Chuck-De-Phatte What does it mean...

Chuck-De-Phatte its over 10 years since I first wrote on this blog. I chose the name because I quite liked the play on my nick name- Chuck and for what I believed at the time the phrase meant- "Just Max It".

I didn't realise at the time how closely the phrase was connected to another phase of my life- a trucking phase is what I call it. That though is a story for another day. The phrase in its completeness does- "Chak De Phatte, Nap De Gilli, Sawere Jalandhar Raati Dilli".

Now, for understanding the phrase "Chak De Phatte" you need to have some seriously intimate knowledge of trucking in India and the Punjabi connect to trucking. After a truck is loaded around five wooden planks are slid into channels that help close the rear of the vehicle. These planks are called "Phattas". So when a driver tells his cleaner/helper right after a truck is loaded

Chak De Phatte-  Come On! the  loading is done close the rear of the truck with the Phattas 

Naap De Gilli- Step on the accelerator

Sawere Jalandhar Raati Dilli- We are in Jaladhar this morning we will be in Delhi tonight

So Chuck-De-Phatte!

ISB "These are some of my favourite things"

The past 2 months since I joined HUL have been a lot of fun. I have clocked some serious air-miles over this period. I have been to Gurgaon, Mumbai, Varanasi, Balia, Jaunpur, Renukoot and Bangkok. Each of these places was an adventure. The fun of being in a FMCG marketing firm and especially HUL is that one sees all those Kotler fundas unfold real time. But that is a different subject the aim today is to write about what all I fondly remember about ISB. Come to think of it this is more to bring closure to the experience called ISB. The things that I remember from ISB are a mixture emotions and sensory experience that ISB is. So here goes, the LRC at 8 A.M with the spiral staircase bathed in the sunlight filtering through the glass dome on the top, the satisfaction after entering the last line on an assignment, watching rain drops fall in the ground outside my studio while I sipped a cup of piping hot tea, the open drapes in the class room while Prof. Rajeshwar Upadyay went over Lessons from world literature, a great sense of achievement just walking up to the Academic Centre from my quad, a sense of a welcoming home while heading from the Academic Centre to SV2 and the late night (I mean really late night) walks with Rano, the lunch group (Srav, Karthik, Jaggu dada and Sneha), the offer from HUL, the graduation day, the squash court and the twinkle in my parents' eyes when I graduated. ISB was a blast- a source of lifetime memories.
The year at ISB will keep coming back to me every time a cue gets thrown at me like the raindrops knocking at my office window right now!

ISB MAKES A SPLASH IN FT GLOBAL RANKINGS

28/01/2008 is one date that everybody from the batch of 2008 will remember. They would remeber what they were doing when they got to hear the news first. The news was the huge splash made by ISB in Global Rankings. ISB came in at 20th in the global rankings in one of the most respected rankings- The Financial Times rankings. It is no mean achievement. To be part of ISB at such a time and see history unfold is something that I will cherish forever.

There was a celebratory lunch at the Atrium and the entire batch broke into an impromtu chant- "ISB ROCKS" "ISB ROCKS" "ISB ROCKS" and rock its does. I have a feeling that celebrations would continue for some time to come.

It is also time to think about the power of a dream accompanied by a zeal to achieve it. The sense of achievement the pioneers of ISB must be feeling must be awesome. The collective conciousness of the ISB must be rejoicing. The support staff, the faculty, the Governing Board, the student body, the spouses, the alumni and the recruiters have all contributed to create a way of life that ISB represents.

So thank you all those who preceded me at ISB and welcome all those who would join the ISB dream in years to come.

Congratulations!!!

LEARNING BEYOND THE CLASS- AIKYA

Has been a long time since I wrote a post. So here goes- yesterday was an eye opening experience. We were invited by our Aikya family for dinner. Aikya family is the family away from home. These families are the elite families from Hyderabad's social circles. This gives ISB students an opportunity to interact with the finest families of the Hyderabadi society. The one lesson my Aikya family patriarch gave me was- "Never, Never associate yourself with a looser". The negative energy of the looser is strong enough to bring you down. Reminds me of the STAR WARS funda- "May the force be with you". The force here is the positive thought that you generate and the positive thought that those around you generate.

The other aspect was how small the world is. Six degrees of freedom hit home yesterday. One of the business partners of my Aikya patriarch is arelative of mine. This is an amazing coincidence. So I am a huge convert to networking. You never know which happy coinincidence you would stumble on around the corner.

Dean Deepak Jain at ISB

Dean Jain's visit to ISB was quite an event. Khemka Hall- the auditorium was choc-a-block full, a week before the end term exams this was quite an event. The entire student body was looking forward to the event and Dean Jain did not disappoint the audience. The first thing that strikes you when you meet Dean Jain is the complete absence of any accent. For somebody who has stayed in the United States for such along while this is quite an interesting feature.

Dean Jain narrated a story (it happened during the Tsunami that hit Thailand) of an elephant in Thailand that broke the rope it was tied with and ran away just before the tsunami hit. The rationale for the Elephant's behaviour was that because animals are acutely aware of their surroundings and can pick up shock waves through their legs, they can feel seismic activity before humans do. The lesson- be firmly rooted to your roots and you shall not only survive you will prosper. No doubt Dean Jain does not have an accent.

ISB- Term2 and the learning

The second term at ISB was quite an experience- fast and furious. The learning from the term was immense- the Markstrat game, Prof. Jagmohan Raju's classes and Prof. Harbir Singh's classes. The class of these professors from Wharton stood out in the way they handled class participation- It was like a master swordsman jibing and then stepping back all in one flowing single masterful step. And, I loved Prof. Raju's statement- "Life and marketing are like a game of bridge one aspect is the hand that you are dealt and the other, the way you play the hand that you have been dealt".


Another professor who left a mark was Prof. Krishna Kumar who taught us Macro Economics. The screening of "Commanding Heights" in professor's class was a huge learning. The way the prof. handled a complex subject like economics was a treat.


The icing on the cake was Dean Deepak Jain's (Dean- Kellog School of Business) visit to ISB. As a member of the marketing club I had the good fortune of interacting with Dean Jain personally. That was an experience that deserves a separate post.


As far as the term end exams go I am still in shock- Whaaat Happened!!!!!

The photograph- The marketing club core team with Dean Jain. Me- on the extreme right.

ISB and class participation

CLASS PARTICIPATION

The concept of class participation is central to the study methodology at many B-Schools world over. Class participation ensures that students come prepared to the class with questions, answers, opinions and arguments. But, there are three players that decide what you take away from a class that depends on such a methodology- your preparation, others in the class and last but the most critical - The Professor. Class participation as a methodology is more a test of the Professor I feel. The professor needs to balance between control and participation from the class so that there is coherence and learning at the same time.

From a student's perspective, class participation needs arms of steel, reaction that could make Roger Federer blush and a booming voice that roars for attention. Reminds me of Mohammed Ali's statement- Fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee. And, if you can do that you my friend have a talent and an 8 on 8 in class participation.