Media Conclave

Under the twilight of the evening skies, in the open air theater of IIM Bangalore we witnessed a meeting of the minds, a coming together of ideas to define an interesting topic - The New Indian. Big names like Mani Shankar Aiyer, Manish Sabharwal, R K Mishra and Krish Ashok explored various avenues of attributes that shapes us in the new generation in a discussion moderated by Sidin Vadukut. 

It was a joy to lounge back on the grass and listen to the flow of thoughts interspersed with a sense of humour that had the audience gripped.. In between bouts of laughter to the comments, the discussion saw issues like poverty, education, labour market, technology which prompted the students to think and ponder for themselves.. In a subtle and engrossing mix of humour and seriousness, the panel explored questions of patriotism, answering the doubt of a question poised by the audience and tried to put a definition and an understanding of patriotism..They also went on to discuss about how the world outside sees us and what is the image if India and the image of Indian outside India.. Then the conversation turned towards the idols and heroes of the modern Indian.. While some were of the opinion that the current heroes were flippant and that older generation idols had more integrity, there was some dissent to that opinion also. 

All this led to them deciding on whether there has been any change in the definition of Indian and comparing between the old Indian and the new Indian.. While Mr. Aiyer thought there was no change in the Indian, R K Mishra opined that the new Indian is more bold, confident but is also the one who prefers to argue in the dining room rather than coming to the pollbooth.. Mr. Sabharwal was of the opinion that the new Indian is luckier than the old Indian with many more opportunities.. And Mr. Krish Ashok defined the New Indian as doing jalsa, shopping for Windows, more tech savvy, better informed, and occasionally mis-informed.

Even with such varied definitions one came out of the discussion, inspired to think more about where the country is going and where is the place of the New Indian in the world. In the context of people saying that the next decade will be the greatest for India, we hope he emerges on the world stage and retains his image to portray both the advancement and the heritage of the country..

Bizarre - the Open Quiz

Vista concluded this evening with Bizarre, the traditional Business Quiz, conducted by none other than Mr. Derek O'Brien and his company. 

A prelim round in the afternoon was followed by a face to face with 6 teams on stage in the breezy Open Air Theater. And two teams had an IIMB flavor too - including one with Prof. Rajeev Gowda! With his trademark wittiness, Derek certainly made the quiz a lot of fun to attend - as could be seen from the size of the audience. From "What is the largest solar harvesting industry" (agriculture) to "which is the most expensive spice after saffron" (vanilla), the questions were reasonably tough but just workable enough for the audience to be actively discussing the answers amongst themselves...

People from a host of companies like GE, Sun, KPMG, TCS, Yahoo!, Oracle etc. took part (the prelims had over 100 teams taking part). But in the end, the victors were fairly seasoned Bangalore quizzers - a team comprising people from Accenture, Sun and Kotak. And hey - the team from IIMB with Prof. Gowda in it came a close second, much to the joy of his students!

All-in-all a high voltage and exciting event - that saw relaxed FII (Forum for Industrial Interaction at IIMB - the organizers of Vista) members sitting down and having fun - after days!

Sidin Vadukut's Book Reading

Today, on the final day of Vista 2010, lit-geeks and humour-freaks assembled for Sidin Vadukut' book reading session, in front of the IIMB mess.


For those not in the knowing, Sidin Vadukut is one of India's top bloggers and the managing editor of Mint. Sidin did his schooling in Abu Dhabi, then obtained a degree in engineering from NIT Trichy. He did his post-graduation in IIMA, received an offer from a day-zero consulting firm, which he ditched for a career in journalism. Sidin also writes a popular blog at www.whatay.com. It's a hilarious blog with a huge following. Also, quite recently, Sidin wrote his first book, Dork : The amazing adventures of Robin Einstein Varghese.


And with his self-deprecating brand of humour, make us laugh he did. A style that is difficult to replicate here and which won't even sound good, so I'm not trying! But in short he answered several questions that the host (Shri Praveen Gopalkrishnan of the IIMB Media Cell) posed - including the monetary difficulties in his 'chosen path' (reaching the top of Maslow's Pyramid ... now isn't that something all we MBAs want?), what he feels about his own book etc. etc. 


