An Energetic Start to the International Master in Business Batch 2020-22
– By Ayushi Dixit & Padmavathy Srinivasan
In a first, SDA Bocconi Asia Center commenced the third batch of its flagship International Master in Business (IMB) 2020-22 programme virtually on July 13, 2020.
Kicking off the induction session digitally, Managing Director Alessandro Giuliani, Dean David Bardolet, along with other renowned faculty, welcomed and addressed the gathering of the talented batch of new students.
The academics team briefed the class with rules and regulations to be adhered to by the students to maintain camaraderie and decorum in college. With the same enthusiasm, the students attended their first pre-course in Accounting with Professor Laura Zoni.
“Accountancy was one of the most feared subjects for students ranging from diverse academic backgrounds, but as Professor Laura Zoni virtually walked in with her warm smile, the class instantaneously lit up. Within a short period, most of us had answers to different questions from accounts to audit and were ready to deep dive into the subject,” said Shreya Thukral, student of IMB 2020-22.
With classes held online, there was an added importance given to team-building exercises for students which were conducted by Ms. Shilpa Khushalani from The Enlightenment Studio.
To introduce the students into the enriching and rewarding field of management, the Career Development Services (CDS) team had invited eminent guest speakers from leading companies such as KPMG, Dell Technologies, Fortis Healthcare, ABinBev, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd, and Ernst & Young LLP. The speakers ranged from cross-functional domains including HR, Marketing, Finance, Sales, Operations, and Data Analytics. The industry leaders imparted their knowledge in an interactive session with the students.
Some of the notable speakers included Mr. Unmesh Pawar, Partner- CHRO KPMG, who shared his insights on human capital strategy, organizational transformation, and workforce coaching. This was followed by Ms. Lulu Raghavan, the Managing Director of Landor Associates who elaborated her expertise on brand and corporate strategy. Another commendable session was organized by Mr. Ramesh Babu M, National Head- Projects at Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd, where he conducted various activities such as interactive quiz and feedback session.
Meanwhile, the senior students also introduced their fellow juniors to various academic clubs and committees operating in the college.
The juniors were briefed about the objectives, selection processes, and KRA’s of these clubs and committees. Thereafter, new core committee members were chosen from the junior batch to spearhead the activities of the respective clubs. Elaborating upon his experience of the selection process, Armaan Choudhary of IMB 2020-22, told, “The selection process of various clubs and committees were very rigorous. It helped me gauge the competition that lies ahead of me in the coming two years.”
Given the importance of data analytics and the emergence of technology in management field, the new batch of IMB 2020-22 was given KPMG data analytics training under the guidance of Mr. Amit Choudhary, Manager-Analytics KPMG. Under the KPMG module, students were taught programming languages such as R, Python and SQL.
Additionally, in order to inculcate basic management hygiene among the students, the CDS conducted multiple workshops to hone business skills such as advanced Excel, presentation techniques, and CV building. Another session by Mr. Manu Shankaran Potti, Sales Manager at LinkedIn, helped students optimize their LinkedIn profiles for networking with corporates.
The rigorous yet thought-provoking workshops, guest lectures, and interactive activities provided a 360-degree view to the students on their journey for the next two years and beyond.
