In business, it’s the early bird that rakes in the moolah. Taking cue from the age-old proverb, two MBA students have turned entrepreneurs even before graduating.

H.R. Sampreet and Saurav Dhiman, second-year students of the Vinod Gupta School of Management at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, have launched their own company, Enfount Business Solutions. Their maiden venture is Bulkdeals.co.in, a Bangalore-based online retail window specialising in institutional and organisational buying of laptops, desktops and other electronic items.

“Across campuses, students form groups to buy computers so retailers give them a discount,” said Sampreet. “But this happens locally and in an unorganised manner,” he explained.

The duo saw a business opportunity in this campus trend and created an online platform that is a one-stop-shop for bulk deals of laptops and desktops of all brands.

“Here, students can register and get great deals directly from the brands,” Sampreet said. “We estimate this to be a Rs 200-400 crore market. The brands, too, were looking for a single window to reach out to the student community. We had the business model and wanted to hit the market early, so we started even before graduating,” he added.

The company is partnering with almost all top brands such as Dell, LG, Hewlett Packard, Lenovo and HCL.

The website had over 1,000 visitors in the first three days of its launch and already has more than 300 members and over 20 registered colleges, including all the IITs.

When asked how they plan to balance studies with running a business, Saurav said: “It is all about time management. Our business requires just two or three hours a day, which we can easily put in.”

More : telegraphindia.com

Would-be MBA students getting ready to take the GMAT might be in for a little surprise when they show up at the testing center. In addition to all the usual security measures—including video monitoring and the computer adaptive test itself—test takers will soon be asked to submit to a new one: a biometric device that uses an infared light to capture the test-taker’s unique “palm vein pattern.”

Pearson VUE, the company that administers the GMAT for the Graduate Management Admission Council, plans to announce the new security effort tomorrow, but BusinessWeek got a sneak peak at it today.

The Fujitsu “PalmSecure” device will be rolled out next month at 16 testing centers in India and Korea for GMAT candidates. It goes live in the U.S. this fall, and when fully deployed will be used in 400 facilities in 107 countries by May 2009.

The announcement comes as the b-school world is embroiled in a cheating scandal involving the GMAT–users of a now-defunct test prep Web site, Scoretop.com, have been accused by GMAC of using it to post and access live test questions, and GMAC has said it will cancel the test scores of anyone who violated its rules.

But the new security measure is designed to stop a different kind of cheating–the use of professional test takers, or proxies, to take the exam on behalf of someone else. GMAC’s been burned by this type of cheater before. Back in 2003, it busted a half dozen people who took the GMAT for others for about $5,000 a pop. GMAC canceled 166 scores as a result, and five of the six imposters ended up at Rikers.

More : businessweek.com

A survey of 759 graduating MBAs from 11 top U.S. business schools revealed that a company’s corporate social responsibility performance is a major factor when they select whom to work for, reports BusinessGreen.

The graduates expect to make an annual salary of $103,650 from their first employer, but 97 percent said they would be willing to sacrifice up to $15,000 to work for a company with an exemplary environmental performance, ethical business conduct and good employee and stakeholder relations.

The survey was conducted by David Montgomery of the Stanford University Graduate School of Business and Catherine Ramus of the University of California Santa Barbara. They used an anonymous online survey to limit bias in the survey.

Source : itbusinessedge.com

ZEE Network has announced an in-house reorganisation possibly in the wake of Zee TV President, Ms Apurva Purohit’s plan to quit.

The company says the move is aimed at job enrichment and offering higher responsibilities.

Mr Sunil Khanna, CEO, Zee Turner, would take over from Ms Purohit. Mr Khanna has been with the Zee Network for 10 years, occupying various positions, and has a track record in distribution and marketing. Mr Khanna, an engineering graduate from IIT Kharagpur and management graduate from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, is a marketing professional having worked in various marketing positions before joining Zee.

Mr Ashwini Yardi, Business Head, Zee MGM and Zee English, will assist Mr Khanna as head of programming for Zee TV.

Mr Khanna is expected to take over formally at Zee TV in Mumbai after Ms Purohit’s service period ends on 31 January.

Mr Dheeraj Kapuria, at present heading operations of Zee in the US, will take over as CEO of Zee Turner from Mr Khanna. Mr Kapuria’s deputy in the US, Mr S. Venkatasubramanian, will take over from him.

Mr Sunil Rohra, head of the UK operations and Mr Pushpinder Singh, head of the Africa operations, will report to Mr Kapuria, a press release said.

“This re-organisation is a result of our learning from an in depth internal communications exercise in which I met most of the managers within the network to assess the width of in-house talent. It was truly satisfying to reaffirm that we have an extremely talented pool of people in-house. I believe by enriching their portfolios, they will lead Zee Network into the New Year with greater vigour and effect,” the release said quoting Mr Subhash Chandra, Chairman, Zee Network.

Some of the executives have been given additional responsibilities. Mr Abhijit Saxena, currently handling international business (Asia-Pacific) and syndication of programming, will handle Zee English, Zee MGM, Trendz, Smile TV and FX Channel as business head. Mr Yogesh Radhakrishnan, in addition to his current portfolio of Zee Cinema and Zee Music, will also handle Premier Cinema, Action Cinema and Classic Cinema.

