For all those who are in hunt of their first job

First job probably (yes….. probably and not definitely) architects our future because though we move out fresh from college with loads of talent and exuberance, couple of fancy degrees in our hand, the ability to take head strong decisions we are not aware how much the corporate life plays an important role in deciding our future. We can get away with an overloaded pocket at the end of month but then it is of no use if you are not into the job that you do not like. In today’s world, getting a job is not tough, sustaining in the job is. And it is increasingly tough to do so if you do not like your job even if you are taking away a fat six-figure cheque back home.
I would like to pen down some points that a fresher should consider while hunting his/her first job.

1. The 5 important parameters while applying for a company.
a. Brand of the company
b. The Sector in which the company operates
c. Salary offered
d. Location offered
e. Profile offered
These are possibly the 5 most important points (not in the sequence that I have noted them) to be considered while looking for a job in any given company. Now, you need to rate every parameter according to your priorities. It’s highly improbable for all 5 parameters to be fulfilled. So while applying for any company you need to consider above parameters. If at least 3 of them are fine with you, then I would suggest going ahead and giving a try. For fresher I would suggest to rate profile and industry above everything because as I said earlier, the work you do in first two years will probably be the base of your future work.

2. Importance of a good CV; not a Resume or Bio-data. (Know the difference between them? No!!!! Click here)
The contents of a CV are and should be written in following manner
a. Objective: Objective should include
- the job you are applying for
- why you would be great in this position
- what assets will you bring to company if hired.
Never copy-paste the objective of others. Create one of your own. It will be easy for you to justify it if questioned for the same.
b. Professional Details: You need to bullet down the important facets of work done in the internships. Try avoiding following ways of writing;
- I covered the Western Mumbai region
- My work was to handle the Western Mumbai region.
- Never write I, Me, and We in your professional details
Instead, write in this manner
- Covered the Western Mumbai region and was responsible for….. etc etc
c. Work Duration: If you have work experience, try avoiding following ways of presenting it;
- XYZ tech (25th July ’07 – 24th Nov ‘08)
Instead, write in this manner
- XYZ tech (July ’07 – Nov ’08)
Note: The contents of your CV should be entirely written by you and they should not be copied from anywhere else. I small point that you have copied be it objective or a weakness, if you are asked to justify the same, it will be really tough for you to do so. The reason being, whenever we write specific details about ourselves we actually think about it while writing which is enough for us to justify while facing the interview.
You should know every single word in your CV and should be in a position to explain the reasons behind it.

3. Group Discussion
I will write down the basics of a GD and not what topics to prepare on. That is something that needs no guidance at this point of time when you are about to apply for a job.
There are certain myths involved around Group Discussions. Following are the points to be considered.
- Speaking first gives you advantage: A highly wrong notion that we all carry. Just to speak first we concentrate more on that rather than thinking constructively about the topic. Instead spend the time in constructive thinking and listen to what first 2-3 candidates speak about. You may then get an idea and accordingly you can guide the entire discussion (provided your preparation in the initial time given to you was good).
- Concluding first gives you advantage: Again a wrong notion. Same things written above apply here. Never be in hurry to do so. Conclusion is that part of GD where no one will interrupt you. Effectively this is the most important point in GD where you can create the maximum impact with a good conclusion.
- Speaking more and in high tone works for you: Guys, it’s a GD, a corporate is examining you. So try and maintain composure, don’t be soft but be firm enough in while speaking to create impact and it also looks sensible and decent. Speaking more and in high tone will land you in wrong place and possibly in wrong job.
- Stats and Figures: What of the following sounds good?
a. Indian organizations acquired many MNCs in USA in last two years.
Or
b. At least 143 MNCs in USA were acquired by Indian organizations in last two years.
I don’t think there is need of further more explanation on this point.

4. Personal Interview: Some important points to consider
- Be yourself. Do not try to pretend. If you are not good at something you are not good at it. As simple as that.
- Admit if you are nervous. The interviewer is a human being and won’t eat you up if you try to hide it. In fact, he may then go a bit easy in your case.
- Be thorough with your objective, strengths, weaknesses, scores in all the examinations, justification for low scores, reasons to join that specific company, industry study (stats and figures), company study (key executives, revenue details,)

If freshers follow these steps I am sure they would be better prepared to get the right job and not a job that they are not interested in because as I said in the beginning of the article, "Getting the job is easy, sustaining in it is tougher".

