CAT Preparation: Strategies to Solving Reading Comprehension
The below article is brought to you by SDA Bocconi Asia Center and written by Dr Shashank Prabhuto help aspirants in their test prep. He is a CAT 100 percentiler, CET Rank 1, IIFT 100 percentile. He had a scaled score of 249/360 in NMAT BY GMAC 2016 and 99 percentile in each of the sections and overall score. SDA Bocconi Asia Center accepts CAT, NMAT, GMAT, GRE for its International Master in Business. Over the last few years, when it comes to the Verbal Ability section of the CAT, the focus seems to have shifted from a balanced split to a lopsided one in favour of reading comprehension passages. With more than 70 percent of the section being focused on reading comprehension passages, it would be practically impossible to do well at the test if one neglects this part. Another reason to especially focus on this area is the fact that reading comprehension passages have been getting easier and no longer rely on abstract concepts and dense theories to shatter an aspirant’s confidence. The contribution to the final sectional score from the reading comprehension part is more than 80 percent in most cases and so, it is a good way of ensuring that you score well in the verbal ability section. The biggest question that aspirants who are not that good at reading comprehension is the manner in which, they should read the passage so as to maximize comprehension. Broadly, there are a few things one could potentially do when it comes to solving reading comprehension passages: a. Read the passage first, understand it completely and then go for the questions: This strategy expects the candidate to retain the entire passage (in other words, if you forget the first line of the passage by the time you reach the last line of the passage, this won’t work for you), understand the author’s intent and then answer the questions through that acquired knowledge without referring back too much to the passage. A lot of good candidates have good reading habits, can grasp the tone very quickly and retain a page of content easily. It’s like reading a novel albeit at a smaller scale. Reading one line will not give you any understanding of the overall context and you are supposed to read a few paragraphs to understand the macro flow. In my opinion, it is the best strategy as it is the least distracting and can help you stay focused for longer periods of time b. Read the questions and the options first, then go to the passage: While this works in case of fact-checking based questions, it is too dangerous in case of inferential passages. The major drawback of this strategy is that, you might tend to form an opinion about the author/subject matter even before you read the passage. This could lead to a conflict between your views and those of the author thereby leading to incorrect comprehension. Considering that the CAT passages are almost always inferential, it might not be the best idea to use this strategy (unless you are desperate for attempts and there is very little time to do that) c. Read the passage casually, then the questions and come back to specific instances in the passage: This is the one that is usually followed by a lot of students. Given that it is difficult to retain acutely gained knowledge and the reduced attention span, it makes the most sense to most. But, this leads to a lot of back and forth between the question and the passage which is not a healthy way to look at problems (to digress, this is one of the attributes that makes a good manager: ability to comprehend and address the situation in its entirety and not just a few things here and there) So, the best way to tackle reading comprehension passages is to understand the passage first and then look at the questions. There are a few things that you could do to improve comprehension while reading the passage: a. Notes: However weird that sounds, making notes helps if you are not a regular reader and often go wrong while answering inferential questions. Now, these need not be elaborate notes and definitely not focused on the factual part of it. It just needs to be an understanding of the underlying emotion. So, if the passage goes something like this (CAT 2004) The painter is now free to paint anything he chooses. They are scarcely any forbidden subjects, and today everybody is prepared to admit that a painting of some fruit can be as important as a painting of a hero dying. The Impressionists did as much as anybody to win this previously unheard-of freedom for the artist. Yet, by the next generation, painters began to abandon the subject altogether, and began to paint abstract pictures. Today the majority of pictures painted are abstract, you will have to note that the paragraph talks about a liberation in terms of the core subject of a painting and how it led to a restriction instead because painters tended towards making more abstract paintings than relevant ones. So, if you are able to take away that bit from the passage, you should be okay. If you are stuck in the whole confusion of who the Impressionists were and what does abstractness mean, you would miss out on the central picture of the passage b. Hyperbole: Exaggeration has often been linked to a superior memory and it holds true in case of reading comprehension passages as well. If you have trouble picking up fresh topics, try it out while going through some articles from uncomfortable areas (psychology, economics, history, philosophy). Typically, you will have a concept/study being explained in simpler words so as to make you understand the theoretical nuances and create a conflict. You have to simply try to agree with whatever the author says in an exaggerated manner (in case of the above paragraph, it could be something on
