and 2nd respectively in the IIM Indore's Social Business Plan contest "Kalpavriksha" - a forum for self sustainable business plans with the potential to make a difference to society.

The two projects were selected from among 103 entries from across the B-Schools, and were judged by executives from Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund, IndianNGO.com and India Development Gateway

Besides the prize money, along with other finalists they will also receive mentorship by executives from IndianNGO.com and India Development Gateway, a capital market place for social ventures in India. They will also be able to put up their ideas on India Development Gateway.

As the winner of the event, Parichay will get a direct semi-final entry into the Global Social Entrepreneurship Competition (GSEC) to be held at Foster School of Business in Seattle, USA (Feb 23-27, 2009)

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(*) On Nov 16th, more than 300 students and faculty will participate in XL Dream Run, to generate funds for the XLRI Social Entrepreneurship Trust, which supports such projects.

Posted by Madhukar

A value-oriented approach to business sets this school apart

From LiveMint.com

Posted: Thu, Sep 11 2008. 9:28 PM IST

XLRI | A value-oriented approach to business sets this school apart

“Our institute is located in one of the poorest regions of the country... it (is) important to sensitize our students -- most of whom come from urban centres -- to the poverty around.”

Aveek Datta

Jamshedpur: Perhaps it makes sense that the country’s pre-eminent institute devoted to human resource (HR) management would get it right. However, as any business knows, grooming managers is anything but easy.

A focus on ethics and a value-oriented approach to creating future managers is the niche expertise of the two-year business management (BM) and personnel management and industrial relations (PM&IR) courses at XLRI, Jamshedpur. And this, according to its director, faculty and students, is what differentiates XLRI from other top business schools in the country.

Teacher student equation: A class in progress at the institute. Photo: Indranil Bhoumik/ Mint

Indeed, in the Mint C-fore survey of the Top 50 private business schools in the country, XLRI is ranked first—no small feat for an institute in a relatively remote location and in a segment of higher education that is growing crowded and competitive.

XLRI’s course content, which is on a par with the top Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), also has a lot in common with them. But, according to Jitendra Singh, a professor teaching organizational behaviour at the institute, much of the learning at XLRI happens “outside the classroom”.

“Our institute is located in one of the poorest regions of the country, and we find it (is) important to sensitize our students—most of whom come from urban centres—to the poverty around. Therefore, as part of their course work in the first year, students have to stay in villages with the locals and develop an understanding of their socio-economic situation,” says Singh, who is an XLRI graduate and has been teaching at the school for about 15 years.

Apart from having a component of business ethics as part of the curriculum, various student communities are involved in social initiatives—some of which include putting together a clothes bank for distribution among the poor as remuneration for community welfare work and providing a marketing channel for the products of tribal craftsmen in India and abroad.

XLRI was founded by Quinn Enright, a Jesuit priest, in 1949. “Tata Steel officials requested Father Enright to open an institute to train the local trade union leaders and help them bargain better with the management on behalf of the workers, and that is how XLRI came into being,” says Sharad Sarin, a professor of strategic management at XLRI since 1972.

XLRI, in fact, stands for Xavier Labour Relations Institute, but now the institute goes by just the acronym.

Over the years, XLRI has earned a stellar reputation. In 1953, a two-year day programme in industrial relations and welfare—rechristened PM&IR in 1985—started at the institute. The two-year full-time business management programme was launched as early as 1968.

At present, other than its business management and PM&IR courses, XLRI runs 18 long-term management development and general management programmes on campus and a host of others through its satellite-based learning system. In addition, the school has two international campuses in Dubai and Singapore.

Though the business management programme has been going strong for four decades, even today many perceive the HR programme to be XLRI’s forte. While there are many competitors to XLRI for a two-year MBA (master’s in business administration) programme, there is virtually none for its PM&IR course, says Sarin. “This is despite the fact that after the BM programme started, there has been greater demand for it than PM&IR among aspiring candidates,” Sarin adds.

