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28 Sep 2017, 07:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: On choices, chances, changes … |
Marcella Rispo, a 2003 MBA Partner now responsible for helping partners integrate in Lausanne life, shares a few thoughts with us before the 2018 class arrives. In the excitement of the new year ahead, we often forget that the MBA Partners are faced with some important choices, surprising chances and unfamiliar changes: whether to move to Lausanne or stay behind, learn French or make do with English, look for childcare options in Lausanne and whether there will be opportunities for gainful employment and/or volunteer work. Although the answers are very personal depending on each partner’s particular situation and circumstances, these are the exactly the kind of issues we look at in the first few weeks of the program. The Partner Integration Program helps partners settle in over the first few months, whether they come to Lausanne or stay behind. We start connecting through our private Facebook group, so that come January a partner community has already formed. After all, building a community is the start to developing a support system that will be there for you throughout the year, and hopefully, into your future as well. Here a few tips while preparing for an eventful 2018:
Marcella  
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01 Oct 2017, 02:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Before the 10 year reunion |
Co-founders of Fifth Breath, Daniela McKenzie (Romanian/American) and Irina Marchenkova-Arya (Russian), alumni from the MBA 2008 class, write today’s guest entry about their upcoming launch. Hard to believe that next year it will be 10 years since we left the amphitheatres benches and study rooms at IMD. Maybe because IMD has been, and continues to be, such a constant in our lives through our MBA year KIT (Keep in Touch) list that brings regular updates from across the world, or the https://gmatclub.com/chat group or the visits and mini reunions that are going on all the time between members of our class. Hard to believe that pressures of corporate roles, growing families and living across the world, distance and time difference have not stopped a budding idea that reunited us in more than friendship ways. Throughout the years post MBA, Irina and I kept sharing our thoughts on entrepreneurship and what would be a worthwhile mission to take on one day. We both aligned on building something that has integrity, that betters the world and delivers sustainable solutions to an otherwise burgeoning problem. The Venn diagram confluence of all these criteria became apparent to us through our personal interests and love for yoga and wool and we set to make the first natural fibre practice mat. The yoga industry lacks truly natural and mindful product choices, and instead of fulfilling its original purpose of bettering people and keeping the planet unharmed, it is now part of the problem of overflowing waste landfills with PVC mats that will take 200 years to decompose. Wool is the complete natural fibre, whose qualities are perfectly suited for the yoga practice: cushioning, yet light, temperature regulator, non-allergenic, sweat and odour resistant, fire resistant, biodegradable and ethically grown. The initial prototyping, market tests and supply chain validation were so encouraging, we decided to have a proper launch for this business built during crazy hours between New Zealand and Switzerland, with four kids at times (for each of us) tugging away for our attention. We teamed up with another mate from our class, Jesper Hornberg (Swedish), who has built a successful and impactful business in Kenya, inspired by our class expedition there back in June 2008 and we’re also launching a limited edition for the mat, with proceeds going to one of Givewatts projects of delivering solar lamps to school children. While you might think this a carefully curated storyline, we agree that we are only giving you the clean version of this past year, since Fifth Breath was born. With all the enthusiasm, there have also been long hours, disagreements, expensive mistakes and sacrifices to deal with. Our families’ support have been outstanding and overall, our strong belief in what we are building and the complementarity of our skills in getting there carried us through the downs. A bunch of the skills learned during our MBA applied, for others we had to dig deep in this entrepreneurial journey. But how exciting, we are about to embark on the official launch for Fifth Breath at OMYogaShow in London, Oct 20-22.  Wish us good tides. This is not only our story, it is an IMD story to add to the richness of what this institution has inspired countless people over the years with. Daniela and Irina dana.mckenzie@fifthbreath.com irina.arya@fifthbreath.com www.fifthbreath.com  
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05 Oct 2017, 08:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: International Consulting Projects |
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The end of the second week of ICPs approaches, and our MBAs are already gearing up for the first round of company presentations over the next few days. As always, the projects begin with an industry analysis, followed by a company and issue analysis, and then, at the end of their seven weeks, the teams are expected to present their final findings and recommendations to the top management. Issues can be marketing focused, finance, operations, reorganisation, … and the industries vary from Pharma to Shipping, Tech to Design, with many in between. The projects continue to be scattered around the world and several teams will be off campus for the full seven weeks, while others make shorter trips to different destinations. So far we have MBAs in France, Germany, UK, Denmark, Norway, The Netherlands, Poland, Russia, India, Chile, Brazil, China and South Africa as well as in various locations around Switzerland. The study rooms are strangely quiet! Over the next few weeks the different teams will be sharing some insights into their experiences with you, although due to the confidentiality of consulting projects, I’m afraid they won’t be able to mention exactly which company they are working for. In the meantime, here are a couple of pictures from last year.  Suzy  
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09 Oct 2017, 06:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: The perfect transition |