CAT Prep: Examples on how to solve Reading Comprehension
The below article is brought to you by SDA Bocconi Asia Center and written by Dr Shashank Prabhuto help aspirants in their test prep. He is a CAT 100 percentiler, CET Rank 1, IIFT 100 percentile. He had a scaled score of 249/360 in NMAT BY GMAC 2016 and 99 percentile in each of the sections and overall score.SDA Bocconi Asia Center accepts CAT, NMAT, GMAT, GRE for its International Master in Business. In this article, I will be discussing an actual CAT reading comprehension passage in detail. This passage is from CAT 2017. Understanding where you are in the world is a basic survival skill, which is why we, like most species, come hard-wired with specialized brain areas to create cognitive maps of our surroundings. Where humans are unique, though—perhaps with the exception of honeybees—is that we try to communicate this understanding of the world with others. We have a long history of doing this by drawing maps—the earliest versions yet discovered were scrawled on cave walls 14,000 years ago. Human cultures have been drawing them on stone tablets, papyrus, paper, and now computer screens ever since. Given such a long history of human map-making, it is perhaps surprising that it is only within the last few hundred years that north has been consistently considered to be at the top. In fact, for much of human history, north almost never appeared at the top, according to Jerry Brotton, a map historian. “North was rarely put at the top for the simple fact that north is where darkness comes from,” he says. “West is also very unlikely to be put at the top because west is where the sun disappears.” Confusingly, early Chinese maps seem to buck this trend. But, Brotton says, even though they did have compasses at the time, that isn’t the reason they placed north at the top. Early Chinese compasses were actually oriented to point south, which was considered more desirable than deepest, darkest north. However, in Chinese maps, the emperor, who lived in the north of the country, was always placed at the top of the map, with everyone else—his loyal subjects—looking up towards him. “In Chinese culture, the Emperor looks south because it’s where the winds come from; it’s a good direction. North is not very good, but you are in a position of subjection to the emperor, so you look up to him,” says Brotton. Given that each culture has a very different idea of who or what they should look up to, it’s perhaps not surprising that there is very little consistency in which way early maps pointed. In ancient Egyptian times, the top of the world was east, the position of sunrise. Early Islamic maps favored south at the top because most of the early Muslim cultures were north of Mecca, so they imagined looking up (south) towards it. Christian maps from the same era (called Mappa Mundi) put east at the top, towards the Garden of Eden, with Jerusalem in the center. So, when did everyone get together and decide that north was the top? It’s tempting to attribute it to European explorers like Christopher Columbus and Ferdinand Magellan, who navigated by the North Star. But Brotton argues that these early explorers didn’t think of the world that way at all. “When Columbus describes the world, it is in accordance with east being at the top,” he says. “Columbus says he is going towards paradise, so his mentality is from a medieval Mappa Mundi.” We’ve got to remember, adds Brotton, that at the time, “no one knows what they are doing and where they are going.” The first paragraph can be summarized as: maps have historical importance in a human context and have been referred to as a survival skill. (Your exaggerated mental note would say: Perfect! This is absolutely correct. Let’s say I got lost in an alien place without a map. I would be in so much trouble.) The second paragraph tells us what the point of the passage is, that the direction north had not been mentioned on the maps till the last few hundred years. Also, there is a general propensity to not have north or west demarcated because one indicates darkness and the other indicates sunset. The third paragraph discusses the north direction in Chinese maps and how it wasn’t primarily due to its usefulness in map-making. Instead, it was more to please the emperor, who looked south because of the flow of the wind. The fourth paragraph explores various cultural orientations: Egyptians placed east at the top, aligning with the sunrise; Islamic cultures favored south, oriented towards Mecca; and Christians placed east at the top, facing the Garden of Eden. The fifth paragraph explains why it would be incorrect to attribute the use of true north to Columbus and Magellan. Although they traveled by following the North Star, when they made their maps, east would be on top, in line with the Christian beliefs of that time. Now, let’s look at the questions: Q1. Which one of the following best describes what the passage is trying to do? A) It questions an explanation about how maps are designed B) It corrects a misconception about the way maps are designed C) It critiques a methodology used to create maps D) It explores some myths about maps Before we look at the options, we’ve figured out that the passage discusses the concept of the “top of the world” in terms of maps from the perspective of multiple cultures and explores the possible explanations behind north being denoted at the top in modern maps. If we examine the options now, we can see that Option A talks about questioning an explanation. While there is indeed a statement in the last paragraph that questions the conflict between following the North Star and plotting the map, it is not the central idea of the passage. Also, the passage does not question “an” explanation. If anything, it compares various
