It is now a mélange of case studies, business plan contests, paper presentations and strategy games.
This year, Aditya Birla Group is the principal corporate partner for Ensemble 2008. The Fortune 500 company, adjudged the Best Employer in India in 2007, had partnered the fest last year as well. However, this year's edition of Ensemble is set to be on a whole new level, with prize money worth over ten lakhs on offer, informs XLRI. Apart from the Aditya Birla Group, the other big names from the corporate sector that are partnering the events of Ensemble 2008 include Nokia, Cognizant, L&T, Nestle, Tata and Tinplate.
The theme for Ensemble 2008 is Magis: Delivering Excellence. Says XLRI, "As XLRI celebrates its 60th Anniversary this year, its commitment to the principle of Magis is becoming ever more important. In today's ever-changing environment, it is only by delivering Excellence that organizations can remain at the top. Be it in constant innovation or in ethical decision-making, organizations will have to commit to Excellence in all spheres. Thus, Ensemble will, over a period of three days, showcase events based on the theme of Magis."The previous year's edition of Ensemble, with the theme Advantage India: The bird of gold spreads its wings, saw over 300 participants from the best b-schools in India battle for top honours and prize money aggregating to over eight lakhs.
The major events of Ensemble 2008 are the Idea Summit, the flagship game, Cognizant Olympians, and a special event sponsored by the Principal Partner, the Aditya Birla Group Boardroom. The Idea Summit is a panel discussion where eminent panellists from all walks of life share their experiences with B-school students. This year's participants include Mr. Gagan Banga (CEO, Indiabulls Financial Services), Mr. Rahul Butalia (CEO, ISEO Chemdis Pvt. Ltd.), Mr. B V Bhargava (Chairman, CRISIL), Mr. Prabhakar Valivati (MD, Mentor Partners), Mr. Raghunath Medge (President, Mumbai Dabbawallahs), Mr. Rajesh Mahajan (CEO, Maspar), and Mr. N. Sivaraman, Director, (L&T-VIAdel Engineering Ltd.). In keeping with XLRI's commitment to promoting entrepreneurial spirit on campus, the panel discussion will be based on the theme of Entrepreneurship.
Prominent economists will also be coming to campus to take part in discussions and share their valuable opinions on the current happenings in the financial services industry.Aditya Birla Group Boardroom event is the biggest B-School event with a quarter of a million rupees up for grabs. The participants, only from selected top 6 B-Schools will get a chance to suggest a Global Growth Opportunity to the group. Apart from the prize money, the winners are also offered a chance to sit for Pre Placement Interviews, which they can convert into offers. Cognizant Olympians is the flagship event, where the best from selected 15 B-schools, will compete against each other to attain the position of the Olympians. The winner of the event takes home one lakh rupees.There are various other events at Ensemble 2008, all organized by the numerous committees on campus. The games vary across all business verticals, and enthusiasts of Finance, Marketing, Operations, Information Systems and Human Resources will all find something for them at Ensemble 2008. Apart from the management events, there will also be events for adventure-lovers and budding entrepreneurs. This year, Ensemble 2008 has two events for the ones who are socially inclined – Samarpan, wherein the participants have to develop a sustainable social B-plan, and Ashraya, which encourages participants to use their skill and knowledge in helping Self Help Groups to put their funds to right use. There is also an on-spot quiz competition for quizzing enthusiasts, El Dorado. The quiz-master for the event is renowned Barry O'Brian.
The preliminary rounds of these events have already kicked off online, and the Ensemble 2008 website (www.ensemble-xlri08.com) has already attracted over 13000 visits. Some of the top B-schools that are participating include ISB, IIM A, IIM C, IIM L, IIM K, IIM I, SP Jain, MICA, XIMB, JBIMS, MDI and FMS.Ensemble 2008 will culminate in a rock competition followed by a rock show by a leading Indian band Bandish.