And in the end, Sidin read out some bits from his novel... and yes we can vouch that this will be a good buy :)
Sidin Vadukut will be speaking at the Media Conclave in the Open Air Theater at 5:00 p.m. today... be there!

A Helping Hand ...

They don't need our pity, neither our sympathy. They seek a life of dignity and self-dependence and they seek our help towards achieving it. That was the essence of Sparsh- the social responsibility event in which participants were asked to solve cases based on the problems faced by the NGOs - Samarthanam and Seva In Action. These NGOs aim to make the physically disabled employable. The event involved the finalists visiting these NGOs in Day0 and getting to know their operating model and existing facilities. Thereafter, they had to come up with plans to improve the returns on existing infrastructure and think of future areas of growth within the budget constraint of the NGOs.

The finalist team did their ground work well and impressed the jury with innovative and well-thought ideas. The team from TAPMI (Beacon) and the team from IIM Bangalore (Utkarsh) were adjudged for the best idea for case Samarthanam and Seva In Action, respectively.

Business is in the air !

Business is in the air ! It is time for the final leap. No doubt the competition is cut-throat.

At Street Smart - the merger and acquisition competition, six teams - three on buy-side and three on sell-side presented their pitch. The case from education sector was very contemporary and called for considerable in-depth industry and market research. The event was spread over three rounds (including the prelims) with multiple rounds of negotiations during which the teams re-formulated and re-negotiated their strategies. When the teams discussed the minutest details of pricing the deal by factoring in every recent event from recession to jump-effect - you knew they meant business! At the end of it, Nishant and Priyank (buy-side) and Ankit and Arunava (sell-side), both the teams from IIM Bangalore, emerged as the smartest on the street and walked away with the prizes.

But the market champs ain't no less. In tune with the contemporary price wars in the telecom sector of India, the event SCAN involved designing a market research and coming up with a market entry strategy for a new entrant in the sector. The finalist teams did the work with a panache as they outlined the strategy for customer targeting, pricing, advertisement and promotion and roll-out. The crtical questions from the judges required the teams to think on their feet. The teams from MDI and IIFT walked down the winning carpet !

The invasion of Greeks

One of the earliest events in the day was the strategy case presentation of the tully breweries. The participants seemed unusually excited about the case and we understood the reason when they started presenting their analysis of the beer markets' segmentation, targeting and positioning. One could see their joy at getting to do a case study on a subject so close to their heart. 

But the judges were no fools.. They ripped into the teams and tore through their analysis with critical and insightful comments and the participants were forced to think fast and back up their thought processes by providing sound reasoning and logical opinions.. The Greeks might have needed a Trojan horse to get into the city.. But these students just used their intelligence, their management fundae taught by their classes and excel and powerpoint to get into the heart of the problem and destroy it from within.. 

A special mention of the participants from SIBM of Pune and of IIM Shillong to compete in the event.. Kudos to you guys.. Keep it up..  

Brain teasers !!

The smartest corporate brains battled it out for their honour. With brain-teasers that leave you gaping, this was not a quiz you could just walk away with. With questions ranging from the story behind the logo of Congress to the battle between brands in Silicon Valley, the quiz was an ultimate challenger. The quiz witnessed participation from corporates like Yahoo, KPMG, Vertebrand, TCS, FICO, Sun Microsystems, to name a few.

Top six teams were selected after a prelim written round to battle it out in the finals hosted by quiz-master Mitesh Agarwal. Mitesh sprinkled the quiz with humour, wit and brains. The questions ranged from the domains of car, telco, superstition, music, diet food, fashion retail and silicon valley - and tested the depth and breadth of one's knowledge. Goodies like bags, t-shirts and gift vouchers kept the audience involved throughout the quiz.

Then & Now.

