Meet the EPGP Class of 2023: Abhishek Pandey, IIM Bangalore

Abhishek Pandey

Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore

Creative, mindful, organized, compassionate, problem solver, expressive storyteller, curious, explorer, learner, and a passionate singer.”

Hometown: Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh

Fun Fact About Yourself: I am a numismatist since I was 7. I have a collection of coins and currency notes from more than 100 countries and have one of the oldest 1-rupee coins of India from 1912.

Apart from this, I love writing reviews and adding pictures on Google maps. Currently, I have 7 million views on Google Maps, and I am one of the top 5% reviewers on Google Maps as a Local guide level 8.

Undergraduate School and Major: B.E. Automobile Engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Manager at Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India Pvt. ltd.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of IIM Bangalore’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school, and why was it so important to you? There were several reasons why IIM Bangalore was my first choice for pursuing an MBA, but what tops the list was the faculty.

I am being taught by industry experts and advisors, authors of the books that are referred by several other business schools around the globe, economists who are in the discussion panels alongside cabinet ministers on the news every day, and ex-faculty member or alumnus of Harvard, MIT Sloan, Kellogg, NYU, Cornell, Warrington, University of Texas, Yale, Michigan, ISB and other IIMs. The faculty profile of IIM-Bangalore is one of the richest in the world. This itself is the biggest reassurance to MBA aspirants seeking the best learning in their sprint at IIM Bangalore.

Even if someone is not taught by most of the faculty, all professors are extremely welcoming for talks, discussions, guidance, and projects.

What has been your favorite course or extracurricular activity at IIM Bangalore? What has been the most important lesson that you have learned from it? Macroeconomics by Professor Chetan Subramanian has been my favorite course up to now and one of the more practical courses taught at IIM Bangalore. The enthusiastic pedagogy, energetic delivery, and engaging discussion by Prof. Chetan made this course a motivation to get up early every Monday for his class.

The model on the Aggregate Demand and Aggregate supply, linking to the unemployment of the country and to the recession and inflation was one the most intuitive concept discussed in class. After his course, every single business news started making so much more sense and understanding.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: It was leading the New Product Development Team of Honda’s first BS6 compliant scooter in India in 2019. I was also the youngest technical lead and exhibitor from Honda at the International Auto Expo 2016.

Describe your biggest accomplishment as an MBA student so far: Being part of the Strategy and Research team of Vedanta as part of the comprehensive project and contributing towards the upcoming first Semiconductor and Display manufacturing ecosystem of India. This is India’s first step towards becoming independent in the semiconductor and display fabrication and becoming a global leader in consumer electronic manufacturing in the next decade.

What is your class’s favorite hangout away from school? Why do you gather there? Bangalore never fails to surprise its people. I found this serene lake near the outskirts of Bangalore on the Kolar highway while searching for a puncture mechanic back in 2015. This unnamed Lake became my hideout since then. If you can’t find me anywhere in school or hostel or home, I am most probably sitting on the bonnet of my car watching the hills behind this lake.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point and what do you hope to do after graduation? Three things: Saturation, Learning, Exploring.

Saturation: In terms of the monotonicity of the job in manufacturing, although it was exciting to be part of the new model team of the biggest 2-wheeler giant of the world, there was a lack of doing something novel and impactful that I was enthusiastic about.

Learning: I have this constant need for learning something new. The moment this stopped, and I started getting narrower in just one aspect of the business, I had to take a break, rethink, broaden my horizon and prepare myself for more challenging projects in future.

Exploring: Passions change, dreams change, and skills change. This has been something I always believe in and always find ways to explore my next passion, next dream, and next skill to chase the dreams. MBA at IIM Bangalore adds a lot of values and skills to its students and makes them capable of exploring new opportunities in life during and throughout the post-MBA life.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into IIM Bangalore? Plan, Do, Check and Act: The famous PDCA cycle works wonders in personal life too.

“Plan” your career well in advance and that doesn’t mean knowing exactly what you want to do but to know WHY you really want to pursue an MBA from IIM Bangalore. Once that is complete, start “Doing” your preparation and work hard on the application – especially the SOP and Resume. “Check” every single line of your resume and SOP and act on the mistakes with complete honesty. The more real you are, the more confident you will be in your applications and interviews, increasing your chances of a selection conversion.

DON’T MISS: MEET IIM BANGALORE’S EPGP CLASS OF 2023

Questions about this article? Email us or leave a comment below.