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

Walk through the halls of the University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business during the school year, and along with students cramming facts for macroeconomics and operating strategy you may encounter some students stretching their bodies and doing something really unusual for business school students: relaxing.

They’re members of Chicago’s yoga club, a student group founded earlier this year by two GSB students and which last term attracted 15 to 35 regular attendees to classes in the school’s Harper Center. The classes are “time to shut your brain off,” says Jody Kirchner, one of the group’s founders.

The Chicago GSB yoga classes reflect a growing popularity of yoga in the U.S., with about 16 million Americans engaging in the practice, according to statistics released by Yoga Journal. The publication said $5.7 billion is spent annually on yoga classes and products, nearly twice as much as four years ago.
Indian Odyssey

During a school-sponsored trip to India last year, Kirchner and fellow student Doug Neal bonded over a mutual interest in yoga. Kirchner and Neal, who both had been practicing yoga for years before they met, eventually decided to start a group dedicated to the practice on campus—after Kirchner noticed that other business schools had yoga groups, but Chicago didn’t.

In midyear, Neal, a 2008 MBA graduate, and Kirchner, a rising second-year student and co-chair of the club, conducted an interest survey for the group. Of the 1,100 students attending the school, about 200 expressed interest.

Kirchner said she was surprised at the large response the survey garnered, finding that a sizable portion of the student population already practiced yoga, at least to some extent. “People I know outside of school say the same thing,” she said. “After a stressful day, it’s time they can do something easily to take their mind off their stress.”

Neal says yoga isn’t just for stress relief. “Yoga is very multifaceted, and the benefits of yoga are different for each person,” he said. “Some use it for exercise, for meditation poses, some for relaxation, some for injuries.”

Leading business process outsourcing (BPO) firm Genpact has roped in professors from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow to give its employees lessons in management skills and improving productivity.

Through electronically enabled interactive sessions, workers at Genpact’s operation hubs in Delhi, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Jaipur will learn the finer nuances of management, soft skills and strategic planning from senior professors of the business school.

This is an e-certificate programme in general management (e-CPGM) and there are 119 participants, most of whom have worked for one to three years.

“The objective of this programme is to develop managerial capabilities among people who are at the early stages of their career to enable them to effectively undertake managerial responsibilities,” said Ajay Singh, course director of IIM Lucknow.

The programme is divided into 12 modules. Keeping in mind the requirements of the industry, the modules are designed to create managerial and leadership competence among the professionals. There are 120 hours of e-enabled interactive sessions.

Singh said the programme was being run from IIM Lucknow’s Noida campus, which was being developed as a centre of excellence in the area of executive education.

The India headquartered Genpact operates service delivery centres in India, China, Hungary, Mexico, the Philippines, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain and the US.

A report has suggested that it is likely that British students considering taking MBA courses in the UK will find it increasingly hard to find loans to cover the cost of their post-graduate studies.

According to a report in the Financial Times, the appeal of MBA courses in the US had recently been increasing among British students, thanks to the weak dollar.

However, the paper has now learnt that the credit crunch has dramatically reduced the number of student loans available for those considering such post-graduate courses.

It pointed to research carried out by the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators that showed that 50 lenders have suspended their post-graduate student loan deals.

“The cost of loan repayment is particularly high for students from outside the US who apply for loans from US institutions,” the paper explained.

“This is because credit references are not required and also the lenders find it harder to track down students on graduation if they return to their home countries.”

As a result, a British student looking for a post-graduate student loan in the US can expect to have to pay interest of around seven per cent.

With US MBA courses typically costing around $150,000 (£75,000) to complete, the rising price of loans could put many British students off, even though they know they will be able to secure high-paying jobs after graduation.

Source : gaapweb.com

The QS World MBA Tour, the world’s leading series of career and education events, will organize a one-day fair for aspiring MBAs in the capital tomorrow.

The MBA fair will be held at the Hyatt Regency (Ring Road) in New Delhi tomorrow between 2 pm and 6 pm.

More than 30 B-Schools from across the globe including Toronto -Rotman, IE Business School, Bond, Cornell-Nanyang, Ashridge Business School, Hult, U21 Global, Durham and ESMT will participate in the MBA fair.