Tips on how to prepare for NMAT by GMAC entrance test
NMAT by GMAC is a computer based test that consists of 120 questions to be answered in 120 minutes. The exam has three sections- Language Skills, Quantitative Skills and Logical Reasoning. The sections are individually timed. The level of difficulty of questions is easy to moderate level of difficulty. The goal of the test-taker should be to maximize the score and not to answer difficult questions. The key to success in an NMAT exam is to be quick in arriving at the right answers. Only practice and conceptual clarity will enhance your speed in the exam. Quantitative Skills: 48 questions in 60mins. Questions are based on basic quantitative aptitude and data interpretation skills. To answer the QA questions, a thorough knowledge of concepts is essential. If you’re not able to arrive at how to begin solving the problem within 15 seconds of reading the question, it is advisable to move on to the next question. A strong conceptual knowledge will sail your boat smoothly.The data interpretation questions are generally calculation intensive, but easy to answer. In the DI set, it is prudent to solve only for the questions that have been asked for. Language Skills: 32 questions in 22mins. The section consists of reading comprehensions, vocabulary & grammar based questions on synonyms, antonyms, para jumbles, fill in the blanks, sentence correction etc. Unlike CAT, the reading comprehensions are less inferential and more knowledge-based. Tricks to ace this section are to learnnew words every single day and to improve your reading speed. Logical Reasoning: 40 questions in 38 minutes. This section will have verbal reasoning questions like statement-assumptions, strong arguments and non-verbal reasoning questions like arrangements, selections, alphanumeric series, symbol based logic etc. Speed and accuracy play a crucial role in answering these questions since you get approximately a minute to answer one question. Any set not understood in the first 25-30 seconds of reading it, should be skipped. Taking mocks: Taking mocks is the most essential part of the preparation. Take as many mocks as you can. It is more important to assess the mocks than to simply attend mock exams. Assessing mocks will provide a clear idea about stronger and weaker sections. Also, within a section, it provides a clear understanding of the concepts that need to be revisited and learnt well. Go back to the chapters and get the basics right. Time management: The order of the sections plays a vital role in the candidate’s performance. It is best to start with the strongest section, followed by the weakest and then the remaining section. Remain calm and keep a track of time during the exam. Schedule your attempts properly so you have ample time for preparation to overcome your shortcomings. Try to get acquainted with the use of plastic notepad and marker before the exam. SDA Bocconi Asia Center accepts NMAT scores .Lot of Top b school in Mumbai accept NMAT. for International Master in Business which is equivalent to a Post graduate program in Mumbai This article is written by By IMB Students “ Apeksha Kothari and JeffinJohnykutty “. Disclaimer: The article is written by SDA Bocconi Asia Center students based on their personal preparation and experience.
Unboxing Operations: Smart supply chain management
GenOps the operations club o of SDA Bocconi Asia Center, organized the second edition of OPCLAVE’18 – Unboxing Operations: “Smart Supply Chain Management.” The conclave hosted industry veterans who have experienced and shaped the digitization curve in supply and demand chain management. The event provided updates on the latest technologies and innovations, agile customer-centric supply planning, optimization strategies, risk and volatility management in a global economy, big data, IoT, and smart manufacturing. The theme focused on achieving a shift in the way we think, act, and profit in supply chain management and logistics. Mr. Abhijit Chaudhari, Mentor at Atal Innovation Mission, moderated and steered the discussion toward upcoming trends in the digitalization of SCM. The discussion centered around strategic views, preparation for execution, and the operations and management of operations. The use of analytics to interpret complex demand information in an omni-channel market in today’s age was also a key focus. Mr. Naval Sabharwal, Global Head of Logistics & Supply Chain Practice at Ramco Systems, stated, “Digital transformation is the tsunami that has hit us.” He emphasized that strategy involves people and innovation, while technology and communication are enablers for implementing this strategy. Mr. Sabharwal highlighted that digitalization and technology should contribute to making the customer and supply chain experience frictionless. “Supply chain management is not a game of technology, but a game of people.” He explained that while automation will eventually take over repetitive tasks, it will also provide opportunities for people to develop and re-skill themselves. Addressing