Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
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Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by mbadropout » September 21st, 2014, 7:35 pm
After half a decade of work experience, no one is going to be overly concerned about your lack of involvement in extracurricular activities in college. What matters most is how you’ve performed in the half decade after college.
Now to your specific questions:
1. Short answer is - yes it is possible. You might want to consider CAT as well (for IIMs, etc.) in addition to the GMAT. All good bschools consider your complete profile which consists of a very large number of components, GMAT/CAT being just one (though a major one) of them. What matters is how your total package looks.
2. Usually these 1-year specializations are not very useful since they lack the rigor of full-term (2-year) courses. They are also not as well-rounded. Such course might be useful for some, but if you have the option, you should think about a more rigorous course of study.
3. MBA isn’t the only option - there are many. I am fairly sure that if you look at the profiles of senior management/leadership within your company, a large number of them would not have MBAs. Things to think about - what do you really want to achieve out of it? An MBA from a top school might assist you in executing a career switch, or provide your career a boost (see my last post). Since you would like to switch from testing to management, an MBA might be a good option.
4. An Executive MBA is a good option for some, but I think for your situation, a 2-year regular MBA might be a better option.
-Amit
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Re: Mid life career crisis
Post by gauravparmarr » September 22nd, 2014, 9:18 am
1. What do you really like doing? In other words, what is or could be your focus? What interests you the most?
I really like coming up/designing/architecting products in new emerging opportunities (like unstructured/inefficient/unorganized/offline unsexy sector (specifically Indian consumer/B2B sector) where technology can be used to make these sectors streamlined , and opportunities in psychology, behavioral economics, innovation/research etc. areas ). I mean, I like how to solve issues/problem (opportunity) of a particular sector (specially where opportunity is big/scalable), starting from the beginning. You can say, I like coming up with solution/product for a particular sector problem/opportunity. That's why, I mentioned India specific companies, where the product is not matured (generally they are going after unsolved Indian problems) and I can put all my learning to design the product from the ground up/beginning. I'm ready for/looking for complete ownership of the early days of product life cycle (which sector to go after, which niche/customer segment to target first, how to validate for product/solution opportunity/demand in the market, if the early version of product is ready then how to branch out/move to similar/adjacent sector etc., how to position/differentiate the product in the market, how to go after initial set of customers/strategic tie-up, any network where the product can piggyback etc).
I don't like telecom sector (even though, I've worked for bluetooth and 3g wireless). Also, telecom sector (r&d/technology) has not very good potential as a business perspective in India. It's dominated my USA, Chines, Korean, Japanese and European companies.
2. The next question to think about is where do you see yourself 2 years from now? How about 5 years from today? A possible answer could be "product manager in 2 years, and establish my own company in 5."
Right now, I'm 30 year old, I wanted to get retired by this time (complete financial freedom, I wanted to exit a small start-up in content, publishing, psychology, behavioral economics, innovation/research sector (the product I was designing was falling in these sectors,part of the product was falling in each sector, as I mentioned above I've also interest in these sectors also, as I can design a scalable product in this field)), but due to family politics (land distribution and all with cousin), I simply lost 2 years of precious time of my life and I was not able to achieve this target.
I was thinking, once I'll get some small exit I will work on some big opportunity in the above mentioned sector (unstructured/inefficient/unorganized/offline unsexy sector (specifically Indian B2B sector) where technology can be used to make these sectors streamlined,), and I will work most of my life solving problems in these sectors.
But as I'm not able to achieve my financial freedom target. Now, I'm looking for some role in Product management in (unstructured/inefficient/unorganized/offline unsexy sector like B2B retail, consumer e-commerce, consumer/B2B transportation, agriculture, supply chain(I mean in Indian B2B/consumer sector), where technology can be used to make these sectors streamlined), as product management comes natural to me and parallely/part-time (after office hour) I can also work on my venture and once my family situation will get stabilized (it'll take at least 2 years), once again I'll commit to my venture full time (I want to remain an entrepreneur all of my life, at least this is my thinking right now, once I might get some exit in future the thinking might change). Companies like Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal, Olacab, Taxiforsure, Powe2SME, MettleJunction and other companies which are solving Indian related problems falls into this unstructured/inefficient/unorganized bucket.
All this unstructured/inefficient/unorganized/offline unsexy sector where technology can be used to make these sectors streamlined falls into platform/marketplace opportunity (kindly refer platformed.info).
