Onsite Seminar VI

Date: April Wednesday 16, 2014

Location: Bangalore India

Temperature: increasing hot

After spending our first night in Bangalore we went on our  way to Accenture, our main sponsor. 

During the ride to Accenture we noticed that there are many differences to Delhi. The air seems to be better and there is less traffic. We were able to drive much faster than in Delhi. Probably because the election days in Bangalore have begun… or we were just lucky.

Arrived at Accenture the security checks were is done by two highly motivated Agents. After the whole security stuff the presentation of Accenture started, presented by many employees who currently take care of a big Swiss insurance company based in Winthertur. After that we had the opportunity to visit the innovation lab of Accenture where they create many useful tools and programs for the company. The highlight was the lunch with the Accenture people. The food was really good and the talking with them was not so formal anymore.

In the afternoon we visited Microsoft Ventures and had a presentation followed by a chat with young start-up entrepreneurs in the IT-sector supported by Microsoft. This was really interesting and a lot of questions have been asked and real life answers were giving. This was really what our program stands for. It was a great visit. On this occasion: Thanks to all the enterpreneurs.

Back at the Hotel a feedback round was done by Pieter and the project team. So far this day was not finished, tonight we are going out seeing the streets of Bangalore. Bye

Todays Blogger

Nicolas Balimann

Onsite Seminar V

April 15 was our last day in Delhi. 

Therefore we checked out in the morning and left the hotel at 8.50 a.m. for the first company visit. First we visited the company Maruti Suzuki, where we were friendly welcomed. The company is the Indian leader in car manufacturing. After a presentation and a discussion we started the plant tour. We saw the whole manufacturing of a car from the beginning to the end. It was interesting to see how fast and automated the manufacturing process is. At the end of the visit we had lunch with real Indian food in the canteen with the other employees. 

After the lunch we headed off to the second company visit of the day. We visited the company Zimmer which is an industry leader in producing implants. Because of the fact that we had to catch the flight to Bangalore, the visit lasted only 2 hours. Nevertheless, we had a really interesting discussion about the healthcare industry, with a focus on India. As usual at the end of the company visit we took a group picture and went directly to Delhi Airport. Our plane left for Bangalore at 6.50 p.m., perfectly on time.

Onsite Seminar IV

Namaste blog followers! After having enjoyed a cultural intensive weekend, we started off the business week with full energy and motivation. Although we needed to leave some of your fellow delegates behind us due to bellyache, we the remaining 12 delegation members headed off to a 2.5 hours bus journey to our first company visit of today, which was Kohinoor Food – the biggest basmati rice producer of India. We not only had the chance to see the production site and got to know the numerous steps in the production process of basmati rice, but we also could taste the real flavor of the Kohinoor rice. It has been amazing to learn more about the early branding in the 80s of Kohinoor Food as well as the fact that around 1’000 tons of rice leave the plant each day!

After a delicious lunch we continued our journey to the next meeting at Blaser Swisslube India, which again did last for quite a while. However, we bridged the travelling time by chatting with each other or even catching up some sleep. Also, some have been enjoying an interactive session on how to tie a tie, instructed by one of our delegate, which was very much appreciated by some male delegates who were not experts yet in this regard;)

We planned and also arrived at 5pm sharp at the office of Blaser Swisslube (pretty good time management if you take usual Indian traffic conditions into account!) and the whole delegation has been keen on interacting with Blaser employees during the presentation session, which was followed by a very tasteful Indian dinner.

I am convinced that today was a truly enriching business day for the Focus India participants and it made us even more excited for the coming visits.

Todays Blogger

Nadine Studer
Project Team

Onsite Seminar III

It’s Sunday, and the day started early again for the Focus India Delegation. So we entered the “Focus India Tour-Bus” at 6am. Having reached our destination, we took part of a Indian religious ceremony on top of a little mountain. There are no words to describe this ceremony. So you all should probably go to India and see it for yourself ;) Here an impression:

After this great experience, we travelled to another part of Delhi in order to see the third biggest mosque in Asia. But we didn’t walk to the mosque! Nooooooo! We travelled by the famous Indian “bicycle taxi”, the Riksha. It was an amazing experience to see the “real India” from such a short distance. Although the Riksha tour was amazing we were happy that we actually survived the ride… and especially the Indian traffic  =D

Focus India Forecast for tonight:

•           Indian Musical Visit
•           Indian Food

Tomorrow: Company Visits

Keep following us on facebook and this blog to get a piece of the cake!

