“I wish to share my GD / Interview experience at IIMB. The views expressed here are my own and should not be generalized.”
Regards,
Apoorv Iyer,
PGPM (2001-2003),
IIM Bangalore.
The GD / Interview was held on the 19th of March and it was my best bet, as I did not get a call from IIM-A. IIM Bangalore has a very peculiar and unique methodology for selection after the written stage…
When you get a call from IIMB, they send you a form, which has to be filled-up, and sent to them for their perusal.
The details asked in the form include:
1. Your past academic record…
2. Work experience…
3. Typical questions like: -
a) Why do you want to join IIMB?
b) Briefly describe your job responsibilities.
c) Statement of Purpose.
d) Why do you want a career in management?
The interview panel may/may not refer to your form…
From my experience, I can say it is best to be honest and straightforward while writing the answers to these questions… Also one should be very clear… The one thing about IIM interviews especially IIM A, B, C are that really expert people come to take these interviews.
So answers should NOT be framed in the engineering viva style. Be very honest with your answers, and if you don’t know something, accept it with grace.
The GD at IIMB consists of 6-8 people (not more) and they give you ample time, about 18-20 minutes. The topic for my GD was - “A good business school graduate does not necessarily make a good manager”.
The topic was a general one and this time at all the IIMs the topics have been pretty general except for IIMA and IIMK where they had case studies.
The point to note in a GD is: -
1. Do NOT make it a fish market. AND if it goes beyond control then at least you do not become the perpetrator…
2. State your points in a laconic and clear manner with authority.
3. Listen to others and appreciate his/her point of view.
4. Do NOT have a confrontational view of things.
My performance in the GD was pretty good and on a scale of 1-10, I would rate it to be 7.5. (FMS’s was better).
The IIMB interview was an experience in itself.
Interview Panel: 2 person: One was a Professor at IIMB and I have no idea who the other person was.
I will give a chronological order of the Q/A here:
IIMB: Please sit down.
AP: Thank you, sir.
IIMB: What were you trying to say in the GD?
AP: Sir, the topic of the G.D was - “A good business school graduate need not be a good business manager” - and according to me, it is true. Being a good manager entails applying the methodologies you have learnt and implement them. The key words here are learnability and implementation. If you don’t apply what you have learnt, then there is no point in being from a good business school.
IIMB: You have written in your form about quality? What do you think is a quality life?
AP: A quality life to me is a life in which you constantly learn from your mistakes. Every one makes mistakes but to accept them with grace and learn from them takes a lot of courage and honesty. To tell yourself that you were wrong is very difficult. So in simple words a life in which you learn constantly is a quality life to me.
IIMB: You have also written that you have made mistakes in your life? What is the biggest mistake you have made till now?
AP: The biggest mistake I have made is not getting into IIT in the first attempt.
IIMB: Do you think it was a mistake?
AP: Sir, I believe that I had the ability to get into IIT but I was not sincere enough with my studies. That does not mean that other engineering institutions are not good but yes institutions like IITs and IIMs require a certain degree of sincerity and dedication and I did not show it.
IIMB: But you still think it was a MISTAKE!
AP: Yes sir, I still think it was a mistake. But the point here is that I learnt form that. My engineering scores prove that.
IIMB: What was your position in the class?
AP: Around 5th - 8th.
IIMB: Out of how many students?
AP: 70 - 75.
IIMB: Out of a class of 70-75 students, you were in the top ten.
AP: Yes sir.
IIMB: OK Apoorv, can you tell me the laws of thermodynamics?
AP: (I started with the first law…)
IIMB: How many laws are there… three or four?
AP: Sir, there are four but I’m not able to recollect the zeroth law… (I tell him all the 3 laws)
IIMB: What is entropy?
AP: I defined…
IIMB: Can we measure it?
AP: No sir…
IIMB: What can we measure?
AP: Change in entropy.
IIMB: What is the difference between heat and temperature?
AP: I said…
IIMB: Any units of measuring heat?
AP: Joules…
IIMB: How would you rate HCL as an Employer?
AP: HCL is a pretty open organization with no hierarchal bottlenecks. As an account executive and the little experience I have had, I believe that HCL gives a lot of freedom to it’s employees… There are no strict rules or dictum to follow. Again this is my perception and may not be true for somebody else.
IIMB: So HCL is a good company?
AP: Yes sir…
IIMB: What were your job responsibilities.
AP: I said…
IIMB: What have you learnt form your job?
AP: I said…
IIMB: How do you measure the speed of a computer?
AP: In hertz…(Clock speed)
IIMB: What is MIPS?
AP: Million of instructions per second.
IIMB: Where do the components come from… motherboard, chipset, etc?
AP: I said…
IIMB: Briefly give the configuration of a computer.
AP: I said…
IIMB: How do you decide what to offer to a customer?
AP: I said…
IIMB: O.K. Apoorv, have you participated in any co-curriculars?
AP: Do you want to see the certificates?
IIMB: No, just tell us, we believe you…
AP: Quizzes, Matches, etc.
IIMB: Sports?
AP: State level cricket and hockey.
IIMB: If a batsman hits a ball and the ball splits into two with one half being caught by a fielder and the other going for a six… what would it be?
AP: (The other panel member laughs and I also laugh)… Sir, it would be a dead ball… The bowler will have to bowl again.
IIMB: Thank you Apoorv… It was nice talking to you…
The interview lasted for 20-25 minutes.
On a scale of 1-10, I would give it 8 (FMS’s was again better)
Note: IIMB also gives you another form after the GD is over. It is not known whether these answers are also taken into account.
The questions asked were: -
1. Give your point of view of the GD
2. Who is your role model? (My answer was Stephen Hawking.)
3. What one thing has influenced you the most till now in your life?
4. What are the qualities of a good manager?
5. Have you taken any professional coaching for the GD / Interview?
On the whole I would say IIMB stresses a lot on the interview performance and GD.
The ratio should be: -
50% Cat Score
15% GD
25% Interview
10% Academics, work-experience, co-curriculars, extraordinary talents…
That was My Road to IIMB…
Concluded.
4 comments ↓
They ask questions from thermodynamics in IIM interviews? That is scary!
yea, why thermodynamics came in between :(
Grate of you Apoorv.
Above, you mentioned,
“The ratio should be: -
50% Cat Score
15% GD
25% Interview
10% Academics, work-experience, co-curriculars, extraordinary talents…”
but most of them say that we should get 90% Cat Score to get into IIM’s, is it true?
Scared of Mechanical Questions asked in the interview.
Every IIM has its own criteria.But most of NON-IIM institute give 90% weightage to CAT score.
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