BIM Trichy GDPI

Bharathidasan Institute of Management, Trichy GDPI Experience (2009)

Candidate: S.Satish Kumar  
Location: IMAGE, Chennai
Date: 20th March 2009, 2pm

I reached the center by 1.35pm itself. The GD/PI took place on the third floor. The waiting room or the verification room, depends on how one calls it, was where I waited with the other hopefuls. An alumni of BIM started the proceedings for the second half of the day (a gd/pi session was already over in the morning I heard). He gave a brief introduction about the Institute and answered some of our queries. Bang @ 2pm, hey started the presentation which showcased the best of BIM.

We were then asked to attend Gd/PI/Certificate Verification as per the groups we were in. I was in the first group to attend GD .

Group Discussion:
Lasted 16 minutes
Topic: Demographic Divisions   (I understood this topic by mistake, only in 2011)

The 2 minutes thinking-time was almost blank and as far as I could see, the other 9 candidates couldn't make any sense of the topic too. The discussion started and it meandered aimlessly for 3 minutes.Now the panelist gave us his interpretation of the topic to discuss. From thereon, the discussion went fine. Barring 3 persons, everyone else chipped in with valid points. I managed to do so twice.Right when the discussion was warming up to be a fish market, the panelists signaled the end of discussion. We were then given 5 minutes for writing the GD's summary. I guess my summary was quite pathetic .

Back in the waiting room,I was idly chatting  with people seated around me. I did hear that panel-3 was very cool and I was praying for the same panel. Within 5 minutes, I was called in for my PI.

Personal Interview:

Lasted 10-12 minutes.

Things were zooming really fast for me that day. As I awaited my turn with 3 people before me, I couldn't sit doing nothing. So there I was again,chatting with them.I spotted a first year BIM student some distance away. I proceeded to chat with him and clear some doubts of mine .

The last person from the previous group for my panel said they were asking only GK questions.So the three of us in the present waiting group were relieved that it wasn't technical. But later, much to the horror of the candidates before me, they were drilled on the technical front and they couldn't answer the GK questions thrown at them.

I was a bit shaken when going in, but didn't show it outside. By the time I was seated (10 sec), I managed to regain my composure. That was a key issue for my PI because I literally sailed through the PI. I did so because I was calm and thought well before answering their questions.

They did not drill me about my technical subjects in graduation nor did they drill me too much on current affairs or GK. I would say that my PI was a genuine conversation between three people and it was completely relaxed. I did manage to mess it up thrice  ,but I just hope the interviewers don't take it that seriously.

p1-interviewer on my left ; p2-interviewer on my right . Most questions came from p2.

-Tell me about yourself briefly(outside of what I had written on their form).
I explained about myself and managed to direct the interview towards my interests.

-I had mentioned that my enthusiasm & energy-levels rubs off on people around me.And they were surprised and said,"Does it?Well,we'll see if it rubs off on us as well."
I replied,"I sure hope so Sir's  "

-I also told that I had learnt numerous invaluable lessons from my school and college life.When I mentioned that I have learnt to handle stress in a positive way,they were quick to drill on that.P2 asked me if he can ask me stressful questions(ala stress interview).
I replied that it was their wish and that it was fine with me.They asked me how I would react and I replied,"Invariably,I would be smiling throughout your stress interview".There were smiles on both their faces.P2 said he was just kidding and that he wouldn'd conduct one (relief )

1st point of embarassment:
-What is the turnover of TCS?
I did not want to risk guessing the number and told him frankly that I didn't know it.
-Who is the Chairman of TCS?
I had forgotten to brush up on info about my company.I blurted out Ramadorai's name (who is the CEO). I knew I had messed that & I told him that I didn't remember. And to my relief, we moved on.

-P2 asked if I had anything more to add?
I immediately pounced on it and said that i love painting & blogging.The discussion now veered towards blogging.

-Why blogging?
Reach out to millions in a easier way.

-Is that so?Why not have a website dedicated for it?
I said its much more easier to maintain a blog and advertise for it.

