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Season 2:Profile:GEM.X - 95.6%(Tamilnadu Board)XII - 92%(Tamilnadu Board)UG - 67.4% (B.Tech.(IT) from PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore)Work Experience - 5 months, 19 days at Deloitte Consulting as on January 31, 2019.CAT 2018 - 99.71 percentile (99.29|100|87.45)Episode 2: Common Admission Process(CAP) for ten new IIMsDate: 11/02/2019Venue: Monarch Luxor Hotel, BangaloreWritten Ability Test(WAT):The previous generations preferred not to share information about private life. But with the advent of smartphones, the present generation is sharing mundane trivial information online. What are your views on it? (Not verbatim).Started with the previous generation being conservative and they did not have any medium to share even if they wanted to and nowadays with increasingly liberal outlook and technology has provided means to share information; Moved to pros and cons of this and concluded by saying judicious sharing of meaningful information is necessary.Interview:105 candidates were called in my slot. There were seven panels in total with around 15 students per panel I was allotted the first panel. I was the first one to be interviewed in my panel. There were two middle-aged male panelists(M1 and M2) and one elderly lady panelist(F). M1 called me inside.F: Take your seat. You working now?K: Yes ma’am, I am working in the Technology Consulting domain of Deloitte for the past 6 months.M2: Tell us about your work.K: Told.M2: Why is your college score so low? It is only 67%. Is scoring in PSG College that difficult? What is the top score?K: Sir, the top score is around 95%.F: Then why didn’t you study well?K: Sir… Sorry. Ma’am, when I entered college that was the first time I am moving out of college. I didn’t have much wordly knowledge and I was ignorant. I was a bit arrogant that I possessed great leadership skills. I thought getting you a good engineering college would mean passing out with a great managerial job. I was that ignorant. Hence I didn’t pay much heed to the academics. As a result. my grades dropped and it was in the 50s at the end of the first year. I also had five backlogs at the end of the first year. I realized my lesson at the end of the first year. I understood that I will be getting nowhere in my life at this pace and started working hard. In the second year, I worked on clearing my backlogs which resulted in my grades increasing from the 50s to the 60s. I struggled to….. (M2 cutting in)M2: But it is mentioned as 67 here.K: Sir, that is because I cleared the backlogs.M2: Ohh! Continue.K: (Continuing my answer) I struggled to hold a single complete conversation in English at the end of my first year. I have worked on this. I also started participating in Extra curricular activities. In the final year, I went on to hold two Positions of Responsibilities simultaneously.M2: What are those?K: I was the Secretary of the Students’ Research Council of my college and I co-ordinated the establishment of Higher Education Learning Center in my college.F: This is because of your arrogance, not ignorance.K: Ma’am, but arrogance is because of ignorance.F: I will not agree, let’s move ahead.M2: What did you gain as a person in your work experience?K: Started explaining the project experiences I gained… (M2 cutting in)M2: (In a strong tone) As a person!(Before I start answering)F: Weight! (Ultimate savage! For the readers, I stand 6 feet tall with a BMI of 30+)(We four had a good laugh)K: I am maintaining the same weight, ma’am. The gain happened in college.(The panelists had a good laugh again)F: Okay, so tell us now what did you gain as a person?K: (Thinking)F: It’s okay even if you didn’t gain anything. I don’t have a problem with that.K: (After thinking for a few more seconds) I couldn’t think of any now, ma’am.F: Interaction skills?K: (With a Aaah! Yes reaction) Yes, ma’am definitely. As I have already mentioned, I had problems with communication and the day to day interactions and onsite calls helped me a lot to improve on this front. I also picked up a bit of Hindi. A year back, at the start of my internship, I was zero in Hindi. Now, I believe I have upgraded to ‘Thoda thoda maalum’ stage. (With a big smile)F: So you need someone to prompt you? You can’t come up with anything on your own?K: No, Sir. Sorry. Ma’am. It’s just that I couldn’t come up with it at that moment.M2: (Looks up the sheet which contained the list of extempore topics) Importing of Chinese goods is a big deterrent to the growth of Indian businesses. Speak on this topic. You can take a minute to think.