The XLRI School of Business and Human Resources, as it is known today, boasts of alumni comprising executives placed at the top of the corporate ladder with reputed companies across the globe.

The final placements for the batch that graduated in March this year saw a total of 298 offers being made to 180 students, with 31% of the offers coming from leading domestic and global finance companies.

The number of foreign placements, however, was few (12, to be precise).

Some faculty members say that XLRI students are more inclined to serve within the country than abroad. “We do have companies offering international placement at XLRI, but we have not gone overboard with trying to promote foreign placements. There is such a lot of demand and opportunities in India itself,” Singh says.

XLRI has lofty plans for the future, and is in the process of implementing them. The institute has already obtained permission from the All India Council for Technical Education to double the number of seats in its PM&IR course to 120 from the next academic session.

“Our major thrust for the future would be to provide global exposure to the institute and its students, and we are already in talks with a number of universities in the US and Europe for student and faculty exchange programmes,” says the director of XLRI, E. Abraham.

Work has already begun on the construction of a hostel for international students on campus. The institute is also waiting for more land to build an entrepreneurship development institute near its existing campus, which would also have incubator facilities for budding entrepreneurs.

The XLRI campus—located in the Circuit House Area (east) in Jamshedpur—might be smaller compared with some of the other business schools in the country, but it is well kept and picturesque. It has all the amenities to help students take a recreational break from rigorous academic sessions.

“When we are not in the classroom or busy preparing projects, we love chilling out in the lawn in front of the cafeteria in the wee hours of the morning,” says Vidhi Garg, a first-year business management student.

For some, the not-so-big campus is an advantage. “It is good in a way that the campus is not that big. By the end of the first year, I already knew the names of all my batchmates and most of my seniors, and now I know most of my juniors by name,” says Sharath N., a second-year business management student.

Faculty members say that the “cozy” campus facilitates a deeper, more informal bond between teachers and students.

“My accommodation is a stone’s throw from that of the students’. So, even if they need my help in the middle of the night, they just come and knock at my door,” says E.M. Rao, professor of personnel management, industrial relations and labour laws.

“The kind of proximity we share with our professors is amazing. This is something that we could not have got at any of the IIMs, where one needs to take an appointment with professors well in advance,” says second-year business management student Prasanna S.

Though academics is on the students’ minds for the better part of their stay at XLRI, extra-curricular activities are actively encouraged. “One day, professors saw us playing badminton at 4am, and soon after a decision was taken to schedule no classes between 4.15pm and 6.30pm so that this time could be utilized by the students as they please,” says Jeevan Kumar, another business management student.

The annual XLRI-Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta (IIM-C) sports meet is a matter of immense pride for the students here. Right now, XLRI students are gearing to reclaim the trophy that went to IIM-C the last time round in February.

Ensemble 2008

XLRI School of Business and Human Resources, the oldest business school in the country, is hosting its annual management fest, Ensemble – 2008, on January 25th and 26th, 2008. Ensemble, as the name suggests, was started to bring together management students across b-schools from both India and abroad. It is now a thriving mélange of case studies, business plan contests, paper presentations and strategy games. Last year, Ensemble 2007, with the theme India Unbounded: Unleashing the Tiger, saw 200 participants from the best b-schools in India battle for top honours and a prize money of around 7.5 lakh rupees.

The theme for Ensemble 2008 is Advantage India: The bird of gold spreads its wings. The Indian economy, with its technical prowess and its large talent pool, is poised for take off. It is consistently averaging GDP growth of about 8-9%, and the biggest companies of the world are queuing up to invest in the country. Ensemble 2008 is devoted to this bird of gold, with games and events organized around the opportunities and the potential that lie ahead. The Aditya Birla Group is the principal partner of the fest.