The London School of Business & Finance, the only UK based institution to offer dual programmes combining an internationally recognised MBA or MIB with ACCA, CIM, CIMA or CFA qualifications, will also be a part of the MBA fair.

Participants of the QS World MBA Tour, which will visit 50 cities in 32 countries this year, include 17 of the top 20 US business schools and all of the leading European business schools.

The fair will provide students a chance to interact with the leading international business schools and short-list the best option available to them.

Nunzio Quacquarelli, Managing Director of QS told NNE, “It is the perfect chance to make an impression face-to-face with the very people reading your application forms, and that is invaluable to gain an edge in this tough field. The QS World MBA Tour provides the best step in the application process, the opportunity to ask intelligent, tailored questions on topics like personal fit, career opportunities, school specializations and financial aid.”

More : indiaedunews.net

American companies more and more the definition is for himself to play a more active role in shaping public policy, particularly in regard to policies which have a direct impact on U.S. companies. Kotler [12] is itself the mandate includes the strategic management of environmental management, and management of these controllable factors such as marketing mix, to this end, it occurs to implement the policy power and the formation of public opinion as extensions of the logic of modern marketing.

The development of the ability to influence public policy begins with a sensitivity to the emergence and dissemination of strategic issues. These issues are strategic, they are relevant to the objectives of the company or the company’s ability to give them [1], their sources and processes outside the organization, and its effects can be imposed by laws or regulations. As a proactive and influence public policy in a dynamic environment are likely to increase the chances for the design of a developing country public issue. But today, the complex and dynamic environment, proposes that the need for a systematic procedure that strategic problems can be identified earlier in their development and rapid responses that can be made [1]. In this paper, we motivations and the framework for society’s reaction, so that effective programs can be developed to influence the social environment.

Unless, an effort to intervene, he agrees that the level of development [2], a strategic problem can be codified in law or an impact on government vis-à-vis a company. An example of an intervention is that the operator of Indianapolis mine, has opted to work with national legislators when drafting the bands mining legislation, the result was the creation of a better informed and fair the resolution of conflicts inevitable environmental regulatory efforts of groups [19]. Another example is that of the tobacco industry, whose reaction and response when confronted with tobacco smoke and health of the controversy, including defensive maneuvers [15].

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.

An extension of the knowledge base, more than anything else, strength of will of the Indian economy in the 21 century, as it is a conscious move to a central pillar of the knowledge of the nation’s Development planning.

This was the message that resonate in every conversation in recent weeks with companies and researchers throughout India.

At the opening of the annual summit of partnership, the Confederation of Indian Industry in Kolkata invited donors mid-January, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced a plan to establish a Commission of knowledge. His agenda specific to know, but Mr. Singh’s message was loud and clear: the time for Inde’s leap is here.

Economically, India is at its best post-war period. The currency reserves exceed $ 131 billion - sufficient funds for imports rose by nearly two years. And the knowledge base has been too long without continually expanded is a strength.

“Think big, bold feel about our country,” said Singh, his audience, mostly corporate India.

India is on the cutting edge of knowledge, not only before the command of the English language. The level of competence in English, without the benefits of knowledge in many areas, none other than the ability to work for low English Master.

It would not be a nation globally competitive. Japan launched its leap without much spoken English and second in the world of the economy. Thus, China.

India is now better placed than postwar Japan and China. His brain is enormous power and English is an official language by far across the country. The association represents the new generation of specialists in India with their Western counterparts in technological capacity, economy and ingenuity of each platform oratory is rare in developing countries.

It is this combination of brains and language, that India is the main meeting point for the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), otherwise known as information technology capable of services (IT-ES).

With this advantage, the Indians have the brain bank working more software, keeping accounts and Back-Office, functions for Western groups.

Today, American schoolchildren Santa Barbara after Michigan and Massachusetts are learning math and science online every day by the guardians to rest in places like Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in the South India. The potential of this new service line is so great that “approximately U.S. $ 10 million-$ 12 million to the economy this year.

