1) Why do you want to be a part of Placecom & how will you contribute to its cause?

A B-School as a brand is known by its placements and XLRI boasts of one of the best placements
in our country. The immense exposure and interaction with the top executives from the
corporate world that this experience will offer drives me towards being a part of Placecom. As a
fresher without any work experience, this opportunity would serve as a perfect platform to
learn the essential skills of business and corporate communication such as networking, pitching,
technical writing etc.
The Placecom members, during their interaction stressed on key skills of teamwork, time
management, honesty and hard work that the role will demand. My experience as the Chief
Election Commissioner of my college empowered me with great confidence, pressure handling,
effective decision making and time & resource management skills and helped me develop as a
team player. Leading a team of 20 members, I and my team were entirely responsible for the
smooth conduct of the elections. The work involved multitude of tasks such as organizing the
filing of nominations, hostel and auditorium debates, frequent meetings, late night surprise
inspections and crowd management etc. It was utmost necessary to ensure integrity and
honesty in the process through transparency and accountability as the elections invited constant
pressure and scrutiny from candidates, supporters as well as media.
I believe I will derive the same sense of pride and satisfaction working for others as part of the
Placecom as I did during my experience with the Election Commission. The ultimate goal would
be to make the entire process more effective and beneficial for the students and give all inputs,
hardwork, creativity and passion to ensure XLRI placements stand apart from the other top BSchools in the country.
2) What are your 3 strengths & weaknesses?
As an equanimous person, I maintain evenness of mind and composure when dealing with
problems or stress. My passion for trading in the Indian stock markets helped me develop this
strength as the dynamic and volatile stock market frequently tests your emotional intelligence
and makes sure that emotions do not survive.
My experience with working in teams during my college, such as Election Commission and
Nirmaan NGO and participating in International Competitions such as HULT Prize and CIMA
Global Business Challenge has helped me develop as a team player. Having spent my formative
years across the country in 9 states gives me the privilege to understand and interact with
people from vastly different cultures and socio-economic backgrounds and perform as a holistic
individual.
I am a versatile person and always strive to participate, experience and learn widely varied
things in life. The range of things includes academics, social welfare, wildlife, pets, music,
trading, physical activities such as cricket, gymming, swimming and travelling. This contributes
significantly in maintaining a balanced mental and physical health

Weaknesses:
I am candid and straight forward as an individual and usually find it difficult to restrict myself in
mentioning critical points about an issue or a person. I believe that weaknesses or flaws should
be highlighted for improvement and positive change and this sometimes results in people
forming a negative judgmental view about me.
I usually become disinterested and unenthusiastic in a work which doesnt appeal to me and
doesnt provide a sense of achievement, growth or responsibility at hand.
In my personal and professional life, I am assertive and pushy in matters or work which are
important. This may be accompanied with some degree of energy and ambition and result in
facing friction from various stakeholders.
3) Describe a situation where you had to persuade others to achieve a goal after overcoming
resistance. How did you go about doing it?
As the Chief Election Commissioner of BITS Goa with a student body of 2500 strength, I and my
team had a vision to make the election process extremely transparent and accountable. The
existing process was plagued with indiscipline, violence, anti-campaigning due to the perceived
weakness and lack of trust among the student body in the Election Commission. Through
detailed discussions and analysis, the 20 membered team under my leadership came up with
visionary ideas and plans to completely transform the process. We introduced concrete
measures such as violation cards, agenda screening and surprise inspections. The flagship point
was the introduction of General Body Meetings to make the elected representatives post the
elections accountable and answerable to the student body. The Council of Student Affairs
openly opposed the ideas as this directly attacked their power to influence the election process
and would curb practices such as regional and anti-campaigning. The step to take the GBMs
under the purview of the Election Commission from the Council of Student Affairs was criticized
by the media as being overboard.
The team reviewed and assessed its powers and took the decision to convey and convince the
college administration regarding the benefits and implications of the steps as they had the final
authority in such matters. The team effectively communicated the vision to the administration
including Dean-Student Affairs and Chief Warden and got their complete support to ensure the
implementation of the measures. The existing Student Council with vested interests had to
abide by the decisions and the approach of the Election Commission was appreciated by the
student body and the Administration. The followin elections witnessed unprecedented interest
and belief of the student body in the Elections and the Election Commission came to be
recognized as a powerful body on campus.
4) Describe a situation where you achieved something significant after overcoming obstacles.

As a student during my school life, I never got proper exposure and the environment to develop
effective public speaking skills in English and struggled to communicate fluently and confidently
in public. After getting admitted into BITS Pilani with peers from all over the country, I realized
that this was to act as a big impediment to my overall growth and development as public
communication in English was an essential requirement during all walks of campus life. I
struggled during my first year and did not participate in extra-curricular activities such as
department and clubs, campus festivals etc. During the second year, the University offered an
elective course Effective Public Speaking and after much contemplation and apprehensions, I
decided to take up the course.
The initial phase of the course was a struggle and I experienced little growth as a speaker. The
defining moment arrived when the Professor announced a debating competition and stressed
that this would be the turning point for many of you who work hard. I left no stone unturned to
prepare for my debate which included countless rehearsals and reviews and the intensive
preparation helped me win the best debater in my group. This achievement transformed me
into an individual full of confidence and determination. Post this, I developed a very strong
bond with my professor and through her continuous guidance and feedback, I eventually topped
the course and was also awarded the most improved speaker of the class. This experience has
played a huge role in helping me reach to the stage I am in my current life.