Todays Blogger

Sandro Bernasconi 

Public Relation Manager

Onsite Seminar II

Despite yesterday was a long and exhausting day we got up really early today. Everyone was ready at 6 am for the sunrise tour to the Taj Mahal. Even though everybody had seen pictures of the famous mausoleum before it still seemed a little like in a fairytale when we looked at it in the sunrise. The Taj Mahal is an impressive building build out of white marble. It is located in Agra, Utter Pradesh  and was build by Mughal emperor Shar Jahan. Before it became his mausoleum it was originally a monument for his wife Mumatz i-Mahal who died while she was giving birth to their 14^th child. The early hour gave us the chance to explore the beauty of Taj Mahal before it was getting crowded and also the enormous heat arrived. After the visit it was time to take the impressions in during a rich breakfast. Reinvigorated, we then started the visit of Agra Fort. This fort is like a walled city and has been home to several generations of Mughals. It is therefore of enormous historical importance for the Indians. The building was also home to Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife. It is sad that he died in one of the towers with a white marble balcony facing the Taj Mahal. After his death he was transported to Taj Mahal by boat and was buried there.  Forth Agra combines Hindu and Islamic architecture and in the way the walls are painted shows traditional arts of both cultures.

Todays Blogger

Kathrin Gründner

Onsite Seminar I

The doors of the lift opened and two travellers rushed out the doors as soon as the gap was wide enough. As the two saw the meeting-point from afar, they were wondering why nearly nobody was there yet. Was the PR team already too late? Fortunately, they realised that they were actually 30min earlier than expected, well… things like that happen when you are looking forward to a great journey, don’t they?

As soon as the whole delegation was assembled at the meeting point and a few last information were given, the whole Focus India 2014 delegation went off to the check-in, then to the airplane and then on a journey which will hopefully be as amazing as everybody expects it to be.

After about 6 hours the “Indians on time” landed in Doha, the capital of Qatar. If there was a time on this first day when people could have died by being bored, then it was this 2-hour-stay at Doha. The airport may look as Las Vegas… well not really. Anyway, after another 3 hours flight, the final destination Delhi International Airport was reached.

After the baggage claim the delegation had to run straight off to the “Focus India Tour Bus” that was keen to bring them to their first visit. After a 45min drive the delegation arrived at the Swiss Embassy in Delhi where they were already expected and invited to set foot on Swiss ground again. After we had the great opportunity to hear a lot about the Swiss-Indian relation, the delegation headed off for a late lunch and the final journey of the day to Agra, the city where the famous Taj Mahal can be found.

…..TO BE CONTINUED

Todays Blogger

Sandro Bernasconi 

Public Relation M

Alumni Story - Part I

For this first part, you have the opportunity to meet Corinne Räz and Livia Kistler who were both in the project team of Focus India 2008. Enjoy!

From left to right: Corrine Räz, Livia Kistler

Corinne Raez, Project Manager 2008Responsible for Business Development at INTEGRA

Thinking back, what are your memories of 2008’s project?It was quite intense; it was a lot of work and during the onsite trip, I hardly ever slept. But everybody was so supportive at the places we could visit. I remember how at first everything smelled like curry but after a while we didn’t even notice it anymore… Who knows, maybe we suddenly smelled like curry ourselves!

Which valuable job-skills did you acquire from being a project manager?I learned a lot about project management and certainly improved my organizational and networking skills. I gained experience in approaching people, since I went to several business events and tried to make contacts there.

Any tips for our delegation?You have to be flexible and make the best out of whatever happens.

How did Focus India influence your career?Focus India helped me finding a topic for my bachelor thesis. Through the thesis, I then got in contact with INTEGRA and started working for the company only a few days after graduation! I wouldn’t be where I am now without the project.

Livia Kistler, Project Manager 2008
Junior Consultant at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants

Thinking back, what are your memories of 2008’s project?All our friends told us, we were working 24/7. But it was worth it: we met interesting people from the business world and I was impressed how open we were always welcomed at the companies we visited. Also, the gap between rich and poor was astonishing – I wasn’t quite prepared for that.

Which valuable job-skills did you acquire from being a project manager?I learned how it is to lead people. It was difficult to find the role of a project manager and suddenly leading a delegation, when before we were all students on the same level. We had people from different programmes and therefore different interests on board, so I learned how to somehow handle all the different needs the delegates had.

Any tips for our delegation?Don’t take everything so serious. Of course, everything has to be planned and scheduled in detail, but usually these things don’t go as planned.

How did Focus India influence your career?I got in contact with the Swiss Indian Chamber of Commerce through the project, and ended up writing my bachelor thesis for them. The contacts I made during that phase then helped me for my career!