One month into the INSEAD life

Yes, it has been one month already! So much has happened it feels like a lifetime. Yet it seems to have gone by in a day. Between classes, group work, club events, socialising and partying, job hunting, soul searching, travelling, you have no choice but to learn to prioritise and allocate your time very efficiently to “survive” in the INSEAD “jungle”. Emotional ups and downs in the span of a few minutes, intense stress followed by immense joys; there is no room for neutrality here (at least for me). Still, it feels exhilarating!

It is quite difficult to describe what happens when you mix 500+ high-energy individuals with their own stories, values, ideas, all looking to bond and to make the best of their experience! The chemistry that emanates from our group is very special. In my opinion, this is the very essence of the INSEAD experience. And yes, it is truly unique!

Pay it Forward

It is heart-warming to see the students put so much of themselves in all of the welcome week activities, the club events, the national weeks, the treks, the bootcamps, the organised travels, and all the other informal activities. The extent to which students go to create and define each of our experience, is unreal. After a month I feel like I am part of a big, inclusive family that perfectly abides by the “ pay it forward” mantra.

With that spirit in mind I want to share a few observations and lessons from my experience on the Singapore campus so far:

• Everyone has a natural tendency to associate with the people of the same nationality, I guess because all humans like familiarity to some extent. I seek to be contrarian in that aspect. Instead of naturally reverting to my fellow Canadians (which I like very much for the record), I instead make an honest attempt to meet and bond with the people that are the most different from me, and as often as possible. Truth is, I don’t know when will be the next time I will get share shisha with an Egyptian, go on a surf trip with Italians, spend hours discussing the structure of the Indian society, and so on. This is an exclusive time to bond with people I would not have met otherwise. It might seem obvious but we tend to forget easily.

• FOMO (“Fear Of Missing Out”) is very real given that there is always something going on here. As a result, you tend to fill up every minute of your day. It can become overwhelming (especially on minimal sleep), and you can become unproductive by running around so much. I think I have reached the point where I need to admit that I can’t clone myself. Sometimes slowing down and saying no is a better option.

• Working to adopt the right mindset is key to highlighting your experience at INSEAD. I am often tempted to adopt a “been there, done that” attitude when I think I know something already. Obviously, I won’t learn much with that mindset. Reminding myself that unlearning is key and that I can learn something in every situation / every person is key to creating the openness necessary to grow.

The other day, someone asked me where I was living before. I paused before I could answer. It hit me that I have lived in 4 different cities over the past years. I have 4 active phone lines and I alternate sim cards based on my travels. But, it’s not just me. Anyone who is exchanging campuses would have lived in a minimum of three cities by now. I then thought about the cycle I go through every time I move: the original aversion, followed by fondness, love and then that separation anxiety that comes with having to leave again. I also realized that, that cycle got shorter and faster at INSEAD, and that I learned to adapt to it better.

Living in Singapore is quite interesting. It’s one of those cities that grows on you over time. It’s that kind of city that you don’t really like at the beginning, because it rains every evening, where everything is expensive, and where your body develops all kinds of allergic reactions and every bit of it screams get me out of here. Then, one day you’ll wake up and you have your favorite brunch place that serves divine truffle fries. You’ll have the little salad shop near school to go to when the cafeteria is going through tough times. You’ll have your favorite spot for the Wednesday’s ladies’ night, and that regular place to go out to on that Saturday night when you’re unusually not travelling around Asia. You’ll find that café with an awesome band, or that Mexican restaurant you want to go to every weekend until the owner can’t fit all your classmates. You recover from the allergies, and you work your outings around the rain. You develop a taste for spices and a mastery for chopsticks. You know all the low cost airlines, and you start booking your trips like a pro. You practice negotiating in China town, and you get this one great deal at the Bugis Market. Then, just when it all starts to feel right, just when it gets a bit comfortable, just when it’s no longer about discovery, it’s time to pack and leave.

The beauty of going through this cycle at INSEAD is that you’re not doing it on your own. You are with more than 300 students who have made the same choices, who picked that fast program for the thrill and excitement that comes with change, and who make things feel homelier much faster. It’s incredible how time flies here. In 5 days, I’ll be moving again. Recruiters are already on campus; careerlink is filling up with postings, even that survey on the grad trip destination made it to my inbox. The next adventure is coming up. It’s time to pack and leave again, and with every packing session comes that inventory of things to take and leave.

This time, I’m taking with me loads of amazing memories of trips around Asia, crazy Wednesday nights and lazy days by the pool. I’m taking with me amazing friendships with people I never knew I’d become good friends with over only two months. It also breaks my heart to say I’m leaving amazing friendships here, well at least until P5. It’s a bit sad that time flew by that fast, but I’ll leave that till P5 as well. For now, it’s time for the next adventure. Bring it on INSEAD!

How many of you say R-Square will go up?

How many say it will decrease?

How many have absolutely no idea what’s going on?

Option 3. Tick

INSEAD is a great school because #3 is a clearly stated option in our statistics class (Uncertainty, Data & Judgment) – and beer is allowed too!

Academics have escalated into a ‘firefight’ and the assignments just keep on coming.

Options to develop some great skills on the side? (Caveat: You may spend 75% of your 24-hour day on campus but the learning is well worth it!)

• Bootcamps: Social Entrepreneurship was AWESOME! Product idea to final pitch in 48 hours. Amazing learning!
• Competitions: The Venture Capital Investment competition taught me to draft term-sheets; through the ongoing PE competition, I’m learning LBOs and MBOs
• Euro Trips: Finally made it to Venice… French countryside and ski-trip is next

Off-campus, the social scene can be exhausting but oh-so tempting!
Wine and truffles followed by a Desi Mixer followed by karaoke followed by an impromptu Bollywood night at Club16. This is all that we achieved in one evening. But INSEAD also teaches you to balance things out. Post pub-crawl, I went home and finished the Financial Markets & Valuation case due at 8:30 AM four hours before the deadline. You can do the math!

