Phew! It‗s been a really long time

since we met. A lot of water has

flowed down the Subarnarekha since

then.

The second term, much feared for

its increased hectic nature because

of the packed schedule of classes

and the immersion program, proved

to be more hectic in the short peri-

od after coming back. In the end,

all‘s well that ends well.

We also had the alumni homecom-

ing during this time where we got a

chance to interact with our Alumni

and learn about their experiences in

their professional lives post GMP.

The GMP seniors took this oppor-

tunity wholeheartedly to interact

with the current batch. The meet

ups were quite informative and in-

teractive, held within the classrooms

Editorial

Volume 1, Issue 3 X L R I G M P N e w s l e t t e r

GliMPse

as well as the Pankaj Dhaba and dis-

played the spirit of bonding and to-

getherness that makes the XL com-

munity.

As customary with the GMP tradi-

tion, Amnesia 3.0 kicked off the 3rd

term. The winter chill accompanied

the start of 3rd term classes, and

with the schedule a little relaxed

compared to the previous two

terms, this was the term to focus on

our areas of interest and desired

competence.

Along came a breather in the middle

of the 3rd term in the form of

Christmas holidays during the last

week of the year. Many GMPians

decided to take a break and cele-

brate the New Year with their fami-

lies. Those who decided to remain in

the campus had a New Year party

organized at the dhaba. We sure

utilized these holidays well to re-

deem the sleep that we had been

denied all these days.

Yet, the most exciting and enriching

experience during this rather long

hiatus between the two editions,

was the International Immersion

Program where GMPians traveled to

New Orleans, Chicago, Lille, Manila

and Taiwan for their respective ex-

change program cum short-term

internship projects. That‘s why we

thought it would be best to give you

a ‗GliMPse‘ at our experiences in the

International Immersion program.

So, here we are back with the 3rd

edition of Glimpse, with a promise

to deliver the next edition faster to

you than we did this one. Happy

Reading!!!

Beyond the classroom 2

The Immersion Memoirs 3-7

The business of social gaming 8

Pro‘s words 9

Know your batch, mate! 10

Ego vs. Alter Ego—2 11

Inside this issue A Chinese Experience

Nikhil Uppal, a GMP Student, had a ―Chinese experience‖ when he won

―Olympus‖, the flagship pan-India business leadership competition at

IIMC`s B-School fest - Intaglio-2011. The participants came not only

from top Indian schools such as all the IIMs, ISB and MDI but also from

schools across Asia Pacific such as ―China Europe International Business

School‖ (CEIBS), Shanghai. ―I found the Chinese participants very eager

to learn about India, our education system and our core values‖ – says

Nikhil when asked about his experiences. It seems Nikhil not only won

the event, easily one of the toughest competitions in the b-school

landscape, but along with other participants also managed to impress

the students from across the Himalayas.

Nikhil Uppal with the trophy

Volume 1, I ssue 3 Page 2

We had enjoyed the personality tests and his

conversational teaching style during the 1st term

of GMP. Sitting in a cozy office largely occupied

by books about human behavior, Prof. Jittu Singh

shares with GliMPse some facts about his own

personality:

GliMPse: How was your first day at XL?

Prof. Jittu Singh: My first day XL was in 1968.

The college was very small in those days. In fact

the first thing that struck me was the compact

size of college!!! I had always studied at institu-

tions which were huge, and here everything was

in one building. Another thing that stood out

was the cosmopolitan group of both students

and professors, presence of different ethnic

groups, international students and professors.

The most memorable thing, of course, is the

community spirit of XLRI. That spirit was born

in those days, when even the director used to

join us for breakfast and dinner, sports etc. With

a small number of students and professors, it

was really easy to connect with everyone.

GliMPse: What‘s your most memorable incident

in XL?

Prof. Jittu Singh: Working with and learning from

Father Tome, one of the architects of what XLRI

is today, was truly memorable. He had a very

impressive personality, and was immensely

learned.

GliMPse: What do you hate about your job?

Prof. Jittu Singh: Evaluating answer papers!!!

(Now we know why we received our grades a

little ‘late‘ )

GliMPse: What is your happiest childhood

memory?