I will like to wrap up the article here though would keep on updating it as and when I get some more points to add to it.

For anymore queries mail me at sumeetkiranshah@gmail.com

Difference Between C.V, Resume & Bio Data

People use the words RESUME, CV, and BIO-DATA interchangeably for the document highlighting skills, education, and experience that a candidate submits when applying for a job. On the surface level, all the three mean the same. However, there are intricate differences.

RESUME
Resume Is a French word meaning "summary", and true to the word meaning, signifies a summary of one's employment, education, and other skills, used in applying for a new position. A resume seldom exceeds one side of an A4 sheet, and at the most two sides. They do not list out all the education and qualifications, but only highlight specific skills customized to target the job profile in question.
A resume is usually broken into bullets and written in the third person to appear objective and formal. A good resume starts with a brief summary of Qualifications, followed by Areas of Strength or Industry
Expertise in keywords, followed by Professional Experience in reverse chronological order. Focus is on the most recent experiences, and prior experiences summarized. The content aims at providing the reader a balance of responsibilities and accomplishments for each position. After work experience come Professional Affiliations, Computer Skills, and Education.

C.V CURRICULUM VITAE
C.V Is a Latin word meaning "course of life". Curriculum Vitae (C.V.) is therefore a regular or particular course of study pertaining to education and life. A C.V. is more detailed than a resume, usually 2 to 3 pages, but can run even longer as per the requirement. A C.V. generally lists out every skills, jobs, degrees, and professional affiliations the applicant has acquired, usually in chronological order. A C.V. displays general talent rather than specific skills for any specific positions.

BIO-DATA
Bio Data the short form for Biographical Data is the old-fashioned terminology for Resume or C.V. The emphasis in a bio data is on personal particulars like date of birth, religion, sex, race, nationality,
residence, martial status, and the like. Next comes a chronological listing of education and experience. The things normally found in a resume, that is specific skills for the job in question comes last, and are seldom included. Bio-data also includes applications made in specified formats as required by the company.

A resume is ideally suited when applying for middle and senior level positions, where experience and specific skills rather than education is important. A C.V., on the other hand is the preferred option for fresh graduates, people looking for a career change, and those applying for academic positions. The term bio-data is mostly used in India while applying to government jobs, or when applying for research grants and other situations where one has to submit descriptive essays.

Resumes present a summary of highlights and allow the prospective employer to scan through the document visually or electronically, to see if your skills match their available positions. A good resume can do that very effectively, while a C.V. cannot. A bio-data could still perform this role, especially if the format happens to be the one recommended by the employer.

Personal information such as age, sex, religion and others, and hobbies are never mentioned in a resume. Many people include such particulars in the C.V. However, this is neither required nor considered in the US market. A Bio-data, on the other hand always include such personal
particulars..

Thanks...... Do leave your views about the content.

T20 World Cup Loss!!!! What can we learn out of it????

It’s really hard to digest the ouster of our team from the ongoing world cup. We are living in an emotional country and as a result understanding the vent of the on going anger against the team is very obvious. But I fail to understand the logic of this mind. When we are wrong we seek compromise and we speak judgment when others are wrong. I would agree to the fact that even I am one among you all and together we all, I think are making an issue out of the loss. Effigies are being burned around in the country, our cricketers are being cursed for the loss. But then why are we forgetting that this is the same team that won us the world cup last time around. Has any one ever expected the same out of himself/herself? Had we been there in the same position we would have compromised by giving petty reasons but because it was someone else involved we got angry and started passing judgments. And to encourage them we have our media who is nothing less than a hopeless crap, creating nuisance each and every time. Can anyone explain me why should Dhoni be fired from captain’s role???? He is the same guy who won you the cup last time.

Our life is a cycle. Ups and down are part of it. Till the time you don’t face the downs how are you going to grow. He took charge of the team after being knocked out of 2007 ODI world cup. That was even big a disaster in Indian terms. In last two years Indian cricket team and Dhoni in particular have seen a complete cycle. He enjoyed the success in 20-20, Australia, England, New Zealand and the loss in recent world cup.

Instead of sitting and crying over the loss we should find out what all can we learn from it?