Chairman and Chief Mentor of Infosys Technologies Limited (BSE: INFY) NR Narayana Murthy was presented on Saturday, the “brand-comm’s most admired Business Leader Award.

brand-comm, leading brand consultancy, advertising and relations company, said that after its third annual b-school study, Murthy has been admired for the most visionary and its value for the third consecutive year, managing students from ten institutes across India.

The distinction was Murthy director of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, Professor PG Apte, said today, the management of students were seeking job opportunities in an environment that was created for their overall growth .

“You need leadership to exceed the global market and in a world increasingly competitive, a visionary, as Narayana Murthy is indeed an inspiration to all of them,” said Apte.

Bangalore, March 16. COGNIZANT Technologies has been the biggest recruiter in the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore’s (IIM-B) campus recruitment programme this year, notching up 24 of 180 students.

“They made 30 offers, but were accepted by 24 people and this is the first time that an IT company has made so many offers,” said sources in the institute. This year’s batch was snapped up in record time, according to the institute. In just two days, all the offers were made and accepted.

At the IIMs, ’slot one’ companies (chosen by the students) are given the first two days to conduct their placement process. This year, there were 14 companies that made 100 plus offers on day zero. These include Dresdner KW, Capital One, McKinsey Consultants, AT Kearney and British Petroleum. The ’slot two’ companies were P&G, HLL, ICICI, ABN Amro and Cognizant Technologies.

Officials, however, refused to reveal the average salary, as the details “are yet to be computed.”

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has concluded an agreement with the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), in which the staff of the ONGC be subjected to study MBA at IIFT Super Unnati Prayas regime.

ONGC send their employees IIFT for a full-time, 18 months of the MBA program with a specialization in international affairs. The company is also the transfer of employees, have their headquarters in New Delhi to study residential students at the Institute. The objective of the regulation is to update the knowledge base of the ONGC leaders. IIFT out specific written tests ONGC leaders of five centres across India.

Twenty employees were selected for the course. The course is in line with the needs of the ONGC. Issues such as logistics of international trade, World Trade Organisation (WTO) and issues related to WTO, international trade policies, Managing Global Sourcing, international business strategy, standards and ethics are underway .

NIILM Centre for Management Studies, Delhi, the 11 winners in the National Student Games management held on Tuesday.

ICFAI Business School, Mumbai and the Institute of Management Technology, ghaziabad, the first and second runner. On the PSG Institute of Management, nine teams from different regions of the country, competed among themselves for the final Tuesday. The groups were withdrawn from the semi-finals on Monday.

For finalists, play is serious business. With view on the screen of the laptop, they discussed strategies and action plans developed for business nervenaufreibende problems.

Produced by the All India Management Association (AIMA), the games are very popular among students in management, particularly from the southern region. “We have the most number of participants from the southern region - 169 of 263 participants from countries of the South,” said Vikas Gupta, Deputy Director, AIMA. The game, everything revolves around replicate real work situations.

Each group has been Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Financial Officer.

Each group receives a company and asked to manage. You must make business decisions with consideration of an economy and fluctuations in market conditions. “Simulation game test the real potential of students. You will have the opportunity of their theoretical knowledge,” says SCTyagi, vice-director of AIMA.

The game is not only for students of management. MCM and engineers can participate. For Suvidh Arora Tripti Agarwal and the Institute of Technology Management, ghaziabad, the game is even more demanding. Two of his teammates could not do, and they are moving toward the battle. “This game is all about handling situations. We are dealing here with a problem, and we are confident of handling,” said Suvidh.

“Each phase of the game is a challenge,” said Vishal Agrawal of ICFAI Business School, Mumbai. Vishal and his friend Abhay Jain participate in this game for the second consecutive year. Sumeet Tiwari and Hitesh Bhagchandani same part of the Institute for the first time. According to them the game is a great learning experience.

Lynn Marsh Kroeger, daughter of Mr. Hal Kroeger and Mrs. A. Scarborough, NY, and Vero Beach, Florida, was married yesterday by Robert W. Daly, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Richard T. Daly Cold Spring Harbor, LI The Rev. Paul number, the ceremony at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Scarborough.

Barbara O. Blasch was matron of honour.

Richard T. Daly, his brother was the best man.

The bride, an assistant controller of the Morgan Guaranty Trust Company of New York, studied at the Masters School, Brown University and the New York University Graduate School of Business Administration. She is a member of the Junior League of New York. His father, retired, is a founder of the R. & H. Kroeger organization, a management consulting firm in New York.

Mr. Daly is a management consultant in the field of genetic engineering and a director of the Quantronix Corporation, a manufacturer of laser Smithtown, LI, founded by his father, a nuclear physicist, is president. He graduated from Brown University and Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration.

Mary Emily Kendig Corbin, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Lawrence Jr. Kendig Richmond, and Richard Watkins 3d Carrington, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Carrington Jr. of Richmond, was married yesterday on the grace and Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. The priest William Hill Brown, the ceremony supported by the Bishop Robert Bruce Hall of Virginia.

The bride, a graduate of St. Catherine’s School, Richmond, was graduated from Sweet Briar College and the Darden School of Business Administration at the University of Virginia. She is a member of the Junior League of Dallas. His father is a professor of pediatrics at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond.

Mr. Carrington, assistant treasurer of American Airlines in Dallas, a graduate of St. Christopher’s School in Richmond, the University of Virginia and Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration. His father is secretary-treasurer of Carrington and Michaux, Inc., a Richmond tobacco company, founded as Carrington & Company Urgrossvater of Husband, Tazewell Morton Carrington.