Prof. Jittu Singh: I guess that would be my school

days (St. Xavier‘s Patna). Those were the best

years!!! We had a great hostel—I made some of

my best friends there with whom I am still in

touch; the recent 45th anniversary reunion was

very memorable.

GliMPse: What do you love the most about

teaching at XLRI?

Prof. Jittu Singh: Teaching here keeps me alive!!!

I have seen corporate world, where things fall

into rut very quickly everywhere. But here with

new students coming in every year, the new

audience keeps the challenge going. This has

ensured that I am not yet brain dead!

GliMPse: What is the one thing you want to

Beyond the classroom...

among highly talented employees recruited from

IITs who were leaving jobs to get MBA educa-

tion. We wanted to give them the equivalent of

an MBA and retain them in the company. I met

the director and we worked out a program. For

the first 2-3 years it was only for Tata steel

employees and then was opened for other com-

panies in the TATA group. Soon the program

gained reputation and other companies got

interested. That‘s when we decided to open the

program to all the interested students.

GliMPse: One line to describe GMP?

Prof. Jittu Singh: During his recent visit, Mr.

Mathias - International Relation‘s Director for

the IESEG School Paris, said, ―This was the best

group we got in last 3 years from XLRI". I was

really proud to hear this. I also personally enjoy

teaching GMP more simply because the industry

experience that people carry facilitates more

relevant discussion in the class.

GliMPse: Your message to the current GMP

batch?

A: Lage Raho!

change in this world?

Prof. Jittu Singh: There are many things but most

importantly injustice and corruption going un-

questioned and taken as a way of life is some-

thing that really bothers me a lot. I would want

to change that.

GliMPse: Who do you consider your mentor

who has inspired you the most in your life?

Prof. Jittu Singh: My two former teachers, one

was school principal Father Gordon Murphy and

another Father Tome, have had a great influence

on me.

GliMPse: Your favorite food?

Prof. Jittu Singh: I am not a great foodie but I

love to taste different varieties of food. Wherev-

er I go I like to sample the local cuisine. I am

willing to try some outrageous things like octo-

pus, snails, horse meat etc.

GliMPse: How did GMP come into existence?

Prof. Jittu Singh: I will take a good amount of

credit for that. I was in Tata Steel and we were

trying to find a solution for the attrition problem

Narendran Santhanam

Swati Ghaisas

Page 3

American perspective. Dr Abol Jalil-

vand on Asset Bubbles, Dr Brian Till

on Brand Architecture, Dr Charles

Steilen on Export-Import strategy –

were among the experts in the field to

share ideas with the GMPians. It was a

warm feeling to find one of our own at

Loyola University – Prof Arup Verma

heading the HRM area is a PMIR gradu-

ate from the batch of XLRI, 1983.

Apart from these sessions, the group

was assigned projects in M & A, SCM,

Strategic HR, IT Consulting and Im-

port-Export. The latter was supervised

by Dr. Charles Steilen who was very

passionate about trade opportunities

between Chicago-based businesses and

Indian companies.

Delegates from World Business Chica-

go, the economic development office

for Chicago headed by the city Mayor,

made a series of presentations to the

GMP about the business landscape in

Chicago and the opportunities that

exist. A visit to the Chicago Stock

Exchange was also organized.

It wasn‘t all work and no play. The

folks at the Loyola University exempli-

fied hospitality, and went out of their

way to guide us to all the must-see

locations in this beautiful city. The

Navy Pier overlooking the unbelievable

-to-be-a-lake Michigan, the iconic Art

Institute of Chicago where Swami Vi-

GliMPse

The Immersion Memoirs—Chicago Eric Nishant Ekka

There was excitement, anticipation

and smiles among the group of GMPi-

ans from XLRI Jamshedpur as the Air

India flight flew over Lake Michigan

approaching the O‘Hare International

Airport at Chicago. The International

Immersion program was about to get

underway...

A group of 23 GMP students visited

the Graduate School of Business, Loy-

ola University at Chicago for a 3- week

International Immersion Program be-

tween October 16th and November

7th 2010. The purpose of the program

was to give exposure in International

Business, and provide opportunity to

work with the Industries in Chicago.

The 3-week program was well struc-

tured and supervised by the senior

faculty at the GSB, Loyola University.

