Enframed

GSB Presidents Discuss Agenda

Karthik Neelakanta Hebsur and Sunil Narendra Albal were recently elected presidents of the Graduate Student Board (GSB) in Mohali and Hyderabad respectively. Hebsur, an engineering graduate from NIT Surathkal and Albal, a cadet from the National Defence Academy and an MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Management will bring their varied experiences to their role at ISB. In this interview, they elaborate on what being president of GSB means to them and about their challenges.

On the change they want to bring about:


Karthik:
This isn’t a change in as much as strongly emphasising something that we are already doing; I want to structure GSB’s activities such that the key focus of all our events is leadership development. ISB is really a sea of opportunities and it gives everyone a chance to be an integral part of many activities throughout the year. If we can use all these opportunities to continually emphasise leadership development, it will help us take a big step towards achieving the school’s vision of grooming future leaders for India and the world.

Sunil: Brand ISB has a human element, with the students, the staff, the faculty and the alumni all contributing to the ISB experience. As ISBians and global leaders, we stand to influence the brand ISB. As a president, the one big change this year would be to look inward to empower the student body and influence the brand, apart from the traditional branding approach of reaching out externally. Some of the initiatives to make this possible include improved synergy between PGP and PGPMAX programmes, streamlining the mentorship programme and making LRC available online, post ISB. ISB has a legacy, a brand value, which every president strives not only to preserve, but also to enhance. As a president, apart from my primary responsibility of representing the Student Body and ensuring smooth running of the GSA, each action would be an incremental step towards enhancing the brand from within.

On their biggest challenge as president of GSB

Karthik:
ISB is full of incredibly gifted people. We all have our strengths. I think my key challenge will be to leverage everybody’s strengths across campuses to create an experience which is both collectively enriching and individually satisfying. Essentially, we want to capture every valuable idea and support every valuable initiative so that everyone goes back with a feeling of both having extracted the most from here and having given back to the School.

Sunil:
The biggest challenge is juggling the various responsibilities effectively. Establishing synergy to take the “One School, two Campus” model forward, close co-ordination with the GSB team at Mohali campus, representing GSA, seven council directors, 16 professional clubs, 12 social clubs, plethora of events on campus and ambassador of ISB at all events, all require different skills. I will have to be a leader as well as a team player, an initiator and also an executor, stay calm under stress and yet achieve the result aimed for. With a hundred things flying past you in the one year at ISB, I need to be aware of and responsible for each one of them. In this 51-week roller coaster ride, I am in the front seat, with all my colleagues on board, and I need to ensure that the train not only stays on track but also that each of my co-passengers enjoys the journey!