Idle Mind Devil's Workshop

Quiz at NMIMS

2011-03-01T23:40:00.002+05:30

Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS, Mumbai) is hosting a quiz as part of the cultural fest 'Euphoria'. Please find below the details:

Event - Bizkrieg

Date - 5th March, 2011 (Saturday)

Time - Registration: 2:00 PM

Prelims: 2:30 PM

Flavour - Gen-Biz

Quizmaster - Souvik Basu

Research - Trivia Tales

Open to B-School students only.

Teams of 2. No cross teams allowed.

Prizes worth 3k, 2k & 1k.

For details, please contact Abraham George at +918097528178.

Hope to see you all there.

Quiz at SP Jain, Mumbai

2010-11-25T10:55:00.002+05:30

SP Jain, Mumbai is having a quiz as part of its annual management festival OJAS. Please find the details below:

Event Name: El Desafio
Flavour: Business

Quiz Open to B-School students only.
Teams of 2
No cross teams.

Quizmaster: Souvik Basu
Research: Trivia Tales

Online prelims on 25th November at 11.00 PM (Teams need to be registered on the OJAS website by 10PM of 25th Nov)
Finals on campus on 4th December,2010.

Prizes:
1st Prize: Rs 20,000/-
2nd Prize: Rs 10,000/-
For further details, please visit http://spjimr-ojas.com/el-desafio/

Tata Crucible Mumbai 2010

2010-03-27T20:36:00.002+05:30

Went to see the Mumbai campus round at Taj President. Am glad that I did, for it was a nice quiz. Much better than last year with a number of good teams on stage.

The prelims had 20 questions which were mostly guessable. 2 questions, particularly on Ray Kroc and 7-Eleven were nicely framed. One new thing for me was two questions on Tatas in the prelims. Also, thankfully there were no questions where you had to identify the production houses of Bollywood films. Hopefully that trend will stop from now on.

After the prelims, 6 teams that made it on stage were:
Sardar Patel College of Engineering
HR College of Commerce
SP Jain
ITM
NITIE
IRMA

Sadly no team from my alma mater NMIMS made it to stage. I was also surpised to see a team from NITIE and KJ Somaiya to miss out though they did make it to the wildcards.

The finals were better than last year. Some nice questions and some cracking answers made it a great final. The undergrad teams from SPCE & HR College gave some stunning answers. However, the ITM duo looked solid on fundas and well-prepared and it was what set them apart. They did give the audience some entertaining moments when they rapped on & on in 2-3 answers. To me, they were the deserving winners. All the best for the National Finals, guys!

One heartening thing was to see several people from SPCE & HR College turn up to cheer their teams. Their answers were loudly applauded by their mates and they did deserve every bit of it. Well done guys!

Prelims questions:

1. Which famous Indian once said 'Tatas represent the spirit of adventure'?

Ans - Mahatma Gandhi
2. Whose positioning is India's only FIVE sTAR airlines?

Ans - Kingfisher Airlines
3. DLF logo

4. IndiaFirst Logo
5. What is the name of the toothpaste co-created by Sachin Tendulkar?

Ans - Sach
6. pic of Ajit Jain7. Which publishing house was founded by Allen Lane in 1935? They sold high quality six pennyworth paperbacks through Woolworth.

Ans - Penguin
8. He owned San Diego Padre baseball team starting in 1974. He is better known for Grinding it Out and building a huge empire. What global corp did he start?

Ans - McDonalds
9. Visual of 360 Logistics logo. With whom will you associate this?

Ans - captain Gopinath
10. pic of Sanjeev Bikchandani
11. 'I regard X as my inspiration'- Hitler told this to a Detroit newspaper 2 years before he became Chancellor in 1933. Who is X?

Ans - Henry Ford
12. Boeing logo

13. Cover of 'Tipping Point'; author?Ans - Malcolm Gladwell
14. SBI ad campaign featuring Dadabhai Nauroji
15. Dennis Tomkins, bush & I invented and patented a shoe to 'defy Issac Newton'. Who am I?Ans - Michael Jackson
16. These were a series of convenience stores previously called 'U Tote'm'. They were renamed in 1946 to reflect their new extended working hours. Which chain?

Ans - 7-Eleven
17. Tata Photon print ad. 'For those who love speed' released on Valentine's Day.

18. Visual of Apple founders
19. pic of Rama Bijapurkar

20. What is the first phase of the West Island Freeway System Project in India called?

Ans - Bandra Worli Sea Link

Quiz at SPJIMR, Mumbai

2010-02-18T20:33:00.003+05:30

SPJIMR, Mumbai is having a quiz as a part of its fest OJAS 2010.