India, the assets in emerging countries tutoring, “said the president’s career launcher, Satya Narayanan, supra, was on January 16 at national level will be put into circulation daily, The Indian Express, mental strength is its superior in comparison with competitors like the Philippines, Singapore and one in Asia - Pacific countries.

Launcher is a career 10 Online brain, that school in Massachusetts, USA. There is also some 20 years, earns $ 350 per month for a pocket money tutoring online and USA children, as tutors say that the Americans in their own curriculum is never difficult, because “we Indians are intellectually superior.”

These allegations prahlerisch it may seem. But how is beyond try to study, many American and European certificate India brain power by one against competitors in the allocation of work in India demand for high intellectual performance for the recruitment of graduates of Indian universities learning.

“The best of India is comparable to the best in the world,” says Dr. G. Prakash Apte, director of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB), it was found that 200 super-brain of each year.

The support of this thesis, Pawan Kumar, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, is now President and Chief Executive Officer of software developer VMoksha Technologies, said that in the years 1980, software, state - US field and was a “person outside India, India was thought likely to produce software.”

We now but the situation has changed, America and the world are in India hit the doors of orders. This country deserves $ 12.5 billion last year, outsourcing services, with an increase of 16.5 billion dollars this year. In addition, Indian people overseas, many of them in key positions of jobs in global companies, pump $ 4 billion-$ 5 billion per year.

India brain Well, Mr. Kumar said, is reflected in the structure of the population and the number of graduates license and other specific qualifications Indian universities and institutes of higher learning.

More than 500 million Indians are under 25 years. About six million of them deserve a bachelor of science, economics or art each year and 400000 others deserve to graduate engineers. Nearly half of these graduates of engineering software specialization.

In addition, 1200 young men and women specializing in the areas of management and technology just over half a dozen institutes of engineering, technology and management, as IIMB, across the country.

Hugh Mullin is the bet that in three of the largest this year, the acquisitions is to contribute to its Putnam funds for growth and income outperformance of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index for a sixth year right.

Procter & Gamble, Bank of America and Johnson & Johnson 7.6 percent of $ 17 billion Putnam fund’s biggest.

Mullin this year on its three plants the company, the purchase of Gillette, MBNA and Guidant, respectively.

“The resumption of mergers and acquisitions shows a little more confidence on the part of Chief Executive and it’s good for the market,” Mullin said in an interview from his office in Boston.

Putnam’s growth and profits funds was 2.3 per cent this year, Stand August 31, more than 1.9 percent before the S & P 500, including reinvested dividends. Mullin’s Fund rose at an annual rate of 2.9 percent from 1999 to 2004, compared to 2.3 per cent decline in the S & P-500.

Over the past five years, funds up to 50 competitors in the seventh Fund invests in a combination of U.S. companies above average dividends and above the average growth, according to data from Bloomberg. The Scudder Large Cap Value Fund, managed by Thomas Sassi, the top performer, rising at an average rate of 7.5 per cent.

Mullin, stocks, is about 3 ½ years, on average, try not deliberately companies operating in acquisitions. It tends to invest in companies whose shares provide low prices compared to turnover or profits projected.

P & G’s purchase of Boston-based Gillette, valued at $ 57.1 billion this year, office on the list of business acquisitions. American companies have announced, it is worth $ 687 billion, which is most strongly affected by year for acquisitions since 2000, Bloomberg data.

“These two companies really a powerhouse on a global scale, and they complement each other very well,” said Mullin, whose funds are 5.46 million shares of P & G on June 30.

Robert Bruner, author of “Deals From Hell: M & A lessons Rise Above the Ashes,” two aspects of the transaction increases concern. Payment of the reserve and the fact that the transaction comes at a time of renewed acquisitions increase the likelihood that P & G too much for Gillette, said Bruner, Dean of the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business Administration.

“The mass of research suggests, mergers and acquisitions afford, but this is not pumping money,” said Bruner. “It is not guaranteed through the creation of value.”

Bank nation’s $ 42 billion purchase of Bank America in 1998, the train, what is now Bank of America, was a waste of money Deal for investors.

Enjoy yourself fallen in three of first four quarters after the agreement was concluded, since the company wrote off bad loans. The action has fallen by 25 per cent for three years until 2000, the S & P 500 has gained 36 percent.