Exams start next week but we just sat for the exemption exams for P2. An exemption does make sense if you’ve got a strong academic / professional background in the subject… BUT if you’re aiming for the Dean’s List, then you might want to take the subjects you’re good at and study hard!

Careers-wise, you’ve got to work hard. You have all the resources you need and a fantastic alumni network (including access to the formidable EMBA contact base). But you’ve got to work on meeting people, getting your CV reviewed and attending the thousands of information sessions on-campus (there’s at least one EVERY day). And this isn’t even recruiting period for the J or D classes!

In short – INSEAD is intense. But if you’re thinking of consulting or banking, it’s the real life. So the learning curve is awesome. If you like diversity (food, people, courses, backgrounds), intensity and quality – AND if the people around you matter to you a LOT, start that app now!

As I’m preparing for the Period 1 exams, I want to take a moment to reflect on what my experience has been so far. The program is fast paced. No… I mean the program is VERY fast paced. One learns not only how to be a better business leader, but also how to manage his or her time wisely and to make sound decisions with limited amount of time and resources. Schoolwork is intertwined with career services and social activities.

Each class session requires some individual pre-readings and sometimes case preparation. I am part of a group that consists of an American bio-engineer, an Israeli lawyer, a Ukrainian financial analyst, a Spanish strategy consultant and a Dutch Consultant (trained astrophysicist). Together, we work on different school projects, bringing insights from different fields and corners of earth.

Soon I will be back in the job market, and it is crucial that I create a resume that reflects my competences and experiences. I have had individual and group CV reviews with peers and career services team members. The school has gone to great lengths to bring executives from top firms around the world on campus for presentations and one-on-one coffee chats. These events are organized for students to gather information about the companies and markets they might be interested in. I have participated in events hosted by McKinsey & Co., the Boston Consulting Group, Microsoft and HP to name a few.

Last week was filled with social activities organized by INDEVOR, INSEAD’s organisation for social impact. The  INDEVOR club serves as a forum for students and partners interested in social, environmental, and ethical issues, often bridging the gap between business and the social sector. My two favorite activities were Dinning in the Dark, to raise awareness of the challenges faced by the blind, and The Social Run, fun-running laps around the campus. For something that started as a fun activity, the Social Run turned to be very competitive. The record holder ran a jaw-dropping 33 km; the first and second runner-ups ran 27 and 24 km respectively. The good news is that all proceeds from these activities were donated to local charity organisations.

Last but not least, long gone are the days when INSEAD students used to only work hard and party hard. INSEAD students are trained to look at new ways of solving old problems. Inspired by the worldwide bestselling strategy book Blue Ocean Strategy, students have found new undertakings to solve the old “let’s have some fun” dilemma. Weekends are meant for trips in the region to explore historical places, appreciate Southeast Asian culture and enjoy beautiful beaches. Singapore is strategically located near many popular holiday gateways. Each weekend, there is a trip to some exotic places in Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Bangladesh (all reachable in a couple of hours by flight).

In two weeks, I will be done with my exams; my wife has arranged a family trip to Penang Island, renowned for being the “food paradise” of Malaysia and for its capital George Town, which is one of the World Heritage Sites.

Ladies and gentlemen, after two months of intensive work, is there a better way to unwind? B-)

“We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open” Jawaharlal Nehru.

I do NOT believe that 20% of my MBA is done with. But it is! And what a ride it’s been.

Key takeaways from P1:

1. Work hard. Party harder. Enough said.
Also – Fonty isn’t a village, people! There is more than one bar and the whole of Europe is out there just waiting to be explored!

2. Why an MBA?
If nothing else (career progression, industry change, new geography) what can possibly be worth spending €58K? I know MBAs are often criticised for being Jacks of all Trades and Masters of None. But senior leadership roles are really about stepping back and looking at the big picture. Here you have the joy of learning in an intensely challenging but risk-free environment – it works if you’re willing to put in the requisite effort to learn. Do your CFA if you really want to understand the details behind ammortisation policies. Do an MBA if you want to answer the ‘so what’.
Also – learn to work with people who have zero hindrances in telling you what they really think of you.

3. Make friends because you want to make friends. ‘Networking’ doesn’t work anyway (#PersonalOpinion):
Yes, B-school is a great way to build your network. And yes, you have access to all these wonderful contacts and jobs and everything else. But if you’re going to strike up a conversation with someone ONLY because the person worked at some place you might consider joining, chances are the person ISN’T going to help you. Would you? INSEAD is truly about some wonderful people so give yourself a chance to get to know them and push yourself out of your comfort zone; at the end of the year you might not have all 500 on LinkedIn but you’d come away with 50 solid dependable relationships. That’s what counts in the long run.

4. Save up or arrange the funds.
B-School is expensive. SO expensive. You have NO idea how expensive. You don’t want to reach here and be panicking or thinking about every penny you spend because it will stress you out. Missing out on parties or travel trips will dilute the experience for you. And unfortunately, you will often feel that you’re paying for the air you breathe (true!). Start saving NOW. Also – everyone says it will all be okay in the long run. Ask me again 5 years from now

5. Jobs? Be proactive. Be realistic. Work hard.
Jobs won’t appear on a platter and you’re not going to be the star you’ve always been because this place is the Milky Way. Again, it’s hard but it’s true. You’ve got a dream? Dream it! And make sure you chase it on your own! There’s tons of people happy to help

6. Don’t panic!
Exams start on Monday. It’s Thursday evening. And I’m yet to get my head around Uncertainty, Data & Judgment’s (UDJ) Hypothesis testing. You know what? There’s tons of other stuff I’m good at and that makes me happy. So I’m just going to work 80-20 on things that make me happy and things that don’t – and life will sort itself out. I will of course do UDJ (this is in case my dad is reading this ). But the effort will be proportional to happiness derived, and great work is smart work – not JUST hard work. You’ll see!