Details:
Name of the Event: Philomath
Flavour: Business Quiz
QM: Souvik Basu
Date - 19th February, Friday
Time - 3 PM
Open to students only
2 member teams
No cross teams allowed
Prizes worth Rs 30,000 to be won
For details, please visit http://spjimr-ojas.com/events/philomath/

Reminder: Tech Quiz at NIT Durgapur

2010-02-05T22:54:00.003+05:30

NIT Durgapur is having a quiz as a part of its Technical Symposium 'Mukti 2010'.
Details:
Event - Linquizitor
Flavour - Tech Quiz (mix of tech, science & tech biz)
Date - 6th February, 2010
Quizmaster - Souvik Basu
Research - Trivia Tales
Teams of 3, cross teams allowed
On-the-spot registration
Cash prizes for 1st, 2nd & 3rd

Quiz at NMIMS

2009-11-13T13:10:00.002+05:30

After NITIE (where we falied to be on stage again), it's time to head back to our alma mater NMIMS. Our track record here has been better and hopefully it will remain lucky for us.

There will be a Corporate Business Quiz - Solomon’s Stride, as part of the Annual B-school Event Paragana 2009, at the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), Mumbai.

Details:
Date : 15th November, 2009 (Sunday)

Timings : 5.45 pm
Venue : NMIMS Campus, Mumbai
Quiz Master : Amit Pandeya
Registrations : Opens at 5.15 pm & On the spot. You can also drop a mail at mantavya.nmims@gmail.com

Team Composition : Mixed teams allowed amongst Corporates & Mixed teams allowed amongst Students. No mixed teams between Corporates & Students.
Quiz Pattern : Top 7 teams make it to the Finals after a written Prelims. Out of these 7 Teams, a minimum of 2 Student Teams will qualify for the Finals i.e. 5 team positions are open.

As per the quizmaster, the quiz will essentially cover a gamut of business related topics but may have questions on general interests as well.

Registration: Rs 300 for the Corporate Teams.

Entry free for the Student Teams.

Prizes : 1st - worth Rs 40k, 2nd - worth Rs 20k

Business Quiz at NITIE

2009-11-06T19:56:00.003+05:30

NITIE is organizing a business quiz as part of its annual management fest 'Prerana.'

Details:
Date - 7th November, Saturday
Time - Registration starts from 4.30pm
3+3 quota
Rs 500 registration for corporates
Prizes worth Rs 50k
QM: Radhakrishnan (research by Dhananjay & team)

On a personal note, NITIE has not proved lucky for me yet; never reached the finals. Last year hoped to reach the finals for the first time after seeing the prelims paper. Sadly, it proved to be a rare occassion when the prelims paper got changed. The new prelims completely stumped us and left us grounded in the audience :P

Keeping fingers crossed this time.

Change in timings of Quriosity@ IMTG

2009-10-31T08:18:00.002+05:30

This was just a reminder about the 'Quriosity' Business Quiz taking place tomorrow (1st November) at 'Passion 2009' in IMT Ghaziabad.

Please note the change in timings:

Prelims start from 3:00 PM; prelims to be followed immediately by the Finals.

Other details remain unchanged. Look forward to seeing you all tomorrow.

'Quriosity' Business Quiz at IMT Ghaziabad 'Passion 2009'

2009-10-27T20:28:00.004+05:30

IMT Ghaziabad is having a quiz 'Quriosity' as part of the institute's annual management fest 'Passion 2009'.

Details:
Event - Quriosity
Flavour - Business Quiz
Open to - Students of B-School only
Team Size - 2 (Both members should be from same insti, any no. of teams from an insti)

Date - 1st November, 2009 (Sunday)
Timings - Prelims: 1.30 PM onwards, finals immediately after prelims

Research - Trivia Tales
Quizmaster - Souvik Basu (yours truly)

Prizes: 1st prize - Rs. 20,000 ; 2nd prize - Rs. 10,000
No quotas or reservations, top 6 teams make it to the finals.

Please visit the official link here: http://passion-imtg.com/Quriosity.html

SIBM Transcend 2009

2009-10-18T08:40:00.008+05:30

Diwali greetings! Hope the festival of lights fills your lives with health, wealth & happiness.

Had conducted the business quiz 'BizArena' at SIBM 'Transcend 2009' in March along with SIBM alumnus Samrat Mukherjee. Here are a few questions from the prelims.

1. Percept Picture Company, Congress’ media campaigner for General Elections 2009, had bought the exclusive rights for what from Super Cassettes Industries for around Rs 1 crore, to use in Congress' election campaign?
2. Some belongings of Mahatma Gandhi that were in the possession of documentary film-maker James Otis grabbed headlines recently. The famous hotel baron Sant Singh Chatwal said he would bid for them. Ultimately it was Vijay Mallya who bought them. Which auction house carried out this auction?
3. Institute of Development in Automotive Engineering was where it was designed. The parent company has filed 34 patents for it. What are we describing?
4. Identify this person.