From Denmark, our first ICP guest entry is by Dutch Bruno van Albada, who is working with teammates: Danish Mads Ring Damgaard, Brazilian/French Louis Lozouet, and Australian/British Matthew Costello, supported by Belgian Professor Benoît Leleux. On-campus recruiting is over for now, classmates are flying to more than 15 different countries across the world, and that can only mean one thing: The International Consulting Projects (ICPs) have kicked off! ICPs are 7-week projects where a team of 4-5 MBAs work together to solve a strategic issue for a client, often a F500 company. Coming from a strategy consulting background myself, it’s interesting for me to compare some of the similarities and differences between my previous job and the ICPs. My team is working on a strategic growth project for a Danish design house, and many things feel oh-so-familiar: a great team around me, lots of energy in the teamroom to feed on, and of course living out of a suitcase. Excel and Powerpoint, not lectures, once again rule my life. And I’m loving it! Now, as much as all of this reminds me of the “good old days,” there are also many differences. Working for a smaller client, as opposed to the colossal organizations I saw before, means more hands-on work; it means more frequent interaction with the CEO, more responsibilities and fewer people to get the work done. Paradoxically, it means that we’re much more resource-constrained in what we can do, but also that we can be more bold and more daring in the suggestions we make. After all, organizations like this are run not by bureaucracy but by agility, fed not by fear but by opportunity and dreams. The world is our oyster. Or our client’s oyster, at least. Taking this consulting approach is an awesome opportunity to take everything that we have learned in the classroom and apply it in a real-world setting. So they are not only a reflection point, but also a case study come to life, and we find ourselves already going back to our notes from Finance, Strategy and Marketing to look for frameworks to help out. Even more interesting is getting a final chance to take and apply some of the personal and leadership learnings in a safer setting. Working together with three other classmates is inspiring and motivating, but it’s also important to find a way to manage the group processes well. And as anyone who worked with the case method can attest, that is often the most challenging part of a project! In the end, our client is putting down a significant amount of money, and the pressure is on us to deliver. In that sense, the ICPs serve as a perfect transition from academia to business. Soon, after all, we will be released back into the real world – back to real jobs and real life. It’s certainly going to be strange for the ninety of us to be once more spread around the globe rather than bundled up in beautiful Lausanne. But it’s a wonderful – and comforting – thought that even though we may not be there full-time, we will make the time to reach out, connect, and visit each-other in the future. In fact, we got things started last weekend with a pre-reunion in Copenhagen, where class- and team-mate Mads hosted 46 (!) visitors at his house for a great autumn barbeque. A final thought: my class is already getting many messages from the lucky ones who get to follow in our footsteps, the 2018 class. To all of them reading this – enjoy next year to the fullest, and get everything from it that you can. The work, the play, and the friends for life. Bruno https://www.linkedin.com/in/bruno-van-albada-30254352/  
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12 Oct 2017, 08:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Visiting our ICP client in the UK |
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Today’s insight into the MBA ICPs comes from Swiss Philipp Bächtold, who is working with team members Bryant Chen (Taiwanese), Sandeep Kusnure (British) and Riccardo Paccapelo (Italian). They are supported by one of our Marketing Professors, John Walsh (Irish). Bruno has already introduced our readers to the seven-week International Consulting Project (ICP) which started almost two weeks ago. The client of our team is a global automotive part supplier, who wants us to look into the dynamics of his aftermarket business. As I write this, I am sitting in the train coming back from our first business trip to the UK. Here are some interesting insights. Thanks to the great organization and skill of our “Logistics – Manager” Sandeep, we arrived exactly 15 minutes before our first meeting at the client’s premise – almost 1000 km away from Lausanne. We were about to learn a lot about our company’s business and were eager to gain valuable insights into the market the company operates in. For a second, I was a little nervous because I had never been in a consulting role before. However, all of my nervousness disappeared when Riccardo, a team member who has worked as consultant almost all his life, took the lead and guided us through the many meetings and discussions we had on that day. During these meetings, I realized the power of our diverse team. Although none of us had pre-knowledge or exposure to the automotive industry, each of us brought in a unique way of looking at the problems our client faces. We managed to pick up all relevant information and were very happy when we went for our first team dinner after the first day with the client. On the second day, and with the help of our project director John, who flew in from Lausanne, we then structured what we had learnt during the past two weeks and defined a final scope and strategy about how to tackle the deliverables requested. With a debriefing telco with our project sponsor, the official part of our first client visit ended and some of us headed back to Lausanne while others spent their weekend in the UK visiting old friends or family. It was a great business trip and clearly more exciting days lie ahead of us! Philipp   
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16 Oct 2017, 01:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: MBA 2016 – 1st Reunion |
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As one class approaches their graduation, another celebrates their first reunion. We welcome back Kunal Chandra, 2016 blogger, who kindly shares some insights in this guest post. It hasn’t even been a year since we left IMD and we are already planning reunions just to be able to meet our friends again. The first official IMD MBA 2016 reunion was held in Barcelona at the end of September. The beautiful city, full of energy and warmth, was a perfect location to mirror our own emotions as we joined up with our batch mates and their partners. We have all gone from being students to consultants or bankers or managers, but on those two days in Barcelona we shed all of those roles to come back as the IMD batch of 2016. I have a feeling that this strong anchor will serve us well for the rest of our lives when we need some perspective. Over great food, wine and coffee we caught up on the past months. It was great to see our friends discuss how they are already applying so many things that they learnt at IMD in their day-to-day life and work. On top, came the discussion about how we have tried to stay in touch with our friends and made sure to say ‘stop by for a drink’ whenever we visit a different city with classmates living there. Of course, IMD has given us a much bigger circle of friends that covers almost all the major cities in the World. Thanks to Robin, the trip was full of fun activities including a game of bubble football. Here are some pictures from these exciting two days:  Overall, it was a memorable event that left us all wanting more time to spend with each other. But we left knowing full well that we will see each other soon. In fact we are just getting started! Kunal https://www.linkedin.com/in/kunal-chandra-1547605/  
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17 Oct 2017, 02:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Here, there and everywhere… |