Gone are the days of 'Hamara BAJAJ' and 'AMUL- The Taste of India'. No longer does the entire nation sing to one common tune. Hence, the need for separate Ads like - chhota re-charge of Vodafone for the common man, and ZooZoo Ad series for the consumer driven by value-added services. True to VISTA's theme of - India at the  crossroads- O&M Ad Workshop was all about the challenges of advertising in a nation that is evolving of age. With the diverse tastes and ideologies it has become increasingly difficult to target an entire segment of customer through one advertisement. Creativity is challenged beyond limits. With over 100 participants, the 2 hour workshop was an odyssey to remember.  

'ars gratia artis' @VISTA Art Gallery

Watch out for the magic of art being created live @ VISTA 2010

Numero Uno - Round 4

As a CEO of your company, you'd be expected to guide your people, lend them a helping hand whenever they need it and help them cross barriers... quite literally!


Because that's what Round 4 of Numero Uno was about. The participants were divided into three groups... Cats, Dogs and Crows (??!!) ... and each group had a few tasks to complete. Walk over a plank, jump on to a rope ladder, cross over to a second plank, swing your way there... you get it! Of course there was no way any ONE person could do it alone. You definitely needed your buddies to help you cross this Mario-like (:P) track. And in turn, you helped them. This round was all about teamwork. So if you quarrelled, that's it, game over for your group. 


And what had the wannabe CEOs really cracking was the rather Crow-y game of pipes filled with balls that you had to take out - not with your beaks, but by pouring water into them. Nice, simple, sweet, obedient pipes, with tiny holes all over them so that the water would leak out fairly quickly. The solution? Sometimes it's all about brute force - the participants struggled to block the holes with their fingers!


Be there on the L-square lawns as the action carries on all afternoon!!

House Full !

That's the state of the workshops at VISTA'10 ! The Art of Brand Managment workshop was so sought after that you could see participants standing and sitting on the floor. From the participant feedback at the end of the workshop we say, it was every penny worth it !

As Harish Bijoor put it succintly - "Brand Management takes place without customer intervention. It is this involuntary nature of a brand that makes Brand management a challenge !" The audience was charmed as he substantiated his stance with day to day examples. As always, his unconventional style stood out prominently. Some of the take-aways from the workshop were his emphasis on customer focus, rationality of rural consumer and irrationality of urban consumer, the fast to slow, and hard to soft transformation in consumer preferences.

The IPR workshop is off to a house-full start as well. Next in line: Ad workshop by Ogilvy & Mather (Time : 1.30). Don't miss it this time !

Food Times at Vista

Like with every other self-respecting fest in the country, Vista is actually partly about the food on offer. As you can see, the negotiation, bargaining and lending...

...is not limited to Finance ;)


A host of exciting options await you in front of the IIMB mess - from freshly baked pizzas to spicy kathi rolls, to even candy floss and corn. So whatever be your interest - Finance, Operations, Marketing or Eating - make sure you don't miss out on this opportunity!

Big Deal!

When 36 people would go through to the final round of the game, how easy would it be qualify? As yours truly found out, not very...


With people pouring in and registering en masse, Deal Street proved to be one popular game among the crowds at Vista. And by extension, very competitive too! The first round consisted of a simple quiz, meant for the purpose of elimination. This was the round from which the lucky 36 were picked.


And what was the game about? ... remember Monopoly? Well nothing quite as simple, but equally fun! The 36 people were formed into 5 groups, each of which played on one board. As businessmen and shrewd investors, they could dish out huge sums of money for cities like New York and London and build hotels there. Hotels that would generate huge revenues them you as unlucky opponents landed on these cities. Or they could play Risky Romeo - buying Pakistan and Somalia  that came really cheap but presented significant challenges when it came to developing them.


