Babson Interview Experience

I had my interview yesterday with an alumni, who is also a member in adcom. It was through skype video which was quite unusual for me and felt disastrous dressing up professionally and sitting at home in front of the lappy webcam :) ...

She was very friendly and made me quite comfortable through out the interview...

Interview lasted for around 45-50 min.

Questions were..

Tell me something about your current non profit experience (I am leading a non profit initiative of building a univ alumni association full time as a consultant)
Then she asked me about my career progression with Deloitte over the last 3 years.
What does team work mean to me and how do i work in teams?
What are you most passionate about?
What are your strengths?
Which other colleges did you apply to?
At the end of an MBA what would you like your classmates to remember you as?
Describe yourself in one word?
how would you contribute to the college outside class?
What are your immediate post MBA plans? We had discussion following that and she shared her experiences with IBM.
She asked me about my entrepreneurial plans and i briefed her on 2-3 ideas that i am interested to work on being at babson.

I guess i never gave her a chance to ask on why Babson as i showed that i had thoroughly researched on the school in most of the questions.

She closed it with any queries and i asked her around 3 questions on the babson programs. She gave a round about answer but was sweet enough to admit that she didn't knew the exact answer and would get back to me or get me networked with the admission director!

Feedback: she was encouraging to help me get out the answers, In the end from her expressions, i felt i that i have done a good job of the interview and what impressed her the most was my research on the school. Hence, make sure to know the school and the program well!

2010 - A New Begining A New End!

Here comes yet another New Year, which fortunately quite a lot are serious about!(The Money Minters are the best profited though :D) A day to cheer about n celebrate, to dance n party and forget everything with the hope of something wonderful to surface out of the blue just with the turn of the clock!

And there are others who believe its just another day and spend the prime day of the year in complete normalcy. They believe in the fact that whichever calendar day be it, its a New Year for them, a time to act and make a difference! They believe in making the days count than counting the days!

I believe a New Year is best celebrated with the spirit of the first and the agenda of the second. Hence a new beginning for making life more wonderful, world a better place to live in and a new end to all the bad events and sad memories that have to be flushed out. So how are you planning to lead this year? ;)

A Man Without a FACE!

It was a pleasant afternoon, bright and sunny. The city was buzzing with its usual chaos, people running around, lost in their own businesses and least interested in enjoying the momentous happiness of nature or the calmness of passing time...Among the vast expanse of the city's population was ONE guy travelling in a cab on its way to office... So what made him so special? Definitely not IBM! :P...In fact he was just one among the crowd and was so ordinary that he would go unnoticed in a passing street. He was yet another IT employee who goes in the morning to the office, works hard through the day and returns home late night...

After few minutes, the cab driver applies the brakes near a pick up point and the bus halts slowly and steadily...this guy finds many colleagues rushing into the bus in the usual way trying to end up in seats of their preference and ah! what a pleasure does that give! A small sense of accomplishment in making it to the window seat flows through them for a moment...! Then its all normal again and the bus starts picking up speed moving a step closer to the office. The people and the noise settle down in a few minutes and the guy starts staring back through the window, gradually getting deeply involved in a thought without his very own knowledge. So what was he so deeply thinking about? Is this something that would change his life completely or was it just a passerby cloud!

As the time passed by, all the memories flashed through his mind right from his childhood days to his present...all the moments that had deeply impacted him and have left an indelible mark on his mind. It was an exhaustive collection of snapshots flashing through in a very short time frame. It was a better movie than any movie could ever get even with all the ingredients that it could flavor with! and why not...After all, it was 24 years of his life!

To be continued....

D'B Logger is back!

Yes guys! It has been over a year since my thoughts have flown into my blog space and here i am back with Logging memories and experiences as i blog around! I have no interests of conquering the blogger world nor making it to the top bloggers around. I am just a guy next door and am here to share my feelings, thoughts and experiences so many of them trapped in my small mind! I would be more than happy if my posts can make you laugh, make you cry or atleast make you think for a moment to understand things from a different perspective! So I hope you guys would find my blog interesting and would get back for more...! 