And psychology, behavioral economics, content, publishing innovation/research sector falls into habit forming products sector
(kindly refer http://www.nirandfar.com).
So, you can say I like platform/marketplace related (platformed.info) and habit formimg products (http://www.nirandfar.com) related opportunity.
Generally USA companies like Facebook, Twitter, Quora, Forsquare falls into habit/psychology/behavioral/content/publishing sector, but generally they don't have product management role/position in India. Also, Google and Yahoo India have some product management role in this sector.
So, you can say I'm looking for 2 years opportunity for product management in the above mentioned two categories (marketplace/platform and habit forming/psychology/behavioral economics/content/publishing), after then committing to my venture full time. Also, during product management role working on my venture part-time (after office hour only).
Also, you didn't answer one of my concern, how blogging in these two sectors can help me in achieving my goal as a product management role in these two sectors (I think blogging can help me in broadcasting my intent/skill to the right people/companies).
Also, do you think without MBA degree, I can make a career in Product management, if yes then how .
My academic + professional exp. is as follows.
B.Sc. Physics hons. + MCA + 1.6 year in Aricent in 3g Wireless +
2.4 year in samsung (1 project in sqlite database design : 4 month duration, then 2 year in smartphone/tablet division worked on Bluetooth and NFC project) + 11 month exp. in my start-up in B2B retail sector.
But, I'm not interested in a product management role in wireless/networking (3g wireless, bluetooth, nfc) sector. If not able to successful in finding a product management role in desired categories right now, then can go/open for technical role in wireless/mobile/networking domain right now.
Also, if I don't get a product management role right now , then do you think this 11 month start-up experience will create any problem for me (if yes, then how to present it in a positive way during interview) in getting a software development role again. I'm thinking, I can get some technical role right now and then (in side) try for product management role.
Kindly, chart out a career path (short and long term) for me from the above given info. If you want some more info, kindly ask for it.
Regards,
Kumar Gaurav
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Re: Mid life career crisis
Post by gauravparmarr » September 22nd, 2014, 10:41 am
N.B. I know of some industry programs for Product Manager role like Intuit and Facebook rotational program for Product manager role.
Regards,
Kumar Gaurav
Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by menfron » September 23rd, 2014, 10:06 am
I need some suggestion and clarification about MBA admission procedures.
Profile:
I graduated from one of the premiere NIT institution .
After graduation , i have been working with a big MNC as software developer.
I have total 3.3 years of experience.
I have pretty decent, if not expert in technical field. I have given presentation in international conference about one of my research paper.
I aspire to become to product managers, who are involved in business development . In my current company , they are involved in customer interaction as well as technical team interaction.
But after surfing lots of forum, i got to know that IT developer profile , is the least preferred profile in Top B school admissions.
So I wanted to clarify here once , if that is true or is it just a myth.
Thanks
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Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by mbadropout » September 30th, 2014, 6:11 am
Given the limitations of this medium of communication, charting an entire career path will probably not be possible. Having said that, let me give you some general thoughts, which should hopefully provide you with some direction.
I think the first thing you need to do is focus on a smaller subset of areas/domains. To me, "opportunities in psychology, behavioral economics, innovation/research etc. areas" covers mostly everything in today's evolving world of business. Looking at it another way, your list of promising companies - Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal, Olacab, Taxiforsure, Powe2SME, MettleJunction, Facebook, Twitter, Quora, Forsquare, Yahoo, Google - pretty much covers the entire spectrum. I think you will first need to zoom in on a couple of them, let's say social media companies (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and then look at them from a psychology/behavioral standpoint, if that's what interests you.
Once you firm up your focus, you will either need to prove to recruiters that you already possess the skills to take up a role in your area of interest, or do something (enroll in a course of study/training, join a small startup in your area of interest, etc.) that would help you pick up those skills to strengthen your candidacy. Thinking realistically, Google (or any other such company) wouldn't hire someone at the level of a product manager (for a major or upcoming/promising product line) unless you have a solid record of performance/success.
In response to your question on blogging, from what I have seen, in today's world, it is an activity that serves as a tool/medium that enables you to create a fair amount of noise if you are already established and widely regarded as an expert in a specific area, or have a product/offering that is already fairly successful or holds great promise. If you don't fall in any of those buckets, there is a fair chance of getting lost in the crowd.