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Sitting on the TGV train from Lausanne to Paris watching the Swiss hills blend into French ones, I am struck by how much I have been on the road these past few months. In this instance, I am about to start the fourth week of my international consulting project for a multinational medical devices company. At the same time the job search is on full tilt, which has had me between Paris, Lausanne, Copenhagen, Dubai, London, and Milan over the past few weeks. By the end of this week, Stockholm will also make its way onto the list. Most of my classmates are in the same boat (or should I say plane/train) in our search for that dream offer. Between interviews, offer negotiations, and ICPs, stakes and tensions are high. The class is certainly handling it well but you can tell what is keeping us up at night. It can be tough not to obsess over that upcoming final round of interviews for your dream job, how you answered an interview question the day before, or how much you may be risking an existing offer by pushing for certain terms. Rejections can be soul-crushing and bouncing back can take time but as the Japanese say, “fall seven times, stand up eight”. Even still, some are soul searching and unsure what career is right for them. And for those with offers, choosing the one that hits the sweet spot on role, location, company, and compensation is not trivial. It is a different kind of pressure than the time-crunches we were exposed to earlier on in the year and much of it is happening outside of the school safety net/bubble. I’ll let you guess which one is more emotionally exhausting  That being said, it’s also a very exciting time and I encourage the class to look past the gravity of it all and try to have a little bit of fun playing around with the possibility of living somewhere new and doing something completely different. Take risks: if you win you will be happy, if you lose you will be wise. Of course, at the same time we need to stay committed and motivated for our ICPs as we work to solve complex business problems for paying clients. For many, this is an enlightening exposure to the world of consulting and the ultimate chance to apply what we have learned. We are all in groups of 4-5 and so we need to think about what we learned about group dynamics from the leadership stream. As always, the group compositions are very diverse with my group hailing from Slovakia, India, France, and Egypt with backgrounds in FMCG, finance, defense, and consulting. As we reach the halfway point in our projects, it is truly amazing to see how far our business acumen and group work has come. Had we attempted to engage with an ICP just 6 months ago, we would have been woefully underprepared. In my opinion, it is the ultimate validation of the quality of the program. I really look forward to hearing about the outputs from the projects, however disguised they need to be! Til next time, Mo  
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18 Oct 2017, 05:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Learn-Apply-Impact-Repeat |
Rajashree Patankar shares her team ICP experience, working with team members Thibault Acolas (French), Mohammed Allam (gyptian/Canadian resident) and Jana Valkovicova (Slovak) and supported by Professor Nuno Fernandes. “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much”- Helen Keller. It is indeed true that many a great idea are conceptualized, built and then launched by teams achieving a greater purpose. While we came together as a class of 90 with 44 nationalities, we have always been surprised by the experience and skills pooled in by each one of us. The “International Consulting Project” (ICP) has been the true test of bringing to life not only our experience but also our learnings throughout this eventful year. Our group of four got the opportunity to work in one of the most talked about and pivotal medical equipment industries which plays a huge role in improving the quality of life for people with certain chronic conditions. The journey began with a sneak peek into the business and understanding the products and the organization better. This was a reiteration of the fact that one ought to know the business well to make any strategic decisions. While none of us had a background in the healthcare or related industries, it was interesting to have an onboarding session for the products, their applications and have a real-time view of how the products are presented before potential customers. The nuances of B2B marketing were insightful as we went about exploring the markets with field trips and customer interactions. After the last few months of theoretical and practical studies it was yet again time to step into the customer’s shoes and look at products from their perspective. While digitalization of marketing efforts is gaining pace across industries, it was remarkable to note how every aspect of healthcare marketing too has been touched by the revolution. Customer engagement which was perceived to be based on a clinical approach formerly has now gained a more collaborative view, particularly where the consumer wants to be perceived as just another person rather than a patient. While we have completed four weeks on this project, it already seems like we have so much more to do and so little time to accomplish what we want to! It is true indeed that the moment we step into a task, albeit momentarily, it still consumes our thoughts and we don the thinking hat of a strategist, a business person and a decision maker. I am just glad that while we are at this we haven’t forgotten to have fun as a team and forged our bonds which is long way from our day one at IMD while we sat across each other in the class not knowing that we were making friends for life J . So here we go, The MBA learnings now unfold, Impacting the world lo and behold!! Cheers Raji https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajashree-r-1543b0140/  
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19 Oct 2017, 03:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: It’s Diwali!! |
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Today is the Diwali festival of lights – we wish all of our Indian participants, alumni and future candidates a Happy Diwali, and a special thanks to Rajashree for today’s guest blog post! Land of festivals they say, One more festival is here- call it you may… Diwali as I know it-a celebration of Lights, Celebrated by everyone- not just by money or might… Legend has it, Lord Ram returned to his kingdom, Welcomed with pomp and joy wholesome… Lamps glittered along all the streets, Rejoicing townsfolk with festivities and sweetmeats… Lord Ram is known for his benevolence and courage, Wise as he was blessed by every sage… Exiled for fourteen years from a life of comfort, Fought demons relentlessly on heaven and earth… Legends passed on through generations remain, A mélange of colors now they attain…  Truly, Diwali has transcended boundaries across religions in India today. It’s a festival of spreading joy and happiness. It is celebrated for four days at the onset of winter. Communities come together to celebrate this festival in different ways. Though Indian culture varies differently across north, south, east and west, this festival is celebrated with equal pomp across the country. This is my first Diwali away from home, and I cannot explain what I am missing! Waking up early on a Diwali morning to the soothing fragrance of Jasmine flowers and sandalwood paste that adorns the little temple at home is a priceless memory. Diwali for me means amazing homemade sweets like laddoo, gujiya and so much more. Trust me, overeating too is underrated during Diwali. Sumptuous Indian food being made at homes to mark this festival is bound to leave you a few kilos heavier at the end of four days. Friends and family get together and celebrate this festival of togetherness with great aplomb. Being dressed in traditional Indian dresses is just a cherry on the cake.  This celebration of age-old traditions has acquired a modern avatar today with crackers being burst almost every evening. Gifting too has become a common way of expressing gratitude and appreciation for families and businesses in a huge way. Lanterns and lamps glitter on streets and in homes. What a sight it is! This is how we celebrate one of my favorite festivals in India. Really happy to share it with my family at IMD. Wishing everyone a Happy Diwali! Raji https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajashree-r-1543b0140/  