There were resources like Oil Fields which they could auction for or purchase. These resources in turn enabled them to build their cities. To add to the fun, there were also pirates who infested the seas near Indonesia, ripping them off their cash if they happened to land on those squares. But undoubtedly, the most exciting part of the game - and the one that had most players on their toes shouting like caffeinated bunnies (at 2 a.m.!!) was the 'striking the deals' part. Like in real life, they could purchase assets off their opponents, provided they had the money or the resources to do it. Of course if they didn't... there were the banks! And who better but the hard-working Vista volunteers to play the part of the tireless bankers!


And like a true good game of Monopoly, this one didn't seem to end. Even at 2:30 at night, the players couldn't be least bothered with what the clock had to tell... all that mattered was ripping their opponents off! So only tomorrow will tell, what happened in the night...

The Spirit of Research

'Can I just have a minute of yours...'


And no, this time you can't pretend you're busy, and there's no phone to cut the call.

With SCAN, Vista's Market Research event fast approaching, the Campus was alive with the buzz (ahem!!) of wannabe market researchers from the teams that qualified for the second and final round of the event. So mirror, mirror - who'll prove to be the most persistent of 'em all? Be there to watch the finals!

SCAN Finals
January 31, 10:30 a.m. 

Numero Uno

The fight is on. Numero Uno, the flagship event of Vista has been shaping up as one of the most exciting and gruelling competitions of the fest as promised.. With MULTIPLE ROUNDS, (capitalized to bring your attention to the number of levels that are present in the event), that plan to test the stamina and stubbornness and sheer perseverance of the finalists, it is living up to its name of producing the number one in management.

Today's rounds started off with an ice breaker where everybody was pitted against everybody.. To be honourable or to be cunning?? Or to win? The classic case of prisoner's dilemma among people who are not just rational but who can also be smart and devious and take decisions that will lead them to victory over others.. The competition was intense like at a poker table but here the stakes were higher.. But its all part of Numero Uno..

The second round cast these aspirants as generals commanding their army or more specifically their army supplies.. Of course the participants adapted quickly thinking along the lines of where to send the ammunition? and when to order and how much to order so that the troops don't perish.. They also had to remember not to squander away their war chest and keep the costs at a minimum.. They would probably have gotten PPOs from the Indian Army if anybody from there had seen it..

And the story doesn't stop there of course.. Their business acumen still had to be put under the scope and what better way to do that than with a case?? That was the third round.. The 15 chosen from the 15 colleges were shown a video case which they would they would have to analyze and present their views and conclusions as a presentation.. The round was wrapped up with a group interview taken by none other than journalists from Economic Times.. Participants were asked to express their opinions on everything business related and non business related..

And if you think they had a moment to rest after the being put through the grindstone, well you are wrong.. There is much more awaiting them at every turn and corner.. but it is not only these participants.. there is much more excitement and activity waiting for you too at Vista.. Come, explore, experience and enjoy..

YES WE CAN !

The Sustainability Conclave has set the stage already. With AL GORE WORKSHOP, VISTA takes the next step towards its commitment as a Green festival. The 'Al Gore Workshop' at IIM Bangalore is being conducted by the presenters individually trained by Mr. Al Gore himself under the patronage of Dr. R K Pachauri as part of The Climate Project (TCP).

The workshop paves the way for turning the determination into action. If you think you can contribute to a Green earth, this could be your stepping stone.


TIME: 5pm, January 30.

Time for some Corporate Battle.

Watch out for the corporate master-minds battling it out at VISTA's Corporate Quiz hosted by acclaimed quiz-master Mitesh Agarwal.

Mitesh Agarwal is what one calls a 'Practicing Quizmaster'. He has won several quizzes including the prestigious Tata Crucible Corporate Quiz, Landmark Open Quiz & the Odyssey Open Quiz. An earlier winner of many quizzes at IIM-Bangalore, he is one among the 3 idiots in the 'Metaquizziks' quiz team from Bangalore. He has conducted quizzes like the Hindu BusinessLine AdClub Quiz, Oasis Open Quiz, Sun Technovate IT Quiz etc.

Be there for some real brain-twisters. True to the VISTA promise, we have something for everyone. The event promises attractive prizes for the audience too !! Grab yours :)

Prelims: January 30, 2.00-3.00 pm

Finals  : January 30, 3.30-5.30 pm

Unconventional !!