5 days to Portugal! Here I come

I have just returned from the break between P1 and P2. One period has gone and what is true is that it goes by so fast. But it’s dense, so full of everything. It’s international. Everyone knows that and many choose INSEAD because of this unique opportunity to be exposed to such diversity. This diversity does not end there.

Housemates
I live outside the forest, a 10 minute drive from campus… I might even see a deer or a boar along the road, Fontainebleau is wild! Coming back home I’m ready to join the crowd: two Brazilians, two Indians, one American-Chinese, one Aussie and a Brit… plus me, the Italian. We usually meet in the kitchen and conversations go in multiple directions. Stories are shared while someone is eating and others are checking their laptops and emails do come from everywhere (quick look at my inbox and I have a report of expenses from the last trip to Chamonix, invitations to company presentations, new clubs’ leadership elections, daily digest from yammer, a survey on my consumer habits from students exploring new businesses, the last update to the calendar for P2, etc).

Group mates
In my work group we spread from Santiago to Shanghai, stopping by Rhode Island, Venice, Riyadh and Mumbai. It’s quite a trip and a constant discovery. Being so different brings into play patience, adaptation, curiosity, respect, reciprocity. And as time passes, we get to know each other better and we develop a sense of belonging that will tie our lives together.

Classes
P1 was very intense. I didn’t think I needed all those career info sessions and CV workshops so early on in the programme, but now it’s already P2 and summer internship applications are almost due. I definitely need to catch up by writing a few cover letters this week and do more research on companies I am interested in.

Classes were mainly quantitative in P1; accounting, statistics, micro economics, financial markets… but I think organizational behavior was the best one. It was filled with classroom interaction and group work and there was not necessarily a “right” answer to most things. It really exercised one’s judgment and critical thinking which is one of my main areas of interest. We took all the exams in two and a half days and I have never seen the campus so populated at night as it was a week before the finals. Before this, all I heard were of people sleeping at the library to recover from parties, but during exams, students were sleeping with their books under the pillows!

Social Life
P1 was indeed a rush. As soon as we started, parties were thrown all over, Club 16, Villa Foch, Chateau Fleury, Tavers (social life is core at INSEAD). There are so many different and interesting people around, that you want to meet them all. In February, the Lowlands week transformed campus to the world of the Dutch and Belgians. Beers and delicacies appeared on the tables of the Belgian dinner while red lights shone over the Dutch final party! It was colorful and full of enthusiasm; I can’t wait to organize the Italian week in June!

There’s always something going on at INSEAD and I believe that one of the best ways to get to know other classmates is travelling together. So far I’ve been to Amsterdam, Chamonix, Champagne while others have travelled to Turkey, Morocco, Portugal, etc. It is a real journey at INSEAD! Stay tuned!

I left Singapore excited to go back “home.” I had missed the great food, the flawless desserts, the chateau parties, the Fonty-lifers, or more simply put life at Fontainebleau. Fonty had something else in store though, and welcomed me with a big slap on the face called countdown to recruitment.

The great food was still there, but everything else was different. The campus was an ocean of students in black suites. The warm and friendly faces were stressed. The conversations were tense and no matter how they start, it would always end up in careers and finding a job. Dinners at Pizza Mimi were replaced with company presentations and consulting events in Barbizon. Drinks at Shaker turned into networking cocktails. That corner where we used to hang out, now has a big sign advertising daily company presentations and travel weekends become the dedicated time to write cover letters, practice cases and to go on career treks.

It’s hard to avoid these career discussions, the questions on offers and where to apply. It’s hard not to stress when companies send invites to dinners or interviews. It’s even harder to balance that life you’re used to with the recruitment process, and shut down those demons in your head obsessing over being unemployed in July. I can write a list of should haves and could haves. I can go on a rant about the importance of starting early on, networking, preparing in P3 and being all organised and targeted. But, there isn’t one recipe to making it.

I guess that this is part of the INSEAD P4 experience, and as cheesy as this may sound, it now boils down to embracing this period, learning to dance in the rain, having fun along the way and hoping for the best! At the end of the day, there’s something for everyone out there. It may come early or late, but it will come and with it that sense of fulfillment we all wished to have after INSEAD.

#WeatherUpdate: They say it’s the coldest winter in Europe in 50 years. As I pull on layer after layer of clothing, and trudge into sub-zero April mornings for 8:30 AM class, I question the wisdom of EVER studying in Europe.

#AdminUpdate: We suffered French bureaucracy during the Residence Permit (OFII) process; we’re struggling with French bureaucracy trying to get (Caisses d’Allocations Familiales) CAF rent waivers: but we can thankfully avoid French bureaucracy thanks to Schengen visas (5 different countries on the April-May travel calendar can even help me forget the weather).

#NerdUpdate: P1 exams were bizarre and the Z-curve system continued to baffle us long after P1 results. Fortunately, the human brain is designed to forget the bad stuff quickly, and for a poet like me (versus all the quants at INSEAD) I’m enjoying P2 a lot more than P1. I suppose two exemptions are partially to thank for my lower-than-average stress levels

#SocialUpdate: E09 has the best Social Reps (okay E08 too!) and we went paintballing last weekend. This weekend is a trip to EuroDisney. Le Shaker and JetLag continue to host stuffy squeezes and terribly loud karaoke. Summer Ball planning is on in full swing (tickets are EXPENSIVE!). We celebrated Holi in a giant, messy and happy way with beer, color and eggs. From watching football matches in Amphi BCG to using a classmate’s fantastic website to host small dinners, the social scene is now consolidation, rather than expansion.