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23 Oct 2017, 02:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Indian Summer |
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An important part of the MBA program is not just the participants, it is their partners and families. Suhani Arora shares her experiences from the perspective of an MBA partner. We have been in the midst of an Indian Summer in Lausanne. The trees are a riot of colour, and the clear blue skies and unseasonable warmth make for a pleasant interlude before the city slowly succumbs to winter’s icy grasp. It is a season of transition, and as such, this seems to be a good time to reflect on a truly remarkable year. Until now, this blog has rightfully focused on the varied experiences of the IMD MBA Participants. At this point, I’d like to give you a sense of how the “other halves” live. In many ways, the partners inhabit the margins of the all-encompassing MBA experience. We have a ringside view of the key events – right from the initial whirlwind of classes and group work to the anxiety-ridden search for jobs – but we also have the luxury of distance. For the MBAs, we often serve as a bridge to the “real” world; sustaining links to family and friends, providing perspective (and comfort) at difficult moments, and dealing with the minutiae of everyday life. While we largely play a supporting role in the MBA journey, it’s easy to forget that we are also the protagonists of our own individual journeys this year. And what a journey it has been.  For me, this has been a year of exhilarating experiences. Among other things, I’ve built a full life in a new city, navigated the awkwardness of learning a new language (before you ask, it’s still a work in progress), coached speakers for TEDxLausanne, ambled through the vineyards of Lavaux and Burgundy, discovered popular and little-known Swiss sights, hiked around blue mountain lakes, and explored several of the magnificent cities of Europe. I’ve made lifelong friends, regained a sense of balance in my life, tapped into a community of support, and found meaningful work that aligns perfectly with my values. It wasn’t always an easy ride. At the beginning of our time in Lausanne, I felt an overwhelming anxiety about what lay in store. I detested the idea of being a “trailing spouse.” But the shoe seemed to fit – I had just quit an all-consuming job to follow my husband to a new country, with no real sense of direction or clarity on what I would do with my time. Unexpectedly, however, with each passing day, each new friendship, and each tentative step outside my comfort zone, the apprehensions began to melt away as I embraced the experience in its entirety. Later in the year, there were several moments of uncertainty and nagging doubts about what the future would hold. During these tense moments, I always found solace on the placid shores of Lake Geneva – taking in the breathtaking views and observing the lake’s still depths helped me focus on the here and now. Over many such visits, I was able to stop obsessing about the future and truly live in the present. For me, these moments of peace and reflection are among this year’s most cherished gifts. At the beginning of the year the MBA participants embarked on a transformative journey. Over the past few months, they’ve learned a great deal about the world, about each other and about themselves. They’ve learned to lead, to work in teams and across cultures, and to tackle complex challenges. As partners, we’ve learned similar lessons, albeit in very different ways. We’ve truly “walked the talk,” developing life skills, learning to deal with ambiguity, and putting our knowledge to the test in a myriad of real-world situations. And while the pace of our learning hasn’t been quite as relentless, our lessons are no less valuable. Our time in Lausanne is drawing to a close. A few weeks from now, we will gather with family and friends to honour the hard work and accomplishments of the IMD MBA class. In this season of transition, the graduation festivities mark the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new one. And as we watch the ceremony with pride, I hope we will all take a moment to celebrate our own unique transformations. Suhani  
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03 Nov 2017, 02:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Standup to Fear |
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I’m in the smokiest bar in Abu Dhabi. I’m about to headline the local standup comedy show. The MC has a few jokes up his sleeve. He always does. This filling act gives me some time to think and gather my emotions. But my fight or flight instincts kick in. My hands are sweaty, the head feels dizzy and I can feel the whole room collapsing. Suddenly, I hear the MC shout out my name. The sounds of hoots and claps fill the room. A surge of adrenalin fills my face. I suddenly remember my first act. I walk in. The mike is mine. Instinct honed through days of practice takes over and I deliver my act for the next 15 minutes. Guest entry by MBA 2018 candidate, Parth Reddy  Headlining a local comedy show in Abu Dhabi This is a typical sequence of feelings that I experience before performing on any comedy show. Oddly, I went through the same set of feelings on getting accepted to IMD. After the initial rush of acceptance, I was faced with the stark reality of making a very difficult choice between the comfort of familiarity and the excitement of the unknown. Should I venture out of a cushy job in one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world? Should I let go of a fantastic circle of friends, colleagues and peers? The fear of losing everything that I had accomplished was real and palpable. On the other hand, I was really excited about setting myself on a path of achieving something incredible and stretching myself beyond my professional and personal limitations. How then does one rationally decide between the familiar and the unfamiliar? But then I realized that this doesn’t have to be such a difficult choice. With the right framework and tools, stepping out into an uncertain environment can be pretty rewarding and fulfilling. The MBA program at IMD promises to inculcate such a framework to navigate professional and personal dilemmas. I’m excited to experience the core components of the program such as the leadership module and startup and ICP projects. These have been designed to make the participants self-aware, mature and ready to excel in various team settings. An intense year of preparation and introspection will allow me to choose the right career and the valuable personal networks and associations that I will develop at IMD will help in a fulfilling career and bright future ahead.  The pre-MBA meetups with the class of 2018 and alumni The first step in this process is to muster up the courage to walk through the door and standup to the fear of the unknown. Parth https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-reddy-66b9445/ Top featured image: Captured during a morning run before the assessment day in Lausanne  