The showcase events of Ensemble 2008 are the Idea Summit and the newly-christened flagship game, Discessio Imperators. The Idea Summit is a panel discussion where eminent panellists from all walks of life share their experiences with b-school students. The topic for this year’s Idea Summit is India: Domestic & Global Inclusion for Sustainable Growth. The panellists are: Mr Y C Nanda, Chairman of Agricultural Finance Corporation Ltd and ex-Chairman of Chairman of National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD); and Mr S.J.S. Swamidoss, Ex RBI Director. Mr Govindraj Ethiraj will be acting as the moderator.

In keeping with XLRI’s image as a b-school run by students, the events of Ensemble 2008 have all been organized by the numerous committees on campus. The games vary across all business verticals, and enthusiasts of Finance, Marketing and Human Resources will all find something for them at Ensemble 2008. Apart from these, there are events for adventure-lovers, budding entrepreneurs and quizzing enthusiasts. The preliminary rounds of most of these events have already been held, and b-school students from all over the country are converging on the XLRI campus in Jamshedpur.

However, Ensemble 2008 is by no means an ‘All work and no play’ event. The fest will culminate on 26th January with a performance by Parikrama, one of the best rock bands in the country. Not only that, the 27th of January will see XLRI hosting Astarte, the cultural festival of the institute. For more information, please visit the official websites of Ensemble and Astarte.

BT Acumen - XL team in finals

To all quiz enthusiasts!

The BT Acumen National Finals are being held on the 15th December in Mumbai, and have quizzes and debates. The part that should be a draw for you folk is the National B-School Quiz Finals at 1800 hrs - Shrikant Narasimhan and Raghu Reddy, BM 2006-2008, are finalists.

Be there, to cheer, and quiz!

Open to all, no entry fee or passes required. Just show up at the ITC Grand Central, Parel :-)


Details:
NATIONAL FINALS
Date: December 15th , 2007.
Venue: The Ballroom, ITC Grand Central Sheraton & Towers,
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Road, Mumbai-400012.

Business Today – Aditya Birla Group Acumen 2007 Event Flow

Reporting by all Teams	11.30 am
National Debate Semi Final 1	12.00 noon - 12.45 pm
Audience Quiz / Draw of Lots (Audience Prizes)	12.45 pm - 1.00 pm
Lunch Break	1.00 pm - 2.00 pm
Audience Quiz / Draw of Lots (Audience Prizes)	2.00 pm - 2.15 pm
National Debate Semi Final 2	2.15 pm - 3.00 pm
Audience Quiz / Draw of Lots (Audience Prizes)	3.00 pm - 3.15 pm
Debate Finalist / Topic Announcement	3.15 pm - 3:20 pm
National B School Alumni Quiz Finals	3.20 pm - 4.20 pm
Audience Quiz / Draw of Lots (Audience Prizes)	4.20 pm - 4:30 pm
Tea Break	4:30 pm - 5.00 pm
Audience Quiz / Draw of Lots (Audience Prizes)	5.00 pm - 5.15 pm
Debate National Finals	5.15 pm - 6.00 pm
National B School Quiz Finals	6.00 pm - 7.15 pm
Presentation Ceremony	7.15 pm - 7.30 pm
Cocktails & Dinner	8.00 pm onwards

Joker In The Pack

Looks like our own Mediocre But Arrogant has a companion piece for the IIM way of life - Joker In The Pack written by two recent grads of IIML & IIMB. It is about life in IIMB.

96 BMD- Akshay Hiremath is mentioned on the site as having sent encouraging reviews and helpful information in taking the book to completion. :)

Thanks Tipu for bringing this book & Akshay's role in it, to our attention. :)

From the synopsis:
At IIMB, though, Shekhar faces a huge culture shock. While he had felt he had done enough by just making it to IIMB, he realizes that the fight had just begun. Within a week of attending hectic sessions in the day and dancing to the whims of mean seniors intent on ragging, Shekhar begins to question his ability to cope and whether the money that came after a life like this would ever be enough to make him happy.

