1) Why low marks in graduation?
During B.com, I was also pursuing CA, and It was something that I saw myself creating a career
in, so I was more aspirational towards the CA exams and since the B.com exams used to clash
with the CA exams, I made the choice to put my focus on CA exams. In hindsight, I do believe
that my time and work management could have been better so that even B.com exams could
have been attempted in a better manner, I could have studied for B.com exams in before the
peak exam time. I have learned from this experience and I have applied the learnings in the last
2 years where I have managed my work which can take 8 to 10 hours per day along with studies
for MBA entrance exams and as a result, I am sitting here in this interview without letting my
work get affected.
2) Why did you leave CA in the middle?
I had given the CA inter L2 exams and could not clear the passing cutoff by 1 or 2 marks and due
to some financial concerns at home, I had to drop out. After that I started working as a Freelance
SME in accounting and finance which helped in stabilizing finances at home and since I was very
interested in the finance field, I decided to pursue FRM and cleared both levels while working
alongside.
3) Which college will you choose between XLRI or XIMB?
I have given the interview of XLRI but I am still awaiting its final result. I will be able to make a
decision regarding the college selection once I have the final results of all the colleges. Right
now, Whichever colleges I have applied to, I have done so after careful consideration of their
unique offerings and how they can help me in achieving my career objectives.
4) What qualities draw you to XIMB:
The vast opportunities provided by the college in roles such as financial and risk manager, Asset
management and investment banking with companies such as Goldman Sachs and Citibank
coupled with stellar faculty having completed PhD’s and being MBA’s themselves who would be
instrumental in shaping students to excel in these roles. The legacy of XIMB of 44 years would
allow for vast networking opportunities with alumni working at top positions in the corporate
world which will lead to better career outcomes.
5) Tell about your family background:
I come from a business-oriented family up until recently, my parents owned a cattle feed
manufacturing plant which is where I got exposure to business operations and decision making. I
have an elder sister who recently completed her PhD in neuropharmacology.
6) What is your leadership style?
I haven’t had a lot of experience leading teams so my leadership style is still developing, but
based on past experiences I would say that I have a situational leadership style. For example, my
sister got married recently and I was in charge of all the arrangements, in this event, I made sure
that the schedule was being followed strictly and tasks assigned to everyone were being
completed in a timely manner.
7) Why should we select you over other candidates?
I can’t comment on other’s profiles but I can tell you that I am the right fit for this program as I
have gained strong foundational knowledge in areas such as accounting, taxation, finance and
risk management that are crucial for any HR manager as it would help me in areas such as cost
optimization and payroll structuring. Furthermore, my experience as a SME which included
mentoring students aligns well with the HR functions like training and development.
8) What if you are not selected today?
Initially I will be disappointed over not getting selected and having my yearlong preparation
being wasted, but after that I will analyze the areas of improvement and work upon them. I have
a history of making a stronger comeback like dropping out of CA but then clearing both levels of
the FRM certification. I know that I will put in more effort to prepare again and I will be sitting
here again next year.
9) What are your hobbies?
My hobbies include cooking, listening to music and watching movies. I love to surprise my family
members with amazing dishes and trying out different cuisines. Cooking gives me a sense of
accomplishment and helps me relax at the same time. Listening to music makes doing any study
or work feel effortless and it has an immediate positive effect on my overall mood. I love
watching crime movies with sharp dialogues as they serve as a great source of entertainment
and sometimes can even, they can also impart important life lessons.
HR Style questions:
1) Tell me about yourself:
I come from a business-oriented family, my parents owned a cattle feed manufacturing units
which gave me exposure to various business operations including procurement of goods,
workforce management as well as sales and customer relations. To deepen my knowledge in
these areas, I graduated with a bachelors in commerce in 2021. After that I did a year of CA
Articleship and have worked as a freelance SME since. Along with working as a SME, I have
cleared both levels of the FRM program giving me deep understanding of data analytics and risk
management.
2) Why do you want to pursue an MBA?
Coming from a commerce background and having completed FRM, I have gained technical
expertise in subjects like accounting, taxation and risk management, but having spent the last 2
years teaching students for the past 2 years, I have realized my strengths in areas such as
mentoring, listening and problem solving which are key qualities of any HR manager. Through an
MBA I wanted to learn data driven HR analytics, employee compensation and benefit structures
and workforce management and take on roles such as HR consulting and analytics. These types
of roles have been offered by MNC’s such as Aon, EY and KPMG for part many years at this
college.
