Not only are academic/experience gaps filled in Battle of Minds, but moreover it is a platform for developing future leaders of tomorrow
What started off with a road-show last October in Dhaka University’s prestigious Institute of Business Administration, concluded with a grand finale on December 8 that befitted the grandeur of this year’s Battle of Minds, British American Tobacco Bangladesh’s flagship talent recruitment programme.
Holding road-shows at 8 universities, BAT Bangladesh brought out their Managing Director, Head of HR, Head of Supply Chain and BAT Bangladesh managers who are respective university alumni (and BoM alumni in some cases) and had them tell their stories about their career in BAT Bangladesh so far. Motivation level for the audience sky-rocketed, as had been the case in all the universities they had visited. ‘I want to take part in this year’s Battle of Minds,’ said an undergraduate student of IBA, ‘Most of my senior classmates, especially the talented ones, have participated in the competition in the previous years,’ he added. ‘I want to prove my mettle and stand beside them as one of the successful participants; I know I have what it takes to win.’
BoM 2014 Exposition
And so began the journey of this year’s Battle of Minds. What made the experience unique this time was not merely one reason, but a few. ‘Battle of Minds has crossed unique heights this year, with over 2200 applications,’ said Adrita Datta, Talent Manager at BAT Bangladesh. ‘What makes the Battle of Minds unique is that it recruits future leaders, as the best of the best in Bangladesh encounter real life business challenges and delve into plausible solutions for overcoming them,’ she said, ‘but this year, we thought of organising road shows, where we would have our department and top management heads speak their minds in front of the ambitious students. And the response had been tremendous.’
This emotion was echoed by Rumana Rahman, Head of HR, in the opening speech of the Grand Finale. ‘Battle of Minds has not only evolved, but it has evolved in terms of its magnitude,’ she said, ‘It is not only a competition for graduates, but a platform for showcasing their talents and letting them have a taste of real life work experience. It is because of our effort that not only business students are applying for Battle of Minds, but also students from the engineering background. This year we have had over 2200 applications, which show how students feel about this competition. Here at BAT Bangladesh we not only develop people through coaching and training, but make them go into the real depth of working at different roles inside the company. This competition brings out the best of mind and might,’ she added.
The Main Event
The judges for this year were S.M. Khaled, Head of Supply Chain, Rumana Rahman, Head of HR and Shahed Zubair, Head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs. They were given the arduous task of disseminating business plans that the teams had chalked up in order to give George’s Café a lifestyle brand makeover. From marketing strategies, financial expenditure to SWOT analyses, the contestants had to figure out ways on how to boost revenues and brand exposure for American expatriate chef George Smith’s beloved creation.
The teams were in sync with their respective team member, which was deduced through their immaculate presentation patterns. They were in unison as to their concept, given the manner in which they presented and defended in front of the judges. The judges, given the task of questioning any and every questionable intrinsic details, had a field day in taking the teams to the extent of their knowledge bases.
Various ideas were pitched in front of the judges. From changing the entire theme and concept of George’s Café, to possible expansion plans and modification of target group identification, they pitched every possible concept and gave it their all into their ideas. The passion and zeal with which they spoke were awe-inspiring, and more importantly, the majority of the ideas were practical. There were no audacious or non-feasible ideas brought to the table. That is testament to the quality benchmark that BAT Bangladesh maintained while selecting the BoM finalists, something not found in other business competitions.
What I surmised from their presentations is that they were aware of the implications of the changes they were presenting about. They were aware that they could not go overboard with their finances, as drastic changes are neither practical nor applicable in their given scenario. That is why I believe they played to each of their strengths and had their bases covered with what they were good at. Amitabh Roy, one of the finalists from IBA, said that they had every detail scrutinised before they were sure about them. ‘Since we had not worked together as a team before, we were unsure about our ability to perform as a unit. But as soon as we started working, we critically analyzed each other’s points and supported each other whenever it was necessary,’ he said.
‘I was really impressed with these students today,’ said George Smith, chef and owner of his namesake café. ‘Some of their ideas were not what I would call feasible, but some of them are really worthy of trying. This competition will help them to understand how to develop and improve upon established business institutions and also to work with challenges that they must learn to overcome under any given circumstances. That is something that there is no running away from.’
Take-Home from BoM
But as the presentations came to a closure, the students were engulfed with a sense of sadness, as their experience of working in a business competition, that too in a reputed multinational company, came to an end. ‘Battle of Minds is easily one of the best business competitions that I have been a part of,’ said Nahian Rochi, another proud IBA finalist, ‘every single task of the competition challenged my capabilities and analytical strength.’ ‘Every round had its own surprise factor,’ said Farhan Khaled, another member. ‘From the Formal Group Discussion round to the final presentation round, each experience was memorable. But the most enjoyable part was the preparation time for the final round. We got the opportunity to meet the managers of BAT Bangladesh, who were kind enough to groom us for the final round. I believe, a secondary objective of this was to provide us with an insight of the corporate world. In the end, I would mostly remember Battle of Minds for the warmth and affection that I received from the people at BAT Bangladesh, which helped me to focus on my competition objectives.’