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12 Nov 2017, 22:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: The last lap |
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Exactly one month and one hour to graduation! This was the message posted by one of my batch mates on our https://gmatclub.com/chat group last week! I cannot believe this year has to come an end. The only stark reminder of the end has probably been the onset of winter cause the pace of activity in the last few months has not changed all that much. The last weeks had been all about travelling and working on our ICP Project, job search and contemplating about real life outside the IMD bubble. Speaking of ICP, I was working with three of my classmates on a project which involved developing new payment and funding models for a biotech company. The company has been working on a new technology in the field of oncology and our project was to analyse other industries and bring those learnings to pharma. With three out of the four of us coming from a non-pharmaceutical background, this was challenging yet very exciting. Reading about the innovative therapy was fascinating but what appalled me was the regulatory complexity and the time needed for an approved drug to reach the consumer. This learning phase was followed by understanding the competitor dynamics and studying industry analogues. Over the next weeks, we could delve deeper into some of the business models which we started exploring during the first phase of the project. Ultimately we provided something we believe is tangible and could be used by the client to implement one of the proposed models. While we are not sure if this would come true, we do know that our work has sparked a lot of internal discussions and conversations within different teams for the client. All in all it was a great opportunity to apply what we learnt in the first part of the year but also to challenge ourselves by working in a completely different industry. Another highlight of this week has been the CEO elective. We had sessions with Roche, Vodafone and Louis Dreyfus. The difference in industries, leadership styles and organizational focus of each of the companies made the presentations interesting and more so the Q+A very informative. However, this week not only marked the end of our ICP but also our leadership lab. This last class where we provided feedback to each other was humbling and overwhelming. It was also a stark realization of the fact that this year has bought us together in more ways than I could have ever imagined. It felt like the end of a journey or maybe the beginning of a different one. After all as the saying goes “Ends are not bad things, they just mean that something else is about to begin. And there are many things that don’t really end, anyway, they just begin again in a new way”. On that note I leave you with a picture of my ICP team. Till the next time..   
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21 Nov 2017, 02:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: My affair with IMD |
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Neharika Prabhat from next year’s class looks back to her introduction to IMD and shares impressions from her assessment day. It all started one Saturday afternoon when I was discussing my MBA plans with a friend. He introduced me to IMD saying it is one of the best general management MBA programs in the world and it would be a great fit for me given my background and experience! Only problem is that it is quite difficult to crack given the class size, student accomplishments and a very rigorous admission procedure. This really piqued my interest and I poured all my energy into getting to know the school more. After months of hard work, I finally got a chance to meet my interest first hand when I got an invite for the assessment day. IMD is situated on the banks of Lake Geneva and that sight itself took my breath away!  The Assessment day started sharp at 7:50 AM with a tour of the lovely campus. During the tour, I realized the importance of time when Antonio told us that if you are late by even a minute, you’re not allowed to enter the class! Talk about Swiss precision! We also got a chance to peek into the class, celebrating a birthday over Salsa and what we saw made us realize that it is not all work but some play too J At the end of the day we were taken to a class to see for ourselves what a lecture is like at IMD. It was an entrepreneurship class by Professor Benoit Leleux. What made it more special was that the person who started the company that was being discussed in the case was attending the lecture and gave her inputs and made notes of some of the suggestions provided by the students on the next stage of her venture. Attending that class, seeing the potential tangible impact live, suddenly made it all so real for me and instantly made me realize that IMD was really the place where I wanted to be if I got through. I was glad I got a chance to visit the school in person to see what I could expect and was totally blown away. Despite eight strenuous hours and a previous night of sleeplessness I was still fully charged and was absolutely ready for more. Now that my interest has been reciprocated, I’m looking forward to spending a year getting to know it deeply and developing a lifelong relationship. Neharika  
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23 Nov 2017, 07:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: 2018 Scholarship winners announced! |
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The MBA scholarship deadline was 30th September, and by midnight an impressive number of thought-provoking essays had reached us. It is always inspiring to see the amount of effort that people put into writing their scholarship essays. They offer a clear insight into business trends of the time, combined with personal anecdotes, new angles and even the occasional bit of humour! Each year, the scholarship committee faces the challenge of going through all the applications, reading and assessing the essays, discussing and arguing for our favorites, selecting finalists to be sent to external juries, and then waiting for the definitive selection to know who has actually been nominated as the winners of the various scholarships. This year, we are proud to announce that 34 IMD Scholarships were awarded, meaning that we have been able to help 38% of the 2018 class. The 34 winners have been informed and announced to the class, but we would like to thank everyone who submitted an application for their time and effort. We would also like to thank our external sponsors and juries for helping us to increase the number of scholarships we were able to offer this year, and for their help in the tough selection process. Here are a couple of responses we received from winners: André Cepêda, Brazil/Portugal “The Emerging Markets scholarship goes beyond enabling the pursuit of world-class executive education; it sets a moral commitment for me to contribute by helping people to reach their full potential along my career after MBA.” Sara Jamil, France/Marocco “I am honoured to have been selected for the IMD MBA Merit Scholarship. It means a great deal to me…This gesture simply confirmed my initial intuition about IMD: an authentic MBA program that first and foremost fosters merit and diversity.” We look forward to welcoming the new candidates to campus in January! Suzanne  