5. Which company’s waste management program and environment friendly initiative in India is called eKO?
6. Who trades on NYSE as 'COP'?
7. This brand recorded a retail value – i.e. what the end consumer paid on the street of $1.6 billion or Rs 8300 crores during 2008. These figures were reported by the company to New York-based Impact International, a leading industry digest, as part of its annual listing of the world’s top spirits brands and their marketers.
The reported retail value makes it probably the eighth biggest spirits brand globally.
Which brand? (specific answer)

Answers:
1. The rights to the song 'Jai Ho'
2. Antiquorum Auctioneers
3. Tata Nano
4. AS Murthy
5. Coca Cola
6. ConocoPhillips
7. McDowell's No. 1

Finals:
1. Minimally Invasive Education (or MIE) is a term used to describe how children learn in unsupervised environments. It was derived from an experiment done by Sugata Mitra while at NIIT in 1999 often called The Hole in the Wall (HiWEL).
Under this project, computers could be installed in backward areas. Young children taught themselves about the use of computers without intervention from the experimenters.
What was inspired by this and is huge news and has done huge business recently?

2. The Ministry of Finance has recently launched a nation-wide competition for the design of a symbol. The symbol should:
¡Represent the historical and cultural prominence of the country
¡Be widely acceptable across the country
¡Be applicable to standard keyboard
¡Be in the Indian National Language Script or a visual representation
The top 5 selections will receive Rs 25K each irrespective of getting selected as the final symbol. The jury of examiners would consist of seven members drawn from various organizations in the field of arts, finance, culture, history etc. Entries must reach the right people latest by 1300 hours on 15th April 2009.
What symbol are we talking about?
3. Ad for?

Answers:
1. Slumdog Millionaire

The movie Slumdog Millionaire is adapted from the book Q & A (novel). Vikas Swarup in various interviews has acknowledged HiWEL as the inspiration behind the book.The author has said that he was inspired by the Hole in the Wall project which installed a computer in a Delhi slum.

2. A new symbol for Indian Rupee instead of writing Rs. or Re.

3. Viagra

The quiz was jointly won by SIBM and SLS (Symbiosis Law School). The teams agreed to split the prizes among themselves.

Brand Equity Quiz 2009 (Mumbai)

2009-04-26T21:14:00.002+05:30

Went to see the Mumbai round of BEQ yesterday. Nice quiz overall. However, if you are someone who only enjoys tough questions, then you may have been disappointed.

Here are some questions from the prelims.
1. Mr. Foster of M/S Crompton Greaves company in Mumbai was the first to own a ____ in India.
Ans - car
2. Du Pont pioneered this concept of feedback where feedback was got from peers, superiors, suboridnates. (something like this).
Ans - 360 degree
3. Sylla Petit was the 1st woman pilot of India. Who was her brother?
Ans - JRD Tata
4. With which industry will you associate the Geneva seal?
Ans - Watches
5. Melinda Gates very few things banned in her household. Among them are ___ & ___.
Ans - i-phones & i-pods (1 choice was fish & chips)
6. If 16 annas equal to 1 Re, what did 15 rupees equal to? (1 mohur, 1 cowpie, 1 cent)
Ans - 1 mohur
7. Every year 13 billion ___ bags are haned over to British shoppers.
Ans - polythene
8. If it is Dharavi in Mumbai, Bronx in New York, where is Favelas?
Ans - Rio de Janerio
9. According to Peter Drucker, a company has only two finctions: marketing & ____.
Ans - innovation (1 choice was segmentation)
10. In monopsony, there is only one ____. (buyer/seller/agent/regulator)
Ans - buyer
11. Which city's name comes under the brand name Haldiram in packages of Haldiram products?Ans - Nagpur
12. What is run by Corrections Corporation which is the largest of its type in US?
Ans - prisons
13. Grey Goose is a brand of ____ (product)?
Ans - vodka
14. The copyright on the works of which Indian expired on Jan 1, 2009?
Ans - Mahatma Gandhi
15. For what did Max Yesgur rent out his dairy farm in Bethel, New York, for 3 days in 1969?Ans - Woodstock
16. After the 2006 world cup, with which player did Adidas colloborate to come up with Powerserve?
Ans - Zinedine Zidane
17. According to the site, you can win an i-pod by hitting whose face with rotten egg on the site Nailthethief.com ?
Ans - Ramalinga Raju
18. Which district in UP is called the Suha-gs Nagri as it fulfils what a suhagin needs?
Ans - Ferozabad
19. visual N. Hiranandani
20. print ad for Vadilal
21. logo of Deccan Chargers
22. visual of Rajkumar Santoshi
23. print ad for De Beers

1 bad thing about the prelims was that q's were not repeated. The teams even did not get any time at the end also for any last moment changes.