So as always credit should be given to the people who inspired me to start writing all over again! 

I would like to thank 2 of them, specially Sahaja and Manasa for more than one reasons which they are well aware of! :D. I would like to dedicate my next post for these sweet buddies of mine!

Happy Reading guys...feel free to drop by your comments!

Lots of Love

D'B Logger! 

Review of the Year Gone by....

It has been an unusually long year with a mixed bag of emotions. I simply don't know where to start and where to end this post. It has been a really long one for me as it simply marked the so called "CHANGE" year for me. Everything has changed for me right from attitude, life, friends, looks, joys n sorrows. Sometimes i feel that its a bit overwhelming to take all these in just a year, but the good part being that the event has passed. It was a year filled with a lot of odds more than that to my liking. But at the end of the year, i am happy to emerge as a mentally more stronger and better person. I should thank all those who have given me a chance to learn life and grow stronger mentally in various situations. I think its always better to learn than to complain as someone can't spoil your life or hurt you. Its just you who gives them the chance to do so.

So why was it so different? ... As few major landmark events for me this year included MECHARENA '07, SAMANVAYA '07, YOU Mag, Graduating from college, Joining My first Job in Deloitte, Working in Deloitte, n Taking up a few personal resolutions. The year started with our college's National level Techfest MECHARENA'07 which took an huge turmoil both physically and mentally was thankfully one of the most successful events in the college with overwhelming response and the best among all. Although the event left me with an accident and breakdown of relationships with most of my good friends but it taught me how to work in the most adverse conditions and most importantly the fact not to take friends for granted and everyone opinions matters. I should specially thank my dear friends Pavan, Ashwini Prasad, Sunil, Anil and Harsha for their extraordinary contribution to the event. None of them knew better than us what it took to make the event happen. The event showed us how things could get worse even among the best of friends.

With the dawn of MECHARENA, more of extracurriculars were on the taking though i liked it or not. I felt like going 'gayab' from college but responsibilities had to be taken, thanks to very special ppl for me Sandeep and Manasa who have helped me lessen the burden on my shoulders by sharing the responsibilites and working in harmony. Thanks a lot! ... You ppl have really made my life easier. Most funnily i ended up taking the most biggest events in college like SAMANVAYA and YOU magazine, working for them equally alike my earlier events though i was least interested to strech myself anymore. But They turned out to be really memorable with the YOU Team's memories still alive ( Esp the SUNSIGNS bug that sneha has initiated in my mind ) and the networking and relationships i built with most of my juniors within a very short span of time. Thanks to all those who made these events so special to me!!! . By the time i was done with these events i find my project deadlines approaching and no time to spare. I think ours was the longest project done in the class with the most no of breaks ;) ... Thankfully we closed our project with focus moving onto viva and final exams which turned out to be decent. So finally "Praveen pass ho gaya!!! " but the only regret for me was that i should have worked on acads instead of giving lame reasons for not doing so.. I ended up getting 69% though i tried in the last 2 sems but it was a bit late to make the % move up by one more :)

So Finally i was done with my engineering and joined Deloitte on June 1st 07 with my collegemates shiva, manasa, sujatha, deepthi, ganesh, kranthi and the story continues.........

First 2 Weeks on the FLOOR @ Deloitte

Hmm... finally I'm Happy that i could make out some time to blog my thoughts over the last one month. Confused seeing the picture??? ....Dont worry thats not my desk...but the position i am in is somewhat similar :) . I used to think about finishing my first month of training at CMC as early as possible and get back to my Team at Deloitte for the so called on the Floor training.......but things are different...Life has changed....but not me ofcourse......

Finally on 6th July we finished our training at CMC and were returning back with the hope that our position would be somewhat better than what it was previously. Now rather than saying that it has become more hectic....i could put it as work has become a lot more challenging and professional. I feel that this is undoubtedly better than what my last month's training was but my only regret is that i am not finding enough time to meet neither my old friends nor the college mates and other friends who joined Deloitte with me. It has become difficult for me to spend some time in other activities of my interest... So how has life changed?...Let me give you a small account of the transition from my College to Professional Life...........