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24 Nov 2017, 06:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Truth and Lies at IMD |
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Half way through the electives, Isfandyar Z. Khan – Partner IMD 2017, shares his experience as well as insights into the benefits of opening this part of the program to the partners. You may think that typical courses in this one year intensive MBA program would only focus on hard skills, taking over the world one excel sheet at a time, however the truth is far from it. This fall, the program provided the opportunity for the partners of MBA students to participate in electives. This opened up a secret chamber by which partners could not only see, but live through, part of the MBA experience.  Given that I myself am a bit weary of the ethical practices of the business world, I decided to take the popular elective on Truth, Lies and Trust taught by Professor Jennifer Jordan, who is a part of the leadership faculty. I wish an elective like this had been offered earlier in the year as finally I could empathize with my wife’s motivation for getting up at 6:30 am, downing a coffee and braving the cold to be on time for morning classes.  The elective was great – one learned, one challenged, one laughed and one pondered. It also gave us some lie detection skills which could have come in handy earlier in the year (were you actually studying or were you at the White Horse bar?!) Yet, more than just the course, I really appreciated IMD opening up the electives to others. For a program which emphasizes personal leadership and prioritizes relationships, it is necessary to acknowledge that there are certain factors that ensure some relations endure and strengthen over time. Post MBA, the graduates will not operate in a bilateral world but one with many nodes, and thus having partners more exposed to classmates will help carry relationships forward. As the year draws to a close, I do feel we have come together as a family. There is warmth, there is affection and just like any family there will be conflict and a need to nurture relationships. I think taking an elective makes us all know each other better and just for that, I hope IMD keeps up with the tradition. Isfandyar  
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28 Nov 2017, 10:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Looking back at a life changing year |
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My first memory of Linkin Park was reading lyrics of Crawling carved out on a piece of wood in my Engineering School workshop. Linkin Park’s music occupied significant headspace in my group of friends as we went through university. I was intrigued by the lyrics that seemed to convey pain that I never really made an effort to understand. On July 20th this year, I woke up to the news of Chester Bennington’s death. It is hard to see your icons as merely human, and his death left me shaken. Based on public records, I spent hours trying to understand who he was as a person. I found out he was sexually abused as a child and later of his battle with alcohol and drug addiction. With his music, he had fought through his pain and touched lives world over. There are many moments, big and small, that shape our destiny. I resolved then to take the time to pause and reflect on my year at IMD and the many feelings I had and would experience during the year. As a tribute to Chester, I take the liberty of punctuating my thoughts with Linkin Park lyrics. #RIPChesterBennington Of Ambition, Belonging, Clarity, Direction, Encouragement and Fear (This is the first of a series of three posts, written by Abhijat Chahal, from this year’s class) Ambition What is it about an MBA that convinces so many across the world to make a huge investment in terms of time and money? Is it a desire for a higher salary? Or opportunities? Or just to break out? It was a question that baffled me for years until I decided to take this leap of faith myself. One aspect that was consistent, amongst all I met, was an ambition – to reach newer places, get better jobs and achieve loftier goals. Did I know what exactly I wanted out of an MBA year? Not really. I wanted more for myself and in the absence of truly inspirational ideas, decided to trust so much of what I had heard about the IMD MBA to help get to the next stage in my life. Ambition will likely be the most commonly found trait at all top B-Schools. I sit and think today about what we came with and what became of it, as I witness the first snow flakes of this season, days before leaving Lausanne. The IMD MBA has proven to be an experiential abyss, with depths hard to fathom sometimes. The more I embraced it, the deeper it went. “I have a dream of a scene between the green hills Clouds pull away and the sunlight’s revealed” -Dedicated (2002) Belonging I had a colleague ask me if I was unhappy with our company, the Maersk Group, and if that had driven me to seek out opportunities with an MBA rather than make that next move within the company. It was a question that I needed to answer for myself more than him. At the age of 23, I took my first international flight for work. Ten years later, I had travelled to 48 countries and lived in six – work took me places. Maersk had empowered my life and the fact that my ambition stood tall was on a foundation built on my years in the company. No, I wasn’t unhappy at all. In fact, I was grateful – for all the opportunities and friends through the years. My time at Maersk is as much a part of my identity as my nationality. The sense of belonging is as much a liberating feeling as it is a grounding influence in shaping our identities. The time at IMD pales in terms of the number of years, but makes up in intensity. The year has transformed us all, sometimes in ways that we didn’t expect. Lausanne became a part of who we will be forever. Earlier in the year, I witnessed my first ever ice hockey game. We went to support Lausanne Hockey Club in a historic game – the last one in the Malley stadium. It felt like all of Lausanne had gathered in the stadium. It was loud, energetic and memorable as the town celebrated the end of an era. A whole group of IMD MBAs added to the din at Malley.  In 2017, IMD and Lausanne is who we became. It is where we belong, and a part of us will continue to. Brushing aside the cynic, I learnt to be grateful for these moments of experiencing the positively binding emotion of belonging, shaping who I will grow to be. “I wanna find something I’ve wanted all along, Somewhere I belong.” -Somewhere I Belong (2003) Abhijat  
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29 Nov 2017, 11:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Of Ambition, Belonging, Clarity, Direction, Encouragement and Fear |