#CampaigningUpdate: Elections are everywhere. Student Council,  Industry Clubs, Interest clubs, Social Clubs, National Weeks, etc. Everyone is clamoring for your vote and it’s a mad but fun mess.

#OBUpdate: This might sound strange but I loved the last few Organisational Behaviour (OB) classes a lot, and since studying people-dynamics was a primary motivater for my MBA, this deserves a spot. We did a session on stereotypes by nationality – accurate and inaccurate. It was incredibly fun. Some examples…

• It is nice to give small gifts as a token of appreciation for a service in Russia.
• Your slides probably need a LOT of rework if the English say – “Splendid really! Maybe you could think of this…”.
• Also, (some) Italians think of (all) Indians as ‘acoustically aggressive’.

To summarise, six core courses and tons of group assignments place a huge burden on your social and personal calendar. Internship recruitment, especially consulting doesn’t make this easier. But with some willpower and lots of Zen, things will work out

MBA! We’re almost 40% there!

Outside of classes, group work, and recruiting, there are actually many opportunities to get involved and contribute to various causes here at INSEAD. For example, on a random Sunday at 8:30am, about 30 of us were on campus mingling over coffee and delicious pastries and learning more about the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards, before moving on to screening business plans competing for several $20k awards to fund women entrepreneurs.

In this international business plan competition, Cartier partners with INSEAD to help identify bright ideas by women entrepreneurs. As INSEAD students, we had the opportunity to play an important role in screening hundreds of applications and selecting top candidates, whose applications were then moved to the official jury review later in the year.

The applications were grouped based on geographic regions, and each of us focused on a given region. Here in Singapore, we focused on three regions while students in Fontainebleau focused on the rest. We reviewed hundreds of proposals and learned so much about very impressive initiatives in different parts of the world. It was great to not only read and evaluate the proposals on creativity, sustainability, and impact creation, but also to discuss the overall quality of various proposals in a group.

By the end of the day, we had each evaluated multiple business plans, and the best part was sharing with the whole group the business plans that we had selected within each region. It was fascinating to learn about various innovative ideas that cater directly to local communities. This was also a great opportunity for me personally to learn about these regions and based on entrepreneurs’ ideas, better understand the current needs of these communities.

It felt great to know that one of the business plans that I reviewed in a group and recommended that day will be awarded the $20k of funding for that region, along with professional coaching and networking opportunities.

With 80+ nationalities, three fully-integrated campuses in Europe, Singapore and the Middle East, and options to study in China and the USA, INSEAD has no peer when it comes to diversity. However, one might ask: What value does diversity add to the class?

I clearly underestimated the power of diversity when I applied to INSEAD.

In today’s business world, one cannot neglect the effect of globalisation. A surge in foreign assignments and global networks has added complexity to the way teams are managed. To be successful as a leader, one needs to have a culturally agile frame of mind. Understanding relationships between people requires an understanding of assumptions that are pillars to the interaction between people in that culture. For example: In some parts of the world, a subordinate is not supposed to disagree with his/her manager. Without understanding this basic assumption, developing a fruitful relationship with coworkers will be extremely difficult due to the lack of a clear two-way communication. Furthermore, a culturally agile frame of mind, is sensitive to the differences between cultures and knows how to adapt (not change) accordingly. For example: finding brand names/images that are globally friendly can be a daunting task. Consider an advert of a beverage with three images from left to right posted on a billboard in the Middle East. The first image has a man lying down on the sand in the middle of the desert, the second has the man drinking the beverage and the last one has the man running. The trouble is that in the Middle East, people read from right to left and this totally distorts the intended message. There are many examples of faux pas that have cost companies a lot of money.

It is true that people with experience outside their native culture manage better in cultures they have never encountered before. Being on the ground can influence your perspective and knowing how cultures differ is the key to bridging them. This is one of the most sought after soft skills; it’s a great competitive advantage. As a student at INSEAD, you definitely have the opportunity to learn about different cultures in an educational, professional and social context. Your group mates will be from different countries and continents. Diversity is really at the core of the learning process; the same case can be analyzed from so many different angles because of the rich diverse student body and teaching staff. Additionally, National Weeks are organised by students to give their peers a crash course on the social and professional aspect of their countries. During that week, you will get to eat, drink, and dance to the tunes of that country. Indeed, INSEAD is The Business School for The World…

Understanding the world is expanding your world.

“I used to think that anyone doing something weird was weird. Now I know that it is the people who call others weird who are weird.” 
-Paul McCartney

LOWLAND (Holland and Belgium) WEEK at INSEAD.

Today I’d like to say a few words about the criteria you should consider when you’re making a campus choice/exchange decision.

1. Finding a job. The most popular strategy is to spend P4-5 in the same location/region where you are looking to be employed (Fontainebleau for Europe, Latin America and the US, Singapore for Australasia). Naturally, people choose to start at a different campus and then exchange closer to the recruiting season. This, of course, has an explanation – towards the end of the program INSEAD starts to organise various company presentations, coffee chats and interviews. Sometimes (especially in a bad economy) employers aren’t very eager to sponsor air flights for interviews and might prefer to choose the nearest available candidate. However, one shouldn’t overestimate the importance of being present at a particular campus either, especially if you wish to work in consulting or for a big MNC; most of which are able to interview you on any campus as the recruitment process is the same for them worldwide. Big international conglomerates very often manage with just VCs or phone interviews. But the devil is in the detail. If you plan to work for a smaller company, a startup, or set up your own, you’ll need to network a lot. Some of my classmates manage to do investor pitches across 10 time zones, however, it’s not the most convenient option. Asia is also very different from Europe in its recruitment customs. You really need to be here if you want to secure a job at a local office. Even if a company comes to campus (and most don’t), they expect you to network a lot before they call you for an interview. The local job market is less mature than in Europe, so employers are used to interacting face to face, and it is also part of the culture. This is why I am a little skeptical as to finding a job in Asia if one is based in Fontainebleau in P4-P5. If Singapore is your target, come here early enough to build your network.