the ever-rising concern of ROI in technology investment, he said it can be measured by the ease introduced in the lives of consumers and employees, the reduction of the gap between planning and execution, and the amount of waste removed from the entire process. Mr. Sabharwal also mentioned that data security is of prime importance when it comes to digitalization. “Going digital is not a choice but a necessity to stay ahead of the curve,” quoted Mr. Jaswinder Saini, Head of Procurement at Tata Sky Ltd. Mr. Saini also revealed that his three most significant KRAs at Tata Sky were heavily dependent on digital platforms and technological innovation. He noted that inventory control, which usually incurs heavy costs due to poor management, has been handled seamlessly by going digital. He assured that the agenda of automation and digitalization is not to lay off people but to eliminate drudgery. He highlighted that digitalization increases transparency both inside and outside of an organization. Mr. Sambit Sathapathy, Business Head – Cold Chain at Rivigo, explained that instead of getting caught up in jargon and complexities, we should focus on understanding fundamentals and simplifying processes. He elaborated on the challenges of the cold chain in India, describing it as extremely underpenetrated and plagued by three core problems: speed, temperature integrity, and visibility, which result in large quantities of fresh produce being wasted. “Real problem solving happens when you peel the onion,” stated Mr. Sathapathy. He emphasized that organizations often fail to address core problems and instead focus on surface issues, leading to ineffective solutions. As an example, Mr. Sathapathy described how introducing changeover stations in trucking improved the quality of life for truck drivers, with speed and productivity being the by-products of this fundamental change. He also highlighted that centralizing distribution and warehousing increases ROI and decreases the attrition rate of distributors. To summarize, the panelists provided attendees with a foresight into how digitalization and technological innovation are changing organizations’ approach to supply chain management (SCM). They painted a new picture in which SCM needs leaders capable of ideating and revolutionizing. This article is written by Apeksha Kothari & Jeffin Johnykutty, International Master in Business | Batch 2018-20.
#LeadershipSeries : Mr. Sumit Neogi, Vice President (HR Services), Reliance Industries Limited
Thursday 26th, 2018 | Mr. Neogi with the International Master in Business Class of 2020 Mr. Sumit Neogi, Vice President (HR Services), Reliance Industries Limited, is a veteran in the field of Human Resource Management and Organizational Development. An alumnus of XLRI, Jamshedpur, he did his Post Graduate Diploma in Personal Management and Industrial relations. He holds a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering from MANIT, Bhopal. Adding to his PGDM, he has multiple certifications from renowned institutes, both national and international. Some of which are Post Graduate Diploma in Counselling from TISS, Mumbai SAP HCM certification as an HR professional Global Professional in Human Resources, HRCL, USA Senior Professional in Human Resources, HRCL, USA Senior Certified Professional in HR, SHRM, USA It is not the number of certifications that featured Mr. Sumit Neogi, as future HR leader in People Matters and DDI’s ‘Are you in the list of 2012?’ And by Jombay as one of the ‘Top 40 under forty HR leaders’, but the sheer amount of experience he has had in the field of HRM while working for Cipla and Reliance carrying out different roles like Sr. Director and Head HR commercial for chronic & emerging alternate channels & super specialities therapy and Corporate functions (HR) while in Cipla. In Reliance he previously handled Capability development centre of excellence as HR Head. He also led the HR business partnership for Nagothane manufacturing division. Considering the plethora of experience and knowledge, Mr.Sumit was invited to SDA Bocconi Asia Center, Powai, to hold a guest session for the International Master in Business batch who have just begun their journey in the field of management studies. Since practicality is an important part to theoretical knowledge, Mr. Sumit took the guest session, in the direction of Organizational development and structure to give the students a clear view of how theory is put into practice. He was extra interactive throughout the session and jotted down all points of discussion and doubts from the students on the whiteboard and proceeded to eliminate each and every question with precision. Some of the points of discussion included: Organizational structure and development: How it is handled in real time? Recent HR trends like AI, Gamification, Blind hiring etc. Automation in HR Talent management and development Talent Retention Firing One interesting topic that Mr. Sumit covered was how the needs of the employee’s in different management level like Junior, Middle, Senior and Top management corresponded well with the Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of needs. Based on their positions, how and individuals needs varying from security to social to recognition to self-esteem. This is important since based on this employee satisfaction and talent management is achieved. Furthermore, the task of changing/preparing an organizational structure based on the needs of an organization was explained splendidly by quoting a situation he faced during his work. Overall, the entire session was a bomb of knowledge and experience which exploded right in the centre lodging shrapnel shells within the IMB students which will leave a lasting impression of how the real world functions. Written by Jeffin Johnkutty | IMB Class of 2020
