The inaugural EPGP iKon, a CXO guest talk series at the Indian Institute of Management Indore (IIM-I) on June 3, 2016 featured Vijay Sethi, Chief Information Officer and Head CSR, Hero MotoCorp Ltd., who spoke on the topic ‘Commencing your journey to become a better professional’.
Sethi began the lecture by seeking the views of the students about the reasons for choosing a particular program at the school. “The real essence of pursuing MBA from any B-School is that it helps you to change your perspective and look at things in a broader manner,” he said.
The series is an initiative by the EPGP students to create a platform where corporates from various industries can interact with the students and share their views organised by the Corporate Interaction Committee.
Emphasising the tough nature of the course that requires sustained hard work and dedication, he quoted a few lines from renowned poet Robert Frost’s poem ‘The Road Not Taken’. “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference.”
The talk focussed on the best seller book “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephan Covey, American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker on how to become successful in all endeavours.
“To achieve real excellence in this world, we need to start observing ourselves, look at our own shortcomings and then analyse the world around us. This will help eradicate 99 % of your negativity and you will become a highly positive person,” he added.
The two mantras for a successful life are integrity and humility. “A person with integrity and humble nature is not only successful, but is liked by all,” Sethi said.
He also discussed the seven points mentioned in Covey’s book. These are about being proactive, to think and then only react. The task should be started with the end in mind. Always keep high goals and not low goals, as failing at a higher goal and feeling frustrated about it is much better than achieving a lower goal, because then you are not using your potential.
Put first things first- Always prioritize and learn time management. Understand the difference between urgent and important tasks.
Think Win-Win. Think of a situation where not only ‘I win’ or ‘You Win’, but also ‘We Win’ exists.
Seek first to understand, then be understood: Have empathy, walk in someone else’s shoes and be an attentive listener.
Synergize- Cooperate and collaborate. Sharpen the saw- Focus on your core values, practice and get skilled.
The book, written 15 years ago, stresses the principles of fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity. The 1932-born Convey was a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University at the time of his death on July 16, 2012.
Sethi, according to his Linked-in profile, graduated in Engineering (Mechanical) from National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra. He then went on to complete PGDIE and Industrial Engineering from NITIE and MBA (Logistics, Materials and Supply Chain Management).
He joined as Management Consultant in Tata Consultancy Services in 1989. The next stint was as Director Business Solutions at Ranbaxy from July 1996 before taking over as Vice President, CIO and Head CSR at Hero MotoCorp in September 2007. (Image Courtesy: IIM-I EPGP FB Page)