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Looking back at a life changing year – Part Two Clarity Life changing moments may come in conversations, experiences or reflection. Sport has the ability of impacting the psyche of followers, or in some cases the collective conscience of a nation. The well chronicled tale of Nelson Mandela fostering unity in South Africa with the Rugby World Cup in 1995 is as remarkable a story as may be told. For the millennials in a cricket crazy India, Sachin Tendulkar was a man who impacted my generation by showing us not just the will to win, but to dominate and raise the bar. In this commercial, Adidas captured the mood of an entire nation when Tendulkar took the field in national colours. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=815yomYKRNg Most summer afternoons, I found myself at Jetée de la Compagnie, swimming in the lake and having a few drinks with mates from school. The death of Chester Bennington soured the mood. A day later, I was at the Paléo Festival in Nyon. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis were the headline act. Fifty thousand people sang with them as they used the stage to comment on bringing people together instead of dividing them. Through rain and mud, the voices sang in support of a connected and accepting world, including their popular song on Donald Trump. A lifting moment after Chester’s death and amidst all the negative sentiment of hardening borders and creeping mistrust all around us. https://youtu.be/c1QWTtIxxJM?t=1m24s Sports and music aren’t just entertainment, they are a reflection of the times we live in; being platforms for commentary on social and political developments. Prof. Anand Narasimhan, in the last Leadership session, mentioned, “You as a group are, at a subconscious level, aware of the mortality of the group, and therefore, a lot of your actions in the last weeks will be driven by sheer weight of this realisation.” With passing years, I need to take the opportunity to fully appreciate the significance of aspects that touch my life, not taking it for granted. The leadership journey and the days at the monastery in Oropa helped me gain clarity on facing up to the mortality of moments, experiences, time together and life in general and makes me conscious of living the experience and not staring at it through the screen of my smart phone. “Give me reason, To fill this hole Connect the space between Let it be enough to reach the truth that lies Across this new divide” -New Divide, (2009) Direction “The fact that you are all here, means you all need help” – Prof. Nuno Fernandes An extremely humbling statement to hear early in the year. Yes, we all did need help – amongst other aspects, most importantly, at being better versions of ourselves. We needed help with giving direction to our ambition. The initiation was a hard process, suddenly, I was not in control anymore – couldn’t be late for class, couldn’t decide when and where I wanted to work, and couldn’t choose the people I wanted to work with. There were no answers served on a platter, but there was an opportunity to know myself better, know the ones around me better and make sense of so many things happening around me – recognising the behavioural data and making conscious choices, not just be driven subconsciously by circumstances. Ambition without direction is meaningless. It is a case of unrealised potential; built up energy with no way to channel it. Being in the intense IMD MBA pulls you into a bubble, and this bubble creates a mini universe of its own. Whether it was the inspirational speakers, my raised self-awareness, the Discovery Expeditions, or Navigating the Future conference – opportunities for learning and discovering were aplenty. Make no mistake, learning isn’t always a positive experience, just like life isn’t. It is usually the outcome that makes the learning process, albeit painful sometimes, worth it. Diversity isn’t just a nice statistic, it is the reality of learning how different individuals are, and how these differences provide perspectives but also generate friction. Within this protected universe, we witnessed a plethora of situations:
This year-long bubble provided enough opportunity to test, choose and move forward with who we want to be, and who we did not want to be. “I don’t know why I instigate And say what I don’t mean I don’t know how we got this way I know it’s not alright I’m breaking the habit, tonight” -Breaking the Habit (2003) Abhijat  
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30 Nov 2017, 11:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: Of Ambition, Belonging, Clarity, Direction, Encouragement and Fear |
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Looking back at a life changing year – this is the final post of the three part series by Abhijat Chahal. Encouragement I write this part inspired by a knock on my door last night from a classmate. He felt I had not been myself the last couple of days and wanted to check on me. It was a touching moment indicative of the strong bonds that have developed over the year and takes me to probably the most memorable part of my MBA journey. In January 2017, we all arrived in shiny armours, ready to showcase our best side. With passing weeks, those defences started dropping as we were confronted with chinks in our armours, not least the behavioural traits that were detrimental to the groups we worked in. There is an incredible transformation that took place in how relationships evolved, akin to having been in the trenches together. The IMD MBA took control of our lives and my 89 classmates became the all-consuming universe this year. Through the year, we found moments of joy together in between working for our start-ups, studying Finance and Accounting, and all the cases that needed preparation. Paintball, bowling, laser tag, rafting on the Aare, celebrating Holi, go-karting, curling, gathering for huge meals, Lausanne 20km and Lausanne marathon, Red Bull 400… in retrospect, it is remarkable that we squeezed in time to do all of this. White Horse, Lacustre and Etoile Blanche became a part of our daily lives as we found comfort in familiarity to let off steam!  No matter the amount of pressure or the long hours of work, a good laugh was just a matter of taking a minute to have a fun conversation. It is amazing how we calibrated our sense of humour, our work ethic and largely, learnt to disagree without being disagreeable. Discussing and debating a host of topics under the sun, within the first weeks I found myself connecting deeply to people I didn’t know before this year. Soon we were discussing our hopes and fears. The armours were off, and the exposed vulnerability built connections that can be hard to fathom while looking from the outside. Many of us found the courage to confront our demons and speak about it openly to new found confidants or even in the larger group of the class. I take away two great lessons – 1) We all have our stories and the baggage we carry, and 2) we are not alone, it’s just a matter of reaching out. Moments when I mustered the courage to talk about my challenges chipped away at the burden, piece by piece. I saw this class cry at learning about the pain of some of our classmates, as we dealt with the frailty of our humanness. In the Leadership stream, we learnt that the group behaves like an organism and takes a life of its own. That some of us laid bare our emotions in front of the class speaks of the character and trust in this group. Any exposed vulnerability was nurtured in a sea of empathy, support and most importantly, encouragement. Whether it was help in studying finance, preparing cases to crack consulting interviews, practicing behavioural questions, or connecting classmates with contacts – finding someone backing you to take that step to improve wasn’t hard. Preparing for Navigating the Future (NTF) conference was an aspirational moment as despite the absence of authority, many in the class volunteered their time and effort to take our show to the next level. The Class of 2017 came together to put together an NTF par excellence and the joy and togetherness of success was a moment to cherish.  