The Grand Awaiting!
Once the presentations were complete, the judges were given time to accumulate the marks they had given to each team and add them up with the marks given for the report plans each of the team had created.
The chairman of BAT Bangladesh, GolamMainuddin and the Board of Directors were present in the occasion – namely Industries secretary M Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, former Defense secretary Kamrul Hasan, former Liberation War Affairs secretary K.H. Masud Suddiqui and Managing Director of Investment Corporation of Bangladesh M Fayekuzzaman.
This gave way for some more inspirational speeches for those in the audience and the student body present in the finale. ‘It had been a refreshing privilege to watch the students present their cases before the judges,’ said Golam Mainuddin. It is true. They had given it their best shots, and more. ‘Their enthusiasm brought life into the competition, a real delight. All the finalists have performed well. As with any other competition, judges will declare the ultimate winners – but it is the experience that will make all of them winners in their respective lives in future. As Battle of Minds is BAT Bangladesh’s flagship talent recruitment programme, it is a classic business competition at heart – it bridges academic teachings with corporate exposure. It is made different with real life business challenges. I am proud to be part of such a pioneering endeavour by BAT Bangladesh, which stepped in its 11th year.’
Shehzad Munim, Managing Director at BAT Bangladesh, had equally inspiring words of wisdom and appraisal for both Battle of Minds and its contestants. ‘‘BAT Bangladesh is way ahead in the game in terms of talent recruitment,’ he said, ‘‘Our managers go on to have international careers, which tells us that we as Bangladeshis have to capability to take on the global stage. Similarly, Battle of Minds grew significantly in 11 years. From a humble beginning, it is now the largest talent platform, with everybody supporting us. I would ask the students and the future leaders to be confident in their abilities, as well as their team working abilities, as it is the key to success. ‘You must learn to face the future with an open mind, otherwise the world will just run past you, without waiting for you to get on track,’ he advised.
Moment of Truth
As the name of the winning team was in the offing, there was no doubt in the audience’s mind that this was a close contest. Islamic University of Technology (IUT) was announced second runners’ up and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) was declared runner’s up for this year’s Battle of Minds competition. As the long pauses were deafened by pulsating heart beats (as sound effects,) the suspense was more than excruciating for the audience to sustain.
It all came to an end when Golam Mainuddin announced IBA as the victor’s of this year’s Battle of Minds. The team from IBA had shown that possessing a clear concept and immaculate preparation had taken them miles ahead of the pack, hence their accolade and getting the distinction of first prize winners.
Reactions Galore
After IBA was declared the winners, it occurred to me that this was not only their success, but also reflected on the hard work of their esteemed faculties. ‘I was secretly hoping that our team would win,’ said Prof. Iqbal Ahmad, Professor and Director at IBA, ‘but more importantly, I was also hoping that they would be objective, concise and prudent in their business plan and presentation, to show that they were subject to an extensive knowledge-based curriculum.’
‘I am proud of my students and congratulate them on winning this year’s Battle of Minds,’ said Homayara Latifa Ahmed, Assistant Professor and Chairperson of IBA’s Career Center. ‘They have successfully and effectively bridged the gap between academic and practical knowledge/business acumen, proving that they are our future leaders. They have what it takes to sustain in the real world of business.’
Dr. Md. Shahid Ullah, Professor and Head of EEE Department at IUT, was all praises for his team. ‘Our boys have shown that they have what it takes to be with the best of the lot and fight it out,’ he said. ‘Teams from IUT have performed exceptionally well every year, and this year was no different. We are slowly filling the gaps that our engineering students feel when facing business dilemmas.’
Keys to Success
‘Battle of Minds provided us the grandest stage to show our potential and it required us to use every bit of practical knowledge we had acquired all these years to win the competition,’ said Amitabh Roy, another member of IBA’s winning team. ‘We were given a real life café to brand and we could literally visualize our solutions and ideas. The competition was a great experience for us not only because of the competition itself, but also the courtesy and hospitality of the organisers. Throughout the five days, we never felt like just the participants of a competition, we were blessed with the warmth and cooperation of the BAT Bangladesh managers. Battle of Minds would always therefore have a place in my heart for the exciting journey it has provided us.’
‘Stress and competition helps people to rise to the occasion, which we realised on our journey to success,’ said Wahida Mashrura Shukh, another winning member. ‘I take back with me the practical lessons of life. I learned to work under pressure, relentlessly, in uncertainty and to work with a team for a team. Winning was certainly a most pleasant aspect but the battle before it, was the real takeaway,’ she said. This year’s Battle of Minds was a journey that none of the final contestants will ever forget.