That is a word synonymous with Harish Bijoor ! Harish Bijoor is a prolific blend of an entrepreneur, author, quizzer and brand manager, all combined in one. His hatke branding ideas helped Tata Tea and later Tata Coffee enhance its brand image and revenues like never before. These include printing 'Tata Coorg Pure Coffee' on three million eggs, knowingly hanging banners upside down and printing 'Tata Kaapi' on papads! However, his most outstanding innovation was the creation of the world’s largest coffee mug in Bangalore, which event coincided with fifty years of India’s independence.

With an emphasis on market study and consumer behavior coupled with instinct and intellect, Harish Bijoor is highly effective in the field of marketing. He also writes regularly for columns in leading newspapers, especially on branding, and is currently authoring two books. Widely travelled, he has authored Marketing Trends, a book meant to stimulate consumer interest in marketing–specific issues. Harish Bijoor has the uncanny ability to combine technology and ground reality, and consequentially enhance the mass appeal of a brand.

VISTA'10 brings to you the opportunity to learn the Art of Brand Management from the Brand-Guru himself - Harish Bijoor.

 
When  : 30 January, 11:00-12:00 am
Where: Room C13, IIM Bangalore

Value meets Sustainability !

Mrs. Meera Sanyal captured the essence of the conclave best when she said, "Sustainability is sustainable if we direct our efforts at reducing Man-Nature conflict." Indeed, that is the big question today- How do we improve human development indicators without destroying nature? The leaders at the conclave sought to answer some of these questions of ours as they shared their views in a panel discussion moderated by Prof. Rajeev Gowda from IIM Bangalore.

                             

Mrs. Meera Sanyal shared some heart touching experiences from remote parts of India like the Chilka Lake(Orissa) and the Sunderbans (West Bengal) while talking of the projects she has been involved with. She talked of the change in the existing paradigm of business in these areas effected through eco-tourism that intends to 'turn the Poachers into Protectors' of the rich bio-diversity in these areas.

Mr. Rohan Parikh talked of the efforts being taken at Infosys to improve sustainability and reduce carbon footprint. Infosys gives the ecological footprint of every employee in their monthly payslips in order to increase awareness at an employee level as well. His mention of the savings in expenses at Infosys  through sustainable practices was cheered with a huge applause.

Mr. Chetan Maini re-emphasized the role to be played by technology in adding value to sustainability when he mentioned about Reva travelling across the country by using a minimal 350kW of energy worth a mere Rs. 1000. Mr. Ravi Singh brought to fore the efforts being taken by WWF-India to optimize sustainability index and living planet index in various corporate settings.

The moon-lit Open Air Theatre, the pleasant breeze, the green grass to sit on and nariyal paani  being served to the dignitaries made for a perfect ambience to the occasion. There was an active interaction between the panel and the audience. The event was just opportune for the launch of IIM Bangalore's first-ever sustainability report. Truly, Sustainability Conclave 2010 was an eye-opener in every sense of the word !!

IIMB has finesse.

IIM Bangalore won both the first and second position of the ultra and super complex private equity event with Varun Bhandari and Khistij Seth walking off with the first place and Jiten Pujara and Anshul Sultania at the second place. Delhi School of Economics' team of Gagandeep Singh and Utkarsh Saxena obtained third place in the event..

In a game designed to maximize your "networth", the contestants duked it out with ultimate ruthlessness, cunning strategies and daredevil risks.. There was a very narrow gap between the first and the second teams but then, that's where the cutthroat competition sneaks in.. Cavorting your way through investments and playing the hot game of merger and acquisition to achieve one thing that everyone wants.. To be filthy rich..

The team organizing it got great reviews on their arrangements for the finals which was much more interactive and much more dynamic that kept the finalists on their toes for close to three and a half hours.. The CC room was quite heated during the last moments with the finalists going for the last mile hoping to grab that extra opportunity and put a claim to the fame..