If there’s one word that adds to the ambition we all came in with that defines what the year is encouragement – to try new things, to face our fears and dare to explore who we wanted to be. Remove the broken parts you know were wrong And feel the calm when the problem’s all gone Part of Me (1999) Fear For all that I may have learnt about the world of business, living the experience in all its softer elements has made the decision of coming to IMD worth it. It is now the last week and time is racing. With job offers rolling in for some and working their way to others, there’s an eager anticipation in getting absolute clarity on our next steps. I also feel a nervous uneasiness and I ask myself if I am ready to acknowledge what I feel. Am I ready to admit the fear that’s gripping me? I feel a desperation in wanting to hold on and live this experience a moment longer. I don’t want it to be over. Leaving the safety of our IMD bubble feels daunting. These strangers from a few months ago now feel like people I have known all my life, and the thought of them stepping away into their own lives in a week is disorienting. I don’t feel ready to let go yet. We are all running away from something, or towards something. It is just the nature of ambitious individuals. I want to make sure in madness, I take the time to pause, reflect and acknowledge this incredible year of my life. “There are things that we can have but can’t keep.” One More Light (2017) To my classmates, my friends… I take the liberty of using the words that were used for Chester – your powerful voice and generous spirit is what I will take with me as I leave on the 8th December 2017, grateful for what we shared and hopeful of better times to come, pulling down the curtains on an extraordinary year in my life. As a shipping man, I wish you fair weather and smooth sailing – remember, we can not direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails. Look at the person next to you, and remind yourself of the difference they made to your life. For the late-night knock on my door, for listening to my fears, for keeping me calm in moments of distress, for laughing at my jokes, for challenging my ideas, for sharing this journey… of Ambition, Belonging, Clarity, Direction, Encouragement and Fear, merci beaucoup! This concludes my three part blog post. Abhijat  
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04 Dec 2017, 07:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: The 2017 Graduation ceremony approaches! |
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It has finally arrived – the last week! Each year seems to go faster and faster, and I wonder if it’s the same for the MBAs? It seems like only yesterday that we were welcoming a new set of 90 participants at our opening fair and now it’s already time to celebrate all that they have accomplished as they set off on the next stage of their journeys! The graduation ceremony will take place this Friday, 8th December, starting at 10h30. If you would like to follow the celebrations, the full ceremony will be streamed online at: https://livestream.com/IMD/MBAGraduation And of course, long and short videos will be made available as soon as possible after the event on our YouTube channel and a selection of photos will be posted on Flickr. Meanwhile, in true IMD style, the MBAs have a fully-loaded last week of activities, celebrating and acknowledging their achievements, and preparing them to say goodbye and to embrace their new futures – and hopefully to stay in touch! We wish them all the best. Suzy  
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07 Dec 2017, 07:00
| FROM IMD Admissions Blog: The most emotional day of the year |
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This last week is the new beginning of my life-long MBA journey. 6th Dec 2017 Cloudy Very cold Lausanne Yik Long Lee writes today’s guest entry, with graduation just around the corner. My feelings are mixed: I want to go back to Hong Kong and I also want to stay here a bit longer. In Hong Kong, Christmas and New Year parties are waiting for me, and my family, friends and colleagues are there too – I haven’t seen them much this year and I miss them a lot. In Lausanne, my classmates and I are witnessing the end of the program together. The strong bonds we have developed throughout the year make me want to stay here with them for a bit longer. 2016 Summer The whole journey started with the intensive assessment day in Lausanne. I was well prepared for most of the questions, except one. Suzy asked me: “How are you going to contribute to the class of 2017 if we admit you?” My mind was blank for a second. Then I said I would share my 8-year experience working in Swiss banks and support classmates who needed it in Economics, Accounting and Finance. Yesterday Looking back, I think I did what I said. I was glad when some of my classmates told me how they appreciated the time we spent studying together. We passed the Finance exams together. I did not expect any reward, other than my happy feelings for them, so it was a complete surprise to receive the MBA prize of the Fondation Vaudoise pour la Formation Bancaire yesterday evening. I feel thankful and honored.  Our MBA Program Director, Professor Boscheck, taught us not only Economics but also values and principles. In the business and professional world, it’s not all about profit and money. We should have a higher purpose and “do something good for our society”! So I have decided to donate the whole prize to charity. Some of our classmates have been really helpful and have already suggested a few charities to donate to. An end? No, it’s a new beginning! Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Professor George Kohlrieser was with us today for the final session to our MBA. We explored how we have changed, gained confidence and self-awareness. My self-confidence now comes from inside: my energy, positive mindset and values, but not external recognition and past achievements. I have also learnt more empathy when working in multi-cultural teams. For all of this, I want to thank my start-up group members and my psychoanalyst who gave me challenging moments, learning opportunities and emotional support. The first 3-month start-up project was the most intense part for me, and also the most fruitful part.  We watched the video of Derek Redmond, who snapped his hamstring during the 400m race in the Barcenola Olympics Games in 1992, but insisted on finishing the race. His father broke through the security line to finish the race with him. I was deeply touched and my tears could not stop. It was a powerful example of what we have learnt this year: a secure base “provides a sense of protection and offers a source of energy and inspiration to explore, take risks and seek changes”. We looked back with gratitude at the support we have received from each other, for example public speaking training or emotional support during family or partner situations. This has really made us feel not just like a class, but indeed like a family! The quote I like the most from today was: “I only remember good memories. And no matter if we meet each other in the future or not, you are going to carry me and I am going to carry you for the rest of our lives.” For me, life is a journey but not a destination. It’s a train heading to an uncertain future. With my happy tears while writing, I am thankful that you all are on my train in 2017. Now we are approaching a stop, this Friday, our graduation. And it’s fine, because I believe that it’s not an end but a new beginning of our journey! Yik Long p.s. My wife and I welcome you all to come to Hong Kong to visit us!  
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