SDA Bocconi Launches Its Asia Center in Mumbai
The Center will focus on postgraduate programs and executive education with deep customization of the learning experience, thanks to both international and local faculty. SDA Bocconi School of Management launches the SDA Bocconi Asia Center in Mumbai. The school of management based in Milan, Italy, (29th worldwide for its Global MBA program by Financial Times 2018) inaugurated its presence in India in 2012 through MISB Bocconi, catering mostly to the local Indian audience. As MISB completes six years, SDA Bocconi establishes it as SDA Bocconi’s pan-Asian hub, with a broader scope across India, the Middle East, China and the rest of Asia. “We want to bring to India and the rest of Asia our unique approach to postgraduate programs and executive education, based on deep customization of the learning experience to the needs of the company and the individual,” said Giuseppe Soda, SDA Bocconi’s Dean. “We will leverage our expertise in designing international tailor-made programs, as we have done with our client corporations at MISB.” “SDA Bocconi Asia Center will enable a stronger presence of the SDA Bocconi brand in India and Asia at large, with a more intense exchange of students among SDA Bocconi’s programs delivered in Milan, Mumbai, and worldwide,” said David Bardolet, newly appointed Dean for the Asia Center. “Our growing alumni network will also be integrated into SDA Bocconi’s network worldwide.” SDA Bocconi Asia Center will have a strong focus on executive education both for open and custom programs. The programs taught in India include a period of study in Italy, and many of the programs offered in Milan include an exchange stint in Mumbai to understand the Asian market. “We want to strike the right balance between international and local faculty,” continues Prof. Bardolet, “gradually increasing the number of Indian professors.” All the diplomas and certificates will be awarded by SDA Bocconi in Italy.
MISB Bocconi bags 2nd position at the Mallenial Challenge organised by Bestsellers, Unbox Retail
Three of us Ovya, Thejaswini, and Shruthi at MISB Bocconi took time out from our busy schedules and volunteered to enter into a b-school competition , The Mallennial Challenge organized by BestSellers, unBox Retail. The challenge was to survey a Retail Mall and study its demographics to suggest out of the box strategies in order to improve footfall in that mall. We could choose a single mall or a multitude of malls under the same management. Bonus points were allocated to suggest strategies to improve footfall in any one of the BestSeller stores. The deliverables included a 15 slide Powerpoint with 2-5 strategic recommendations and the detailed data analysis of the market research conducted in the field. Though it seemed tough at the beginning, we took it up wholeheartedly and rushed to our faculty – Dr. Anjana Grewal a Senior Professor of Marketing and Corporate Governance, who was the official faculty mentor for this project. We named our team “Bocconi Esploratore.” She was happy with our initiative and was overwhelmed with the enthusiasm and set the project goals straight. She also highlighted the problems and the rejections that we would face while conducting the consumer survey. Three of us were determined and chose the Seawoods Grand Central Mall-Navi Mumbai for this challenge. It was a new mall and we wanted to study the mall in this nascent stage. On the day of competition: Out of 114 entries across India, the competing teams (national finalists) were from IIM A, MICA, XLRI Jamshedpur, IIM Raipur and MISB Bocconi. They were impressed with our presentation skills, our recommendations and applauded us for the structure and the depth of research we had undertaken. That several of our recommendations were under implementation made a difference. It was a full day of masterclass where we were given exclusive access to attend retail classes and discussions among retail stalwarts. During retail strategy awards, it was announced that MICA stood 1st and MISB Bocconi stood 2nd and IIMA stood 3rd among these entries. More details about the competition: https://unboxretail.com/#/mallennial Written by Shruthi Sharma, Class of PGPB 2019 | Participant names Ovya RK, Shruthi Sharma, and Thejaswini KS
WOOING THE INDIAN SHOPPER
Insights from a report on customer loyalty in the context of Indian Retail By Prof Sandro Castaldo Western retailers are increasingly facing pricing pressure, which is decreasing their margins: They therefore are looking for new ways of leveraging the relationship with their existing customers and are focusing on loyalty-based strategies. In order to study the strategies in detail, we developed and tested a loyalty-based model across various countries. As a result, an award-winning paper was published titled “How Store Attributes Impact Shoppers” Loyalty: Do Different National Cultures Follow the Same Loyalty Building Process?” authored by Prof Monica Grosso and me. Meanwhile, retailers are also looking at foreign countries for business expansion. At the beginning of 2017, India replaced China as the most promising retail market in the world (ATKearney report 2017), thanks to the relaxed FDI rules, the recent efforts to boot