Prof Mine Cinar (from the Economics

area) was the chief coordinator along

with the Dean Prof Abol Jalilvand (in

Finance). We had the opportunity of

interacting with the best faculty at

GSB. A lecture series was organized, in

which eminent faculty interacted and

shared ideas with us. Carrying industry

experience from various sectors, the

group had fruitful discussions with the

senior faculty. The GMPians presented

an Indian perspective to the various

topics that were discussed and had the

opportunity to understanding the

vekananda addressed the Parliament of

world religions in 1893, the John Han-

cock observatory which gives a topline

view of the entire city, shopping on the

Magnificent Mile on Michigan avenue,

and the confusing array of eating joints

in the downtown, and the Cloudgate

at the Millennium park– just few of the

landmarks to name.

The program concluded with the

GMPians making a presentation on ―A

Surging India‖ - to the faculty and stu-

dents of the Graduate School of Busi-

ness. It was an attempt to highlight the

emergence of India on the world stage

– a SWOT and the road ahead. The

collective effort was well received and

appreciated by the GSB. We got a

heart-warming surprise on the last day

of the program – each of us was given

a nice Chicago-Loyola University mem-

orabilia from the GSB.

And when we boarded the shuttle

towards the airport to be home-

bound, despite the impending storm of

quizzes and submissions awaiting us at

campus, all of us had a smile and a

sense of satisfaction - for the new

things we had learnt and for the new

relations that were established.

Photo Courtesy: Narendran Santhanam

Volume 1, I ssue 3 Page 4

We started from XLRI on 16th Oct

2010 and reached Asian Institute of

Management (AIM), Manila on 17th

Oct. AIM, being located in the heart of

Philippines business district-Makati,

provided a rich tranquil environment

for study, work and leisure. Living and

working from AIM-Conference Cen-

tre was a wonderful experience and a

great way to grow both professionally

and personally.

Our first week saw a mix of classes

and visits to individual companies for

project specific activities. We had

Prof. Federico C. Gonzalez, CEO,

Philippine Emerging Start-Ups Open,

Inc. who took up sessions on Techno-

preneurship and Innovation Strategies.

Using cases he also taught us how to

develop Business Plans. He was very

impressed with the quality of class

discussions and gave us a challenge to

come up with our own business plans

as a take-away assignment from the

course. For Action Learning Project,

we got the opportunity to work with

companies such as GlaxoSmithKline

Philippines, Lafarge Cements, Emerson

Network Power, Mega Sardines and

National Electrification Administra-

tion.

The following weekend came as a

breather and we were taken by the

institute for an out-of-town Cultural

Trip to Villa de Escudero. There we

got chance to taste local cuisine, ride

water-bullock carts, try fishing and

row bamboo rafts. It was a nice break

after a very hectic schedule that we

have had over the last few months.

During our second week, in first half

of the day, we had classes on Project

Management along with a diverse

group of professionals from Philippines

and Indonesia. During the second half,

we worked on our respective pro-

The Immersion Memoirs—Manila

ed their plans the other group mem-

bers watched in amazement and awe.

We ourselves were stumped by the

level of planning and thought each

team had put. And it was no surprise

that Professor watched and smiled and

clapped as he grilled each presenta-

tion. As per him, each one of those

ideas had real potential to be a suc-

cess and he wanted us to pursue them

further. We did keep the XLRI flag

flying high!!

On our last day we were given our

participation certificate. This was fol-

lowed by a farewell luncheon with

Madam Ugut (Associate Dean) and

Prof Dr Edilberto Jesus (AIM-

President).

We thoroughly enjoyed classroom

sessions, CAN group analysis and the

overall stay at AIM. The arrangements

were perfect throughout. The Action

Learning Projects gave us opportunity

to think business from different per-

spectives. The guidance from profes-

sors and the case method enhanced

our theoretical and practical skills.

At AIM we met and interacted with a

well-selected mix of experienced stu-

dents from different nationalities and

sectors which has broadened our

horizon and has ameliorated the pro-

cess of learning beyond the lectures.