If I already had a job offer before INSEAD, I’d probably go somewhere far from my original culture and would travel a lot!

2. Professors. Having spent almost 4 periods at INSEAD, I realise that the quality of the education you get depends on the professors who teach you. Had I known this before, I’d probably have contacted the MBA Office long before the start of the program with questions on who’s teaching where. Usually the schedule for the incoming class is formed a lot in advance, so I wouldn’t neglect the opportunity to collect such information. INSEAD alumni are also very approachable and ready to share the names of the stellar professors.

3. Electives. Not all electives (though most) are offered on both campuses at the same time – this information is usually available at the MBA Office. I can hardly imagine a situation in which you’d choose a campus for the sake of a certain elective, but this is still a possibility.

4. Lifestyle. I have noticed that many people mistakenly disregard this, but Fontainebleau and Singapore are definitely two different experiences! Singapore is a big bustling city. It’s perhaps not as big and glamorous as New York, but definitely a very exciting and diverse place, offering a unique multicultural experience. Every Wednesday, INSEADers go to popular local night clubs for Ladies’ Night. Every weekend is filled with trips to neighbouring countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and many others. The airport is only 20 minutes from the city center, and flights are generally quite affordable. As a downside, many Europeans find it hard to adapt to the local culture, although Singapore is regarded to be the most “westernised” of all Asian countries; a sort of “Asia for beginners”. Still, many people miss their native cultures here.

Fontainebleau is a dolly village in the middle of a forest in France. You have wonderful landscapes and amazing European food (cheese and wine in particular) there. Despite the popular belief, it is not exactly near to Paris, so going there every evening isn’t feasible. It’s quite important to have a car there (forget about having a car in Singapore!), as public transport is quite unpredictable and not very common. Thus, the socialising part of INSEAD usually happens in chateaus during parties as basically this is the only option to have fun there.

I’d highly recommend Singapore for couples with children, as nannies are very affordable here, whereas in France they cost a fortune.

4. Budget. Singapore is a ridiculously EXPENSIVE city. For example, you pay on average 1500 SGD (~1000 Euro) for a room in a 3-bedroom apartment, excluding utilities. In Fontainebleau, for the same amount you’d get an apartment of your own. For 400-500 euro a month you’d easily get a room in a chateau.

5. Climate. Being a Russian person, I’d like to emphasize this point as a very important one! =) I was very happy of the mere idea to spend one winter in a warm climate. Some of the Indian people in my program, were no less happy to spend the winter in a really cold climate, because they hadn’t ever seen snow before and wanted to try mountain sking, so they went to Fontainebleau for the January-February (P3) period.

6. This is perhaps not a priority to many people, but still it seems important to some – figure out where your friends are going to be. The MBA programme is not all about study and recruitment, it’s also about making friends for life. So make sure your friends are in the right place =).

This are my two cents on campus exchange. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

Thumbing through the 13J INSEAD photobook, I am instantly overwhelmed by a sense of joy, a smattering of pride, and a pang of nostalgia. Almost half a year of work, the 300 odd pages Photobook for 13J students that started their INSEAD adventure in Fonty is completed, in the hands of 240 students.

It started with a bunch of a few avid photographers who enjoyed taking pictures with our expensive cameras. We saw a similar book produced for the 12D Class in Singapore, and thought of doing the same, keeping the best memories of “the best year of our life” and the great people who made it so. The idea was to take good quality pictures of each student and compile them into the book.

No great achievement comes without hurdles. And the hurdles came one after the other. How to pump up interest amongst the classmates? How to organise the photoshoots? How to find quality designers but keep the cost down? How to juggle workloads? How to manage the logistics given that we were shifting from campus to campus? How to manage our finances? At times, we really didn’t know what was in store for the Photobook.

But that’s where the beauty of the INSEAD spirit shines through. Corny but true. There were so many classmates who learned about our project and were eager to help out. Some with marketing expertise helped boost the Photobook awareness, critical to the initial stages of the project; there were those with good finance and operational skills helped to prevent the project from running out of cash; and others provided technical expertise and aesthetic senses. And of course, all the classmates who took time to have their photos taken and to have fun with the camera; that gave the Photobook its soul.

Although only a fraction of the photos made it to the Photobook, there is a unique story behind each smile, each shot of the 11,000 photos taken in the Autumn and Winter of 2012. Flipping through the pages now, we see the familiar faces and familiar surroundings in Fonty, as well as the fun that we had. We see our classmates, their laughter, optimism and enthusiasm resonate from Fonty onto these pages. It is the INSEAD journey, not the destination that is so amazing. These memories will last us a lifetime.

The Photobook was conceived from the passion of a few individuals, but it took a whole village (of 13J) to make it come to life. I love INSEAD.

P2 is drawing to a close and it feels like I have lived a year in 4 months. I still can’t get over the number of things that’s possible to fit into one day. There is never a dull moment. As someone who is always up for new experiences, I have finally learnt to accept that there will be some experiences I will have to forego!! This lesson was learnt the hard way however, when one week I decided I could do the start-up bootcamp, participate in the Venture Capital Investment Competition, study for quizzes and do group work altogether (there was a trip to Paris squeezed somewhere in between too, phew!). While the experiences were more than worth it, they had me exhausted and I had to compensate by having a weekend where I just did nothing! I am now learning to pace myself better. There are choices to be made – to do a few things (assignments, quiz preparations, etc) really well or skim through many, to deepen friendships or keep expanding your network. I think I finally have my juggling act figured out and am making choices that feel right!!!