cashless payments, and the reform of their indirect taxation by introducing a nationwide goods and services tax. Therefore, it is not surprising that several Western retail players look at this market as a potential area of internationalizing their business. With this thought in mind, Prof Monica Grosso and I connected with Dr. Anjana Grewal who is in-charge of Center of Excellence – Retail & Luxury at MISB Bocconi to discuss the topic. We decided to collaborate and undertook a pan India research study for the retail sector. The result was an insightful research paper titled “How store attributes impact shoppers” loyalty in emerging countries: An investigation in the Indian retail sector,” which was published in the January 2018 issue of Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. It is authored by Prof Monica Grosso (emlyon Business School, France), Dr. Anjana Grewal (MISB Bocconi, India) and me. THE ATTRACTIVE INDIAN RETAIL SECTOR The Indian Retail Sector is emerging as one of the largest sectors in the Indian economy. It accounts for 10% of India’s GDP and 8% of employment (estimated by us at 55 million). As mentioned in several reports, India is the fifth largest global destination in the retail world. We are currently seeing a significant retail transformation taking place in the country, with malls and supermarkets coming up across India at a pace not seen earlier. While malls have had mixed fortunes across the country for various reasons, the pace is expected to pick up. While we expect that it will take a few years to develop consistent footfall, the change is clearly happening. The Indian Retail Market size is estimated at USD 600 billion with organized retail achieving 8% – USD 48 billion (IBEF estimates). Using a conversion rate of 66 Rs/$, this size is Rs 3,16,000 crore which is large. The IBEF projection for the retail market in India in 2020 is USD 1.3 trillion. Market drivers influencing this acceleration are: Rapid urbanization, attitudinal shifts, a younger India, more working women and a higher consciousness towards brands. BACKGROUND Theory suggests that retailers that internationalize, attempt to transfer successful domestic strategies to a foreign environment but retail internationalization into emerging countries does not always lead to success. The objective of this paper was to develop a loyalty-building model for the Indian retail sector with the purpose of providing a guidance / direction to those who wish to enter the very complex Indian market (and of course also to Indian retailers) to validate the goodness of a loyalty-building strategy in this market by mediating between the application of a successful western strategy and the local adjustments necessary to avoid failure in a new market. Therefore, we adopted a retail loyalty building model to suit Indian market and various brands present in India. APPROACH The questionnaire was carefully adapted to reflect Indian brands and shopping habits. A digital version was developed to ensure consistent data collection across PAN India. We gathered around 1,651 samples from across 8 major cities and over 48 towns by interviewing customers face-to-face and digitally recording their responses. These samples covered eight categories within the retail sector, including apparel, groceries, pharma, luxury, consumer electronics, personal care, and home décor. The data collected on various factors driving customer loyalty were analyzed using a special two-stage model. The first stage focused on core variables like store loyalty, satisfaction, and value for money, while the second stage delved into the drivers of customer satisfaction and perceived value. KEY FINDINGS Our study shows that loyalty in Indian retail follows a path which to some extent is different to what previous studies have indicated for developed countries. Following are the key findings that are unique to India: 1. Product assortment does not impact customer satisfaction (while products are determinant in building the value for money perception of the store). This is interesting as the composition of the assortment is a key activity of the retail business. 2. The main driver of customer loyalty is satisfaction and, much less directly, value for money. 3. Customers derive satisfaction primarily from interactions with salespeople and from perceptions of value for money. Value for money, therefore, indirectly impacts loyalty by contributing to overall satisfaction. 4. Surprisingly, in the Indian context promotions do not contribute to loyalty building, while product assortment does not contribute to customer satisfaction. These two variables are central to the strategies of retailers in developed countries. 5. The last driver of customer satisfaction we determined, is the store environment. The main managerial implication of the study is that retailers who want to create a long-term relationship with their customers in India should invest mainly in customer satisfaction. Prof Sandro Castaldo is SDA Professor of Marketing, Department of Marketing Liaison and Full Professor, Marketing Department, at Bocconi University, Italy and Faculty MISB Bocconi. He is Scientific Director of the Channel & Retail Academy and Scientific Supervisor of the Executive Master in Marketing & Sales. He is a faculty member of many master courses and Master of Science degrees (such as MBA, emms, and Marketing Management) He is the author of numerous essays, books, and articles, which have been published in several
How to prepare for the Bocconi Test?
