GERRY.in | MBA blog | Ryerson University | Ted Rogers School of Management: Dec 30, 2011

My plans for 2012

Some of my plans for 2012:

Complete MBA program & graduate by Fall 2012.
Develop excellent networks
Have good memories of good times at the Business School
Study the subjects of Business Management in depth
Keep looking for the special one
Work towards getting a good job or starting my own business.
Develop teaching, consulting and research skills further

- Gerry.

Happy New Year 2012, every body !!! Hope it is a wonderful year for you :)

#Expectations: WHAT should an MBA know? HOW MUCH should an MBA know? Coz its NOT possible to know EVERYTHING !!!

I have spent the last 2 weeks sitting for hours in front on my laptop, for at least 12 hours a day, trying to absorb topics off the internet related to Business Management. It has been a wonderful wonderful journey so far! I have had the most amazing time and am almost addicted to this knowledge high now :)

I did learn a LOT and I have tried to post relevant info on my blog. I have posted more than a dozen blogs a day on average, since the last 2 weeks! There is so much to learn out there. There is so much one can do with just a lap top and an internet connection, it is amazing!

What I realized from my self teaching / learning recently is this:

Not all Management topics are taught in Business School
There are too many new topics out there for the Business School to keep up to date about
Business Management is changing at a very rapid pace
More and more people are entering into this field and the pool of knowledge is increasing
While Gurus in the past were from North America, a lot of the new Gurus are coming from other parts of the world, as well - I just discovered Vineet Nayar - what an awesome chap!
Every MBA student should spend at least 30 mins to 60 minutes everyday learning something new - NOT from the text books, but from new sources like TED. BigThink, Harvard Business Review and so on.

While I was on this information gathering binge, I decided to step back for a moment (just now) and ask myself "What is expected of an MBA student?". What should an MBA know? How much should an MBA know? What defines a good MBA student?

I have tried speaking to a lot of people about this, but have not gotten a satisfactory reply yet. I have not yet met THAT person who can answer all my questions for me. Everybody is busy. It seems like life is a rat race and everybody is trying to get somewhere.

When ever people talk of the MBA program, they use terms like "drinking from a fire hose" and "hitting the ground running". But then, it is not possible for all MBAs to know everything, innit? (However, it is true that the more you learn, the better you get at what you know).

Just as we talk of customization, not standardization, perhaps it is also true that not all the MBAs that graduate out of business schools should be alike. MBA students come from very diverse backgrounds - some are Engineers (actually, many :), some are arts students, some science students, some commerce students, some musicians and so on... Each has a different learning goal and each brings a different knowledge base, experience and expertise to the class.

So just where do you draw the line? When is it actually enough? When do you say - This is it!!! I have learnt everything that I need to learn? The answer is perhaps - YOU DO NOT! For 2 reasons:

You can not know everything - even if you tried.
You can never stop learning - so there is NO stopping.

Perhaps it is OK to live with the feeling that life is NOT going to be perfect. Life shall NEVER be perfect. One should learn to enjoy the MBA ride, the MBA journey with a free spirit - take in what ever you can, do your best and let go of the rest :)

If you have been sincere and have made strong attempts to learn, that will show - in terms of grades, in terms of recognition from peers, from Professors and eventually, a good job offer, job and career. Somehow, someway, your hard work shall bear fruits!

For some, the journey shall be easy. For some others, it shall be a rough ride climbing up the learning curve. But eventually, we shall all complete the MBA program and get our certificates.

- Gerry.

The World's 25 Best Multinational Workplaces

From the link: http://goo.gl/kTQkn

1. Microsoft
2. SAS
3. NetApp
4. Google
5. Fedex
6. Cisco
7. Marriot
8. McDonald's
9. Kimberly Clark

10. SC Johnson

11. Diageo (UK)
12. American Express
13. Medtronic
14. Intel
15. Hilti (Germany)
16. 3M

17. Telefonica

18. National Instruments

19. Mars

20. Accenture (Ireland)
21. Roche

22. Novo Nordisk

23. Coca Cola
24. Atento
25. Quintiles

Why Raising Taxes on the Rich Is So Hard

From the link: http://goo.gl/z92VN

People dream of being rich some day themselves and sympathize with the rich
People fear trickle down taxes
The tax money would be handled inefficiently by the government anyways
The lobbies against taxation are strong

Starfish Organization

New term that I learnt today from the internet ---> Starfish Organization.

DECENTRALIZED
LEADERLESS organization
Dependent on a NETWORK
Not on a HIERARCHY.

Apparently, there is a book from which this term originated. Its called "The Starfish & the Spider".

More details soon...

CEO Culture & Lifestyle Conterproductive???

I have a theory about SOME CEOs (not all).

This is just general brain-storming.

It is not conclusive and all encompassing.

CEOs get selected based on networks.

CEOs get selected based on past record.

CEOs get selected based on charisma.

CEOs, however, do not live the life of a ideal learners.

CEOs spend more time at parties and business meetings, not at libraries

CEOs are busy spending the money they have made rather than earning more for themselves & company

(That does not mean CEOs are not interesting making money - they are)

CEOs are not learning enough about the new developments in the world.

They are just getting the board-room view

CEOs only have the top-view and not the bottom view.

CEOs are arrogant and overconfident.

CEOs could be subjective and not objective.

CEOs throw caution to the winds and think they can single-handedly change the world.

CEOs are mostly older and not younger (I am not talking of the Tech-companies in Silicon valley)

Older CEOs do not know how to use Social Media and Internet effectively.

CEOs want big leaps and not incremental growth.

This is counter productive. I like the model in Japan / Japanese culture of CEOs better.

Would love to study this in depth and report back :)

There must be a way for CEOs to change the way they and get better.

There must be a way for CEOs to stop thinking that they have "MADE IT"

There must be a way to keep the hunger in CEOs alive.

Gerry.

Copycat Innovation 1 : Introduction

BRILLIANT!!! MUST WATCH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Employees 1st, Customers 2nd- Turning Conventional Management Upside Down.

An Idea Takes Off | Vineet Nayar (CEO, HCL Technologies)

Get to know and engage 100% of your employees

Vijay Govindarajan: why most companies fail at innovation

HCL CEO Vineet Nayar on Employees First Customers Second

EDUCATOR (/ Educationist?) ---> I LOVE this term

I love the term "Educator". It stands for some one who educates. Some one who teaches. Some people use the term "Educationist" too. I realize that I love teaching. And helping enrich the lives / knowledge of others. The online medium is one of them. This is such a powerful tool! Perhaps there is some pleasure about being in control too, eh? About having the rapt attention of a whole class of students and having that opportunity to shape the minds of young brains - the future of the country.

I shall explore the means to be able to take this to the next level. To build my teaching skills as much as I build on my learning skills.

Now, the problem is that one needs a Ph.D. to teach at the Master's level. I should perhaps look at starting at a junior level like a Teaching Assistant or Research Assistant. So far, I have avoided jobs of TA / RA, simply because I was doing another Part Time job on the week ends and studying during the week days. But now, I should give it a thought / a shot. Should start building my teaching skills. I think this helps build a person's personality as well. The fact that you stand in front of a class of 30 to 60 students and be challenged by them makes you stay on your toes all the time. It makes one a tougher person as well. I am excited about exploring this avenue. Will seek ways to do so... (I know that I could teach in Business Schools in India right away, after my MBA, even without a Ph.D. I wish I could take up teaching undergraduate students in Canada as well as a part time commitment. Of course, I would have to become an expert in a field of choice myself - Strategy / Marketing suit me best, but with some hard work and focus, it would not be so difficult.)