The Cranfield experience – my tribute to Term 1

More than three months after I arrived at Cranfield, I take stock of what has become of me. I have changed in three months - if ever that is possible for a 35 year old. Some changes are more evident than others. Some can only be felt and are not visible to the outside world.

I am amongst the many students to be on campus with family, and it was a tough call. Divya and I were working with two big multinational organizations back in India and wanted to experience international exposure and re-skill ourselves. We chose Cranfield over any other options for a varied number of reasons –top ranked one year programme in UK, average age of students, small batch unlike the mass MBA manufacturing schools across in other continents, on-campus housing (believe me, it can be a very critical factor) and value for money. And above all, we got selected at the same school with Divya securing a fee-share scholarship too.

When you have grown up for so many years in the protected environment of a close knit small family, when you have never stepped beyond your shores and when you are shouldering the partial responsibility of running the household, a decision for a couple to come together and study together was a bold one. In hind sight, our decision surprises me too. I could do that! I know it is a sacrifice for every one in my extended family – even if it is for one year only.
My motivation for the Cranfield MBA was so high that I quit my senior management, seven-digit figure paying job to be here – one amongst the many. It was time to step outside for a while and explore something more.

“Our business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves -- to break our own records, to outstrip our yesterday by our today” - Stewart B. Johnson

That is what I came here for. To be amongst people who are absolutely capable, if not more, as you are. To set my benchmarks higher than what I have had so far. And test my wings to see how high I can fly. I am reminded of what I share with our orienteers – “fly as high as you can; the height you attain will show the strength of your wings” (anonymous). Unknowingly, it seemed to have applied on me as well.

And Cranfield MBA has done just that for me – changed my views about myself, broken my complex and given me tremendous amount of feedstock to reflect upon.

It has stretched me more than I ever did in my life so far – staying awake till past midnight with complete attention, gathering courage to play rugby amongst big built Europeans and yet finding time in the always-so-busy schedule of a Cranfield MBA to write such diary postings – I never knew I could do so much. Sometimes, I surprise myself too.

It has also exposed me to my own blind spots – faltering in an accounting case despite being an accountant by education, failing to adhere the team code of on-time arrival for team meetings when I considered myself to be the most disciplined person on earth, experiencing the sense of not having done justice to my learning team when I know I didn’t contribute much to the group SMS presentation. All these and more can really pull you down while raising the respect of your team members in your eyes. It is these five other saints who made me sail through Term 1 -Andrew, Charlie, Jumoke, Maria and Mahesh. You helped me learn the meaning of “inter-dependence”.

One may wonder – how different it really is in the corporate world. I think it is no different except in one way. The inter dependence exists. Out there, however, the sequence is reverse – we all try to get ahead, at the cost of others. Little do we realize that there is that big, real possibility of getting ahead - with the help of others around you?

Cranfield MBA Term 1 has forced me to make choices at a very personal level; like when to fight my corner and when to let something go. It has also shown me the importance of self-reflection. And as I sit back and remember the three months gone by, I know I have covered some distance. I know I am not very far away from the point when I convert this knowledge into action.

The dawn is near

Four down. Every good thing has to end. I won’t say that exams are bad since they enable one to recover lost ground and do a stock check on one’s knowledge and understanding. As I walked out of the exam hall at 1605 hours, I could feel a wave of fresh air going through inside me. The feeling was of regaining confidence that all things come to an end, only to make one wiser, stronger and richer with experience.

When one views from a distance, three months is a long time. But when we lived through the three months, we were living by the hour and did not realize how much has been digested by our brain….till it is time to test ourselves. The exams are also doing the same thing – testing us in Strategic decision sciences and Operations management.

Just one more day and I’ll be free from studies (that’s wishful thinking) for a couple of weeks. Time is flying and will continue to fly away. It is for us to live through every minute, creating pleasant memories and moments to be cherished. Yes, the dawn is near.

There is a first time for everything in life

Exam fever, like common cold, takes its own time getting over. And like any product life cycle, it climbs up steeply, showing an exponential increase in the initial phases.

Term 1 exams are typical of this trend. For the first time in my life, I wrote two exams in one day. To be precise, it was 0930 hours to 1600 hours, in which we wrote our exams on Economics and Marketing. I felt a mix of scary and amusing feelings. Scary because if you have to write an exam after more than six years with a pen rather than computer-based, the fingers not supporting the pen should not come as a surprise. But of course, no one had anticipated that even our fingers will show the law of diminishing marginal utility. The feeling of being amused was when during the exam I lifted my head up only to see an ocean of heads focusing on their desks while the clocked ticked by. 126 managers with an average age of 33 sitting in a classroom reminded me of my childhood days, when one used to move his / her head around looking for group support in case of difficulty. Not here. It is not about passing the MBA. It is about proving a point to your self – that I made the choice to leave a cushy, well paying, senior management job back in my country and come to Cranfield to pursue MBA.