Absolute Pharma Quiz at NMIMS SPTM on 21st February

2009-02-20T23:50:00.002+05:30

SVKM's NMIMS School of Pharmacy and Technological Management (SPTM) is oraganizing an open quiz called 'Absolute Pharma Intellect' at their annual corporate event 'ISTHMUS 2009'.
Date - 21st February, 2009
Registration - 5 pm Time
Prelims from 6:00 PM sharp, followed by finals. The entire quiz will be around 2.30 - 3.0 hrs duration.
Venue - Usha Praveen Gandhi Pavilion, JVPD Scheme, Vile Parle West, Mumbai. (Landmarks NMIMS & Mithibai College)
Quiz Details - It will be a smattering of General & Business Quiz, covering entire gamut of topics under the Pharmacy, Healthcare & Medicinal fields.
Quiz Masters - Amit Pandeya & Souvik Basu
Prizes :
1st Prize - Rs 10,000/-
2nd Prize - Rs 6,000/-
3rd Prize - Rs 4,000/-
( Additionally, there might be some Gift Vouchers ).
Other details :
1. 2 member teams
2. Open to both corporates and students
3. Mixed teams allowed amongst Students, Corporates & Corporates - Students
4. No registration charges.
5. On-the-spot registration will start from 5 PM.
For any further details, please contact : Mr. Manish Misra (Contact no. - 98194-62737).

Quiz on the Beach

2009-01-08T22:46:00.001+05:30

Please find the post below:

Is the possibility of a recession giving you sleepless nights? Do youfeel like taking some time off and chilling out? How does a visit to abeach sound? Or would you like to involve yourself in some seriousquizzing? What if you were offered the chance of doing both at thesame time? Sounds interesting???T. A. Pai Management Institute's annual B-School fest, Atharva invitesyou to participate in the Quiz on the Beach (QOTB) to be held at KaupBeach, Udupi, Karnataka. QOTB is held on the shores of the magicalArabian Sea with an old British built lighthouse serving as abackdrop. So pack your bags and come down to Kaup Beach for someserious fun!!!

Quiz Flavour: Business Quiz

Host: T. A. Pai Management Institute, Manipal

Quiz Master: Mr. Arul Mani

Date: 10th January 2009

Open to Corporates.

Please check out the links below for further details:

Poster and Rules (link to http://www.tapmi.org/atharva/Qotb.pdf)

Atharva - Picasa Album (link to http://picasaweb.google.com/atharva09.tapmi)

Atharva Website (link to http://www.tapmi.org/atharva)

Quiz On The Beach – Registration for Corporates (link to

http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=poEj6Zaq5kogDVBjn9YxnXw&hl=en)

For further Clarifications contact:

Puneet Kapoor : 09880885040

S. Gopinath : 09742353966

Nikhil Bhat : 09742502691

E- Mail: atharva09.tapmi@gmail.com

AIMA Quiz 2008 Mumbai continued

2008-12-11T20:54:00.001+05:30

Here are some questions from the finals.

1. With which company will you associate ‘Project 10 to 100th’?
Ans – Google

2. Which Bollywood actor has become the brand ambassador of the Indian Boxing Association?
Ans – Sanjay Dutt

3. As per Indian state hunger index, which state is placed last?
Ans – Madhya Pradesh

4. With which company will you associate the initiative ‘one component one gram’?
Ans – Maruti

5. Which ad agency has won the maximum awards in Effie 2008?
Ans – JWT

6. Who has recently been voted the sexiest woman of Asia?
Ans – Katrina Kaif

7. Whose corporate motto is: Performance with Purpose?
Ans – Pepsi

8. In the song ‘Pappu can’t dance sala’, which are the 2 brands mentioned?
Ans – Rado & Gucci

9. Who has been recently chosen as the President of the Editors’ Guild in India?
Ans – Rajdeep Sardesai

10. With whose spouse will you associate ’23 & Me’?
Ans – Sergei Brin
11. With which company will you associate an environment friendly program called WOW?
Ans – ITC

12. What is the name of the train that runs between Dhaka & Kolkata?
Ans – Maitri Express

13. Expand SWITCH.
Ans – Satyam, Wipro, Infosys, TCS, Cognizant, HCL

AIMA Quiz 2008 (Mumbai)

2008-12-11T20:50:00.003+05:30

The Mumbai round of the AIMA Quiz was held on 10th December. Sun Microsystems literally ran away with the quiz with HUL coming second. Recession has hit quizzing also as only 15 teams took part.

Here are some questions from the prelims.