Bocconi Test conducted by SDA Bocconi Asia Center With a lot of tests being conducted over the MBA season, candidates have to prepare separately for each one of them. To make sure that the test-takers know the interface and what to expect, I have penned down a review of the aptitude test conducted by SDA Bocconi Asia Center. The test is divided into 3 parts: Verbal Reasoning Test, Numerical Reasoning, and Logical Reasoning Test. Each section has a couple of practice questions that you might want to take before you start the actual test. These will give you a feel as to what the interface would look like, where the relevant buttons are and the kind of content you are dealing with. You can also practice the sample test available here. Verbal Reasoning Test The Verbal Reasoning Test part of the exam has 30 questions to be solved in 19 minutes (the countdown timer is in the form of minutes only and so, will start from 19 minutes). The questions are completely based on comprehending short passages and drawing conclusions from the given data. The upside of having such a section is that candidates are tested purely on the basis of their aptitude and not extensively on the basis of technical content. There were 10 passages that had 3 questions each. The passages range from 100-120 words in length and are pretty easy to read and understand. The key thing to do here would be to keep a track of time and move ahead quickly. The average time taken to move through a passage would be less than 2 minutes and so, you need to make sure that you don’t get stuck on some question.Also, you will not be able to go back to a question once you have attempted it and you will not be able to move to a fresh question unless you answer the existing question or give it a pass. Not seeing a few questions in the given time period is bound to hurt you as there is a fair split of questions on the basis of their level of difficulty and you might have a few easy questions towards the end. The basic format of a question-set is a passage followed by 3 statements each of which has to be categorized under True, False or Cannot Say. The best thing to do here will be to look at verbs carefully and understand the difference between could, may, might, will, must, should and so on. If the passage talks about a possibility, the conclusion cannot be a certainty. Also, pay attention to the facts mentioned in the passage: the chronology, the data in the form of percentages, ratios, studies, etc. and the persons involved in the activity. Numerical Reasoning This is probably the toughest section of the test. You will have 18 minutes to answer a maximum of 15 questions that are in the form of data interpretation sets with 5 answer options. There are 3 questions per set and almost everything is calculation intensive. There isn’t an on-screen calculator present and so, you would have to be pretty good at guesswork if you have to save some time while solving the section. The key thing would be to read the table/chart properly before jumping on to the set or else, you might find yourself revisiting the set a few times before you get the hang of it. Considering that you have around 4 minutes per set, it makes sense to be fluid throughout the section and only allot time to a set if you feel that you will be able to crack it within 3 odd minutes. The focus is not so much on remembering mathematical concepts and formulas but in reading data quickly, understanding it and arriving at the required conclusion. Polish your ratios and percentages comparison techniques before you take this section. Logical Reasoning Test This is probably the only section for which you can prepare mentally and in terms of content. The section has 15 visual reasoning questions to be solved in 18 minutes. The questions are based on which diagram would come next in a series and has a set of 5 question figures in a pre-decided order. The questions have five options and again, the impulse would be the key in this section. The faster you are at eliminating options, the better off you would be in terms of attempts. Clockwise or anti-clockwise rotation, addition or deletion of images/parts of images and mirror reflection/water reflection are the concepts you would need to be thorough with. As is the case with the other two sections, you cannot afford to not see the last question of the section and so, need to plan your time accordingly. Final thoughts The test is certainly different from what you have been preparing for and would reveal your aptitude level fairly. The ideal attempt in the Verbal Reasoning section would be around 25 questions, in the Quantitative Reasoning section would be around 10 questions and in the Logical Reasoning section would be around 15 questions. So, a score of around 40-45 out of 72 should be a good representation of your aptitude. Not getting stuck or surprised by the test (which would lead to a lot of students giving up because it is out of their comfort zone) is the key and if you keep the above things in mind, you should be able to perform well. [Update] 21st September, 2018 SDA Bocconi Asia Center, formerly known as MISB Bocconi, is a prominent pan-Asian hub located in Mumbai, providing top-tier executive education and postgraduate programs designed by the SDA Bocconi School of Management, Italy since 2012. SDA Bocconi is a leading business school in Europe and is distinguished by its triple accreditation—EQUIS, AMBA, and AACSB—which places it among the elite business schools worldwide. The programs offered by SDA Bocconi Asia Center are recognized as being on par with other top business schools in Mumbai. Like
Strategies to score a 97+ percentile in Quantitative Ability
