Comment from Yashu on my interview post!

Blogger didnt allow a comment tht is this big :P....so posting it here for junta to read his experience as well :)

forgive him for he uses the shortcut language for words and many shortcuts.....u might not understand few words but wil surely grab the essence :D...Happy Reading

Comment from Yashu:

Sexy one!..As always! :)

N as far as my exp goes..most of it is already in ther :P..i wud try to dissect that "Ossum experience" as sahiti put it :)...

Dat was the time wen most of us wer travellin half the country anxiously 2 impress ppl :P..different instis...different GDs...different processes..i guess the whole experience got the critic out of me..as i was constantly comparin different process wid considerable amount of subjectivity :)

Then comes the IITM interview :)...

The whole structure was gud..neatly laid out...almost on schedule..thanks to ur seniors :)..Has a brief session wid the HOD, which was gud :)...n as sahiti tels me, who happens 2 b a rock star in the dept :)...

Moving on to GT..Surely!!!..one of the most polished group activites i had in the whole season! :)...v were 6 or 7 in all...had a kind of situation where in u r in-charge of the Sales division..and ur best guy is using unfair/unethical practices to achieve targets..has been the best sales guy of ur comapny.. in the wake of this discovery...how wud u handle the situation....

Havin had a very bad experince in my previous insti...wid some guy startin off the GD wid the crappiest and the most random details possible, i decided i wud not let it repeat :)..So, i staarted! :P...

the case was on a piece of paper, n as i cud see few guys werent finished yet wen the panel gave the cue 2 start, i started articulating the situation bein confronted by the manager quickly....30secs.., not long enuf 2 make some one else feel the same way abt me :P...Then..started off wid wat different dilemmas the manager faces and the challenge of balancin n shit...it was only after 5min...dat i realized dat this GT wud be peaceful all throu the given 15min! :) ...everyone was speakin at their own ace...none acting smart or grabbin the max airtime...n after 12min r so...v were actually encouragin oders 2 speak :P..In all, had a decent enuf discussion...in the end, the profs asked each one of us to sum up wat v discussed in the last 15min..This was my moment!:)...This was one thin i picked up dat season...scribbling imp point during discussion..Believe me!!.Comes in very handy!!:).. I was the last person 2 present the summary...n i guess i put my best frwrd :)..<> ..i vl tel u wat impresses the profs....u apparently need 2 highlight all the imp points discussed ( not only urs! :P )..This is wat gen happens..ppl summarize wat THEY feel abt the topic...nt wat they discussed..n it becomes a summary of wat U think..nt wat u discussed...and never add any new points in summary..instead say..."While v discussed all these points..I think v cud have also looked at other perspectives as...the emotional dilemma, favoritism...etc etc.."..This wud come across as brownie points..if somethin occurred 2 u at the last moment..

Now, the interview..:)

tuk some special permission to get mine slotted in the beginnin as i had a train 2 catch :)

they were 2 panelists...one guy was a US returned guy(referred to as US)..the oder one did his masters in civil(refered to as H)...and of course..on the oder end of the table...was a professionally dressed..suave mannered, admission deserving individual :P..me..Yashwanth :) (refered to as Y)..

US n H:Good afternoon Yashwanth!

Y: (Are u stil readin this?!..i mean...wat do u xpect me 2 say? :P)

H: Before v begin wid the process, i want ur opinion on smthin...I am a masters in Civil engineering..He is a Us returned guy..how do u think v cud assess u as a candidate for an MBA prog

(Ah!..Valid Question!..Can i have a change of the panel please!?:) )

This was one thing which i love :)..talkin abt seemingly unrelated stuff..and drawin logical conclusions frm it :)..then i went on abt how the process was not 2 test whether u r proficient in the technicalities but whether u fit in2 the scheme of mba prog...n ur experience wid the students in the past wud have enriched you in terms of lukin thru potential candidates and zeroin on them..and how the us guy cud bring in his experience n the students can learn so much....blah blah blah :)

<>

H: Great..If u feel so, i think v wud try our best to live up2 ur expectations...Temme somethin abt urself..

I went on and on..giving reasonable pauses...tryin my best to make it sound like..i was having a "Self-introspection" session right there...

H: Talked about some current topic...in the news...dnt quite remember...

US: So..u like Chess!..

( Oh yeah! :)..)

Do u know of this somethin called Elo rating?...

(Did i say..i "like" Chesss...Scratch dat...i "Love" Chess! :)...Ofcourse i know!!! )

Started off how Elo rating cam into existence...and how its used by FIDE 2 rate chess players..and hhow fascinating it is...dat only 4 players cud ever cross the mark of 2800!!..:).....

Wid the kind of things i was rambling...I was like..marrofying over action at a break neck speed...:P..bt then..Dude!..it was me at the wheel!...:)

and then, he tells me that he is also very much interested in Chess!..then he says..Which opening do u think is most effective?...

For a moment, i was caught offgaurd..Oh man!..U are takin the Chess thing forward!..Oh!!.I shud play this safe...If i m nt careful here, i wud end up bein marked as someone who puked it all out from wat he read on wiki the previous nite..So, i said.." Thers nothing like a perfect opening...It depends on a lot of factors like wether u want 2 b offensive..defensive..n shit...(Did u notice!.I was already an MBA!:P..I was answering using the "it depends...Contingency!:P"...)..

Then he said...Lets paly Chess for sometime..Me: (:-O)....then he says..( At this level, i realized that the depth to which this disc was leadin to was great...if i answer..i win big!..if i dnt, i dnt really lose much:)..)...Ok, wait..just tel me few initial moves of the Giuoco Piano opening...<>...Now, this was where i was showin off! :P.. I said...there are 2 types of nomenclature..and explained how the old system used to address the moves by addressing whether the piece was on the kings side or Queens..and how eventually ppl realized that such a sytem was 2 confusin :P..Then came the modern system!..wich was much more simpler! :)...I quickly recollected the opening moves of Giuoco Piano..was tellin him...bt smhw messed up the last move...n gues wat!..He corrected me!!!..I cudnt help!!..I was impressssssssed! :)...I wud hav taken him if i were interviewin him!:P..Bt then dat last hitch din really matter much i gues..he was happy wid me :)...

Ooops...got 2 rush...my FIN assignment!:)

So, cutting the long story short :P...the H guy askd me some techinical stuff ...ECE engg..cant really recal those questions...some basic fundae...Then..both of them wished me a Happy Journey!:)..Soo nice of them! :)

Post-interview:

Came out..waiting 4 sahiti...there was this cute gal who had her interview on bharatnatyam and different kinds of dancing..somethin..4got her name :)..i guess she ur batchmate now...Say hi 2 her 4 me! :D ..N also, she was lukin cute the oder day! :P..

Cant 4get the Nice feelin of the interview v celebrated wid Idhiyappam :D..

Cheers,

Yashu :)

Batch of 2010,IIM I [:D]