But this is not the last of such hot and heavy events.. Vista has a line of such ones to keep your entertainment fueled.. Keep looking at the page for details on more..

And then, nature arrived...

Profits be thy name, strategy be thy game! This is how one tends to define an MBA.

Solving a business problem is what MBAs are made for. Improving the bottom line is what MBAs dream of. But at Prakriti, a case study competition organized by WWF-India and Vista 2010, a whole new persona of the leaders of tomorrow came to the fore. The case revolved around the issue of how to attract and retain good talent in WWF-India, a not-for-profit organization striving to conserve the wild life.

Brilliant insights and novel solutions came forth from the five finalists who competed to save WWF from this crisis in the case. Some talked about novel fund raising options which WWF can have whereas some talked about devising a media plan to attract talent and create awareness about WWF. Some also focussed on introducing innovative human practices to retain talent. The teams were judged not only on the basis of presentation, but also on their ability to defend their stance against the barrage of questions posed by competing teams. Thus the whole atmosphere was filled with critical brainstorming on the issue faced by WWF.

The judge, Ms. Bhawna Prasad, Head of Strategy, WWF-India was thrilled at the depth and breadth of analysis that the teams brought to the table and could not avoid the stereotypical, “It is difficult to judge!” The results were announced with two teams sharing the first position, she was not joking indeed. The prize included Rs.15000 in cash, WWF Membership and a free tour to a wild life sanctuary sponsored by WWF.

Day 1: After Inauguration

L cluster was "the" place to be with most of the events happening in the four classrooms including finesse, drishtikone, bzzwings, Vertebrand Brand workshop and round 2 of street smart..

Vertebrand Brand workshop and Finesse were the two that started off the events at the L cluster and we could see people slowly trickling in for these events.. Around 25 people attended the workshop and had a great time learning about branding.. 

Meanwhile Finesse was held in the two ground floor rooms and the quiz left people scratching their heads.. But the true pundits of finance and private equity were able to sweat it out and get into the final rounds.. The final round was no less challenging with people thinking and talking in numbers language and throwing one after another doubt at the team organizing it.. Well, may the man with the more money win!!

"Citius, Altius, Fortius"

"Citius, Altius, Fortius" meaning "Faster, Higher, Stronger"- as Mr. Bharat Doshi concluded the inaugural ceremony of VISTA'10 with those words, the packed auditorium despite an early start to the day, was an acknowledgement of the fact that VISTA'10 is living upto the adjectives.

Vishwa set the stage for the morning as he reiterated VISTA's commitment to minimizing its carbon foot-print by resorting to measures like the use of re-cycled papers, 50% reduction in paper used and minimal indoor activity to conserve electricity. Professor B Mahadevan, the Dean Administration, IIM Bangalore reinforced the importance of sustainable practices as he quoted an experiment in Arizona that despite of hefty expenses failed to recreate nature even in an experimental setting. Mr Allen Sequeira, from Mahindra group, conveyed his appreciation of the emphasis placed by VISTA on sustainability. Mahindra Group practices triple bottomline reporting itself and goes out of its way to adobt sustainable practices.

As a pre-cursor to the immense learning packed in the 3 days ahead, Mr. Bharat Doshi talked of India's journey from sprint to marathon i.e. from the pre-liberalisation era to the current globalisation era. He talked of A^3 + E: Awareness, Anticipation, Agility and Endurance, as the mantra for the nation in times of volatility and turbulence, such as those witnessed during the recent global meltdown.

With that VISTA'10 comes to a roaring start ! Keep visiting for more updates as they happen...

Watch out for -

Vista is not without its centerpieces.. and the first day does have quite a few lined up for people to keep an eye on.. if you're not busy participating, then you should be getting a piece of this action.. So, what are these events?? Well, we have -

Numero Uno:
Sponsored by Uninor of the "ab mera number hai" fame.. Numero Uno is THE flagship event of Vista, aimed at finding the future leaders of tempered steel and worthy of walking away with the crown of being the most eligible leader.. IIMB is sporting Mario Gonsalves from its side and other colleges are sending their champions and these gladiators are getting into the arena tomorrow.. Be there to witness the glory, the blood, and the excitement..