Optimum use of resources: Several times did Dhoni err by not using the resources up to their potential. Example: Couple of our specialist bowlers did not get their quota to bowl. Yusuf’s power went under utilized.
Right people in right place all the time: Yuvraj being sent lower down the order did not help his cause because his arrival was at the time when he could not set his eye in before unleashing. Another example being Jadeja.
Discipline: Though bhajji bowled brilliantly he will not forgive himself because somewhere within he knows that even he is responsible for the loss against England. He bowled 5 wides twice in that match.
Importance of Basics: Never did Ishaant or Irfan try to use the conditions to their favour. Ishaant was too full most of the times.
Respect your adversary for his Strengths: Rohit Sharma under rated the bowlers and got out twice in same fashion against W.I. & England.
Teamwork: Not once did our bowling attack looked to have any vigor. It takes two to tango. Had there been a spell of good bowling from both ends we would have done better.
Accountability: In today’s world you just cant get through by doing your amount of work. It doesn’t mean you need to do others work but you need to compliment and be accountable for the output. You need to make your team mates feel comfortable in tough situations


These are some points that we can learn out of the loss and try and implement them in our day to day lives. 1 big thing I have learnt in life is “Caliber of a person is not how well he prepares for everything to go right but how he stands up & moves on after everything has gone wrong.”

So, I am sure very soon “Team India” would bounce back and would be causing tremors in every opponents psyche.

I will keep adding to the points mentioned above. So keep a track of it.

Just 4 Things

Four jobs you’ve had in your life

• Customer Associate
• Retail Sales Manager
• Business Development & Research Analyst
• Business Development

Four jobs you wish you had

• A Media Guy
• A Consultant
• A Guest Lecturer
• A Strategist

Four movies you can watch over and over again

Not a movie buff…but still

• Munnabhai Series
• Guru
• Behind Enemy Lines
• Cast Away

Four cities you have lived in

• Pune
• Mumbai
• Amravati
• That’s it

Four TV shows you love to watch

• Sarabhai v/s Sarabhai
• Khichdi
• Cricket Extra
• Sports Center

Four websites you visit daily

• Out of My Comfort Zone
• Gmail
• Facebook
• Linkedin

Four of your favorite foods

• Masala Dosa
• Pav Bhaji
• Uttappa
• Burgers

Four things you won’t eat

• Roadside stuff
• Chinese
• Non Veg
• Stuff with Paneer

Four things you wish you could eat right now

Exactly as my list of favorite foods

Four things in your bedroom

• My Bed
• My Laptop
• Lots of Crap
• AC (Can’t live without it)

Four things you wish you had in your bedroom

• · Macbook
• · Bookshelf
• · Collage of My Favorites
• · Fridge

Four things I’m wearing right now

• Tee
• Jeans
• Shoes (About to leave, waiting for sister)
• That’s it.

One place I’d rather be right now

Some Hillstation

One fictional place I’d rather be right now

No Idea

Four people you’d really love to have dinner with

• My Family
• Praveen, Gaurav,
• Harsh, Pratik
• Sheryl, Anjali, Suppu, Zarna

Four things I am thinking right now

• How many more things do I have to fill!
• Whom d I tag after getting over with this?
• Should I quit and start a business?
• Which book next to read?

Four of your favorite things/people

• My Cell
• The Book that I got as a gift from my boss
• My Car
• My Family

Four people I tag

• Shilpa Garg
• Navin Khaware
• Gaurav Joshi
• Sonia Gupta

Thanx a lot Shilpa!!!!!! All who would have read this, it is because of Shilpa as she tagged me and I completed this small questionnaire and pasted it here on my blog

“Recession-Born Compromise”, Conclusion: Possibly Degraded Output!!!!!

With my earlier article stating the job losses, this one is a result of my observations that I have made out of on goings around me. Not to my surprise whatever has happened has definitely not happened for good. I will carve up the article in two halves presenting my views on recession and post – recession scenario. Well, all are my observations and my viewpoints that need not be hundred percent accurate and even more obviously the post -recession scenario is something that I think may happen.

Recession Scenario
As stated in previous article, a possible million plus lost their jobs in this period. As a result these guys taking in account fresh graduates from college were left in a condition where supply was at its minimum against a possibly highest demand ever for jobs. The result…..

