GD for experienced candidates…nah!
One gentleman from HLL delivered the Pre-placement session. During the talk he said:
“…It makes sense to have Group Discussion as a selection mechanism in IIMs and other Indian B-schools, where majority of the students are freshers. But in ISB, to subject experienced candidates to Group discussion for 15-30 minutes is not logical. We will have only interviews. We would talk with all the shortlisted candidates and identify their needs and offer roles…”
He also said…”Suppose one has been in to sales and marketing in his past work experience and is willing to move into same function, we will definitely attach some “value” to his “experience” and offer appropriate roles and salary. But if he/she wants to shift to Finance, then we have no other option other than recruiting him as MBA Trainee…Let me be frank on that”
I nodded silently in agreement…!
But one problem we witness with all the pre-placement talks is the lack of clarity on compensation. Most of the companies which come to campus quote the figure which is applicable for freshers and mentions that the compensation will be upwards and the ‘upward’ potential will depend on the relevant experience one brings to the table…Some companies give examples like “For 5 years of ‘relevant’ experience we will give this position and pay this much salary…”. Few others mention “The range will be from X-Y lac rupees per annum”…
Companies mention that they will evaluate the “Value” that each one of us bring to the table and then compensate us accordingly. So, the “Value” / “Experience” is going to be big “negotiation” factor. Companies will try to discount it as much as possible. We will try to extract as much premium from our past “Experience”.
Hmm…Now, where did I keep my negotiation book? 
…Time to blow the dust and brush up some “Salary negotiation concepts” that Mr. Dishan Kamdar gave us.
Bharani,
When a person is trying to change careers, companies often tend to take advantage of the candidates situation and downplay the relevance of the candidates previous experience. However the candidates can steer the negotiation in their favor if they talk not in terms of the areas of expertise / years of experience but more on the lines of Transferable Skills and by demonstrating the relevance of their background experience. The folllowing is an extract of a book I have recently read. You might find it useful.
The concept of transferable skills is particularly important for nontraditional job seekers who must demonstrate that their education and work experience have given them skills that - though used in a totally different context before - can be used or adapted in the new environment to enable the candidate to succeed in the workplace. To demonstrate how a candidate with a nontraditional background often picks up business-relevant experiences, consider these dimensions of work experience, which provide transferable skills you might employ whether you are working in the health care industry or in a computer consulting company:
Performing analysis
Performing math computations
Problem solving
Delivering presentations
Prioritizing tasks
Participating in high-performing teams
Leading teams
Setting goals
Communicating goals
Delegating tasks
Managing work flow
Setting clear deadlines
Coaching team members
Communicating effectively with superiors
Communicating effectively with peers
Communicating effectively with clients
Developing business plans
Securing buy-in for a project
Marketing a project
Implementing change
Bottom line is Phrasing Matters.
This list suggests types of activities and skills that an interviewing candidate might have developed during jobs in fields as diverse as engineering and public policy. To convey nonbusiness experience in relevant terms, therefore, nontraditional candidates should draw on the language of business to speak about their work, conveying in compelling terms the business relevance of their experience.
I wish you and your fellow classmates good luck in job search. May you guys come out in flying colors in job placements.
Comment by Vasu Merugu — January 31, 2006, Tuesday @ 12:20 am
‘’But if he/she wants to shift to Finance, then we have no other option other than recruiting him as MBA Trainee…Let me be frank on that”
‘’ I totally disagree with that statement.
If a person has 5 year experience , even if it is in a totally unrelated , extict industry he/she brings some value to table. So definitely cant be considered as MBA Trainee. One of my classmates shifted to pure finance job at CSFB from Accenture after MBA. She didnt get any increase in Role but got equivalent role. She clearly knew what value she brought and what her areas of focus should be once she joined CSFB. Companies value that maturity. As you might know , it is like ANSOFF….diagonal shift is possible but RISKY …
Comment by Jeeva — January 31, 2006, Tuesday @ 1:45 am
Thanks for a very detailed and thoughtful comment Vasu.Appreciate it.Thanks for the wishes….Welcome
Jeeva, what you say is true, but does not apply to all the companies. There are some consulting biggies, I-Banking biggies who are not ready to take even a 5-year experienced guy as Associate. They take him/her as Junior Associate. Ofcourse there are exceptions when the candidate has extra-ordinary work experience. Bottomline, if the company is not willing to recruit people from un-related specialization, one can’t do much. Company might see recruiting a non-finance guy into a finance role as a risky proposition…
But, if the company does not have any specific policy, then it’s anybody’s game…
All said, everything boils down to negotiation and marketing oneself. Agree.
In this case, they are not keen in accomodating role-shifters, atleast while recruiting initially.
Comment by Administrator — January 31, 2006, Tuesday @ 2:02 am
Do these companies recruite MBAs from IIM , XLRI ,ISB at the SAME LEVEL as MBAs from LBS/Insead ? because I know some profiles who entered in to top tier firms from India, not as Associates but at SrAnalyst level positions…
Well the risk of recruiting a person who was medical rep to work in equity research IS LESS THAN a person with no experience , given both did MBA at ISB…what do you say??
Comment by Jeeva — January 31, 2006, Tuesday @ 2:08 am
Vasu, that was very insightful. Thanks for your comments. Hope to use them during my negotiations
Comment by Karthik — January 31, 2006, Tuesday @ 10:42 am
Most of these consulting firms and I-Banking firms recruit for Indian operations. So can’t compare with LBS/INSEAD. So far, only 2 from ISB has entered as Associates (one level above Junior Associate) in McK. No cases of anyone doing so from IIMs. That’s the scenario.
The medical rep guy will have a different salary expectation and role expectation than the guy with no experience. That’s when companies begin to hard-ball!
Comment by Anonymous — February 1, 2006, Wednesday @ 1:50 am
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Comment by Anne — March 3, 2006, Friday @ 11:29 am