1. Visual of a campus. (QM rather helpfully said training centre of an Indian software in Mysore). Whose campus?
Ans - Infosys

2. ‘Yours is here’ is whose tagline?
Ans – Dell

3. Who is the sponsor of the England cricket team?
Ans – Vodafone

4. Which politician owns the ‘Kohinoor Group’?
Ans – Manohar Joshi

5. Pics of Naina Lal Kidwai, Anand Mahindra & Rahul Bajaj. What is common to them?
Ans – all alumni of Harvard Business School

6. Visual: Picture of a writer who had died recently.
Ans – Michael Crichton

7. Who recently said, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated”?
Ans – Steve Jobs

8. Pics of Sachin Tendulkar, Jackie Stewart and Jack Nicholson. They have all been brand ambassadors of which company?
Ans – Royal Bank of Scotland

9. Preity Zinta, Raageshwari, Amrita Rao & Gayatri Joshi have all been brand ambassadors of what?
Ans – Cadbury’s Perk

10. Which construction company has executed the project Bandra Worli sea-link?
Ans – Hindustan Construction Company

11. ‘Wreck weirder or over’ – 3 words related to quality management are merged. Unscramble them. (Hint: all words start with the letter ‘R’)
Ans – rework, record, review

12. In ‘PEST analysis’, what does PEST stand for?
Ans – political, economic, social, technological

13. In marketing management, what is semiotics?
Ans – Study of symbols & signs in consumer behaviour

14. Clip from film ‘EMI’. What was Sanjay Dutt’s agency called in the film?
Ans – Goodluck recovery agency

15. Clipping from film ‘Love Story 2050’. Who was the IT partner for the film?
Ans – Sun Microsystems

16. Clipping from film ‘Hello’. Name the book on which the film is based?
Ans – ‘One Night @ the Call Centre’ by Chetan Bhagat

AIMA Quiz continued

2008-12-08T20:35:00.001+05:30

Here are some questions from the finals.

1. Whose life story is titled ‘Married to the Mouse’?
Ans – Walt Disney

2. Ron Raymond, who committed suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate bridge, was responsible for starting what?
Ans – Victoria’s Secrets

3. Which Indian software company has come up with an initiative called ‘Bioscope’ to increase employee camaraderie?
Ans – I-Flex

4. Which company has come out with a new tagline called ‘Experience Uncertainty’?
Ans – TCS

5. ‘Love, Learn and Thrive’ is the philanthropy program of which corporate giant?
Ans – P & G

6. In which company is managers rated in colour coded boxes like green, amber & red?
Ans – HUL

7. Which company was behind the campaign ‘The Old Man and The Sky’?
Ans – Air Deccan

8. The ‘Pink Slip Awards’ introduced by The Times of India is for what?
Ans – Best recruitment ads

9. ‘Let’s get it done’ is the new global corporate identity of which company?
Ans – Citigroup

10. Who said this: ‘Do you want to know what comes between me and my Calvin? Nothing.’?
Ans – Brooke Shields

11. Who has come up with a new slogan called ‘Save Money. Live Better.’?
Ans – Walmart

12. ‘Karo sifarish’ is the employee referral program of which company?
Ans – HDFC

13. With whom will you associate the book called ‘Softwar’?
Ans – Larry Ellison

14. What is the term used for a person who rolls part of the credit card bill over to the next month?
Ans – Revolver

15. Which famous entrepreneur will you associate with the book ‘It Happened in India’?
Ans – Kishore Biyani

AIMA Quiz

2008-11-30T09:30:00.001+05:30

The AIMA Quiz (corporate edition) is here again. The Mumbai round is scheduled to be on 10th December. Thought this would be a good time to post some q’s from the last year’s Mumbai round.

Some dry q’s from the prelims:

1. Which company owns the site mycandymanclub.com?
Ans – ITC

2. Which company has started an initiative called ‘earn your stripes’ designed to encourage kids to be more active, eat right and work hard to achieve goals?
Ans – Kelloggs

3. Which company has set up several ‘Kisan seva kendras’ across the country to serve oil to the rural markets?
Ans – IOC

4. Which insurance company has come up with a child’s plan named ‘Little Master’?
Ans – Aviva

5. A company named Forsche (or Forshe) has started a new business in Mumbai. What?
Ans – it is a taxi-service with only women taxi drivers

6. Whose tagline is ‘Transforming Tomorrow’?
Ans – Arcelor Mittal

7. Wildlife Warriors, a conservationist organization, was established by whom in 2002?
Ans – Steve Irwin

8. John Chambers is the current CEO of which company?
Ans – Cisco

9. Times’ list of ‘Heroes of the Environment 2007’ features which Indian businessman?
Ans – Tulsi Tanti

10. Who was awarded the ‘Global Indian of the Year’ award in the ET Awards for corporate excellence?
Ans – Rajat Gupta

11. What is the name of the new lifestyle magazine from the Outlook Group?
Ans – Envy

12. Which celebrity magazine was launched in India with the wedding pictures of Elizabeth Hurley and Arun Nayar?
Ans – Hello

13. Who has come up with ‘9 C’s of Leadership’ and advocates that CEO’s and company presidents should be judged according to it in his new book?
Ans – Lee Iacocca (Where have all the Leaders Gone)

14. Makeyourmoves.com is the viral marketing initiative by which brand?
Ans – Clinic All Clear

15. Which company has come up with the launch of a new menswear apparel brand called ‘Notting Hill’?
Ans – Raymonds

16. Nitin Shah, Arun Shah & Milan Shah started which jeans brand from a weekend roadside stall?
Ans – Pepe

17. The name of which recently launched watch collection from Titan is inspired by World War II fighter aircrafts?
Ans – Aviator

National B-School Debate at NMIMS

2008-11-15T00:53:00.002+05:30

Feeling a rather proud alumnus today. The cell which I used to head last year has been taken to greater heights by the present batch. Well done guys!
Please find below the details of the Debate.