In summary, my advice would be for you to focus on a thinner slice of all of your interest areas, assess the skills you already possess vs. those you would need to acquire, and then devise and execute a plan to fill any gaps. Once you reach that stage, you will need to narrow down a list of companies/positions that really interest you, and start applying to them. Everything else – financial freedom, the opportunity to launch your own company, etc. – will then flow spontaneously. Hope this helps.
-Amit
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- Joined: May 20th, 2012, 6:12 pm
Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by mbadropout » September 30th, 2014, 6:31 am
It’s not that admissions committees at top bschools don’t prefer IT/developer profiles. It so happens that that bucket is huge in terms of sheer numbers, and therefore there is more “competition.” To put it another way, admissions committees can afford to be very picky when choosing candidates from the IT/developer bucket because there are so many to pick and choose from. Their one and only intent is to ensure that the MBA class ends up having a fair/diverse mix of backgrounds and profiles. To get around this “problem,” you will need to differentiate yourself as best as you possibly can.
If I were you, I would take up a lot of challenging projects, participate in CSR and other extra-curricular activities, gain some international experience, etc. In short, I would do all that takes to ensure that my profile generates enough shimmer and glimmer to catch the attention of a weary member of the admissions committee that is staring at a huge pile of IT/developer profiles.
Good luck.
-Amit
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Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by prateek saroha » October 7th, 2014, 12:45 pm
Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by sham88 » October 7th, 2014, 5:53 pm
sir, I completed MBA in Marketing with 64% percentage,in 2014 august,I am so much interest and planning in SAP SD Module to learn and do the job in that field.
I had 6 years gap after my intermediate,at that time i worked in paper plate manufacturing company has a daily wage worker ,my age is now 29 yrs and I had 72% in tenth class,57% in intermediate,degree 58% and in MBA 64% percentage.
so, if I learn sap-SD,so could any company recruit me(take me in the job),by having this kind of my study profile back ground.About this,sir please suggest me the best path .
Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by Neonet » October 8th, 2014, 4:10 am
Thanks for being there to guide...
To start with, I have completed B.Tech in Electronics Communication in 2005 (CGPA 6.8). Subsequently, I completed M.A.(CGPA 6.5) and M.Phil (CGPA 7.2) from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. Additionally, I hold UGC-JRF and CSIR JRF.
I had undertaken study of nutritional status of children in the state of Gujarat for my dissertation for M.Phil and this is my second year of Ph.D. in economics from JNU. I am currently working on food/nutritional security and poverty for Ph.D.
I aspired to join an NGO after finishing Ph.D. and money was not real concern when I made these choices. I looked forward to live a life of homemaker with having some activity outside domestic domain to keep myself engaged.
However, things have changed now. I come from very orthodox family. They did not support my education right after my graduation. My family wanted me to pursue engineering so that they can get me married to "descent" guy...!! Job or study after graduation was strictly not an option. Pursuing my education meant severing ties with family. Yes, I dont have family anymore... sadly I had lost my boyfriend too. Money now becomes the prime concern as I choose to stay single. With that come MBA in mind. But I am skeptic about my chances of getting selected in any B-school as I just crossed 30 and not having any work ex. I am interested in TISS program in Development Studies, but dont have much idea about my scope of getting selected there.
I am loosing my interest in research work and it is getting difficult to meet the deadlines. Personal lose comes in my way and I fear of sleeping into depression if I continue to stick to research work which demands spending too much time alone.
I am looking for change in career to help me deal with the reality of being alone as well as to provide me financial security which I am completely lacking right now.
I looked for alternatives. I can join an NGO working for rights of women and children eg. CRY or Bachpan bachao Andolan. I am good at statistical and advanced econometric data analysis with SPSS/STATA. But however, completely lack awareness about opportunities and scope of growth in these fields. Moreover, I am not satisfied with money that I would make here.
It would be of great help if you would help me out in understanding if MBA is an option for me at this point of time. Also, if not right now, can I hope to undertake executive MBA after having some work experience in NGO sector? Or can I expect rewarding career in NGO sector without an MBA?
Regards....
Re: Free Career Counselling Online | Indian candidates
Post by anamika7 » October 8th, 2014, 10:19 am
Plz suggest how will it be beneficial for me and whether I shld take up this course. Also, could you please advice me for other courses on similar lines.