So as the fever went up on the PLC-like curve, we moved from Economics to Marketing in the post lunch session. The fingers got numb…….and soon the clock struck 1600 hours. It was time to get up and move on to prepare for tomorrow.

Diversity – a different perspective

In my learning team, there was ample diversity – 2 Brits, 2 Indians, a Columbian and a Nigerian, 2 women. But is diversity just the span of nationality or gender?

For our course assessment in Organizational Behaviour, each learning team had to write a QOIT group report of up to 2500 words. The first draft which Andrew prepared based on all individual inputs far exceeded the limit, touching almost 4000 words. We had so much to write. Over the past few days, we had been chopping away the text (with a heavy heart). And while my team was reading the draft of the report, we started talking on diversity and our learning’s.

To us, diversity had started carrying a new meaning. It transcended beyond the obvious – age, gender, profiles, background, nationalities, etc. The new dimensions were
- our Learning styles: theorists, activists, pragmatist and reflector
- our MBTI’s that manifested our personalities,
- our Belbin roles: shaper, plant, completer finisher, team worker, and so on
- our Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation – Behaviour or FIRO-B: expressed inclusion, expressed affection
- our Emotional intelligence and so on.

There was so much diversity in team. Had the word limit not been forced on us, we would have written on and on. Cranfield MBA has 60% international students from over 30 countries but this aspect of diversity gets subdued when viewed from the perspectives our team was sharing.

Looking back at my past, I realize that even though I worked in one country for 13 years, there also existed diversity. But then, I always viewed it as a diversity arising from the multi cultural backgrounds and education rather than anything else.

Cranfield has opened the eyes of my mind. Now wherever I go in the world, I shall remember that diversity is all around me…….it is only upon me to identify it.

The countdown has begun

Slowly the feeling is sinking in……..burning eyes, sleepy faces, lost looks, tense brows. Yes, the exams are coming closer.

Over my long career, I had thought I have become immune to stress. Cranfield MBA is testing me exactly on this attribute and I have reasons to believe that my confidence is shaking. We continue with our classes till the coming Friday and write five exams in less than three days starting next Monday. That gives us just over 48 hours for revision of 3 months course for five subjects. Need I say more?

In the Marketing class today Moira gave away a few light-hearted surprise awards for the recently concluded SMS presentations. Mathew Neville (Britain) got the prize for making our professor dance to “chicken – tunes” (refer my earlier posting). He received a soft “chicken” toy as a replica to the Nando’s chicken that he and the group presented on. Charles Sincock (Britain) got the prize for the GI Joe who left some people heart-broken – he received a hand-made card showing a broken heart. Roy Masamba (Zimbabwe) received the foot-in-the-mouth prize for Porsche – and he received a dinky Porsche car. The satellite beaming of Warren Mei (China) received the Harry-Potter-time-turner award and the gift was a beautiful hour glass. And last but not the least, Andrew Cox (Britain) got the “best actor – tough customer” award. He received a small bronze oscar for his magnificent performance – in the class as well as in the presentation. She also gave away some books through lucky draw. So much for a wonderful Marketing professor.

As Moira stood there, wishing us good luck for the exams, the reality hit me – now I know why my eyes burn and people notice the blank look on my face - the countdown had begun.

Planning for your future

On Cranfield MBA, you never lose sight of the future. Even if that future is just few terms away.

Our Term 1 exams are scheduled for 13th to 15th December 2004 followed by a three week winter break. Term 2 begins in January 2005 when we continue with core compulsory modules. The electives come into picture in Term 3. That appears so far away. But today, more than four months in advance, we had John Glen present the schedule and time-lines for selection of elective courses. Now this is what I call “Planning”.

Each elective course offered has a credit and we have to take up a combination of electives that add up to a given total. Exchange programmes with many schools across the world are also on offer. Each student has to understand what is being offered and then prioritize his / her selection. There are a few “tracks” (or specializations) also available.

The MBA will make us work even after Term 1 exams. We have already been given a thick folder for Project Management Introduction (PMI) and we are expected to study the contents during the Term break. We begin the next term with an intensive one week. This will involve a continuous schedule of five days when we work on a simulation exercise of building a warehouse. All this has to happen while we have a new Learning Team. So while we experience the forming- norming-storming-performing cycle of the new team, we also have to deliver. The New Year will begin with a new lesson for us – “corporate life does not give you time to settle down; you have to hit the ground running”.

I have to study and choose from a list of over 60 electives offered and carefully pick up around 12. The challenge is not just picking up a list but also to prioritize the selection. There are conditions attached in the entire process and I need to do the task well. So besides enhancing my knowledge base, I will now also learn how to customize my MBA.