The Event
Do we sit atop the ivory towers, aloof?
Or do we stand up to the plague that threatens our sanctity
Is our progress in peril? Is the doomsday near?
Or is it the signal to rethink, rework, reinvent and reincarnate
For the daydreams we saw have to be realized into Caviar

Argue, Concur, Debate, Dissonate, Polemicize on topics shaping the future of Indian Business and Society at Caviar and Daydreams—The Great B-School Debate during Paragana.

Watch the semi-finals and the finals live on Saturday, 15 Nov, 2008, from 2:00-3.3opm.

The Final 4 Teams
MDI Gurgaon
NITIE Mumbai
IIFT-Kolkata
NMIMS Mumbai

The Judges
Mr. K. Ramkumar has 24 years of work experience in private and public sector industries. He has worked in Hindustan Aeronautics, Hindustan Lever Limited, ICI India Ltd. and is currently with ICICI Bank Limited as Group-Chief Human Resources Officer, heading the Human Resources Management. He is Group Head – HR of the ICICI Group.
Mr. Mrinal Guha is the Sr Executive Vice President, Talent Acquisition and Organizational Development, Group HR Communications Reliance ADAG. Hestarted his career with Exxon Corporations Refineries Division in India in 1971. He was also the youngest Vice President- HR and Corporate Services in Smithkline Beecham and at the time of leaving Johnson and Johnson, he was responsible for the Training and Development for South East Asia operations.

The Venue
Grand Hyatt,
Off Western Express Highway, Santa Cruz (E), Mumbai - 400 055
Please register for Paragana at the registration desk. Registration Charges Rs. 600 inclusive of lunch and tea.

The Prizes
Rs.30,000 + Rolling Trophy
Rs. 20,000

Corporate Quiz at NMIMS

2008-11-13T18:54:00.004+05:30

NMIMS is organizing a corporate quiz 'Prashnottari' as part of the annual management fest 'Paragana'. Details below:

QM - Amit Pandeya
Teams of 2
Open to all
Cross-corporates team allowed but no cross team for students or students-corporates
Date - Sunday 16th November
Time - 6pm onwards
6 teams on stage, no quotas
Prizes - 30k & 20k

The online quizzes can be accessed at http://www.paragana.com/prashnavali.html Kudos to the question setters for setting such nice quizzes.

Here are some questions from the last year's prelims:

Q1. Until Sept 2005, Gillette owned it. Recently Genpact became its owner. What are we referring to?
A. Ticker symbol G on NYSE

Q2. Atorvastatin is a member of the drug class known as statins, used for lowering cholesterol which inhibits the rate-determining enzyme located in hepatic tissue that produces mevalonate, a small molecule used in the synthesis of cholesterol and other mevalonate derivatives. The most famous brand of this was the largest selling drug in the world for 2006. Which brand?
A. Lipitor

Q3. FXLabs Solutions, a Hyderabad based video game developing company has been awarded the rights by Yashraj Film Studios to develop a game based on one of its films. They have also been awarded the rights to turn a particular American comic into a video game. Which movie and which comic?
A. Dhoom 2 and Archie

Q4. In an attempt of finding a way of burning down the traditional paperback book business, which company has launched the Kindle, a US$399 handheld device that can download digital books, newspapers, and magazines from the Internet?
A. Amazon.com

Q5. Sabse Bada Rupaiyya is a show on NDTV India telecast every Sunday evening between 4:30 to 5pm. The show educates viewers on the insurance industry gives tips on personal finance management. Who is the expert host of the show?
A. Ritu Nanda

Q6. In addition to the audio feedback provided by a generic male or female voice , there are pre-recorded congratulations provided by Lance Armstrong and Paula Radcliffe whenever a user reaches a set milestone. This "celebrity feedback" is heard after the usual end-of-run statistics. Recently, students from the University of Washington discovered that the transmitter of this device gives off radio frequencies that can be read up to 60 feet away using Radio-frequency identification and used this to build a US$250 surveillance device and integrated it with Google Maps. Which device?
A. Nike+Ipod

Q7. Which famous 'watering hole' amongst corporates and students in a suburb in Mumbai, gets its name from the company, Totlani & Co., which owns it?
A. Toto’s

