Frankly Speaking

In ancient Chinese Philosophy, the concept ‘Yin-Yang’ describes how seemingly opposing forces work together to create wonders.   It takes a Sun and a Moon, a summer and winter, fire and water, Mars and a Venus to make life an enjoyable one.  Like the philosophy of ‘Yin-Yang’, the life at Oxford makes one to face seemingly different personalities, philosophies, doctrines, and yet all these differences are created with purpose…a purpose to serve humanity.   And it is because of this ultimate purpose that Oxford stands tall in all domains - whether it is academics, politics, business, or humanities. It’s a city like none other and its learning temple like none other. The Said Business School is an institution that embodies all the values of the City of Oxford. The Said Business School is a new business school when compared to most European and US business schools. Yet, it has reached a prestigious status and top rankings both in the academic world and business commun...

‘Unlimited Choices’ It is almost a month since I arrived at Oxford, the city of Dreaming Spires. By far, its one of the most beautiful places I have ever lived or visited – Its an architectural wonder. From the serenity of Port Meadows to the beauty of Brasenose, a day traveller will be spoilt for choices that Oxford offers. One of the striking features of this small city is its calmness in the midst of all the vibrancy. The port meadow, one of the last places yet to be invaded by modern life, offers the best of nature. The beauty of the hills and the streams that surround is a treat to the eyes. Guess what, I live only a mile away from the meadows – enticing isn’t it? A week of pub-crawls, several dinners, and meetings – we are all set to get the best out of Oxford life. The striking feature of the cohort is the diversity of the students from all parts of the world. There are 250+ students from 43 countries speaking multiple languages. In a few weeks, I had the opportunit...

Its been quite an interesting year so far - Lots of introspection and retrospection about personal life and career. The heavy-duty work has finally paid off, and I am all set to explore this beautiful world.  But before that, I wanted to share some of the knowledge that I gained over the last one year. I believe most of the readers are familiar with MBA program, so I will not dwell much on this topic. I would rather focus on the strategy for a successful MBA application.  'Selecting Schools' Personally, I believe selecting the school is the most important aspect of your MBA application strategy. The earlier you select, more the opportunity to network and build a solid relationship with the school.  Most students start with GMAT preparation and then select the schools. This strategy may work at times, but it may not give the student sufficient time to interact with the school. This is especially true when you are taking GMAT in October- December period.  ...

In exactly a month and a half, I will be heading to Oxford, UK, for my MBA studies. Another dream - checked off from my list. There is definitely a lot of excitement about the prospects, but how much I will miss Singapore - All the wonderful friends and great tangy food. I had a wonderful time in Singapore - tonnes of learning from my colleagues, exposure at regional level, and of course great night-out parties with friends. That said, I am hearing from our alumni that Oxford is a great place to be - especially for its BOPS (read parties), travelling, and networking. Hopefully, I won't miss the Singapore that I love so much - A perfect confluence of East and West. Parties & Meet-ups I had the opportunity to meet some of my future class-mates/alumni at the pre-course parties and meet-ups. To describe them in two words - 'Just overwhelmed'. The diversity is amazing - Students from Economics, Finance, Entrepreneurship, IT, and the list goes on. Never in my life...

Master's at SMU: Its exactly one year since I completed my last coursework related to Master of IT in Business at Singapore Management University(SMU). I thought it will be quite interesting to recollect some of the important learning that I acquired over the years at SMU. The coursework, in general, was quite interesting as it blended technology, business, and management. I really enjoyed the courses on Finance, Strategy, Sourcing, and Vendor management. My specialization was on Banking Products and Processes and I acquired fairly a good knowledge about the Banking Industry. If you are interested in learning about the program, you can refer to the following URL:  SMU MITB Banking Products & Processes: This is a foundation course that provides cursory knowledge on various banking products: Savings, Loans, Derivatives, Custodian Services, Trade Finance etc. Besides it covers processes under each banking domain (e.g: Loan Servicing Process). The process knowledge that you ga...

Its been quite a while since I blogged the last time...maybe over 3 years. I have to admit that life had been quite been quite busy with loads of work. For a change, I can afford to be quite laid back. There's a reason for my short term laziness - for I have got an admission to study MBA at Said Business School, Oxford University. Its been a tremendous journey with Oracle in the last 6+ years - Technology, Technology, and more Technology. I had opportunities to play with processes, systems, and Operations. But, I guess the "DREAM" to study in a world class university forced me to pursue the MBA program more than any other factors. If the plan goes well, I am all set to Oxford. (Details about my interview with Oxford can be found in the following URL: Oxford MBA Interview ). So, for the next few months - I am back to my blogging business and share my thoughts through this forum.