Bzzwings:
Joining a dream company and earning big bucks is passe. Starting your company and being the CEO of your own little den is the "in thing". And we of course recognize that.. That is why we have given a stage for these trendsetters and trailblazers to air their ideas, share their visions. Don't miss a chance to get the autographs.. They might just be the next Tatas, Birlas or Ambanis..

Finesse:
Fine wine, fine jewelery and fine women are something admired for the sheer complexity that goes into producing such an experience.. We promise that this will be nothing less.. Private Equity, Strategy, Risk, Investment, Valuation, Entry-management-exit and even case analysis.. It is the cocktail that gets you high..
Come, soar the skies with us..

Prakriti:
Case studies are the bread and butter of management schools.. But it acquires an entirely different flavour when you do it for a just cause.. That's where the vista green comes in..Involving a case with one of the partners of the event, WWF-India it is where management and environmentalism converge to create sustainability..

These are some of the main attractions of tomorrow.. Apart from these, there are a lot of events lined up for you to participate.. So, close your laptops, stop watching movie and series reruns in your pajamas and come to IIM Bangalore for here's where the action is..

GREEN is IN !

You have heard, you have pondered. You never knew how you could make a difference. But, YES YOU CAN !

VISTA'10, in its endeavor to go green, brings a host of events that help us realise our role in environmental sustainability. Sustainability Conclave brings eminent personalities like Meera Sanyal, Chairperson, ABN AMRO Bank; Ravi Singh, Secretary General & CEO, WWF-India; Chetan Maini, Deputy Chairman, Reva Electric Car Company; Rohan Parikh, Head of Green Initiatives, Infosys, Bangalore; on a common platform to share their ideas and their vision for the future. These speakers are thought leaders who have achieved excellence in their respective fields while standing for sustainable practices which pave the path for a cleaner, greener and an equitable future for the citizens of the world.

Come and hear the leaders encore- YES WE CAN, YES WE WILL !!

When  : January 29, 5:00-7:00 pm
Where: Open Air Theatre, IIM Bangalore

The gala begins, and how !!

The much awaited VISTA'10 nears its dawn ! At the inaugural event, we bring to you the some of the top brass of the Mahindra Group of industries. Here's a sneek-peek into their profiles.

Mr Bharat Doshi, Executive Director and Group Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Doshi is Chairman and Director of several companies in the Mahindra Group. He is an eminent speaker and has spoken at several international and domestic forums on economic and management topics over the years. Recently, Mr. Doshi was invited to speak at the OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) EmNet (Emerging Market Networks) international discussions meet in Paris. Mr. Bharat Doshi was adjudged 'India's Best CFO' by the leading business fortnightly Business Today (India Today Group Publication) in April 2005 and was also conferred the 'CFO of the Year' Award by IMA India, an associate of The Economist Group, in December 2005. In November 2007, Mr. Bharat Doshi was honoured with the prestigious CNBC CFO of the Year 2007 award.

Mr K Venkataraman, CEO Mahindra Retail Limited

Mr. Venkataraman joined Mahindra Group as the first CEO of its retail business when Mahindra decided to foray into retail business in 2007. Mr. Venkataraman has been trying to create a niche market for Mahindra Retail by targeting newer and unique markets. For example, Mahindra Retail has recently entered into a unique venture with the launch of Mom & Me stores, which specialize in infant and maternity care.

Ohh my, I'm rushing to the Auditorium, IIM Bangalore, January 29, 9:30 am sharp. With bigwigs of that repute coming over, you'd definitely not like to miss the fun !! Would you??

The Buzz is Here, Where are you??

The buzz is on as participants from every nook and corner of the country have started to pour in at the place to B- yes IIM Bangalore it is !!