3) What are your short term and long-term goals?
In the short term, I want to join a top MNC such as EY or KPMG as an Employee compensation
and cost optimization expert and gain professional work experience in the field. I want to grow in
this field and build my expertise and network and eventually foray into opening my own HR
consultancy firm providing all the HR services such as Recruitment, analytics and compensation
to organizations worldwide.
4) How does this MBA program align with your career aspirations?
I aspire to work as a HR consultant with Top MNC’s and such companies have been actively
recruiting from this college for past many years. This college is regarded as one of the most
prestigious institutes for HRM in Asia. This program will help me in enhancing my past academic
knowledge in fields such as economics and finance by connecting them directly to Managing HR.
I will also get practical exposure in handing HR roles through the industry case competitions and
the summer internship program that will help in my overall development as a professional and
would help me excel in the corporate world.
5) Can you describe your professional work experience so far?
I was pursuing CA along with graduation and as a result I did one year of CA Articleship at a mid-
sized CA firm which was located in Chandigarh. There I worked on accounting for many clients
using the Tally software, I also got exposure in external auditing as well as personal taxation. Post
that, I have worked as a Freelance SME in accounting, finance and statistics with various
companies which involved addressing student queries as well as taking live tutoring session with
them.
6) What has been your biggest achievement at work?
In my role as a live tutor, I have worked with students from all over the world and I have been
able to improve my problem-solving abilities and ranking amongst the top tutors working with
the organization. Initially, I was hesitant in taking sessions as I felt that my knowledge was not
adequate and that I may not be able to help students effectively. But I actively worked upon
these issues by revising accounting concepts and reading company published articles on best
tutoring practices which has enabled me to help students in a better manner and their
satisfaction is reflected in the wonderful ratings and remarks left by them for me.
7) What do you know about our faculty and program?
The faculty consists of experience educators who have themselves completed their MBA’s and
then have gone for a PhD as well showcasing their passion of learning. These include Dr. Kumar
Alok who completed his PhD from XLRI and Dr. Jatinder Kumar Jha, who is an IIM Ahmedabad
alum. The PGDHRM program consists of academic courses on finance, strategic management
and human resource management along with the team building and village exposure programs
which helps combine theoretical learning with practical exposure.
8) Tell me about a time you faced a major challenge at work and how you overcame it?
A major challenge I faced Was during my CA Articleship when I was doing closing entries for a
client. I wad just started the Articleship and I was being guided by a senior article. I prepared the
entries according to her guidance but when my manager checked the work he found multiple
discrepancies, He showed me the mistakes and I realized that these should not have happened
as I knew what should be the correct way to do these entries yet chose to follow the guidance of
my senior blindly. I discussed with my manager the correct method to do these entries and
afterwards stayed back for additional hours to complete the work, In the end I was able to
complete the work correctly.
9) Describe a situation where you had to influence someone without having formal authority?
10) Give an example of a time you worked on a team project. How did you contribute?
During my CA Articleship, I was part of the team doing external audit of a blood bank. I was the
junior most team member and I was assigned the task of verifying the expenses recorded in the
books with their original invoices as well as stock audit. For verifying the expenses, I compared
the current year expenses to the last 2 years of audited expenses and then checked the actual
invoices for areas which had significant changes in them. For the stock audit, I printed a copy of
the inventory list from the accounting software and then matched the items from their stock
room.
11) Have you ever failed at something? What did you learn from it?
My biggest failure was the not completing Chartered Accountancy. I gave a few attempts at CA
inter and got through Level 1 and started Articleship but could not clear level 2 by a few marks.
Due to ongoing financial concerns at home, I had to then drop out of the CA program. I realized
that one of the reasons that I couldn’t clear the exams was a lack of focus and professional
maturity during my preparation. But I learned from my mistakes and actually cleared both levels
of the FRM program while working as a tutor for up to 10 hours each day and scoring well in the
management entrance exams.
12) Tell me about a time when you managed a conflict in a team:
During my CA Articleship, I was working on preparing closing entries for a client, my Senior
article had guided me though it but when our manager checked the work, he found many
discrepancies, I initially told him that I wasn’t the one to blame as I was following the senior’s
instructions. My senior felt that I was blaming her which led to some tension between us.
To resolve the situation, I discussed the correct method with my manager and acknowledged
that I should have known the adjustments to be made and not relied completely on someone’s
guidance. I then revised the work and got it approved from the manager. My senior appreciated
that I didn’t escalate the issue and shifted responsibility upon myself while working
collaboratively to fix the issue.
