ISB PGPMAX

The following new program from ISB is a wonderful opportunity for executives - flexible, rigorous and world-class. Please contact ISB for more details.

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ISB's PGPMAX is the best way to acquire the skills you will need to operate successfully in a volatile and fast-moving business environment. You'll be able to immediately translate your knowledge of case studies, theories and models of best practice into your work place and maximize learning impact by integrating work and study. Programme Highlights ·                                 Executive MBA Curriculum in content and rigour ·                                 No break from work: Retain your job while you study ·                                 No location barrier: 6 days of classes every 6th week; travel from any city ·                                 Classroom based learning at the world-class ISB campus ·                                 Global Faculty from leading business schools ·                                 International Immersion in USA and Brazil; classes at Kellogg and Wharton ·                                 Experienced Peer Group: Enhanced learning (expected average work experience: 15 years) ·                                 Lifelong Networks: Be part of prestigious and strong alumni network Programme Fee INR 25 lakhs (~USD 53,800). Includes admission fee, tuition, all course material, accommodation and food in India and abroad Eligibility and Selection Criteria ·                                 Education: Bachelor's Degree or equivalent in any discipline ·                                 Work Experience: Minimum 10 years (expected average - 15 years) ·                                 Accomplishments: Demonstrated track record and potential for growth Corporate Sponsorship Your organisation can build their leadership pipeline by sponsoring high calibre senior executives like you.   To learn more about the programme and aid your decision-making, please visit www.isb.edu/pgpmax or join us at an information session in your city. Indian School of Business Gachibowli, Hyderabad 500032, India Phone: +91 40 2318 7700. Email: pgpmax@isb.edu

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WTF statement of the week

A Congress politician in a nehru jacket and gelled hair, calling his party's flip-flop on Telangana within 3 weeks as a "Dynamic Response to a changing situation".

Yeah dude - go back and finish whatever you were smoking.

Looking right

The Salahis managing to gatecrash the White House Party because they 'looked the part' is an example of oversight that is not all that uncommon in the corporate scenario as well.

Looking the part, and sounding the part are reasons why organizations ignore robust evaluation processes and wave the corporate Salahis in and upwards when they should frisk them thoroughly at each check point. The Platinum blonde keeps going up, while the dark haired suckers toil for attention with the passes in hand.

Lemonade

When life hands you lemons, do you make lemonade or bitch on facebook?
It is very tough to make lemonade. This is the sole reason of existence for a million gurus that charge by the half-minute.

p.s. - rant after briefly catching a glimpse of a highly paid lemonade guru on TV, facing serious charges

Drinking the Kool-Aid

Drinking the Kool-Aid is not that uncommon in corporations. In the absence of true leadership, grandiose 'statements' and 'strategies' serve as that heady drink. The only difference being that the majority of the followers drink the Kool-Aid with eyes wide open, mostly to further their own career interests, and in the process make the concoction even more toxic, and the corporation even more mediocre.

Examples galore - especially in the last year - and not just on Wall Street.

2 States

It was by complete random chance that I picked up 2 states by Chetan Bhagat, at the Odyssey Checkout line while waiting in a long queue to pay for some business books.

I realize that I am probably the only one in Urban India who has not read Five point someone or the later ones by the author, so I have no understanding of Chetan's progress as a writer. But truth be told - I found '2 States' interesting.

• One, it is short so really not a time-sucker
• Two, the narrative is fast with good masala and the author makes great use of his work experience to go back in time and plug himself as a dude
• Three, it has a 'soon to be a Bollywood flick' feel to it. Somehow I get this feeling that it was written keeping a certain producer (whose name starts with K) in mind. I could also identify the exact places in the book for six songs
• And finally, at Rs. 95 it is critic-proof. I mean why would you diss a book if it costs only 95 bucks and a couple of nights after work to read

Overall good timepass - but I would recommend him not to pitch this as a national unification book. I don't grudge his sale proceeds, so he should not insult my intelligence.

A picture is worth a thousand words !

Chart Source: Bloomberg

Here Viigo !

Viigo claims to be "The one app you'll never want to be without" and it is so true in my case. My BlackBerry is so much more useful and fun with it.

Completely hooked on to it.

Fast, well-designed, brilliant.. and a good business model

And the best thing about it.... free !

IE8 - spreading joy

I needed a good laugh this weekend. Thank You Microsoft.

Everytime I think MS/Steve can't get any more annoying - they prove me wrong.

Electionpalooza!

I am bombarded with ads (both display and search) that promote LK Advani, his blog and his party's site anywhere I go on the dubdubdub... and am surprised to see none from the Indian Congress party. In fact I tried to look really hard covering some obvious keywords that they would have used - but guess what - 'Congress' throws up LK Advani in the paid ads on Google :)

This congress-apathy towards online campaigning is somewhat surprising, considering the plethora of new-gen, tech savvy Congress politicos such as Jindal, Scindia and Deora or even Rahul Gandhi. Either they don't care about the small but influential online population or they simply missed this sitter.

The BJP bombardment technique actually worked for me as I finally succumbed and checked out the site and his blog. To give credit where it's due - it's pretty well designed and covers enough ammunition for a consideration for fence-sitters.

In today's coalition era politics, every vote counts; a lesson that every politician should have learnt from the experiences of a certain Mr. Al Gore