He gets exposed to the various colorful personalities that make up life at IIMB - the dreaded Placecom headed by Crazy Panther, loud Northie Lafanders obsessed with booze and pornography, mild mannered Dosa Dudes, finance oriented Marwaris and wise Daddus. He also comes across Geniuses, Page 3s, and also Fighters like himself - people akin to wild card entrants in a grand slam who either didn't create any ripples or, ala Goran Ivanisevic, played the last tournament of their lives with all their heart and went on to become grand slam champions forever.

XLRI - Number 1 among private B-Schools

From MBA Universe

Outlook B-School Survey 2007: IIM-A, XLRI, FMS and IRMA top league tables

MBAUniverse.com Bureau

Sep 09, 2007

Leading news magazine Outlook released its annual B-School survey, conducted by research firm Cfore.

For the first time, the survey has classified B-Schools into four categories: Government/ PSU B-Schools, Private B-Schools, University Departments and Sectoral B-Schools. The Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A); XLRI Jamshedpur; Delhi University’s Faculty of Management Studies (FMS); and the Indian Institute of Rural Management (IRMA) have topped respective league tables. The survey notes that while IIMs are still on top, many aggressive private B-schools are fast catching up. Says the Survey, “The most important development has been the initiative of private institutes in critical areas such as research, entrepreneurship and innovation. Although some are still behind the top IIMs in terms of overall scores, non-government schools are catching up fast.”

In the government-assisted B-Schools, IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C, IIM-L and Management Development Institute (MDI) Gurgaon have grabbed the first five slots. Mumbai-based NITIE, Delhi-based IIFT, and IIT Mumbai’s SJM-SOM are other B-schools to find place in this table. (See tables below)

It’s in the Top 10 private B-schools table where the competition is intense. XLRI tops the list; Mumbai-based SP Jain Institute of Management and NMIMS are followed by IMT, Ghaziabad and Hydeabad-based ICFAI Business School (IBS). XIM-Bhubaneshwar, IMT Delhi and Symbiosis Pune too find places in this table.

Delhi University’s FMS tops the University Department based B-schools. Mumbai-based Jamna Lal Bajaj Institute of Management (JBIMS) and University Business School (UBS) Chandigarh are the other top B-schools in this category.

The Survey provides rankings to 14 government institutes, 50 private B-schools, 10 University departments, and 7 sectoral B-schools.

While the overall ranking tables are presented by institute classifications, the Survey offers some insights into how top B-schools stack up when compared across the spectrum. IIM-A, IIM-B, IIM-C, XLRI and MDI, for instance, are ranked as top five B-schools on the ‘Industry interface’ parameter. On the important parameter of ‘Placement Performance’, IIM-A, IIM-C, IIM-B, XLRI and IIM-L are ranked on top.

Party time on Saturday March 24th,2007-Mgt Schools Alumni Cricket tournament

Dear folks,

It’s party time for us too…..at the culmination of the Alumni Cricket Tournament as usually done every year so far, we shall be having a get together of all the Players from the IIM’s and XL, besides the respective Alumni with their families this time around also.

This year’s tournament saw only two teams playing XLRI and IIM-C who played each other twice so that the result was never in doubt to decide the winner. IIM-A was for some reason absent from the games..Maybe the A in their name stands for ABSENT!!

Hopefully they shall turn up when the partying begins along with the rest of us.

The venue : Madras Cricket Club---Bells Road.
Date : Sat 24th March,2007
Time : 6.30 pm onwards.
Chief Guest : Mr.Balaji –India and Tamil Nadu State cricketer
Events : Prize Distribution to winning team and Best players awards, talks by the Chief Guest,etc

We’ll need to know the numbers who shall be attending this bash where drinks and dinner shall be served and hence please confirm your participation by emailing either me or PNS

Here’s looking forward to seeing you and your families on the 24th of March, so please specially plan your traveling and work to be in town definitely that evening.

Regards,
Murali

A Small B-School Can Be a Big Plus

Small-town schools offer a lot that big-city schools don't, especially a close-knit community and strong attachment between student and institution

The advantages of going to a large business school in an urban area appear obvious to many applicants. After all, the thinking goes, big cities are where big business is done (not to mention the restaurants, the nightlife, the healthy population of old college buddies to ease the transition).

