21st Aug 2016
Certificate Awarding Ceremony of EBMP 6th Mumbai Batch 2015 – 2016
“Sometimes in life you meet people who challenge you. They challenge the system and get you out of your comfort zone. These people change the status quo and force you to become better. These 19 professionals challenged me and IGTC into doing many new and successful things for the ‘first time’ and they will always be unforgettable for this contribution.”
These were the opening statements of Radhieka R Mehta, Director of the Indo German Training Centre as she hosted the Grand Certification Ceremony of the Executive Business Management Programme, 6th Mumbai Batch 2015-2016. As she welcomed the business heads from the sponsoring organizations, the EBMP participants, their family members and the EBMP teaching faculty, she quoted, “I remain humbled before this outstanding audience, especially the League of Extra-ordinary Gentlemen (the EBMP Faculty), who have selflessly contributed to the development and growth of this programme both in Mumbai and Pune. We dedicate this evening to them and thank them profusely for their overwhelming support.”
The evening commenced with the welcome address by Bernhard Steinruecke, Director General of the Indo German Chamber of Commerce who began by congratulating all the participants and compared them to gold medalists of the Olympics. He stated “It’s always great to meet people who are prepared to learn, and with you it is very special because you are normally working, and you spend every other weekend learning and that is unique. This is something I admire, as very few people are doing it now days because we think we don’t have the time. This is a big mistake because it is so critical to be updated, to have new views, and it’s also very important to basically go back to school”. He also congratulated the faculty saying “But today is even more special because for the first time we have all our trainers here. The people who make the gold medalists.”
After the welcome address, the floor was handed over to the “Band of Brothers” to share their learning experience at IGTC. Vikas Nanda, Associate General Manager, Lanxess India Pvt. Ltd. was the first to address the audience, by virtue of the fact that he had a 100% attendance throughout the course and he was unanimously the “Big Brother” of the class. He began by citing “Behind every successful man there is a woman. But here we have 19 boys, and it was purely their energy and camaraderie that brought me to class every alternate weekend. We have spent a lot of time in the corporate world, we come from a lot of experience, but I am still taking a lot from here and I am going to implement it. My motto in life has always been one action is better than a thousand thoughts. As an inspiration to my fellow classmates, I feel that everyone should have a dream and pursue it, however we should never be too old to laugh and have fun. There is a lot of difference between growing older and growing up. Growing older is inevitable but growing up is a choice.”
In an evening of many firsts, a mother and a spouse also took the floor. Hansa Mathuria, the mother of Pranav Mathuria, Business Manager, Overseas Polymers Pvt. Ltd. who had missed his graduation ceremony in the USA, was overwhelmed to witness the completion of his EBMP course. She quoted, “Pranav always had a deep desire to do his MBA, but circumstances did not allow him to do so. Last year, he found out about this institute and he got the chance to fulfil his dream. He not only got his knowledge and experience, but also a group of friends which became his family and worked together to achieve success. The role of the faculty in guiding them was tremendous and I am immensely grateful to all of them. I wish IGTC all the best in every way that they continue nurturing future students in life.”
To this Pranav Mathuria replied “In my life I have never had a role model but after this institute I have 15 role models – the professors. My sole purpose for joining the course was knowledge and coming here has been the best decision of my life. Career wise I don’t know where I am going to go but what I have learnt is amazing. This course has made me hungry for knowledge.
Mansi Vaidya, wife of Mr. Devang Vaidya, Regional Manager – Customer Relations, Siemens Ltd. took the stage. “Due to the hectic work schedule of the participants, they don’t smile anymore. Managing people doesn’t give them time for themselves. This is his greatest gift from the course. He got time for himself. And he is happy. Before when he used to look at his mobile and smile, I would wonder why he is smiling; now I know it is the IGTC group. Thank you for bringing the happiness and smiles back”. Devang confessed that in spite of wanting to learn new things he thought a thousand times before joining the course. “The course has made us entrepreneurs, as we look at the overall picture. I now realize that an MBA or a management program such as IGTC is a must. Thank you for bringing the smile back to my face.”
Sebastian Kokkatt Senior Manager, Siemens Ltd. and Amit Manjure – Head Clinical Marketing, Siemens Ltd., who presented the Best Business Plan at the end of the programme came forth to share their experience. Sebastian Kokkatt stated, “At the end of the programme, the two most important words that come to mind are Relevance and Transformation. Usually we have a lot of information with us, but it lies in our minds like data and it’s not updated. But the course gave us relevant and updated information related to today’s business world. During the course of transformation, all the information we have got converted to knowledge. The faculties have done a significant job.” Amit Manjure was quick to add, that there was a third word which was very important and that is Application. “Whatever we learnt we were ask to apply, which meant we had to go back and read our notes. The application was an important learning about the capstone. Overall most of us have come back to learning after long, but hearing the professors share their experiences was like watching a Roger Federer match or a Mohammed Rafi/ Asha Bhosle concert.”
Amidst a lot of cheer and applause, the Chief GuestVivek Kanade, Executive Vice President -Siemens Healthcare Pvt. Ltd. delivered his address to the young graduating professionals. He started by narrating a time of learning for him, at the IIM convocation where Deepak Parekh mentioned that the world is big with big issues and is begging for big solutions. He then advised them saying “You have begun this course with a wealth of experience and in this last one year you have been thinking of creative ideas, plans, and strategies for the future. But I would like to emphasize that you must ‘Think, Plan, Act, Do’. The thinking and planning has been done now. So now – DO. A small letter world but challenges most companies. So as we step back to the real world, I urge every one of you to just DO and execute it right.”
Surabhi Mittal, Vice President – Head Human Resources and Administration, Lanxess India Pvt. Ltd., the Guest of Honour congratulated the batch first for remaining so young and enthusiastic, as well as for theirdetermination and self-awareness. “Your hunger for knowledge makes you young. The oldest guy in the room is someone who thinks they know it all. You are sitting here on this plethora of knowledge and combined with your work experience, it is truly a beautiful thing. You have experienced success and failures, which you can now relate to because of this course. You spirit and your self-driven attitude puts you in the category of successful people.”
The ceremony moved on with the felicitation of all the faculty. It was an atmosphere filled with deep respect and immense salutations, as each faculty came up to receive a token of appreciation with a scroll of gratitude from Bernhard Steinruecke, Director General, IGCC on behalf of the IGTC and the EBMP participants. As per tradition, the batch had a video based on the theme of “The Expendables” which showcased their journey in good humour, before they came forth to collect their well-deserved and well-earned Executive Business Management Programme Certificates. The loudest cheer in the audience was from the ‘Band of Brothers’ as they called themselves!
Finally, Radhieka Mehta proposed a Vote of Thanks to all the dignitaries, company members, esteemed faculty, participants and their family members for their presence, and brought a most memorable evening to a formal closure. But the night remained young as the faculty and EBMP participants competed with each other to win a coveted gift in a game of Antakshari, each one unveiling the singer in them as they sang to the fulfilment of their dreams, success, happiness and bonding that will last forever!