13) How do you handle pressure and deadlines?
I feel that pressure comes from having multiple things to handle within a specific deadline. To
tackle this pressure, I like to prioritize my tasks and create a schedule for completing them by
allocating appropriate time for each task. This way I can make sure that if the tasks at hand can
be completed within the deadline and if not create contingency plans beforehand. The pressure
decreases with the tasks being completed and it gives you a clearer picture of the work at hand.
14) Tell me about a time when you had to think outside the box:
I had a student who was struggling to understand the concept of increase in the useful life of an
asset after major repairs and the consequent change in the depreciation expense. I tried
explaining through general definitions and the formulas used to calculate the new depreciation
expense but the student was getting confused further. Here, I took an example of getting your
car repaired. I explained how if you replaced your car engine with a new one, you would expect
your car to run for a few additional years. I told him that if you were going to scrap the car next
year, would you now do the same after putting in the new engine. This analogy helped the
student understand how the new useful life and the cost of the car will be calculated.
15) What do you do when you receive critical feedback?
I have had a fear of failure all my life, so when someone gives me some critical feedback, it
bothers me as I feel that I failed to do something well. For example, my QA at my current role as
a freelancer periodically reviews my work and offers critical feedback if necessary. I used to start
explaining my side of things immediately, but now I like to sit with the feedback for sometime
and give myself time to process it. Often times I have found that the improving upon the areas
mentioned in the feedback is a great way to improve myself. This change in perspective
regarding the critical feedback has made tremendous improvement in me as a tutor.
16) How do you manage competing priorities?
When I have multiple competing priorities, I assess the tasks based on urgency and impact.
Based on these two factors, I tackle the tasks which are the most impactful and urgent first. For
example, If I had to finish up a short term project and work on a long term project at the same
time, I would finish up the short term project on priority as the long term project would not be
as urgent. By doing this, I can make sure that I am completing the most urgent work first and
then giving time to other tasks as well.
17) Can you describe a time you had to adapt to change quickly?
During my CA Articleship I was tasked with preparing closing entries from a client. This task was
different from routing accounting work that I did at the office, it required me to travel to the
client’s location and the work was more complex that anything I had ever done before. I was
initially being guided by my senior in this work but when the manager checked my work, he
found some discrepancies. I was taken aback as I had followed my senior’s instructions carefully.
I then realized the errors I had made and discussed the correct approach with the manager and
then revised my work accordingly. This experience taught me the importance of being adaptable
in dynamic situations and seeking clarification whenever necessary.
18) What skills do you hope to gain from this MBA program?
Through this program I want to learn both technical skills as well as interpersonal skills. I have
studied about analytical tools during FRM and I want to now learn how to apply them to make
data driven decisions. I want to learn the application of budgeting in determining employee
compensation and benefits. Through the team building and case competition exercises, I want to
hone my communication, negotiation and leadership skills which are essential qualities to excel
in the corporate world.
19) How will you contribute to our MBA community?
With my background in finance and having 2 years of teaching experience in accounting, I can
contribute to any finance related discussions and mentor peers in topics related to these
subjects. I enjoy cooking and would love to participate in any food related activities on campus. I
have experience in handling dynamic situations and I can help by contributing in clubs focused
on entrepreneurship and consulting.
20) What challenges do you anticipate facing in an MBA program, and how will you overcome them?
This course is designed to nurture the future leaders and to achieve this objective, a lot has been
packed into two years. The course contains a rigorous academic curriculum consisting of classes,
assignments and periodic exams along with a plethora of student activities and industry-based
case competitions. This can be overwhelming but it can be managed by creating well thought
out timetables and prioritizing tasks based on urgency and impact to best benefit from all that
the program has to offer.
21) Do you have any experience with data analysis, finance, or business strategy?
I have studied finance in B.com, CA as well as FRM which has given me a strong technical
expertise in it and coming from a business-oriented family, I have firsthand knowledge of
business strategy and decision making in areas such as customer acquisition, product pricing and
workforce management. I have studied about various analytical tools such as stress testing and
volatility forecasting.
22) What areas of business interest you the most?
I find Human resource management to be the most interesting and important part of a business.
A good team can be the difference between a successful and an unsuccessful business. How the
organization is perceived by prospective as well as existing employees is largely dependent on
the work environment in a company, something that can be influenced by the human resource
manager.