This has also given us good insights

with respect to cross-cultural sensitiv-

ities. People in Philippines and at the

Institute in particular were very caring

and helping. In particular, the AIM

coordinators were particularly forth-

coming with whatever help we had

asked for, enabling a very enriching

learning experience.

jects. This included visits to the com-

pany, field visits to plants, interaction

with retailers, interaction with cus-

tomers etc. The weekend was a long

one and students went on short ex-

cursion to an active volcano

(Tagaytay) and beaches near manila.

Our last week at AIM was mainly fo-

cused on final project preparations

and presentations to respective com-

panies. We also had a session on

Emerging Market Trends in Philippines

and Cross-Cultural Sensitivity by the

very renowned Prof. Federico M. Mac-

aranas. He had held some high profile

diplomatic roles in the Department of

Foreign Affairs and had chaired Senior

Officials Meetings of the Asia-Pacific

Economic Cooperation (APEC) and

Association of Southeast Asian Na-

tions (ASEAN). He shared with us his

experiences of interaction with Indian

Diplomats like Dr. Manmohan Singh

and P. Chidambaram. He also dis-

cussed why India actually gave up right

to be in APEC and agreed to be just

an observer.

Then finally we prepared business

plans as part of challenge given by

Prof. Federico C. Gonzalez in first

week. The plans were on Innovative

Technologies. As each group present-

Vikash Chandra

Photo Courtesy: James Jerry

Page 5 Gl iMPse

The Immersion Memoirs—New Orleans Ankhee Debdas

Shantanu Jindal

I don‘t know if Edmund Hillary tried

any harder but the exasperating jour-

ney was as arduous if not as momen-

tous. Long queues, longer security

drills and sleepy co-passengers. If this

is how it began, I was wondering if the

ending would be any different—worse

perhaps (sigh!). 5 films, 20 dinners and

with a few passengers missing (dead

perhaps—in the eternal wait), the

flight finally landed.

After expunging myself of all hopes

I tried to sleep and quickly passed

off into a deep slumber. Next

morning started at midnight in the

by-lanes of Tulane University

(people said it was 7:00 in the

morning but I am still sure they

were conspiring against me). The

strategy class was more of a tacti-

cal competition for the guys and if

you pressed your ears harder you

could hear them murmur ‘peeli

wali meri, pink wali teri‘. The day

came to an end but not before a

splendid evening stroll by the River

(the bulwark known as River Park

attracted a lot of tourists, was also

a nice place to hang out and ab-

sorb some of the quintessential

Jazz culture).

You could sense that the financial

crisis was still being felt and full marks

to the administration for trying their

bit to let the GMPians contribute to

the rescue, after all MBA was all about

how to resurrect the economy. So we

were strategically, I daresay, housed

next to Harrah‘s, the casino. We had

some real passionate volunteers who

did more than their best for the US

economy, prompting even President

Obama to comment ‗Shukriya,

Dipawali mubarak‘.

We were to do small projects at the

superbowl. Saints are the New Orle-

ans major league football players. So

the sports fan added to the color of

the town.

A lot of us were visiting their extend-

ed families in US on the weekends

while a lot of took the plunge and

went to the marshes to check out the

alligators. New Orleans is famous for

its marshes and swarms of alligators,

in fact we also came to know that

the US government sanctions hunt-

ing of alligators every year for a

limited number and period.

We played eight rounds of cap-

stone simulation games with Prof.

Wilson during our Tulane visits. On

the final day we completed our

presentation to the Jury, presided

by founders of Idea village and head

of the town planning commission,

New Orleans. All the entrepre-

neurs were present and they ap-

plauded the work done by XLers

for their ventures.

In hindsight, it appears to have

passed so quick as if it was all in a

day, but a day in paradise. And

there it was again—long queues,

longer security drills and sleepy co-

passengers… 5 films, 20 dinners

and with a few passengers missing the

flight landed in India.

The sojourn was anything but trivial; it

was a tremendous learning experi-

ence, strategy or no strategy. The days

of yore it now seems, pleasant memo-

ries of a great time gone by. The GMP

calendar marred the simplicity of our

lives by reminding that those days of

river cruise of fun and frolic with

friends and the beautiful jazz by the

meadow would not be there any long-

er. We‘ll miss you, NOLA.

