Of Fond Farewells and New Beginnings Who would have thought that a year at the ISB would pass by in the blink of an eye! And what a year it was! The learning from world-class professors, which made us sit up and look forward to each class, the mentorship of alumni, the host of interesting activities and unforgettable parties together made our year a truly incomparable experience! We entered as separate individuals, each with our own goals and dreams. The relentless pressure of meeting deadlines and studying for exams while simultaneously juggling case competitions, placements, clubs, councils and enormous events forged us into a united, strong Class of 2016. Together though we were, the ISB experience has been unique for each of us. Akshay Datta, winner of the Torchbearer Award, method actor and musician par excellence as well as President of the Marketing and Communications Council, sums up his experience in a few crisp words: “Perspectives are widened, myths shattered, lessons in leadership learned and friends for life made”. To Hameer Pratap Singh Chauhan, Scholar of Excellence, the ISB is “what you make of it. It was life changing to see each one of us creating something special and unique out of it”. Shakti Prasad Mishra, President of the Operations Council and winner of the Young Leader Award for his tireless care of campus residents, feels the year was “hectic but fun” and a wonderful rollercoaster ride, thrusting him towards his dream.  For Mohana Sidhaarth, Lead Coordinator for Advaita in the Mohali campus and winner of the Young Leader Award, the ISB experience has been about “getting out of my comfort zone and trying my hand at new things without the fear of failing.” Like all good things, our time at the ISB too had to come to an end. And all too soon, we were gathered together with the Class of 2015 PGPMAX (Hyderabad) and the Class of 2015 MFAB (Mohali) for a grand graduation ceremony presided over by Professor Dean Raj Shrivastava and Adi Godrej, Chairman of the ISB Board. The chief guests for the day were Chanda Kochhar, CEO and MD of ICICI Bank in Hyderabad, and in Mohali, Rahul Bhatia, Group Managing Director of Interglobe Enterprises and the man behind Indigo Airlines. Our journey, however, does not end here. Rather, this is a beginning, and, in the words of Dean Srivastava, one where we must continue expanding our horizons and learning all the way, carrying forward the spirit of enterprise and leading people in contributing to a better and more equitable society. In his address, Rahul Bhatia spoke of the importance of planning and attention to detail in successful process execution. He also emphasised honesty of purpose and the need to practise it at all times. Chanda Kochhar, in her inspiring speech, observed that India will be a bright spot in the years to come, and we, the young Indians, are going to be its greatest strength. In the era of technology, we need to stay updated on the latest and the best advances to create new value for our customers. Armed with the skills that we have learned at the ISB and a firm moral compass (thanks to our stringent HCC!), we are the very youth that she spoke of.  In the words of Peter Paul, President of the Graduate Student Body and winner of the Young Leader and Best All-Rounder awards, we are here “because there is a Berlin Wall within us all, Because we are here to break it down, Because tomorrow is won through today's battles, Because if we believe we can change the world, we will, It's because this world needs heroes!” We are the Class of 2016, ready and raring to make a difference to the world around us. Nandhini Gopal (Class of 2006), the author of this article, was a member of the Marketing and Communications Council at ISB. She enjoys reading, art and quilting. She will be joining Microsoft’s Sales, Marketing and Services Group this summer. |