-Why do so many people(incld celebrities) go for it?
Again,I stated the reasons being ease of creation-maintenance,immense scope to reach people,...

At this point p2 again asked me,"-Do you remember who TCS Chariman is now?"
I am amazed that my memory does work at times  and I am thankful for it.I said Ratan Tata.

-P2 then opened my form finally and skimmed through it. He asked for my favorite subjects from college.
I said English (surprises from both) and AI (justified this).

2nd point of embarassment:
P2 asked me if I knew about CII.
I said I ddnt know about CII, but I did know about FII.So he asked me what is FII, I said Foreign International Investors(i bit my tongue here ). He grinned at me for my silly mistake. I had to admit that I had forgotten the full form.

We finally moved to my work experience part.
-p2:"So Mr.Satish,you work for xyz(my company & client).What kind of work do you do there?"
I had my answer ready for this and explained it.I also mentioned how moderately different my project is,compared to the other projects.I said that communication with client has utmost importance in my project and that helps me a lot.

-p2:"what is the strength of your team?I mean,in terms of numbers."
20 Sir.

-p2:"so how would you rate yourself amongst your team mates?The most popular,the most funny,the most rude,the most hated,.."
I interrupted him politely before he could give more titles  and said,"Sir,I would consider myself the most popular person in my team."
I proceeded to explain how I keep up the energy levels within my team and how often I conduct games,meetings for them.I conveyed the idea my team enjoys my presence(which is the truth) 

-p2:The killer question.Why MBA satish?
I just spoke my heart out here. Told them that MBA helps me in polishing my managerial skills.

-p2:"which are...?"
Decision making ability, being people-friendly, ability to think with a cool mind, others...

-p1,p2:"so many distinguished personalities in the industry don't have an mba degree.But aren't they successful.Why would you need an mba degree then satish?"
Yes sir I agree. I am an amateur and I really feel I can improve a lot..

p2:"no no,you should not say that you are an amateur or professional...( I was shocked.Did i just mess things up?? ).You already have the skills to be a good manager    (am not sure if they were playing with me or that was a real compliment) .Why then would you need an mba degree?
But managerial skills ought to be sculpted by experienced hands and i get that in an mba.I also get the chance to interact with a wide variety of people in my mba course,which would definitely help me in the long run.

They seemed satisfied and were smiling.

Do you have any questions Satish?(they didn't use "Mr." this time  )
(Whoa,so my PI is over??  I was numb for 2 seconds.)

I wanted to ask about dual-specialisation.But asking them about it would not be a good idea(IMO).So I asked the question in a different way.

Me: Sir,I managed to talk to a first year student just a while back. I got most of my doubts cleared.But still, I would like your opinion on Dual specialisation (I do know about it,I really do).
p1,p2: they were happy to answer it. This question was answered more by p1.

After they finished answering, they were grinning like chesire cats.I am not sure of the reason, am assuming the best (that I am in consideration for one of those coveted seats).

I thanked them and proceeded to the waiting room,where my certificates where verified. It is a 10 minutes process and I was ready to leave the GD/PI center by 4.30pm. It had taken me just 2 and a half hours to get it over with. Overall I was satisfied with my GD/PI.

Gd: 7/10 (more so because of my group's problem with the topic)
PI: 9/10 (seemed very satisfactory to me as I managed to answer almost all their questions satisfactorily)

Lessons learnt:
-Never go in with a preset mind.Be ready for anything (eg:my own GD and PI)
-Even if you are an introvert, try your maximum best to talk something sensible in a GD. Being totally silent or talking unrelated stuff wouldn't be advised.

BIM was my only call of the season (year 2009) and I had attended my first real-life GD. I am ready for any kind of result.

Verdict: Converted


--- After reading my first GDPI experience (2009) and my own post on it...I feel quite idiotic. 3 years earlier, during and after my BIM GDPI, I think I was behaving more like a school kid who had just won a free chocolate. I was running around unrestrained....always, I request you, to have some self-restraint during GDPIs and in life!!


Ch33rs,
Satish