Idea village, which were explained to

us after the lunch. All the projects

were for entrepreneurs who were

working with Idea Village in order to

either expand or establish their ven-

tures. We were divided into groups of

five and attached to teams of entre-

preneurs. I am sure they had asked for

our detailed profile or maybe decided

to go by the looks alone. Either which

way I was, strategically again, attached

to the culinary team, so as you might

have figured out by now my job was

to, well, eat, eat some more and then

some more and in between meals plan

for their marketing strategy. Some of

them suggested using me as an em-

blem for their product. I wonder

why…

If there is one thing that you can‘t

miss about New Orleans, it‘s the par-

ty. Book launches to Halloween, NO-

LA knows how to party!! Both the

weekends were Saints games in the

Photo Courtesy: Sachin Gulati

Volume 1, I ssue 3 Page 6

After waiting till the last moment (got the

Visa just two days before we were sched-

uled to travel to France) all of us were

really excited to visit IESEG Lille and Paris

campus as a part of 3-weeks International

Immersion at GMP. We embarked on

our journey fully loaded with tons of

travel tips, shopping lists, anticipation of

meeting new professors and the thrill of

working on challenging assignments with

French companies.

The purpose of the program was to give

exposure in International Business, un-

derstand the structure and political &

business scenario in European Commis-

sion. Also this was an opportunity to

work with some well-known and well-

established French companies as consult-

ants.

The 3-week program was packed with

lots of interesting lectures, activities,

outdoor plans, and a 10 day internships.

The entire program was managed by the

international relations office at IESEG,

Lille. We were given the plan in advance

and were prepared for the lectures and

project before landing in Paris.

We were received at Paris airport by Mr

Ricky Young, the international relations

officer at IESEG. He epitomized hospitali-

ty, making us feel completely at home

during the entire trip. And the small city

of Lille was a typical small European city,

beautiful with all the old charm of Euro-

pean architecture.

During our course we got the opportuni-

ty to learn from distinguished professors

on various diverse topics like Internation-

al and Intercultural Marketing, Logistics &

Supply Chain, Strategy, French and EU

culture etc. These lectures were mostly

turning into open discussions with pro-

fessors really wanting to know the India

difference and the students keen to un-

derstand the finer details. It all created a

very interactive environment and facilitat-

ed lot of learning. Learning international

marketing from Ms. Monali Hota, an

The Immersion Memoirs—France

the feel and the look of medieval times

are as pleasant as in this city close to the

North Sea.

Among other things we really enjoyed

the French cuisine during our trip; vari-

ous types of cheese, Café gourmand,

freshly baked baguettes and many more.

It‘s a heaven for dessert lovers although a

few vegetarians found it little difficult to

order food sometime.

The program concluded with the four

groups making business presentations to

the senior management of companies on

the respective consulting assignments.

The approach to the problem, solutions

suggested, and the overall maturity of

study was very well appreciated by both

the Oxylane and Sodexo senior manage-

ment. To be presented with the Coffee

Table book on France and getting the

excellent feedback of being the most

interesting and sincere international

group IESEG has hosted, was a proud

moment for all of us.

When we took the flight back we were

prepared for the hectic schedules, long

flight back and the quizzes and exams that

awaited us at XLRI. But the feeling of

accomplishment and containment on

completing the training well was over-

whelming. The learning and the new rela-

tions we fostered are going to stay for

life.

XIMB graduate, was a very heartening

experience.

The visit to the EU commission head-

quarters in Brussels to attend the presen-

tation made by a delegation from Europe-

an Commission about the EU-India busi-

ness relations, the changing dynamics in

Europe, trade relations with other coun-

tries etc. was a very enriching experi-

ence. After enjoying delectable lunch at

EU HQ we spent the rest of day appreci-

ating the beautiful city of Brussels. Brus-

sels, the capital city of Belgium and the

administrative center of the European

Union, has earned the title of the Capital

of Europe, thanks to a beautiful mix of

French and Flemish culture, picturesque

medieval streets, lively squares beautiful

boulevards, impressive monuments, spa-

cious parks and cozy cafés. Simply amaz-

ing!!!