I fear I am giving out such a gloomy picture of the environment i m currently in...but should say its not as bad as you are thinking this moment....In fact a lot better than that...Its just the transition period where we are completely transforming from carefree students to responsible Professionals. Of course that is quite difficult and would take some time but expecting a peaceful government job from a corporate company would definitely mean silly right :) ....... So The last two weeks where my actual job goes something like this....

I joined my floor on 9th of July...It was something special to remember as i was joining our Solutions Network (SNET) Team, especially it was a welcome note for us to join the floor as any more training at CMC could turn us into psychos :) ..... Only 4 of us, new joinees were joining the existing SNET team of around 15 ppl. We were one of the smallest Service lines in term of strength...so it was a matter of concern for us as none of us were sure of the type of work we are going to get on with...We tried to find out regarding our service line but all of our efforts went in vain as hardly any on knew that there was a service line named SNET (Thanks to Deloitte which has 96 Service Lines :) ). This escalated our tensions and we let our imagination go wild along with our friends of other service lines which included programmers for SAP and Oracle Applications.

So 9th July was a climax to our imaginations. We were really excited that day morning .....Our service line shift timings in Deloitte are from 2PM to 11PM and for every 4 months we have to do a night shift of 6 PM to 3 AM for 2 months. So, was ready by 12:30 PM to board the cab with the Laptop which was given by the company ( Only some of the new joinees got the laptops from the company based on the service lines and luckily i was one of them....configuration of 80 MB Hard disk and 2 GB ram) ...So finally we reached over to the floor and eagerly waiting out for the manager to crack the suspense regarding what our work was.....Though the manager and the seniors told about our profile we hardly could get that except the term that was ringing in our ears that we were "SAP Applications Administrators or SAP Basis Administrators" ...The thing that added to our excitement was that generally experienced hires were taken into this profile...That took our energy levels to greater heights to succeed in this career ...

Our team of 4 new joinees were divided into2 groups... 2 people into SAP Administration( Me and Karthik) and the other 2 into ORACLE Administration (Shiva and Zeenath) ...We were having our training assisted by our Asst. Manager Ravi in a conference hall booked exclusively for us.....3 hrs daily for the coming one month. Though 3 hrs were nothing but the pace was high and we were completely engrossed in a new field and taking in so much of portion daily was a serious matter of concern..to add to our woes SAP Basis was indeed tough....as it is neither purely hardware nor purely a software language... it was an ERP package (Enterprise Resource Planning Package ) to cater to every need of the industry...it was an ocean in itself.....The shift timings were new. Unlike other trainings we were also learning work through real time experience from our experienced colleagues. This was something good.

Our SNET SAP Admins team strength was of around 8 ppl along with us and we were handling not 10 nor 20 but 140 servers on whole. So the work is quite challenging....we had small tests and sometimes an 1hr notice Presentation last week to see how much we understood. .....Though training is the real testing time...it all depends on how we go about it...
though even our other friends who joined the company tell the same thing that even their training is damn hectic...theres virtually no one to blame....We demand salaries and the company demands work.

I am really happy that though our team is a small team, i should consider myself lucky to be along with them....each one of them is really friendly and helpful...there are no problems of any kind whatsoever...we are having a great time together.... With the team i m placed in and the profile i m gifted....i really couldn't have asked for more from my first job. 9 hrs in the company go along pretty fast....So all i need to bring about is to develop a work- life balance and get back to my normal kind of life.... full of masti with no compromise to work....

If you have read upto this point of my blog i really appreciate your patience as i felt that this is one of my most boring posts....basically i m in a serious mood while writing the post :) .....so closing the post with some thoughts for all my friends is that " Hey guys...I really miss you all a lot especially My College Mates, SAP Team, DQI Team ,OA Team and other friends..All of you... Plzzz do keep in touch"...Hopefully my next post would be a better one to spend some minutes on...take care.......bbye.

My First Week @ Deloitte....