And a bigger school, it stands to reason, often means more of everything—more resources, more elective choices, more classmates with whom to network, and so on. And while you already know bigger isn't always better, isn't it hard enough figuring out the relative merits of New York vs. Chicago and lecture vs. case method without throwing in a slew of schools in towns you couldn't find on a map?

If that line of thinking sounds familiar—and admissions consultants such as Clear Admit's Graham Richmond say it's quite common—you might want to take a step back and consider that the experience of attending B-school in a town like Charlottesville, Va., Hanover, N.H., or Ithaca, N.Y. has its own upside. While many of those advantages are of the more intangible variety (how do you put a value on school spirit?) satisfied alums say the small-town, small-school experience can bring big-time payoffs.

Just ask Desmond Duncker, a Tuck MBA who wears his pride in his alma mater on his sleeve—or more accurately, his arm—in the form of a three-inch tattoo of Tuck's green-and-white seal. His degree landed him a job at investment bank Goldman Sachs, but even more important, he says, were two years of "unforgettable" experiences.

And if alumni giving rates are any measure, Duncker certainly isn't the only happy Tuck graduate out there. A hefty 65.1% of Tuck alumni donated this past year—more than double the giving rate at most top-ranked B-schools (see BusinessWeek.com, 3/2/06, "Great Gifts Come in Small Packages").

Better Ratios

So what, exactly, is the small school advantage? In a word: community. Students say it's easier to form close bonds with classmates at a small school like Tuck or UNC's Kenan-Flagler, where each graduating class is kept to under 300 people, compared with larger ones like Harvard and Wharton, where the graduating class size is roughly triple that.

David Pyke, a Tuck professor and associate dean who has also taught at Wharton, says smaller schools are more conducive to student-faculty interaction, for the same reason. And while big schools aren't necessarily bad at fostering community, it certainly takes a more concerted effort. That's one reason many B-schools opt for some form of cohort system that breaks down a large class of first-year students into groups or learning teams of a more manageable size.

The more remote locations of small schools like Cornell and Darden can also be advantages—and not just because of the lower cost of living. The lack of outside distractions can give students a chance to immerse more fully in the B-school experience.

"Many of our clients tell us that they view the more rural programs as a chance to actually escape the 'buzz' of cities and the daily grind of the professional world," Richmond says, especially for MBAs who realize that B-school might be their only chance before retirement to live outside a major urban center. "Spending two years in a place like Hanover really gives students the chance to unplug and devote themselves entirely to academic study and MBA community events."

All-Important Bonds

It can be difficult for urban schools to instill a sense of community when students don't live on campus and have all the diversions of urban life, including existing social networks. When students have made the commitment to pack up their lives and move to "the middle of nowhere," they're typically more open to forging new bonds with classmates quickly, in part because they have fewer options.

"It's really hard to disappear into the ether when you're a student here," Pyke says of Tuck. And while some students caution that the lack of anonymity isn't for everyone—imagine every bar in town as the bar where everybody knows your name—it's a lot harder to get lost in the crowd.

Forging a strong sense of connection between students and their school is also important when it comes to the alumni network. Small schools can't compete on size—Harvard Business School has 43,674 living alumni, Darden has 8,001—but alums say the strength of their network more than makes up for it.

"There is no alumni network on earth that is as tightly knit and well-integrated into the school as ours," says Bryan Simms, a senior vice-president at Lehman Brothers and chairman of the Darden Alumni Board and a trustee. "The message to first-years is that when you come to Darden, you're not signing up for a two-year program, you've signed up for a 40- to 50-year relationship with the institution."

In the end, it's important for B-school applicants to understand that choosing a full-time MBA program is about more than your future salary, it's about deciding how you'll spend two years of your life.

Miller is a reporter with BusinessWeek.com in New York.

From BusinessWeek