While we were working on our projects,

we also took time to visit Paris - the Eiffel

tower, Norte dam, walks besides the

Seine River, the boat trip, road side cafés,

and the Louvre museum. The city is a

traveller‘s delight with very friendly lo-

cals, English speaking population, and easy

public transport. Another highlight of the

trip was the visit to the Bruges. Bruges is

called : 'the Venice of the North'. This

splendid medieval city is one of Belgium's

crown jewels. In no other European city

Swati Gupta

Photo Courtesy: Pranjal Choudhury

Page 7 Gl iMPse

The International Immersion trip to Tai-

wan was the first of its kind for XLRI.

And it won't be a stretch to say that

perhaps for the first time a group of

Indian students have gone to Taiwan as

part of their internship.

Needless to say, our eclectic group of

GMPians (24 of us) went with a open

mind as our initial perceptions were

rather vague: A small south-east Asian

country with a strong Chinese

flavor. Gladly, the three week of

largely academic tour, also of-

fered us an opportunity to catch

glimpse of this wonderful coun-

try and experience its multi-

dimensional culture.

Our program was conducted by

FuJen University – a renowned

Jesuit university in heart of Tai-

wanese capital city of Taipei. A

galaxy of colleges, the university

had lively atmosphere, and the

hospitality extended by Dean Dr.

Michael was immaculate. He left

no stone unturned to ensure

that we got an opportunity to

learn and interact from the most

distinguished professionals and

govt. officials of Taiwan. The first

10 days of the program were

aligned to expose us to the eco-

nomic scenario and business

possibilities/potential in Taiwan.

We got an opportunity to visit

the Taiwan Stock Exchange, the

HQ of the country's biggest sci-

ence park and a major chip man-

ufacturer. We engaged in some

valuable discussions with govern-

ment officials at Institute of Infor-

mation Industry, who provided

us food for thought by inviting us

to provide a business plan for entry

strategy of Taiwan's ICT Industry in Indi-

an Markets.

As a group, we had a palpable feeling of

being treated not as students, but as

The Immersion Memoirs—Taiwan

Talking further on the "Chinese flavor"

perception, this island country is indeed

an amalgamation of several cultures.

After being led by various rulers for cen-

turies (including the Dutch, the Qing

Dynasty and the Japanese), Taiwan was

finally declared a Republic of China in the

mid of the 20th century. But unlike Chi-

na, Taiwan has had capitalist leanings, and

has evolved into an export oriented

economy. Energetic government

measures including currency and

tax reforms resulted in substan-

tial economic progress have

ensured high standards of living.

The govt. of Taiwan has strategi-

cally leveraged technology for

the benefit of all segments of it‘s

population. A very important

factor of this growth is Taiwan‘s

ability to effectively execute pub-

lic-private partnerships at the

national scale.

Taiwan has beautifully married its

traditional values with western

glamour (the upmarket down-

town is biggest testimony to

that). With stunning temples,

exquisite antiques, and a wide

variety of cuisines to relish, 20

days in this country just flew by.

Our farewell dinner was at FuJen

university campus, where choic-

est Indian cuisines were prepared

for us with Indian music playing

in background. The atmosphere

was festive (it was Diwali!!) their

care in this regard made the

celebrations truly memorable.

In the end, it was not just Taiwan

we discovered, the wholesome

experience indeed gave us an opportuni-

ty to represent India in a country which

has a huge heart and a humble core.

delegates and future business leaders

from India.

This brief and well planned exposure

busted one myth – although unfair - of

comparing Taiwanese products to cheap

Chinese products flooding the Indian

market. Our visit there made us realize

Taiwan was indeed a hardware foundry

for the best of (top global brands) of

electronics. In fact, all top laptop brands

are not only Intel Inside, they are

―Taiwan Inside‖. Taiwanese electronics

are reasonably priced but not cheap

enough to raise questions about the

quality.

Nisha Dhadha

Anuj Jain

Photo Courtesy: Nisha Dhadha

Volume 1, I ssue 3 Page 8

Social games are browser based games

that appeals to users at all age levels

and have social network or integration

elements. The more popular social

games include Farmville, Mafia wars,

Fishville etc. that people might have

played on Facebook, MySpace and

other platforms.