Q8. Just before the 2004 Olympics at Athens, swimwear company Speedo introduced to the markets 'The Worlds Fastest Swimsuit'. This is a result of four years of research and development that began at the Natural History Museum, London. What was the inspiration for the design of this suit?
A. The Shark Skin

Q9. She is the only Indian designer to be featured in promostyl's magazine Acustyl and the first Asian to head the French fashion brand, Scherrer.She authored the book, 101 Ways to Look Good and serves on the board of Governors at NIFT, and is an honorary patron of the Savera Association, a popular charity involved in improving the lives of Indian woman. Who?
A. Ritu Beri

Q10. This company is offers its user with a new concierge service. It is accessed through a special button, the "Concierge key" provided on the instrument. The service comprises a dedicated team of assistants to help the owner, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The service also helps the user locate tickets to the theatre, reserve able at a restaurant, make spa appointment and arrange for travel among many other services. Which company?
A. Vertu

India's dream test XI

2008-11-11T22:10:00.001+05:30

Read a nice article on cricinfo 2-3 days ago. http://content-ind.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/current/story/376791.html
If religion is the opium of the masses, then cricket is the opium for many of us in India. As India comes off a great series victory against Australia, there looms a sense of lingering loss also. It’s the last time we have seen the Fab Five together. For some millions who have grown up watching the Fab Five, watching cricket may not be the same again. For me, I definitely know it won’t be the same after Sachin retires.

Whatever news channel you open, there are many shows on Kumble and Ganguly. Former greats and the not-so-greats have been writing columns, giving interviews to both newspapers and tv channels about Ganguly and Kumble. Words like ‘India’s all time greatest match winner’, ‘best Indian captain ever’, ‘best left-handed batsman India has produced’, ‘fighter’ etc. are being used liberally (deservingly too). As we see the beginning of the end of an era of Indian cricket, we must count ourselves fortunate as to have witnessed these modern greats.

Having a lot of time to kill and consumed by the same desire of most sports lovers, I am attempting to make an all time great test XI for India. For the sake of simplicity, players who have totally or mostly played pre-independence are not considered.

Let’s open this discussion with the opening. For one position, I believe the choice is easiest. Even his worst enemies will perhaps not question the inclusion of Mr. Sunil Manohar Gavaskar. With a rock-solid technique and impeccable temperament, Sunny had simply soaked up the venom of all fast bowlers all across the world. And, his last innings of 96 in Bangalore is a master class on how play top spinners on a viciously turning track.

Now comes the question of his partner. Who shall it be? Two names come to mind: 1) Vijay Merchant (2) Vinoo Mankad
Vijaysingh Madhavji Thackersey aka Vijay Merchant has a batting average of 71.64 in first class cricket, second only to the great Don. But playing only 10 test matches (though no fault of his) goes against him.
Mulvantrai Himmatlal Mankad is perhaps India’s first genuine all-rounder. A co-holder of the opening partnership record of 413 runs (that stood for 52 years), his claim for the opening spot is perhaps stronger than the others. But being one of the only 3 players in the history of the game to have batted at all positions, he can perhaps lay claim to some other slot in the team.

But my vote for Sunny’s opening partner would go towards Virendra Sehwag. Truly a contrast to his partner, few teams can find such a rare combo of offence and defence. With two triple hundreds and five double hundreds to his name along with a 50+ average, he has truly solved India’s opening woes. If Sunny can frustrate bowlers at one end, he can simply destroy them with his fearless and unique style of batting. The Nawab of Najafgarh is then our dream team’s second opener.

First down position is a crucial position in any form of the game. Who shall come at our number three position then? The list of nominees are: Vijay Hazare, Rahul Dravid, Vinoo Mankad (a nominee for every position perhaps), and Mohinder Amarnath. The mercurial CK Nayudu is not being considered as he played before independence. Vinoo Mankad will perhaps be more suited at a different position. Mohinder Amarnath, the former comeback man of Indian cricket, has shown plenty of grit and determination over the years in the position. But in this position runs are as important as grit and hence Jimmy fails to make the cut in this dream team.

So we are now down to two men – Vijay Samuel Hazare and Rahul Sharad Dravid. Vijay Hazare, the man who led India to her first test victory in the jubilee test against England at Chennai, was truly a batsman of rare class. He was the first Indian player to score a century in three successive Test matches and the first Indian to score a century in each innings of a Test match (116 and 145 on successive days against the Australia in Adelaide in 1947-48, which was the same team that became known as ‘the invincibles’). When one considers that India was following on in the second innings and six batsmen had failed to score, one gets an idea of his greatness.

