SHIVANGI SINGH

IIM Kozhikode  

“A jovial personality with an empowering vision that holds people together, bringing joy and unity!”

Hometown: Gurgaon, Haryana

Fun Fact About Yourself:

Travel: I have always been curious about exploring new places, meeting new people, learning from new cultures, and experiencing adventure. The curiosity for new experiences and places soon turned into a hobby; to this very day, I find solace in exploring new cities, cultures and adventures. During the past few years, I have covered 8 states with 17 new cities and 8 treks and had done 3 adventure sports. Therefore, I have developed a sense of adaptability and openness as essential traits.

People Connect and Public Relations: I love networking with people. I sustain close relations with the oldest of my friends, peers, and teachers, whether it be friends from school or college, my teachers from school and college, my distant relatives, or my colleagues. I do so by keeping in touch with them by meeting them in person or through phone calls. I like to listen with empathy, share thoughts, and help people through challenging situations, thereby developing long-lasting bonds.

Fitness- I also like to keep myself physically active and fit and take time out of a busy schedule for activities like jogging and going to the gym. I begin my day with 2 km of jogging daily, and then hit the gym every alternate day. Both these activities keep me afresh and active and prepare me for the day ahead.

Undergraduate School and Major: IGDTUW (Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women), Delhi- B.Tech in Mechanical and Automation Engineering

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, Supply Chain Deputy Manager

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of IIM Kozhikode’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? Belonging to an engineering background with 4+ years of work experience in the automobile giant of India, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, I am convinced of having a solid foundation in the professional environment and technicalities in the supply chain and procurement domain.

In the next five years of my life, refining skills such as problem-solving,  decision-making, critical thinking, discipline, and obtaining a kind amount of emotional quotient is essential. Along with these soft skills, I would also like to grasp the knowledge of critical domains across the business value chain that would help me make sound decisions for future challenges and have a holistic view of the whole company.

In the long term, with a vision of excelling in macro-management, I see myself spearheading an organization where my decisions impact the success of the organization, industry, and society. I dream of being in the top position of an organization.

A postgraduate business leadership program from IIM- Kozhikode would act as a catalyst in this journey, providing a suitable environment and bringing out the best in me. I see this program abridging multiple years of industry experience comprehensively into one year of learning and personality development. With the demanding curriculum and sacrosanct deadlines, this program will further improve my time management and prioritization of tasks and build a sound, rational approach in my professional and personal life. With multiple on-campus opportunities for live projects, it will be befitting for me to gain hands-on experience in numerous domains.

The business leadership program also offers opportunities concerning the international immersion program. I would grab this opportunity that will provide me with an experience of global exposure. In addition, expectations from a business leadership program is that it should also provide opportunities to interact with various industry leaders that would help in learning from their experience. I expect to diversify my network by meeting like-minded people and fostering connections, as networking also plays a significant role in excellence.

What has been your favorite course or extracurricular activity at IIM Kozhikode? What has been the most important lesson that you have learned from it? After a rigorous procedure, I got elected as the core team member of Social Media and Public Relations Cell for PGP-BL program at IIMK. What could be better than social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and GMAT Club to promote our very own PGP-BL program with full passion and enthusiasm. In short, social media cell or the PR cell definitely plays an instrumental role in creating visibility for PGP-BL program. The major focus areas are the following”

1. Increasing PGP-BL program’s visibility including digital and social media marketing.

2. Covering all minor and major day to day activities and events. Creating the content in a very impactful way so that people connect with it easily.

3. Publicising the student driven structure and members of committees and circles. People should know the people working behind each committee and circles.

4. Increasing the number of followers of every social media platform.

5. Creating a sense of belongingness with the cohort and IIMK campus. I would love to cover each one of us to get featured on social media platforms by identifying the talents and create visibility for each one of us.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Among the many accomplishments, I want to describe the event that I concluded and it made a significant impact in improving the bottom line for the product. For the same, I was also awarded the ‘leadership award’ in cost savings (Rank 1 out of 20,000 suggestions across MSIL) which led to an annual savings of $32.5 million for the organization.

During the pandemic, much of the management emphasis was laid on cost savings strategies for existing and upcoming projects. I grabbed the opportunity to be the cost savings representative from my department and worked on analyzing the process of different parts generating the least bottom line for the accessories division. After rigorous analysis and benchmarking parts supplied by different suppliers, I observed that one of the car care products was over the specifications compared to the market demand. The existing product was also imported and not domestically manufactured.