Now that we are entering the final phase of CAT prep, it is important to make sure that we are in our best shape come the d-day. Now, all of us are preparing for the day when everything would go according to plan. But what about those days where you will find it extremely difficult to move ahead? The important thing to understand here is that you should be so prepared that you hit the mandatory 97 percentile in a section irrespective of the contents of the test, your frame of mind and other factors that are beyond your control. Let’s look at the sub-section wise things that you could do to be extremely strong on the defensive front. With regard to the topic wise split, as would be fairly obvious by now, Arithmetic and basic Algebra would be the main topics that would lead your siege to a 97%ile. Let’s look at the important topics and how to improve them. Arithmetic The important question types here will be Time, Speed and Distance, Time and Work, Interest and Growth Rates, Ratios, Percentages, Averages and Mixtures. You simply cannot afford to take one or many of the topics lightly. A lot of aspirants we know tell us that they are fairly confident about Arithmetic but somehow end up not performing well at the actual test. This is because there is a sense of Arithmetic being easy and not glamorous. This topic is underrated by many an aspirant and so, you might not be aware of the subtle traps that could be present in the questions. As a benchmark, there would be around 13-15 questions from the above mentioned concepts (which are fairly interlinked to be honest) out of which, at least 10 would be doable. Sample this: A scaled score of 45 marks corresponded to a 97%ile in CAT 2016. Considering that there was minimal scaling, you would score 30 marks simply because you had paid attention to Arithmetic. The best sources to practice good Arithmetic questions are past year CAT, XAT, IIFT papers. However easy the sum might seem to be, however pointless you think the compound interest calculation might be, it would make perfect sense to solve these questions well. Also, even if you have solved a particular question, try looking at it from other points of view to figure out the trends and/or other questions that might accompany the said question. Algebra The second most important topic in QA. As a matter of principle, any question that involves variables is compartmentalized as an Algebra question. The important topics here would be: simple linear equations involving 2 or 3 variables, quadratic equations and basic concepts (sum of roots, product of roots, and sum of coefficients), polynomials (coefficient of a particular term), functions, series, progressions, inequalities, modular algebra, sets, logs, surds and basic graphs. Even if you are fluent with linear and quadratic equations you should do fine. Typically, there would be somewhere around 10 questions from Algebra out of which 5-6 could be classified as easy-moderate and hence, doable. Substitution, working backwards from the options, eliminating options would be the best approach in most cases and should work fine. An important factor here would be to understand what exactly has been asked. If you don’t read the question properly, you will end up in big trouble most of the time. Geometry The issue with Geometry is that, everything looks doable and the questions are fairly straightforward. However, most of the scorchers in past year papers have been from Geometry. The sheer number of concepts and formulas you would need to learn to get better at Geometry would demotivate a lot of aspirants. However, it has been observed that there around 4-5 questions that appear from the topic (out of 34 questions) and they are split into 2-3 easy, 1-2 moderate and 1-2 difficult questions. So, choosing the easier ones becomes extremely important in this particular context. Generally, the questions based on lengths and angles are easy, the ones on areas and volumes fairly moderate and the ones having a mixture of concepts (typically volume + time and work or volume + time, speed and distance) are better left alone. The effort : output ratio is pretty skewed here and unless you are good at remembering all the formulas, you may skip at least the difficult ones from this sub section. Number Theory A lot of aspirants spend disproportionate amount of time solving questions from this particular topic. Complex division (Euler, Fermat, Wilson, and Chinese Remainder Theorem), unnecessarily complex base system questions and outright stupid questions on LCM and HCF form the bulk of your mocks and practice questions. However, the questions that have appeared over the years have been extremely limited and check your fundamentals when it comes to Number Theory. If you are good with basics of factors, factorials and basic base systems conversion and knowledge, you should be good to solve a question or two from this topic. Typically, there would be 3-4 questions based on core Number Theory. Probability, Permutations and Combinations A lot of aspirants skip this topic by default which is not really recommended. A quick glance at past year papers will tell you that the questions are fairly straightforward and candidates miss out on the subtleties simply because they are making assumptions or not being able to fix the starting point properly. I would strongly suggest you to get better at linear arrangements with and without conditions, with and without repetition at the very least. Spending a disproportionate amount of time on complex question types fromdistribution of objects, conditional probability and Bayes theorem will not do you any good and so, is better left alone. Typically, you will have around 3-4 questions from PnC and Probability and so, if you can manage a couple of questions, it should be perfectly fine. How to get better at the section? A lot of time, you will figure out that you are not able to