Meet the MBA Class of 2023: Pranav Sharma, IIM Lucknow

Pranav Sharma

IIM Lucknow

“I am a humble, empathetic, honest, determined, disciplined and adaptable individual.”

Hometown: Meerut, Uttar Pradesh

Fun Fact About Yourself: I love eating chocolates. I feel like I am in heaven when I eat chocolate. They are the perfect mood booster for me.

Undergraduate School and Major: B.Tech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Kanpur

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Subject Matter Expert (Physics) at Bytedance India Pvt Ltd.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of IIM Lucknow’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? One of the main reasons that led me to choose IIM L was the international immersion segment, which led us to explore 3 different countries, which were Switzerland, France and Belgium, in a span of 21 days. We got the opportunity to realize the intricate cultural and behavioural differences among the countries. The 4 courses taught in this period gave immense insights into the subjects and helped us hone our skills.

What has been your favorite course or extracurricular activity at IIM Lucknow? What has been the most important lesson that you have learned from it?  One of the courses that gave me valuable lessons was International Business Communication. It gave me insights into the intricacies of communication in the business world. The important component of the course was to give presentations based on different roles. During the initial presentations, I used to be very nervous because I knew I was being judged on every move I make. However, the feedback provided by our professor was invaluable and it helped me overcome my fear of public speaking and my presentation skills improved a lot.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: The biggest accomplishment for a teacher is when their students succeed. My biggest accomplishment is that some of the students whom I mentored were able to make their dreams come true and make it to premier institutes like the IITs, NITs, and BITS.

Describe your biggest accomplishment as an MBA student so far: I come from a very different background where the concepts of business were rarely used. My two priorities are to get a holistic view of business concepts and develop the confidence to become a future leader. Getting a high GPA in a highly rigorous and competitive environment has been my biggest achievement, which boosted my confidence regarding the application of these concepts in the real world.

What is your class’s favorite hangout away from school? Why do you gather there?  In our spare time, we enjoy trying out the many excellent eateries scattered throughout the NCR area. Many of our best stress-reduction conversations have taken place around the table.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point and what do you hope to do after graduation? Problem-solving is something I enjoy a lot. While working in the EdTech industry, I realized that providing the right education to the right student at affordable prices is the biggest business problem to solve. In my experience, companies were spending a lot of money, but the quality of output was not up to the mark. Now, this was a pure strategy problem that required a holistic view of running the business. This motivated me to pursue an MBA which would provide me with the right tools to solve such business problems.

After graduation, I hope to become a consultant. It is a front-end job, where I would be directly interacting with the client. I would be working on a variety of projects with a variety of clients. This will help me develop a different skill altogether. This will further hone my problem-solving skills, which are replicable across all industries.

What advice would you give to help potential applicants gain admission into IIM Lucknow? The first step would be to get a good GMAT score. The candidate will find that the GMAT preparation they put in will benefit them greatly when the time comes to solve cases in class.

Second, in order to prepare for essay questions, the applicant should reflect on his or her own life and write down the significant moments. There’s a great possibility the candidate may have new insights about themselves and anecdotes to share in response to each essay prompt.

The final piece of advice is for the candidate to put in extensive time preparing for the interview. During the interview, the candidate should be prepared to answer questions regarding their professional goals, interests, and hobbies, as well as their thoughts on the current events during the interview. The candidate ought to exude self-assurance and maintain a genuine smile during the entire interview.

DON’T MISS: MEET IIM LUCKNOW’S IPMX CLASS OF 2023