Highlights so far:-

1. Start-up bootcamp: In one line, I walked out of the 48 hour bootcamp thinking I could start my business today if I wanted to. It provides you with a framework for thinking about the various objectives of starting your own business. From beginning with just an idea on Friday, we made a perfect investor pitch by Sunday with feedback from the Professors and fellow campers.
2. Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC): Spending hours evaluating business plans, difficult discussions with team members about which plan to pick and teaching myself how to draft a term sheet without lawyers! Competitions are an excellent opportunity to team up with students from different groups/classes and push yourself to learn outside the class (in case you aren’t getting enough of that )
3. Lisbon takeover: More than 50 of us descended on Lisbon, Portugal for the P1-P2 break. With an excellent guide created by a Portuguese section mate and a Whatsapp group to co-ordinate, we ended up taking over entire restaurants and clubs in Lisbon. With warm weather (relatively) and gorgeous seaside, we came back refreshed for the next period (of course some people came back devastated from excessive partying!).

P2 has been more intense with more courses, internship applications and attending networking events. The pressure is high but the advent of warm weather (at last) has everyone in high spirits!

I am sitting here on the beach in Sydney, where I had come to relax/interview/prioritise for the next few months. After the two very busy P1 and P2, now has come a time to look into the horizon, and reflect having felt a real sense of the dynamism at play from the first 4 months. The course load was definitely heavy and hard skills-oriented, at least up to this point. Looking back on the four months of the course, recruitment and social experiences, I can clearly see that my thinking had started shifting.

It has been an eye opener to come together with so many people from all walks of life and all nationalities. The interaction and teamwork among people with different values and ideas, has often been hilarious and occasionally frustrating. In all cases, lots of surprising ideas came out of this diversity.

As a participant in these interactions at INSEAD, you learn how to better navigate across the vast cultural landscape. Some ideas are universally shared while some ways of communicating don’t work with certain nationalities. As you bond with other students, you gain cultural perspective that shapes your behavior and the way you deal with different people. As a consequence of this intensive cultural exposure, you start second-guessing your own pre-established ideas. You learn to ask “WHY” a lot more. And your thinking starts to change, as a result.

Could the ability to adapt and engage with different cultures be a driver for leadership development? Without a doubt, leadership has a lot to do with human behavior. I would guess then that cultural “fluency” can help improve a leader’s behavior. Learning how to adapt your approach to communication and teamwork can increase trust, credibility and influence.

In my opinion, it is true that the cultural bath is a big component of the learning that gives INSEAD some serious zest.

Remember that boyfriend or girlfriend you had in the past? Yes, that relationship – so intense that you felt amazing while you were in it and uncomfortable without it. You had your inside jokes and your own rhythms of interaction. It felt amazing. Of course, you sacrificed a lot to be in it as well. You noticeably talked to your friends less and neglected your family. They sometimes confronted you about it, but you were fully committed to the relationship.

While you were in it, the actions, assumptions and experiences were natural and totally normal. Only when you ended the relationship did you appreciate what the experience was, what you learned, how you changed (temporarily or permanently) and its significance on your life.

The INSEAD experience has a lot of the same characteristics of that intense relationship. Yes, most people have heard about the INSEAD bubble before arriving, however, no one appreciates the power of said bubble and its ability to trap you inside.

Common symptoms of people who are caught in the bubble when in “Singy”:

• Your linked-in profile is blowing up with hundreds of new connections
• You can name at least 6 beach destinations in S.E. Asia
• You do not know how to spell “Fontainebleau”
• You live in Heritage or Dover
• You often get called by your real name that was given to you by the Rugby Gods
• You have added 300 new friends on Facebook in the past 2 months and your wall only has INSEAD people posting on it
• You are a part of at least 5 INSEAD what’sapp groups
• Your family/bf or gf is getting upset at you for not giving them enough attention
• You feel like you have very few topics of conversation with “Out”siders
• You have at least 3 INSEAD polo shirts
• You are just “hanging out” with him/her
• You use INSEAD acronyms (BOR, MBS, FMV and UDJ) in every other sentence.
• You have a nickname designed specifically for you (Izzerly, Yinda, Diedu)
• You find it difficult to recollect your life before INSEAD
• You are planning/have planned 4 trips for the next 2 months
• You have been to the same nightclub 3x in the same week

While some of us have been able to identify these symptoms as important trademarks of the “Singy” experience, the true impact of the overall INSEAD MBA will only be truly understood after we finish the program and join the ranks of the alumni. Hopefully then, we will understand the power of INSEAD in our lives.

First four months of my INSEAD MBA: reading countless business cases, attending numerous company presentations, learning about business in Asia, acquiring new skills, learning how to work with people from very different professional and cultural backgrounds, learning about my own tendencies and response to stress and actively adopting techniques to cope more effectively, learning from people around me, becoming much better at prioritizing when there are literally a million things going on, participating in national week bidding, DASH, pajama day, and all other fun events on campus… and of course the traveling – exploring eight new countries with amazing people!

Then two weeks ago, almost 100 of us from 13D moved from Singapore to Fontainebleau to start P3. It is definitely an adjustment to move across continents, but I think that’s one of the best opportunities that INSEAD offers! Everyone’s experience with the grand move is different, but I loved it here from day one. Granted, I have been looking forward to moving back to Europe for a while now, and I had visited the Fontainebleau campus before applying, but adjusting to life in a small town can take some time before the town grows on you. If you love the outdoors, seasons, wine and cheese, lots of bakeries, biking around, and you can be patient when it comes to things that are less efficient than in a big city, you’ll probably like it here! While the town and the campus are new, it is great to already have friends here and to see so many familiar faces everywhere. The “Fonty” guys have also been great at welcoming us and organising various events to integrate us, so it has overall been a great experience so far.

P3 is also the first time we can take electives, and I am really happy with the electives that I chose! The electives are either a full credit or half credit, and for example two of mine are halves that will take place in June only, so this month is pretty light for me, and then in June I’ll have six instead of four classes.

