Hyderabad, April 7, 2012:

The Indian School of Business (ISB) today celebrated the Graduation Day of its 11th Graduating Class of the Post Graduate Programme in Management, Class of 2012. The day also marked the Graduation of the Founding Class of the Post Graduate Programme in Management for Senior Executives (PGPMAX) at the ISB. The Chief Guest for the occasion was Raghuram Rajan, Eric J. Gleacher Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business and honorary Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister of India. Also, gracing the occasion were Adi Godrej, Chairman of the Board of Directors, ISB, Ajit Rangnekar, Dean, ISB, members of the ISB Executive Board, faculty and several business leaders.

The eagerly awaited day marked the culmination of a phase of learning, fun and personal development for the Class of 2012 and the Founding Class of PGPMAX. The ceremony commenced with the Graduation Procession led by Ajit Rangnekar, Dean, ISB. Rows of students dressed in their traditional graduation regalia sat together soaking in the words of wisdom from the esteemed guests. The Chief Guest Raghuram Rajan addressed the gathering and awarded Graduation Certificates to the 574 students of PGP and 57 students of the PGPMAX. Pride and joy reflected the mood for the evening as the families and friends of the students cheered them as they went onstage to receive their graduation certificates.

PGP Class of 2012 – Notable Achievements

Award winners

Every year, the ISB awards meritorious students by presenting them special awards. This year the school presented the ‘ISB Scholar of Excellence’ award to Himanshu Jain and Vamshidhar Reddy Gapal, in recognition of their demonstrated record of outstanding academic achievement throughout the programme. Santosh Mohanram was awarded the ‘Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Leadership’ for displaying exceptional all-round abilities. He also won the prestigious ‘Global Student Leadership Award’ awarded by the Graduate Business Forum (GBF) at New York. He was selected from among nominees of the 50 top B schools across the world.

Joining these achievers were 58 students who made it to the Dean’s list comprising of the top 10% of the class and 69 students were awarded with the ISB Young Leaders and Torch Bearer awards. Two faculty members were honoured as ‘Professors of the Year’ for excellence in teaching – Professor Prashant Kale as the “Professor of the Year for Core Courses’ and Professor Arun Pereira as the “Professor of the Year for Elective Courses.”

Year of intense activity and accomplishment

The Class of 2012 built on the wonderful tradition over the years of growing the richness of the programme through their fresh thinking and new initiatives. The Co2012 demonstrated leadership in thought and action throughout the year as they hosted over 13 conferences, consulted over 60 companies as part of the Experiential Learning Programme (ELP), participated in over 43 competitions, domestic and global and hosted 200+ CxO’s through various initiatives during the year. Some of the other interesting initiatives include –

• ‘Pathshala’ – Students took on the role of tutors and held knowledge sharing sessions for the entire class to get an insight and understand best practices of the sectors where they had prior work experience.
• ‘Diffusion’ – A workshop to train NGO staff to increase their knowledge of business and management skills in Patna and Hyderabad.
• ‘ISB Sustainability’ – An initiative to make the campus environment friendly in line with global standards.
• ‘ISB Wiki’ – An initiative that will act as a guiding tool for all the future incoming students to understand the school, its philosophy, people and the practices associated with it.

Class Gift

In line with the students’ tradition of giving back to the school, the PGP Class of 2012 gifted the school an amount of Rs 45 Lacs, which is being used towards the refurbishment of a state-of-the-art badminton and basketball courts, and upgrading the football ground, in the school. Founding Class of PGPMAX – Notable Achievements

Award winners

The Founding Class of PGPMAX had its own share of outstanding achievers. Rajiv Bajaj, PGPMAX student and Managing Director, India – Hollingsworth & Vose India Pvt Ltd was awarded the ‘Scholar of Excellence’ for topping the programme. He was joined by 5 other students who made it to the Dean’s List of outstanding performers. In a record of sorts, Professor Prashant Kale was also awarded the ‘Professor of the Year Award’ by the PGPMAX students. Life after ISB

Students of the Founding Class of PGPMAX have already demonstrated great success in their careers and have been contributing to their organizations with increased effectiveness. Several of them have moved into leaderships positions including that of CEO’s and COO’s. The entrepreneurs have also shown remarkable results as they either scaled or expanded their businesses further. PGPMAX also served as an ideation platform for the launch of four new ventures – a medical devices company, a construction company, a software company and a new executive search firm. ISB Global Alumni Network

With the graduation of the 11th Class of the PGP and the Founding Class of PGPMAX, the ISB brand is now represented by a 4200+ strong alumni network which is spread across 25 countries. This is further strengthened by 13000+ alumni of the Executive Educational programmes over the decade. The school also has over 150 alumni entrepreneurs in various sectors and a large number of alumni who are involved in their family businesses. The school is committed to providing a platform for the continuous development of its alumni through life-long learning programmes, career development and support. 2012-13 – Hyderabad & Mohali

Continuing its journey of successes, the ISB now enters its second phase of growth with the setting up of the Mohali campus. On April 14, 2012, the school will welcome the ~770 students of the Class of 2013 of the PGP, which will be delivered concurrently at two locations – Hyderabad (~560 students) and Mohali (~210 students). The school will function as one unified entity with a seamless integration across two campuses.

Quote Sheet

Ajit Rangnekar

“As all of you go forth into the real world outside, I hope you will remember what we have always exhorted you to do, and that is to always be responsible in your thoughts and, deeds. All of you have been brought up in good families and know what good and responsible behavior is. I hope we have added to that upbringing. I am sure that at all times, each one of you will act to the highest standards of ethical and moral values. That, more than anything else, will make your family and us proud.

Adi Godrej

“Leadership is about doing the tough things which need to be done and no one else wants to do, not just the popular ones. It is about telling the truth about how things are, not what people want to hear. A leader needs to think the future backwards, not the present forwards. He or she must have a clear vision of the future and then plan how to achieve it backwards through full involvement of his or her team.”

“Leadership development through constant exposure to new ideas is important. Your education is not over once you step out of business school. A critical factor of success is your ability to continuously learn and adapt to changes in your environment. How you do things is more important than what you do. Doing things right is more important than doing just the right” Raghuram Rajan

“The achievement of narrow personal goals — greater wealth, rapid promotion, or increasing renown – rarely brings you anything other than brief pleasure. I don’t claim to know the secret of happiness, but this seems obvious – if you like the journey, if you get pleasure from the work you do, it matters far less when, or indeed whether, you reach your destination. You have far more control over the journey you choose.”

source: http://www.isb.edu / Hyderabad, April 07th, 2012