VISTA 2010 is definitely getting bigger and better as the list of participating institutes seems to be growing like never before. If the event shortlists are anything to go by, we have representation from institutes like - IIMA, IIMB, IIMC, IIMK, IIML, IIMI, IIMS, FMS, IIFT, NITIE, SIBM, SPJain, MDI, MICA, IMT, TAPMI, Christ University, XIME, IIFM, National Law School, Delhi School of Economics, IITB, IITD, IITM, NITK... Ufffff !! The battle for the ALTAR VISTA trophy is getting tougher every day.

If your institute hasn't made it to the list yet, it is time to make your presence felt. So, buckle up coz tomorrow could just be your day !! Be here to battle it out for your insti as the event unfolds :)

Gearing up for vista 2010

Although people can be seen running around the campus in the night like usual, this night is something different with everyone pitter-pattering for one sole purpose - Vista 2010, one of the biggest management fests of the country. With only a few hours remaining for the inauguration, everyone seems all pumped and fully ready to unload their creative shots and put in the finishing touches for the grand launch..

From people kneeling on all fours painting the ground with the vista logo to people frantically making slides for the events, everyone is involved in the mayhem one way or another.. Although team Vista seems to be the most harangued being stretched in hundred different directions, they seem to be enjoying it nevertheless..

All that hard effort is certainly warranted, what with the major events lined up for the 3 days.. But now let's take a peek-a-boo at the major attractions lined up for tomorrow..

The "don't miss event" tomorrow is the keynote address which is gonna be sporting some biggie names from Mahindra and Mahindra like Mr Bharat Doshi, Executive Director and Group Chief Financial Officer, Mr K Venkataraman, CEO Mahindra Retail Limited and Mr Allen Sequeira, Executive Vice President Group HR and Leadership Development. It starts at 9:30 sharp in the auditorium inaugurating the fest.. So, do get up early on a holiday, and yes, we know how difficult it is, but hey.. its Vista!! You don't want to be sleeping this particular weekend.. 

So, to take Tata Tea's slogan: "Jaago re, Vista has arrived"  

Watch out this space for more news on the events and other hot n happening news of Vista 2010.. 

Expect to be informed and entertained.. 

Mani Shankar Aiyar

Former Union Cabinet Minister and eminent writer, Mani Shankar Aiyar is one of the biggest attractions of Vista 2010. He would be gracing the Media Conclave with a host of other luminaries. His presence is sure to energize the event. More about the other panel members shortly...

Who's That?

Born in Lahore in 1941, he is a self proclaimed ‘secular fundamentalist’. He was Rajiv Gandhi’s senior both at Doon school and Cambridge, where Rajiv supported his campaign for College President.  He served as India’s first ever consul general in Pakistan during his 26 year tenure in the Indian Foreign Service. In his political career, he was the first ever Union Minister of Panchayati Raj of independent India. He was also the recipient of the Outstanding Parliamentarian award. Apart from Politics, he is a popular columnist and a prolific writer with 4 books to his credit.

Stay tuned to know who the man is and more about him...

Rolling posters gather in the mess

Well it was that time of the year again, when artful squiggles and ornate lines on A2 sheets spread out in different directions to announce the arrival of Vista to the world. Thanks to our active Infra team, the raw materials required to concoct these rolls of wonder arrived on time. And then began multiple rounds of discussion, brainstorming and some heated debates. The cause of a lot of head-scratching was the exact modus operandi of this mega-project. MBAs are notorious for their strategic thinking, well, we had 36 of them trying to crack this case.

After much deliberation and out of sheer exhaustion a final consensus was reached and everyone dived headlong into the task. Hours melted away with everyone working like a bee.

And lo, before we knew it, it was done.

P.S. The most hard-working soul of the night: The guy in the mess who was churning out 3 plates of Maggi every minute to satiate our midnight hunger.
P.P.S. Our beloved Secy, did more than just sign on papers. He got his hands dirty too!

Vista 2010 Unveiled on the New Year's Eve

Find it on the youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUKhASZ1hiI

Miniature image of the streamer