Last but definitely not least, getting the internship that I really really really wanted since before even starting at INSEAD, has definitely added a lot to my overall excitement from moving to a new place! INSEAD is definitely living up to my expectations so far! Now I can use the next month and a half from P3 to focus on my classes and learn some French!

I have been using a lot of buzz words lately: lean, user acquisition, growth hacking, gamification.  Even SoLoMo.  This makes sense because I am launching a company, which you should check out and forward to everyone you know: www.zadaqa.com. One of the words I use all the time now, too, is iteration.  I love it: Iteration. Iteration fits with my theory that the most profound concepts are simple ideas that, over time, you understand and interact with again and again and again, finding new meaning, deepening your relationship to the idea, and gaining new insights that come through seeing the same idea in multiple situations, through multiple lenses, with new implications each time.

Business school has in many ways been about iteration.  Understanding the conflict between debt holders and equity holders is something that you can understand and explain in a basic sentence, or it is something you can spend years tackling through innovative financial engineering.  You get from A to B through iteration.

Today I was reading a global strategy case about Open Innovation when I realized how much my understanding and practice of this idea has evolved in the last 10 months.

Act I: I interviewed Jean-Luc Beylat, President of Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs France.  This was the first time I heard the term, as Beylat was pushing people to shift their thinking from “we protect our IP” to “we can learn and grow faster and benefit together through collaboration.”  I had the opportunity to interview Beylat through the Maag INSEAD Center for Entrepreneurship.

Act II: During a week in Silicon Valley, as part of INSEAD’s program Building Businesses in Silicon Valley, the Founder and CEO of Echo, Khris Loux, challenged the conventional wisdom of competition.  He held up the Android phone as an example: many exceptional companies came together to create something that none of them could have come close to on their own.  Build your own stuff when you have to, he said, but when you can use open source, do it.  You’ll get more minds and more solutions on your product.

Act III: Global Strategy elective: The BT group turned its R&D department from an inward-facing unit to a channel of communication between BT customers and innovators in other parts of the world.  In Silicon Valley, BT met with VCs with emerging technology: BT shared what their customers were looking for, and VCs shared relevant technologies that were really taking off, and both benefited.

As I sit here now, analysing whether BT’s approach in Silicon would work in Asia, I realise how my MBA vocabulary has turned into an actionable toolkit over the course of this program. For any of these b-school buzz words, I have a range of real-world examples, stories, and case studies I can draw on, modify, and apply to bring best practices to fruition in my daily work.  In fact, from open innovation to gamification, the best leaders in their fields are using the same words.  It is through iteration that these terms come to mean something complex, new, and specific to these  individuals.  Through iteration, simple concepts become profound.

The other thing that I am realising about iteration (see previous) is that it can be quite tedious.  Or, at least it looks that way on the surface.  We are trying to crack this nut of how we can get people to use our platform (www.zadaqa.com), and that means lots of conversations with potential users, surveys and tracking metrics on our platform, like if people click on “Turn your likes and tweets into a better world” or if they prefer “Encouraging and rewarding companies for doing good.”  If you guessed that the correct answer is #1, you should join our team.  The reality, of course, is that nothing is boring about building your own company or getting meaningful feedback that will pivot our course of action.  Some of our users tell us that points and discounts will incentivise them to use Zadaqa.  Others say that points and discounts make them feel cheap for participating: “I don’t want to feel like I’m being bribed to do the right thing.”  We are doing more surveys and segmenting to determine 1) who our core customer group needs to be (who are early adopters), and 2) which incentives work for the early group.  We appreciate the feedback from INSEAD Moms!  At some point we also need to nail down a strategy to cross the chasm from early adopters to mass use (thank you, Market Driving Strategies).  All of this we must support through customer development data.

So, what does this have to do with being in P5 at INSEAD?  Everything.

We, as a class are deciding whether we really have the appetite to start our own companies, or whether student loans mean we take that consulting job and come back to the business plan later.

Today a group of people with consulting offers head to Roland Garros to watch the French Open.  I head to the Mews to meet up with my business partner and redesign our landing page (and I have to say, I am not jealous of my friends watching tennis.  When I am building something I believe in, I get as much adrenaline as watching Federer or maybe that’s the third cup of coffee kicking in!).

We, the class of 13J, are still as always trying to fit a million things a day into just 24 hours.  In P1 and P2 it was coursework, group work, case competitions, club leadership, national week activities, external projects, dinners, and social events.  In P4 it was job search, job search, and more job search, on top of coursework.  Or in my case it was start up, start up, and more start up.  And in P5 we are all looking ahead.  We are balancing all of the regular INSEAD going-ons with all of the impending post-INSEAD to-dos.  Whether it is hustling for new campaigns for Zadaqa, or attending McKinsey’s weekend retreat for new hires, we all have one eye on our time left and one eye on the inevitable day that we shift from being students to alums.  We are more and more aware that our time together is drawing to a close.  The 12Ds warned us!  Time at INSEAD really flies.  Now we are just trying to slow it down and enjoy every minute.

If you want to save me some time, so that I can get to Roland Garros, too, please tell me what feedback you have on www.Zadaqa.com.  What would make you want to use this platform, and keep coming back?  Do you get the idea, or are you confused?  Thank you, from a current INSEAD student and full-time entrepreneur, and please post your ideas on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/zadaqa.   Merci!

Now back to product iteration.

Time check – we are already nearing the end of P3 and the 13Js will be graduating soon!

Where did all the time go? 

I vividly recall my first few days on campus, when all the 13Js that I got to know always advised me to “cherish every moment – the year will be over before you know it” – and I have indeed been soaking in every moment, as much as possible.

There have been memorable moments galore at INSEAD over the past six months:

1) Meeting our beloved P1-P2 group mates for the first time (and sadly bidding some of them farewell as they embarked on new adventures in Fonty)

2) Bonding with our group mates over SPLASH where we built structures for underprivileged children (a fulfilling two days where we really made a difference!)