It all started on 23 Jan 2007...the day Deloitte visited our college campus for the first time...it was made open to appear for all..the competition was high to get into the company...so were the stakes...but the best part was that the preparation was nil as most of them got into one company or the other, so the feel good factor made them to relax.....the usual Bindaas attitude.....

The PPT was simply awesome... after the PPT was over ,there were feelings of passion and determination to get into the company as the Dream Company....around 200 ppl appeared for the written which was pretty easy considering the CAT standards with 40 qs ( a mix of quant and Verbal)....Finally the results were out by afternoon and the shortlisted 30 for interviews were displayed on the notice board...i was elated to see my name as a part of the list.....so then began the actual process...the rounds of interviews.......tht was the first time i felt tht i shud have taken my engg more seriously being completely unprepared abt my engg subjects with the only asset being confidence to take me aboard......

The First Round was pretty much based on the extracurriculars, project details etc...in which 18 were shortlisted from 30.....then after i came to know tht i cleared the first round...i started gaining back my confidence and performed extremely well in my 2nd Round of interview which was purely HR based...the best part was tht the manager whom i m presently working with was the person who took my interview....it feels great tht someone has felt tht we are capable of working under them.....then finally the company was out with the results and was literally overjoyed seeing my name being called the first among the shortlisted candidates....yes it was a feeling i could never forget.... a underdog making it into one of the Big 4 for consulting in the world. A total of 15 were selected ( I think this is the highest number recruited in any campus so far as per my knowledge).......

Then after the formalities of offer letter were completed somewhere in mid-March we were invited to visit the Deloitte campus for Hi Touch Programme on April 10th 2007......We were simply taken away by the place..the infrastructure and were dumbstruck looking at the ultramodern facilities and impeccable aesthetic sense tht gave a calming effect to the workplace making the environment enjoyable to work in....something worth admiring in Deloitte. We were really looking forward to join Deloitte as early as possible...

Thank god...our joining date was preponed from July 2nd to June 1st....We were finally in Deloitte on June 1st...something unforgettable for me....the first day of my job....the start of my career as a professional....With a lot of expectations in mind ( in fact i always expect too much shud say :-) )...we went to Deloitte and were shocked to see tht they left us by 11 AM after completing few formalities of around 40 signatures and filling up of forms....at the moment i was thinking...is tht all they have to give me on my first day of my job.....anyways i decided to stay back along with my frnds and we were roaming around the campus with the Temporary ID cards given to us which will be taken back after one week when we get our actual ID cards (i.e. registration process takes a week).....after staying till 2 PM we left the place...hoping to get back soon.........After all i shud confess tht Deloitte campus is so addictive :)

So for those curious few who r joining...let me explain a bit regarding the Deloitte campus....gud enuf to give u an vague idea but not reveal completely so as to keep the suspense till the date u join us :-) .........Deloitte Hyderabad consists of 4 blocks A ,B, C, D providing services under 96 service lines all categorized under 4 headings CONSULTING, TAX, AUDIT and FINANCIAL ADVISORY... Deloitte Hyd and Mumbai come under Region 10 (i.e. when deloitte was divided on basis of regions Indian office was assigned as the 10th Region)....coming to the Infrastructure ....let me tell u the speciality of each block.......

Block A
The First block that deloitte had.....consists of 4 floors .....3 for Deloitte and 4 th floor for google....the best part of the block is that it has a Cafe Coffee Day in there....so all those guys who love to freak out at coffee day this is the place to be....

Block B
This also has similar infrastructure with no google from now around (Google just has one floor in A thts it)...this building has the speciality of having a Help Desk..la Concierge i.e. the service room where they get ur works done right from booking tickets to booking hotels and what not but at a nominal price :) ........ ...the Transport Help Desk, one more service tht takes care of moving around 3000 ppl in Deloitte from time to time...they are doing an exceptionally good job......the Badging Section....and the best of all THE COMMUNICATION GYM.....confused??!!!!! yeah u read it right....its a gym for improving ur communication skills..they have all the english related material...interactive softwares and cabins where u can take live video of the way u present ur speeches...so tht u can rectify all ur mistakes...dont worry even the top level of management use them...

