The First Blood: Tryst with IIML

I was interviewed by Panel VII on 22nd Feb. I reached IIMB at around 1.15 and found 3 guys sitting there, all from College of Engineering Trivandrum and obviously Malayalis. Just chitchatted with them for sometime, and 5 more people came along, all from Chennai (one was from Lucknow studying at IIT Chennai and another one was a malayali settled in Chennai). 7 out of the 9 people were studying in their final year, and one was working, and had 8 months experience till date (Nineth one is me!).

We were called in at around 2.05 pm and we were asked to write a paragraph of about 150 words on "The Secret of Being Happy is to make others believe that they are the cause of it". After we wrote down our thoughts, the sheets were taken away and we started discussion on the same topic. It went on nicely, without much of a chaos,, occassionally forming sub-groups or deviating from the topic. I chipped in 5-6 times, and contributed a point or two, but I felt I could have made it better (as usual).

I was the sixth one to be interviewed. I think my interviewers were thew same as Thecky's. Let me put them as P1 and P2. Myself shall be M.P2 asks for my certificates and I cordially hand over the two folders that I was carrying along.
P1: Tell us about yourself quickly in some two minutes:
M: My name is so and so, and I work for so and so for the last 33 months. My responsiblities include this and that, my latest assignment was this.P1 interruptrs me and asks for a little clarification.
M: After clarification, I go on with my answer, tells what my interests are. Then goes on to my strengths and says I posses good analytical skills:
P1: Do you really have good analytical skills?
M: Esssaaaaaaaar
P1 hands over to me his pen and says: Then analyze this pen.
M: The physical or functional part, sir?
P1: Which ever way you would like to..
M: OK Sir. (I decide to go for the physical analysis). This pen can be divided into two major parts, the body and the Cap. The cap has a holder, a piece to fit in the holder and a body of its own. The body of the pen has a bottom part to facilitate the insertion and removal of the refill and a refill itself.
P1: That's all?M: Yes, sir.
P1: You haven't talked anything about the processes. How would you say your analysis is complete without it/
M: Sir, I just did an analysis of its parts.
P1: Still, you should analyze the processes too, right?
M: As for processes, Sir, the cap fits into the body through a subtle mechanical projection ( HUH??? What did I mean??? ). The refill has ink, which flows out through the nib, by virtue of gravity.

P1: Now, relate this to your organization
M: Sir, just like this pen, our organization too has two parts, the management and the labor..
P1: Does XXXXX has a labor force? Is there such a classification?
M: There is no classification as such, sir. But there is a set of people who performs the managerial tasks and who plan out things, and a set of people of do the actual programming part.

P1: Why are managers necessary?
M: They facilitate the work, sir. They plan the work and decide the number of people necessary to do the work, and..

P1: They plan the work or help you plan the work?
M: Managers are involved in getting the work and executing the project, sir. So they will have to plan as to how exactly the work will be done...
P1: How will you define a project?
M: A tasks taken up by a team of people which results in a desirable outcome (Oh My god! Why did I ever attempt to create a definition ex-tempore? )
P1: So you are saying that a project will necesserily result in a pre-determined outcome?
M: I believe so, sir. May not be a pre-determined outcome, but a project will have an outcome (F1 F1...can somebody tell me how far or how close I am to the truth?)

P2 now chips in and asks something about the salary slips I had produced, some numbers not matching. I try to explain and segregate the salary slips and tell him what exactly each one of them is...P1 says it is OK, go ahead)
P2: What do you think of the new budget?
M: Sir, the finance minister has told that he is comited to bring down the Fiscal deficit and also that the fringe benefit tax would stay. So I think the budget will retain the current tax structure, but would try to bring down the fiscal deficit.
P2: How can you bring down the fiscal deficit? There are only limited resources, and your taxes are not going to increase..
M: Disinvestment of shares in Non-Navaratna companies could be an option, also, a reduction in non-planned expenditure (Oh Holy Shit!) would be an option.
P2: What is non-planned expenditure?(at this point, P1 gets up and move across to a nearby table, where a computer was installed and starts brwosing through it..may be internet, may be not...he remained there till the end of my interview)
M: Sir, I have only a vague idea about these things. Planned expenditure would consists of..
P2: You only brought up the non-planned expenditure. You should tell us what it is..
M: Sir, planned expenditure consists of expenditures towards activities which are planned: like 5 year plan, annual plan etc. Non-planned expenditure would include expenditures other than this.

P2: What all will come under it?
M: Salaries, pensions, interest of public debts etc.
P2: How can you reduce them?
M: Better governance could be an option, reduced allowances etc.
P2: Is it feasible to reduce them?
M: If we impose on ourseleves a good discipline, it is feasible, sir.
P2: Ever heard of VRS?
M: Voluntary Retirement Scheme. Yes, sir, I have heard of it.
P2: Silence
M: But sir, I don't think VRS can help in reducing the non-planned exenditure, because when people retire , you have to pay them the retirement benefits, which would be more than the salaries. In the long run, it might help, but for the current year, it is not.
P2: So, how do you think we can reduce the non-planned expenditure
M: [How many times have you asked this question, sir? Don't you think it is time you give up? Well, certainly I do think so] I offer them a sweet smile and say...Sir, I do not have much ideas about these things.
P2: If you don't have much idea, you should tell us, so that we can move forward. OK..tell me about the future of IT industry.
M: Some things about moving up the value chain, new locations like Philippines and Bulgaria, the challenge they pose towards the Indian IT companies, how clients expect more value, how important it is for us to move up the value chain and such things...

P2: Habe you heard of drifts?
M: In what context sir?(I somehow tried to relate it with Drag, about which I had learnt in third semester in Engineering...1999 that is...)
P2: WTO
M: (Relieved a bit) I have no idea, sir.
P2: You know nothing about WTO?
M: I don't know much except its expansion, sir.P2 Looks at me inquisitively. I just smile.

P2: OK then, that is it...(turns to P1 who as I said, was sitting at the computer at a nearby table) Do you have anything else?
P1: No, nothing at all, all the best (for other interviews... may be )I thank the two gentlemen and walk out, and close the door after me.