Beyond Academics

Date: 1st July, 2020

On 1st July 2020 SSBF organised orientation program for batch 2019-21. The sessions that followed were fully organised in an online format. There were loads of interactive discussions on the BFSI industry with experts giving their views on situations that would affect the industry post COVID-19. One such discussion was on “Kaleidoscope of Financial Landscape”. The speaker was Mr. Arindom Datta—Executive Director and Head of Rural & Development Banking at Rabo India Securities Pvt Ltd. He gave us essentials of the industry which will be relevant in determining how the industry would function once the lockdown is lifted.

Sustainability will be the new norm and financial services will have social impact due to their changed method of doing business. Technology will be the game changer as more and more institutions are getting virtualized. Any organisation missing out on this would lose in the long run.

Profit making organisations will have to ensure that their profitability must be sustainable. ESG (Environmental, social and corporate governance) complaint companies will be making their entry in this domain.

Other points that were ruminated in this session were development of blended financial solution(contribution of both soft and hard capital), government support to organizations in providing first default loss guarantee and equity in the agricultural sector.

The session was interactive and Mr. Datta welcomed every doubt and query that students had. SSBF was fortunate to have conducted this session with Mr.Arindom datta and was grateful to have invited him.

Date: 2nd July, 2020

As the Orientation program continues for the students of Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance, todays memorable, stimulating and truly motivating session was headed by Mr. Bhupendra Tripathi who is currently working as the First 100% visually impaired manager of Reserve Bank of India.

His attitude towards life and his commitment to keep learning was certainly a take back for all students. Imparting to them the 5 mantras to approaching difficult situations by giving examples from his own life, further created an engaging and comfortable environment. He then ventured into enlightening the students about ways to think positively and on how to convert thoughts full of despair into positive energy by seeing the light at the end of every dark tunnel.

Although this session was conducted through a virtual platform, his confidence, determination, fortitude, strength of mind and undeterred willpower touched every soul present and inculcated in them a new found perspective and love for life. This session was definitely an eye-opener and one not to be missed!

3rd July, 2020

On 03rd July 2020 Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance had the privilege of organising and hosting a session on Post Covid 19: Challenges before financial services sector, addressed by Mr. Bhushan Kolekar, Ex-AGM State Bank of India, now a freelance advisor and trainer in banking, financial, leadership and soft-skills.

Mr. Bhushan Kolekar began the session by telling how Covid 19 is a big challenge for all of us irrespective of one’s age, profession or sector. He mentioned which industries are worst hit and which have weathered the Covid 19 storm. According to him, the worst part of Covid 19 is the fear of uncertainty as no one knows when the cure will be found. Sir said that the challenge for all of us is three-fold: we have to keep ourselves sustained, we have to keep our market and customer sustained and we have to keep our staff and employees sustained in this atmosphere.

Sir enlightened that banking is a service industry. It cannot be performed without meeting each other. He discussed about how banking is an essential service, even though it is not rewarded as much as other industries are. Sir mentioned few points which will help the banks to function in a better way during this pandemic.

Sir shed light on how the branch structure and network needs to be reorganised. He also discussed that how loans and advances, non-performing asset, salaries of employees, insolvency proceedings, and import and export should be handled for better efficiency and lowering the risk of losses.

Besides these, what made the session a real learning experience was Mr. Bhushan Kolekar helping the students to look at the challenges of Covid 19 from a perspective never imagined. The session left the students enlightened with rich knowledge on the aspects focused on by Sir and also gave thought-provoking insights into the solutions for post Covid 19 challenges.

4th July, 2020

“Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today.” – Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese Monk.

On 04th July 2020, students of Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance were given a golden opportunity to attend the session on Motivational Speech by Mr. Milind Mutalik. Sir is currently working with Accolite Software India Pvt. Ltd. as Chief People Officer.

Sir commenced the session by focusing on how a lot of things can change in the next few months. He said that if we go only by practical scenario without any hope, we will not reach our destination. Our hope should match with our reality. He shed light on the six factors which will help in scanning the business around us, the three things which are undergoing and will change, and seven work trends resetting for HR leaders to rethink as indicated by Gartner.

Sir stressed on the fact that it is important to evaluate the impact each trend will have on one’s organization’s operation and strategic goals. Organizations should identify which areas require immediate action and act accordingly.

He discussed the ways on how HR leaders need to rethink workforce and employee planning, management, performance and experience strategies as the pandemic resets major work trends all over the globe.