But when you pit him against ‘The Wall’ Rahul Dravid, he meets the same fate as many bowlers have met – emerge second best. If we boast of the recent wins abroad, it is only because we had our own wall of India. Who can forget his contributions in the landmark victories at Adelaide, Multan and Headingley or even the Eden test in 2001 back home against Australia? A batsman who performed both at home and abroad, he has indeed been a pillar for the Indian team. A quiet man, he lets his bat do the talking, amassing more than 10,000 runs in the process. A thorough team man, he has opened the batting as well as kept wickets (though not in tests) when the team needed him to do so. ‘Mr. Dependable’, a well-deserved sobriquet, is thus our man at number three.

To be continued………………..

Rip Van Winkle awakens

2008-11-11T19:24:00.001+05:30

Some thought that the blog was dead; some thought that the blogger was dead. Well a blog can hardly be run with an idle mind. It becomes even more difficult, nay almost impossible, to run it when the idle mind resides inside an idle body.

However, I have woken up after a long hibernation/aestivation whatever you call it. After making and breaking numerous promises of “I’ll be back!” (a la Arnold), I am back.

Well, now that I have decided to write, I find myself facing the writer’s block already. What should I write on? Have been to 5 quizzes in the last couple of months, even conducted 1 at alma-mater NMIMS. Well, will definitely have posts on those quizzes shortly so the few people who visit this blog for quizzes do keep coming back.

First post, BEQ Kolkata

2007-03-27T23:11:00.000+05:30

Saw my picture in the newspaper for the 1st time in my life. Still conceited because of that. Though nowhere in the forefront, still clearly visible. Hence to celebrate the 'occassion', the first post on the blog. And, obviously, the first post based on the 'occassion' ie Brand Equity Quiz, Kolkata round.

Here are some questions from the finals:

1. In a food additive, what is given the E number E 174 and classed as food colouring?
Ans – silver (choices were silver, aluminium & gold) [all the 1st 6 questions had 3 choices]

2. William Lamb, the architect of the Empire State Building, based his design on a ___________ .
Ans – Pencil (1 of the other choices was pen)

3. Aurangzeb did away with ‘kalina’, the article of faith, from his coins because _______
Ans – it would be defiled when coming in contact with disbelievers

4. According to Oxford English Dictionary, which word comes from an Italian word for ‘to handle’ – especially a horse?
Ans – manage

5. Which tea does Organic India produce in 3 varieties: Rama, Krishna & Vana?
Ans – tulsi tea

6. According to Al Ries, what is the primary objective of a branding program?
Ans- mind (other choices were product & customer)

7. Who wrote the book ‘Gods of Management’ where he/she discussed the culture of Apollo?
Ans – Charles Handy

8. In New Orleans and parts of South USA, if you buy po-boys, you will get sandwiches. Why the name po-boys?
Ans- po-boys came from poor boys (who could not afford any expensive food item & sandwiches formed their main diet)

9. Who spent many years dodging taxes on the royalty received from the sales of his autobiography? (it would be approximately 6 million euros at today’s prices)
Ans – Adolf Hitler

10. In Chinese hospitals and in business in general, what is/are referred to as red packets?
Ans – bribe

11. What car component/feature first became commercially available as ‘Hydraguide’ in Chrysler’s new car?
Ans – power steering

12. What is the origin of the word ‘Dixieland’?
Ans – French word for 10 is dis

13. What does the ‘Ministry of Sound’ handle in New Delhi?
Ans – parties, functions etc (it’s a disco)

14. George Gillett & Tom Hicks made what famous acquisition in 2007?
Ans – Liverpool FC

15. Which RBI governor opposed the nationalization of Imperial Bank of India and later reversed his decision 1 year later?
Ans – CD Deshmukh

16. Who had the ad line: ‘Don’t ask the price, it’s a penny’?
Ans – Marks & Spencer

17. The first packets of which product said ‘prevents nervous strain’?
Ans – Durex condoms

18. Complete this Mahatma Gandhi quote: “The Congress is nothing if it does not represent the _____________.” (1 word, no Anglo-Saxon word)
Ans – ‘kisan’ (answers like ‘aam aadmi’ & ‘junta’ were not accepted)

19. In the 1920s, when this product was launched, the annual sales were only $3000. The items in the first batch measured 18” by 3”. What product/brand?
Ans – Band-Aid

20. Who is the second richest person in the world?
Ans – Warren Buffet

There were some Kolkata specific questions like 'Which restaurant is famous for its 'chello kebab' dish?'. The answer, as most foodlovers in Kolkata would know, is Peter Cat.

Thought that the TCS team of Sabyasachi Chandra and G. Sreekanth would win easily but they faced quite a fight from the runners up team Standard Chartered who got the last question on the buzzer wrong. Overall, a nice experience, made nicer by the fact that won myself an audience prize of a wine bottle and a kingfisher airlines t-shirt.

Now looking forward to the Mumbai round of BEQ.

FINALLY

2007-02-18T00:07:00.000+05:30

FINALLY, THE TIME HAS COME!

People who have visited the blog for so long and abused me for it will no longer do so. Very soon, something will be up here.

THE WAIT BEGINS!