3) National Week Celebrations! Dragon Week, Heart of Europe, Italian Week, Latin America Week – only possible at the mini UN that is INSEAD

4) National Week Bidding which showcased the unparalleled diversity of INSEAD and the competitive streak that is inherent in all of us!

5) Social Impact Week – a massive undertaking by INDEVOR, INSEAD’s social impact club, where a myriad of fun initiatives (i.e. Bain Social Run, Charity Auction etc.) raised awareness among students on social impact

6) Sprinting to campus in whacky costumes for DASH (I was a yellow angry bird and terrorised many green pigs alongside my other feathered compatriots!)

7) Weekend trips to exotic destinations in the region

8) Endless barbecues at Heritage and Dover

9) Classic moments during class when students/professors would say the most unexpected (and frequently hilarious) things

10) Engaging with industry movers and shakers on campus through our many career networking events and industry seminars/panels

Cabaret, our talent show extravaganza, will be taking place next week just before finals… and then the summer break beckons…

The rest of the year looks set to be equally jam-packed with activities, and at this point in time, halfway through our journey, I think many of us are contemplating what we really hope to get out of our time at INSEAD – Lifelong friendships? Endless travelling to exotic destinations in Europe and Asia? Making as many connections in our target industries as possible? Switching careers?

Sure, we could aim to do everything, but all of us only have 24 hours in a day and there is only so much we can do.

The concept of opportunity costs has never been stronger than at INSEAD, where everyday, there are likely to be at least three events happening on campus and many more going on outside.

As a student, you wonder whether to go for the career panel organised by INDEVOR or the Energy Club, or perhaps, the peer-to-peer panel on raising funds for new ventures, which are all taking place simultaneously in one evening.

Over the weekend, do you join group A for a relaxing holiday in Pulau Joyo or party it up in Bangkok with Group C?

It is commonly said that at INSEAD, you can only have two out of the following, but never all three: 1) Sleep 2) Studies 3) Social Life … oh and stepping out of the INSEAD bubble, we also need to find time for our loved ones as well!

Choices. Choices. Choices. 

Amidst the flurry of activity, it is challenging but absolutely necessary to stay focused on the big picture – What is the one key thing that I must get out of my year at INSEAD?

Knowing this would certainly help to ease the FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) factor that envelops all INSEADers in varying degrees and would also enable us to make our choices much more easily. For example, if one’s main priority is to get his/her dream job after INSEAD, one would always choose to go for career networking sessions instead of another party at Avalon.  If one is a sponsored consultant or does not intend to switch careers, then the choices made would inevitably be different.

Regardless of our priorities, we own our experience at INSEAD and determine what we get out of it.

Just so we don’t look back on this year with any regrets, it would help for us to crystallise our vision and know exactly what we want to achieve by the end of the year, because as the 13Js have warned, and as I am personally experiencing myself, “the year will be over before you know it“.

National Weeks at INSEAD are unique occasions when students can learn about a different culture, try some amazing food, pick up new skills, etc. Last November, the Italians won the bid that allowed them to hold their own National Week. I’d like to tell you how it went.

Apart from the pleasure of introducing fellow students to their culture and traditions, National Week organisers get hands-on experience managing their own business and teams, planning budgets, making sales pitches, etc. It might seem easy to organise a week like this, but it’s totally not true! It’s a very tough, though rewarding task.

The structure of various National Weeks at INSEAD is usually the same:

• Monday morning and afternoon the amphi “stormings” take place where the week’s organising team come to the amphi at the end of a class, show a promo video of the week and persuade students to buy tickets for various activities.
• A national breakfast is served followed by a selection of national lunch options at INSEAD’s cafeteria every day of the week.
• During the week, various entertaining activities take place like belly dancing from the Lebanese or the Tiramisu cooking class from the Italians.
• On Wednesday night specifically, a big dinner outside the campus is held.
• On Friday night, there’s usually an all-INSEAD party.
• There are also wine-tasting sessions and various other educational activities (language lessons, etc) that take place.
• Another compulsory feature of every National Week are T-shirts with sponsor logos and national symbols on them. These come in handy when students run out of clean clothes .

So let me now show you our Italian Week!

This is the main organisers’ booth decorated with various Italian items and the location where students can buy their tickets.

The T-shirt hanging in the center is the shirt of a famous Italian soccer player Balotelli, personally signed by him. It was the lottery prize for those who bought a ticket bundle, including access to the dinner and the party.

The price list:

Italian breakfasts – Pan di Stelle, Abbracci, Baiocchi, of course, by Mulino Bianco (Barilla), my favourite cookies. During one of the days we served Kinder Bueno, and some people were surprised to hear that it’s an Italian brand as they though it was German or Swiss.

The men in the team wore togas. This is a picture of them ready for the amphi stormings on Monday morning!

Right after breakfast, INSEADers joined us at the Keria Desk for some food:

In the afternoon, we held a Tiramisu master class:

Our famous cook Davide is sharing his culinary secrets woth fellow students:

Now that the sweets are ready, it will have to spend a minimum of 12 hours in the fridge.

Tuesday afternoon was pizza time!

On Tuesday evening, we held a proper Italian winetasting with around ten types of true Italian ham and cheese:

Here you can see the Italian branded T-Shirts:

On Wednesday we had a Ferrari day. First, we got a full-sized Ferrari on campus:

And second, we had a Ferrari driving challenge (with the mini versions):

This is the chart with the challenge results:

On Wednesday we held a true Italian dinner! I didn’t take pictures because I was too busy EATING! We went to the best Italian place in Singapore and finally took advantage of the incredible authentic pizza, burrata, sweet tomatoes and gnocchi!

And on Friday we held the insane toga party:

Stay tuned for the future National Weeks to come with the new J class soon to be on campus!