Do these games earn money? The

major stream of revenue for the social

gaming companies includes monetiza-

tion of virtual goods. This amount of

revenue directly corresponds to the

number of daily users who logon. A

user who comes in and plays the game

every day is much more likely to get to

open his or her wallet, compared to

someone who visits once or twice a

month or plays once or twice and

never comes back. A user generally

pays up to reach a higher level of game

faster (e.g. in the case of Fishville, he

wants to buy some plants but selling

his existing fish cannot fund his new

investment. Unfortunately, Fishville

users don‘t have access to efficient

virtual capital markets?, so he is left to

buy the plants with his real cash).

Now, how do these companies keep

the users returning i.e. how do they

make them sticky? The answer is cus-

tomer acquisition via advertising, viral

game play mechanics and network

effect.

The major non-viral mechanism is Fa-

cebook ads. Zynga, the company re-

sponsible for hit games such as

Farmville, Fishville and now Frontier

Ville, spends millions of dollars a day

on them when it is launching a new

game. The major viral mechanism is

asking users at every possible step on

whether to post updates, send neigh-

bour requests, gifts to friends, invites

etc. The psychological trigger at work

here is the principle of reciprocity,

The Business of Social Gaming

game has to be sticky; compelling

enough to get a user to come back day

after day and engaged enough to want

to open their wallet. This stickiness

factor is measured by DAU/MAU

where MAU is the no. of monthly

active users (stands for the reach of

the application) and DAU is the no. of

daily active users (dedicated user base,

that has the potential to be mone-

tized). If the application is 20% sticky,

then for every new user, there is a

20% chance of making him/her a daily

user.

The social gaming scene is becoming

an attractive scene and apart from

existing players, established gaming

players such as Electronic Arts and

Blizzard Entertainment have also mi-

grated to social gaming. Interesting

times lie ahead in the social gaming

scene, with distinct possibilities of dis-

ruptive business models. For example,

in an industry first, Amex and Zynga

have tied up to offer limited edition

virtual goods to Amex card holders on

redemption of reward points.

wherein humans are obliged to re-

spond to gifts, bringing more business

onto the fold. If their friends join, then

users get some points that can be used

to buy virtual goods.

To come up with a ballpark estimate of

the earning potential of a social game,

let us analyze the case of Farmville. A

social game requires an investment of

around $300,000. About 5% of people

who play social games pay money for

the virtual goods that they purchase or

sign up for advertising offers that result

in cash flows to the developer. Around

32 million people play Farmville every

day. Generally a virtual good or an

offer costs $5. If we take a ball park

estimate that each user who plays gen-

erates on average a penny a day, then

we have average per user annual reve-

nue of $3.65.

Multiplying that by 32 million daily

users makes it $116 million per year

for Farmville.

To generate revenue from users, a

Pranjal Choudhury

Page 9 Gl iMPse

Pro’s words? Narendran Santhanam

We‘ve tried to make the crossword a little easier and smaller than the previous

one due to popular demand. The theme for this crossword is marketing. Brush

up your marketing knowledge and try cracking this puzzle! Good luck!

Send your entries to:

Glimpse_GMP@astra.xlri.ac.in

Last edition’s answers:

Across

1. It's what you pay when you buy a

branded product

6. It's not just a reading technique; it's

a new product pricing strategy

7. It can be hard to come by in the

corporate world, but it's what creates

awareness about your product

9. What you should do, if ―1 Down‖

gets too big

11. Opinion of a customer about a

product or service

12. May be a rare tile, someone who

sells products directly to customer

14. What delivers your product to the

end-user

15. It can happen with marketing also,

not just with your eyes

16. Customer acquisition is considered

easier than this

Down

1. Combination of two or more prod-

uct families

2. What you as a consumer might ex-

perience after buying a product if you

are not satisfied

3. Applies to either a customer or a

brand - the total lifetime value

4. A piece of the pie; a subset of the

market

5. It's how you make your product

unique if you're a marketer, or find the

derivative if you're a mathematician

8. Consumers don't pay for products

or services. They pay for these

10. The battle for your mind!

13. Find again to obtain insights from

market data

1

2 3

4

5

6

7

8 9

10

11

12

13

14

14

15

16

Across: Down

1. Library 2. Amnesia

4. Opinions 3. Tentative

7. Consultant 5. Confidence

9. Schedule 6. Placements

11. Case study 8. Assignment

13. Where is the clue 10. Benchmarking

19. Overpriced 12. Powerpoint

21. Dadus 14. Lead Time

23. Leverage 15. Economic

24. Product 16. Power Nap

17. Retail

18. Branding

20. Strategy

22. Aloo

Volume 1, I ssue 3 Page 10

He‘s fondly called ―Major‖ by his GMP

batchmates and always wears a smile

no matter what the situation is. With

an ability to light up any group with

his jovial nature, James Jerry Isaac is

very popular among the batch. An

army veteran who fought in Kargil and

Surankot in Kashmir, Jerry shares

with us his funny side in this inter-

view:

GliMPse: Are you a morning or night

person?

Jerry: When I am not a morning per-

son, I am a Night person.

GliMPse: If you could be any animal,

what would you be?

Jerry: A Party animal…

GliMPse: If you could live anywhere in

the world, where would you live?

Jerry: Timbuktu, coz then no one

would be interested in coming over

to see me. Keeps away unwanted

people!

GliMPse: What do you think about

right before falling asleep?

Jerry: Ahh, the bed feels good…

should stop drinking… unless I want

to drink… Porter analysis… Damn!

Forgot to read the case! Do I have

en ou g h c i g a r e t t e s… z z z z …

zzzzzzzzzz…

GliMPse: What is the one thing that

no one knows about you?

Jerry: I am very scared of myself…

(that's why I'm so quiet. I dare not

talk in front of me!)

GliMPse: What is the one thing you

would change about yourself?

Know your batch, mate!

GliMPse: What is your happiest child-

hood memory?

Jerry: Bunked my class 11th final exam

(chemistry) and my dad fell down

laughing when he heard of it. Thank-

fully they took a re-test for me ( with

full support from my dad). It‘s a happy

memory because my dad's reaction

was totally unexpected !!

GliMPse: Who's the funniest person

you know?

Jerry: GOD!!

GliMPse: What was the best vacation

you ever had?

Jerry: XLRI... I'm still having it!!!

Jerry: Stop using Facebook. My self

esteem and self worth now depends

on how many people respond to my

posts. It has gone virtual....I don't care

if someone hasn't sent me a card or

called me up on my birthday, but I

sure do mind if someone hasn't

wished me on Facebook. ( I'll get back

to you on your b'day, moron)

GliMPse: What is the best band of all

time?

Jerry: Does an "Unemployed Hus-

BAND" with a working wife qualify

for it???

GliMPse: What is your first thought

when you wake up?

Jerry: Morning already? Where the

hell is the snooze button?

Narendran Santhanam

GliMPse is XLRI GMP’s newsletter bringing you the lat-est happenings at the GMP course. The content in this newsletter represents the thoughts, intentions, plans or strategies of students of XLRI GMP 2011 and makes no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, suitability or validity of any information on this newsletter, and will not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this infor-mation or any losses, injuries or damages arising from its dis-play or use. The opinions expressed here are of the XLRI-GMP students alone and do not reflect the opinions of the institute or any employee thereof. XLRI is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by the students.

XLRI GMP is a One year full time

MBA Program for executives with a

minimum of 5 years of experience.

The batch strength is 120. Candidates

have varied backgrounds and excelled

in their respective fields. Admission is

through GMAT/XAT scores, Essays &

Interviews.

Ego: The fact is all this is so nauseat-

ingly obscene.

Alter-Ego: Nope, the fact is human

beings want to be good, but not too

good, and not all the time.

Ego: And you blame that the society

always demands a little more than

what it will get in practice.

Alter-Ego: Now, that tells me you

want to be 'evidently' foolish.

Ego: Go to hell.

Alter-Ego: You're coming with me.

Ego vs. Alter Ego—2 Avinash Sekar

Ego: I‘m angry.

Alter-Ego: Now what?

Ego: Ok, answer this question. What

do you make of democracy?

Alter-Ego: Power of the people.

Ego: You mean, of "We, the People‖?

Alter-Ego: I know what you are get-

ting at. See, the tapes are there. Eve-

ryone knows it‘s just the tip of the

iceberg. The only surprise was to see

journalists as businessmen.

Doodled by Rahul Gupta