Many of them compromised and took up jobs against their likings. I saw many technical graduates entering BPOs which no doubt happened before as well but the percentage sky rocketed this time around. This resulted in compromise on talent, compromise on pay packages, compromise on job satisfaction, compromise on Output, compromise on career.
Many candidates who were working on say profile A were given choices like “Work with us on profile B or you can leave”. Seeing the condition in market a majority of those succumbed and chose to go against their will and took up other profiles. Another compromise that led to degraded output.
Appraisals did not happen. Salaries were supposed to be increased at the end of appraisals. Instead, candidates were handed with new offer letters with lesser salaries. Now what, majority of them might started looking for options and in turn compromised on quality thinking we gave our best and we got peanuts, so it’s better the output also be equivalent to peanuts.

Possible Post-Recession Scenario
Majority of the candidates who lost their jobs and were working at say Rs 25k/- per month will be patient up to certain time and eventually will land up with a Rs 15k/- per month job possibly. Yet another compromise in store.
With conditions getting better, HRs will now have more options to choose from and the candidates also knowing that there is competition would lower their salary expectations. Again a possible compromise waiting to happen.

Well, no doubt post recession scenario would be better, but above-mentioned can also be one face of it. Such things can happen. My only concern is that Corporates should not misuse the concerns of candidates and make them compromise or else they might face a big backlash which will be seen some time later with a continuous degraded output which will be a part of vicious cycle. And as we all know if once anyone gets into a vicious cycle it’s tough to get out of it.

Leader vs Manager

I think many amongst the readers of this article would have an idea about these two entities, though would like to pen down my views for the ones who don’t know it because this question once had led to my downfall in an interview.

They say “Leaders are born, Managers are made”. I strongly believed in it and after brainstorming with several of my friends and professors I came to a conclusion Leaders can also be made. So, to all those people who think leaders are born and they are not leaders then they should think twice and slog it out to transform themselves into a leader.

If you don the skills of a “Manager”, you probably will be good or may be very good. However, the path to “Good to Great” lies in donning the skills of a “Leader”

Following are some of the characteristics displayed by both of them

Leader:

Works in High Risk Zone and is not at all afraid of failures and has belief in his strengths.

Has followers and not subordinates.

Never asks others to follow him. His charisma does it without saying a word.

Is a visionary, strategist, inspirational figure.

Follows what heart says.

Followers are always loyal to leaders.

Followers need not be paid; it’s the leader’s influence that makes them follow him.

Leader is a manager.

Manager:

Have subordinates and not followers.

Is more process driven.

Works from head and not from heart.

Focuses more on efficiency.

Subordinates may or may not be loyal and are paid to follow.

Manager may not be a leader.

Approach is more risk aversive.

India v/s Australia....No it's not Cricket this time

Indians Down Under & the Racism Issue

I would like to start it off with a small question; Can you clap with one hand?Obviously you cannot!!! I think this probably will set the tone and give you all an idea about my thoughts to be featured ahead in the article. I seriously condemn the attacks faced by Shravan Kumar & Sourabh Sharma and the others. It is something that might critically affect the relations between India & Australia. I have been following the updates to these since last couple of days and have found out some interesting feedbacks and reviews from Indians based in Australia & other Western countries. Well, I am not denying the possibility of presence of racial discrimination behind the attacks but then I am also not totally convinced of that being the main reason. My friends working abroad are staying with Indians; even I would have done the same. When at job or college again they have a formed a group of their own which is very Indian origin oriented. So basically, they are forming a community, which is obvious to happen. Even in India, when you take up professional courses like MBA in a city like Pune you will find small groups formed within divisions/classes. And very often do we find these groups pulling each other’s leg or passing comments. Now, this is what I think has occurred there and has not been taken in stride by the Aussies. Well, again this might be a possibility and may not be the actual reason. Another thing that I feel might be a big reason is that Indians basically are very conservative and as a reason try to find out ways of saving. As a result the Indian community there, is living in suburbs and not in actual cities. Now, that may be a reason behind these attacks. And one big issue that can be an actual cause is that Indians might have not integrated with the Aussie culture. You need to be polite and polished type of an individual in such countries. It’s very important to express gratitude or apologize when needed which when not done seems to be rude and offensive.So, I come back to my question again to point out and state that I think that it's both the countries who need to sort it out by knowing each other and adapting to each others ways because it's neither going to be good to the Indians nor the Aussies because Indians not sending their children for higher studies over there will be a bigger setback for them. If above said issues are or might be the reasons for these attacks then we need to change, which in turn will change the Aussies. Having said that, if racism is the actual issue then some harsh steps need to be taken and the culprits should be punished. Whatever be the reasons, measures should be taken asap to avoid any further similar issues taking place which might led down to a possible downfall between both the countries.