Sir then enlightened how the world of work is going to change. The three things that will change are the work place, work content and way to work, and work tools and resources. 

Sir highlighted the importance of competency by explaining the 5 R’s: react, realise, resolve, reshape and resilient, and the 5 P’s: proactive, prepared, pulling together, problem solver and persistence.

Taking the discussion forward, Sir emphasised on the impact on the BFSI sector and how the first month of un-lockdown was for demand in 9 various sectors.

The session came to an end with a Q&A session from the students. It was undeniably an informative session which reinforced the sense of hope amongst the students to face this tough situation.

4th July, 2020

On 4th July, 2020, the students of SSBF intermingled with some old familiar faces. From different batches, SSBF’s Alumni interacted with the students to give them an insight and a deeper outlook on how the outside world would treat them once they left SSBF’s cozy gates. The session started with an introductory round from each of the alumni and then progressed into an open forum where the students kept posting their queries and clearing out their doubts.

They gave the students insightful information about what the industry expects of them, what basic skills they should possess and the like. The alumni also gave suggestions on what additional courses could be done by the students especially during this lockdown period as well as names of some supplementary books they could read up during their free time to gain that added advantage over others in the industry. They highly motivated the students to pursue their dream jobs and to never lose hope in their trials.

The students definitely had a lot to takeback from this session and it helped get their perspectives straight. With placements round the corner, this interaction was greatly beneficial and constructive and helped gain a clearer view of the road lying ahead.

7th July, 2020

7th July, 2020: SSBF organized an interactive session on “Dichotomy Amidst Economy and Marketplaces”, in which Dr. Aditya Srinivas— Chief Operating Officer, BSE Brokers Forum, spoke about the huge gap between the real economy and the stock market.

With India’s GDP print for Q4 of FY20 coming in at 3.1% and forecasts for FY21 pegged at -5%, stocks are rallying amidst the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.The reason is the shocking scale and speed of the largest stimulus rescue operations in history. Markets are counting on governments to save economies and markets.

Great investments often arise at times of great dislocation and even discomfort. We know the global economy will fully recover. Innovation, invention and ingenuity will continue to bring changes, and leaders in such deeds will be rewarded well. On the other hand, downgrade ratios are already the worst on record.

Historically, fixed income assets have risen when equities have fallen and vice versa. Their negative correlation served as a natural hedge, but this is no longer true. If fixed income cannot provide reasonable returns and as much diversification, portfolios will start reflecting such realities. So rather than questioning the rationale of markets in showing strength in times of economic distress, Mr. Srinivas suggested the students to stay optimistic, and look at the brighter side and comb the investable universe for companies that can come out of this crisis in a better position and adjust portfolios accordingly.

10th July, 2020

“The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.” ~Jimmy Johnson.

On 10th July 2020, the students of Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance had the golden opportunity to attend a session on “Competitive Exams” by Mr. Jyant Gautam, who is currently working with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as a Manager.

Sir began the session by telling the opportunities in the government sector. According to him, job security is the biggest motivator for all, especially during this pandemic situation. The youth of this country should understand that it is a myth that working in an MNC is always better than the government sector.

Sir mentioned four competitive exams which are conducted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). He mainly focused on the regulator side of the banking sector. He shed light on how there is no magic bullet or one-size-fits-all strategy while preparing for such competitive exams. One needs to work hard and give all their efforts in order to achieve success.

He discussed in detail with the students on how to prepare for grade ‘B’ officer level exams. Sir said that preparing for one exam will definitely be useful for the other exams. He mentioned a few points which will certainly give the students the ‘extra edge’ while competing in these exams.

As the session came to its end, the students were filled with great motivation and confidence to appear for these examinations and work diligently for the same.

It was a splendid morning for the new faces of the Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance. With fresh faces what tags along is new perspectives, new ideas, new meetings, new aspirations and most importantly new companions. A 10-day induction programme was planned for the batch to let them know how enthralling will be their 2 years journey at SSBF, lavale. The induction started by a speech by the director, Manisha Ketkar followed by briefing sessions by the faculties. The students had various guest lectures scheduled for them. The first session was a panel discussion by 4 prominent bankers who discussed about their expectations from the MBA graduates. Not only focussing on the banking sector several sessions on resource management, water management and emotional well-being were also planned for the batch. Apart from the guest lectures what was more fascinating for the batch was the Pune heritage walk and the inbound program. Inbound program was an opportunity for the students to get to know each other by interacting through various sports activities. Altogether the program was indeed a fresh start for the batch which will help them to strive throughout the journey.