Block C
This has similar infrastructure but for a change we have a BARISTA over here....double treat right...this building also has a well equipped gym with the latest equipment ( the fitness freaks cant ask for more than this :)) ......

BLOCK D
The latest of all blocks...this is house for the Cafeteria.. one of the best places to be.....its spread in a sprawling area with u order it u have it kind of menu.....catering to needs from all diff places..be it north indian, south indian,bakery items, tiffins,wht not order it u have it ...all at a nominal price with no compromise on hygiene....theres also a library in here :)

Every floor has a break out area where u have the coffee vending machine, tea, LCD screens to watch TV... chess , carroms, sofa sets.......so we can have a break whenever we want...simple as tht :)

I think this gives u a fair picture of the infrastructure :)
Let me assure you the aesthetic look to the building and the interiors are worth simply appreciating....lively and pleasant to the senses........u ll know it only when u see it....so be here to know how it feels :)

Coming back to the work we had orientation for 2 days where we came to know more abt deloitte and the industry leaders giving seminars explaining abt various norms and working of the company...there were around 110 ppl joining a mix of campus recruits, experienced hires, to tht matter even IIM grads...it was a blended mixture of all fields.........the programme was exceptionally well handled by the HR team of Anupama Louis and Amit....others from IT, Consulting ,HR , Learning and Development, Finance. delivered mind blowing lectures...and i cudnt resist giving a 5 to all i.e. excellent to all the points and speakers....everyone did a decently fair job.....then at the end of 2nd day ICICI bank ppl got us and made us fill few forms....and to my surprise we were immediately handed the cheque books and Debit cards with Credit cards coming in 21 days.....the orientation went on fine...

The next day we had DCO (Deloitte Communication Orientation) which was a programme targeting our communication skills...which was a programme covering various aspects of Dos and Donts on conference calls, working culture, case studies and presentations....its was a gr8 experience as with every day our interaction with new ppl got better and better......

Then came the departing time with diff ppl getting back to their respective service lines.....where they will be provided on the floor training....but amazingly some of our friends who got in AERS for DQI (Data quality and Intergrity) are already provided with LAPTOPS and cubicles....So it all depends on the requirement of the service line tht decides the time u get ur laptop....so dont pin up too many hopes to get it early :)........I have been assigned the post of Associate Analyst - Insourcing - SNet ......so as a part of it the SNet and SAP batch are presently sent to CMC Kukkatpally for training for 22 working days where C, C++, DBMS, PL/SQL ,ORACLE basics project orientation etc...will be covered...i ll be joining back our SNet team on July 6th for on the floor training.........

Coming to the Culture of Deloitte they follow the first name policy tht everyone calls the other with their first name (for Ex Praveen in my case) irrespective of the age or position of the person...be it MD or even CEO.....there is a really friendly environment with no visible hierarchy's making it a pleasure to work in....full independence is given to the employees believing in the principle tht ethics are part of the Deloitte culture...the working is mainly in 4 shifts (9AM to 6PM, 11 AM to 8PM, 2 PM to 11PM ,6 PM to 3AM)...so the shifts are very much service line dependent and we have to work flexibly in different shifts based on wht the work demands...let me tell u tht theres no specific night shift...in a year in case u have to do night shifts it may be a max of 1-2 mnths spread conveniently over the year with home drop......

And the most Imp point for guys out there....there is a large community of gorgeous looking girls ...so feel confident to come around and have gr8 fun ;)......with 40% of the strength being girls....there is simply a treat to look around :)......for girls out there same is the ans....who knows u cud find ur match over here :) ...hehe......

The week finally ended with IMPACT DAY -2007 which i ll be covering in my next post as it is one of the most imp date for Employees...... I tried my best to give u a clear idea of hows life at Deloitte...in case u have any doubts feel free to get in touch with me....sorry to say tht i have missed upon on many pts to keep it short...but it has already crossed prescribed limits....but the good news is tht i have covered all the imp points :)...........looking forward to meet all those ppl who r joining Deloitte soon......Take care BBye..........