After detailed research and analysis on the optimization of the process and parts specification and on localization, we presented a prototype to top management for approval, and we inducted the new part that was locally developed, meeting all the required specifications and without the compromise in the quality of the product. After successful completion of the pilot trial, the new product was launched successfully in FY 21-22.

Describe your biggest accomplishment as an MBA student so far:

1. Enhanced Business Knowledge: MBA graduates gain a comprehensive understanding of various business functions, such as finance, marketing, operations, strategy, and leadership.

2. Networking Opportunities: MBA programs provide a valuable network of peers, alumni, and industry professionals, offering opportunities for collaboration and career advancement.

3. Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills: They develop the ability to analyse complex business situations, identify problems and formulate effective solutions.

4. Leadership and Management Skills: MBA programs emphasize leadership development, enabling graduates to manage teams and organizations effectively.

5. Confidence, adaptability and Self-Awareness: Completing an MBA can boost self-confidence and self-awareness, making graduates more capable of handling challenges.

What has been your most memorable experience at IIM Kozhikode? Why was it so special? The journey to reach IIM-Kozhikode in itself has been a very special and memorable part of my life. Managing studies with 10 hours of rigorous job was in itself a challenging thing. Further with interview preparations, I sailed through it and finally got admission in one of the most prestigious B-schools of India, IIM-Kozhikode.

The most memorable experience at IIM- Kozhikode is the people connect, networking, and relationships. You might have had this moment or would love to experience in your life journey this sentiment: “I could make this impossible thing possible since I knew someone from the same domain.” How does this happen? A major part of the explanation inclines towards networks and relationships you have built so far in your life. That also goes without substituting or reducing the importance and weightage of hard work. Building networks and relationship plays a crucial role in our professional as well as personal lives. With time, I have realized some of the advantages of building networks and relationships:

1. Professional Growth: Wherever you are today in a professional atmosphere, a colleague might end up referring you to one of your dream companies through his connections. So building strong networks and relationships definitely helps in getting referrals and recommendations. That is the power of networking in career growth and advancements in terms of opportunities, business collaborations, and job switching.

2. Mentorship and Support for Professional and Personal Life: How many people are just a call away for me if I need career guidance?” or “How many people are just a call away for me if I want to share something from my personal life?” If the numbers don’t satisfy you, start the process by being that person who is just a call away for selected people in your life. People will then follow you and will be ready to connect when you might require them.

3. Mutual Benefits: For building a strong network, you should have the openness to help others. Mutual benefits are a multiplier effect of building strong networks and connections. If it is not about “me” but about “we”, you end up making strong network for yourself.

4. Learning and Knowledge Sharing: Engaging with different individuals will enhance the knowledge and expertise by exchanging the information and by having discussions with your network. Searching for some information becomes easy if you have a strong network of the required domain.

5. Emotional and Mental Well-Being: In the recent COVID times, we saw increasing cases of depression, especially among people who were isolated. In such cases, talking to people and pouring your heart out about how you are feeling might be a silver lining. If you have built strong networks in your life, you will know whom to talk to among your networks for a particular situation, especially when you are at your lows.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point and what do you hope to do after graduation? Belonging to an engineering background with 4+ years of work experience in the automobile giant of India, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, I am convinced of having a solid foundation in the professional environment and technicalities in the supply chain and procurement domain.

In the next five years of my life, refining skills such as problem-solving, decision-making, critical thinking, discipline, and EQ is essential. Along with these skills, I would also like to grasp the knowledge of critical domains across the business value chain that would help me make sound decisions for future challenges and have a holistic view of the whole company.

In the long term, with a vision of excelling in macro-management, I see myself spearheading an organization where my decisions impact the success of the organization, industry, and society. I dream of being in the top position of an organization.

A postgraduate business leadership program from IIM Kozhikode would act as a catalyst in this journey, providing a suitable environment and bringing out the best in me. I see this program abridging multiple years of industry experience comprehensively into one year of learning and personality development. With the demanding curriculum and sacrosanct deadlines, this program will further improve my time management and prioritization of tasks and build a sound, rational approach in my professional and personal life. With multiple on-campus opportunities for live projects, it will be befitting for me to gain hands-on experience in numerous domains.

The business leadership program also offers opportunities concerning the international immersion program. I would grab this opportunity that will provide me with an experience of global exposure. In addition, expectations from a business leadership program is that it should also provide opportunities to interact with various industry leaders that would help in learning from their experience. I expect to diversify my network by meeting like-minded people and fostering connections, as networking also plays a significant role in excellence.

DON’T MISS: MEET IIM KOZHIKODE’S PGP-BL CLASS OF 2024