Nishanth Joseph, student of Kirloskar Institute of Advanced Management Studies (KIAMS) batch of 2012-14 is like any other 21 year old - he is full of life, fun loving and brimming with confidence. But he already has a priceless feather in his cap as he has bagged a placement with IDEA Cellular Ltd. The Hyderabad boy, who was the head boy of his college, admits that he struggles when it comes to number crunching. But the remuneration figure of Rs. 5 lakh per annum is a number that must sound like music to his ears right now.
Nishanth has been offered the position of Territory Sales Manager with the company, a responsibility he looks forward to, but he is also aware of the fact that he might be placed just about anywhere in Andhra Pradesh for his job. And therein lies a challenge for him and he says, “Except for Hyderabad, every other place demands that I be fluent in Telugu. I am not too good with the language but I am doing my best by speaking to people in Telugu,” he says casually.
Besides the possible language hurdle though, the confident youngster is raring to go. He is charged up about his prospects for the future even in the present economic climate, as he says, “I believe I have plenty of opportunities, especially in the fields of marketing, communications and PR. These two departments of an organisation are always vibrant under any economic scenario and typically act as the first line of defence for a company facing threat from the public.”
Clearly, Nishanth believes he has the courage to stand in the line of fire - professionally, of course - when the time comes. If you wonder where he gets his self-assured attitude from, it is the exuberance of his youth, his “non-conservative” educated middle class family background, his graduation from a prestigious college, and most of all, the learning and experiences at KIAMS. Whatever the cause, it is clear that he definitely wants to fly high in the future. Besides the Kirloskar brand name associated with the institute, the infrastructure it offers and lush green campus in Harihar, Nishanth enrolled with KIAMS because it was a short, overnight bus ride from his home. But now with the placement under his belt, he is looking to go places. “Five years into my job I see myself sitting with National heads of IDEA CELLULAR chalking out strategies for the company and being an integral part of the implementation team,” he says.
Behind the assured personality and bravado there is a young man who is well aware of his responsibilities as well. Nishanth aspires to be an entrepreneur and looks at it as a personal challenge. “I have seen my family business go down the drain, which is why it’s all the more important for me to be a successful entrepreneur,” he explains.
That thought was at the back of his mind when he joined KIAMS to do his PGDM. “Since I dream of being an entrepreneur, a management degree is a win-win situation for me. I can apply all the concepts I learn to my business and give it my best. And if - God forbid - it fails, I can always fall back on my degree and get a good job,” he says rationally.
His stint at KIAMS might have had its challenges, especially since Nishanth was the youngest in his batch. He says that he had to prove his worth to his classmates, who were a few years senior to him. But he remains grateful to the teachings of the course as, “It gave me deeper understanding of various concepts in marketing and prepared me for the corporate world. It made me more adaptable and flexible, and shaped my skills and personality, which led me to this job at IDEA Cellular.” This seems to be only the beginning of a bright future for him.
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