(I didn’t see an extempore coming)(Thought for around 10–15 seconds)K: Can I begin, ma’am?F: Yes, go ahead.K: (Blurted out something like Chinese electronic goods are stopping the flourishing of Indian manufactured electronics which are already a very few in number. Said that because of their cheap prices the Chinese goods have captured a large market share. Spoke hardly more than 30 seconds)F: How could that be detrimental? You said the consumers are getting products at cheap prices. So that’ll be beneficial for small retailers selling those products, right?K: Ma’am, but they are able to sell at such low prices because of the low quality with which they manufacture those products.F: Then, do you think the consumers are not intelligent enough to choose a better quality product?K: No ma’am, the first time smartphone buyers go for price over quality. It is this customer base that the Chinese products have captured.M2: (To M1 and F) I think he is contradicting himself.M2: Explain that topic from an Economic perspective. You are giving as the Consumer perspective.K: Sorry sir, I don’t have knowledge about the Economic side of that topic.M2: What do you know about India-China trade?K: Sir, I know that China, along with US, is the major trade partner of India and we have a trade deficit with them.M2: Okay, we’ll give you an another chance (Looks at the list of Extempore topics). Your topic will be ‘The discounts offered by the e-Commerce portal are bad for India’.K: Sir, I will take half a minute to think.M2: Sure!K: (Spoke in favour of the topic; Spoke about how the e-Commerce portals, with their deep pockets, can offer discounts aggressively and this is detrimental to small time retailers who are in crores. Again, not more than 30 seconds)M2: But what about the consumers who are 100 times more than the retailers. Don’t you think they deserve a fair price?K: Definitely they do, sir. But the e-Commerce portals will increase the prices so high once they get rid of the competition in the form of small retailers. This is not good for the consumers in the long term.M2: Say the e-Commerce portals are selling a 7000 rupee worth product for 6000, don’t you think the consumers benefit from it?K: Sir, but in the long run, once the small retailers are got rid of, the e-Commerce portals may raise the price of a 7000 rupee worth product to 10000. That is why I believe the latest changes in e-Commerce regulations are good.F: So, you are saying that the changes in the regulations are not for votes?K: No ma’am, definitely the changes are brought up keeping in mind the upcoming General Elections but I believe this should have been done long back. I believe e-Commerce with some regulations is necessary for healthy local market.M2: Think about the consumers. Adam Smith has said that retailers tend to sell products according to the local consumer needs and consumers tend to buy from the sellers offering the lowest prices for a product. Do you know who Adam Smith is?K: Yes sir, the father of Economics.M2: Hmm, what do you think about what he has said?K: I agree, Sir, but e-Commerce is becoming pervasive. Right from groceries to daily consumer goods are being e-Commerced (e-Commerced - Invented a new word in the heat of the moment).(M2 seemed to give up thinking that I know nothing)M2: (To M1 and F, after looking at the timer in his phone) Please ask something. We have 16 minutes left.F: Why MBA?K: Ma’am, I believe I have good leadership skills and decision…. (M1 cutting in)M1: What comes under leadership skills? I have been hearing this term from the morning again and again. What are the skills do you think are necessary to a good leader?K: Sir, firstly, a leader should have a vision about the task he is given with….(F cutting in)F: So a leader should have a vision for the company he is working for?K: (All these stupid answers of mine are getting to my nerves, started to stutter and stammer) Not necessarily, ma’am, but he should have a vision for whatever the task he is given with.F: What do you think about the upcoming elections? What will happen in Tamilnadu? First, tell us how many seats are there in Lok Sabha?(Finally, Politics - the one area I am longing to be questioned at)K: (In an instant) 545.F: How many of that are for Tamilnadu?K: (Again, in an instant) 39.F: What do you think will happen there? Will the ADMK win all the seats again?K: Ma’am, the ADMK didn’t win all the seats last time. They won only 37 of the 39.F: Okay, so What do you think will happen there? Will the ADMK win all the seats again?K: Ma’am, the ADMK didn’t win all the seats last time. They won only 37 of the 39. That is because they had a charismatic leader last time….(F cutting in)F: So, what will happen to them this time?K: Their vote share will split to smaller parties, ma’am.F: So, they can’t win any seats this time?K: No ma’am, I meant their vote share will come down. Last time, their vote share was 42%, I guess (It is 44.3% actually). This time, I predict it to be around 20–25%.F: How can they still secure that much votes without having a charismatic leader?K: Ma’am, because they can still milk votes using the names of Dr. MGR and Ms. Jayalalitha… (As soon as I said this, F looked at M1 and M2)F: We’re done.K: (With a feeling that I used the wrong choice of words) Thank you ma’am and thank you sirs.This is easily one of my bad interviews as a good part of the interview revolved around Economics which I have just started to learn.Personal Rating: WAT - 15/20 and PI - 30/50.Verdict: Awaited.Episode 1: IIM KozhikodeDate: 10/02/2019Venue: Monarch Luxor Hotel, BangaloreWritten Ability Test(WAT):Capitalism is slowly and inevitably leading to mankind’s extinction.I thanked my stars that I didn’t get an abstract topic. The time limit was 25 minutes and we were told that we can use both the sides of the given paper. I started by defining Capitalism; linked the pure profit-driven motives to the indiscriminate exploitation of resources; mentioned that the mankind has woken up with checks like the UN’s Paris Accord; mentioned that a cause of concern is the rise of far-right politicians like Trump and Bolsonaro who are pro-manufacturing industries and detractors of climate change; touched upon how profit-driven firms exploit their employees and put them into undue stress; concluded by saying some amount of government regulation is necessary for sustainable development and added that there was never a better time to remember the Mahatma’s quote - “The Earth has enough for everyone’s need but not for everyone’s greed”.Resume Writing:A question about describing a rewarding work place situation and the gains from it(This question is not for freshers).A question about a decision that I took and failed, the learnings from the failure.The time limit was 15 minutes for this component. I used an instance from my work experience in my first answer and an instance from my college in the second answer.Interview:There were four panels in total with around 10 students per panel I was allotted the fourth panel. I was the first one to be interviewed in my panel. There were two middle-aged male panelists(M1 and M2). M1 is an Associate Professor specialising in Finance, Accounting and Control while M2 is a Professor specialising in Strategic Management. M2 called me inside.M1: How are you? And, please take your seat.K: I am good, Sir! How are you? And Good morning sirs.M1: Good good!M2: Good morning!M1: (Going through my Personal Data Form) You have been working in Deloitte for just 5 months. Why just 5 months? Why do you want to leave it now?(M1 passes my Personal Data Form to M2 as I start answering)K: Sir, I am working in the Technology Consulting Domain. I also spent my final semester at Deloitte. Hence, it’s been more than a year at Deloitte. Having said that, I want to switch stream because my scope in the present role is narrow. I’ll be restricted to IT Project Management while I want to move into a General Managerial role. I believe I possess good leadership skills and decision-making skills. I also….M1: (Reading my Resume questions’ answers) Enough enough… So you’re a Manual Tester at Deloitte?K: Yes, sir. And I am also the functional analyst of my project.M1: What does that mean? Explain.K: Explained.M2: (Reading my Resume questions’ answers) You have written here that you have increased your CGPA by 10 percentage points. What happened? Why the slump happened?K: As I have written in my WAT, I come from a small rural town. I did not have much worldly knowledge when I entered college. I was a bit arrogant that I possessed great leadership skills. I was ignorant to that extent that I thought getting into a good Engineering college would mean passing out with a good managerial job. I didn’t pay much heed to my academics because of this. As a result, I had five backlogs and my grades were in the 50s at the end of the first year. I realised my mistake, I realised that I would get nowhere in life at this pace and started working hard. I studied the basics of my academics and this not only resulted in my grades improving from the 50s to the 60s, but also helped me to secure an Internship + Full-time offer from Deloitte in the final year.(M2 asks for my file meanwhile) I also struggled to hold a single complete conversation in English at the end of my first year. I worked on this also. Apart from this, I started participating in Extra-curricular activities. In the third year, I….(M1 cutting in)M1: Enough. What’s your favourite subject?K: DBMSM1: We are hearing this term called R-DBMS. I don’t know much about it. What’s mean by R-DBMS? Can you explain it for us?K: Sure sir, R-DBMS stands for Relational Database Management Systems. Here, we store the data in tuples and the data are related and connected and are stored in a structured format. The data are stored in a table in the format provided by the schema. We use an unique identifier to retrieve related data.M1: All these discussions are okay. But tell me what it is. Tell me what is the difference between R-DBMS and DBMS?K: Sir, R-DBMS is a subset of DBMS. DBMS can be non-relational also. As I was saying, the data in a tuple will be related. Say, for an example, we can create a DB of all the shortlisted candidates of IIM Kozhikode, storing it in, the various details of the candidates like Academics scores, work experience and so on. These data will be structured according to the schema. While if we take the case of… (M2 cutting in)M2: We store data in tables using unique identifiers in Excel also. Tell us what differentiates it from other DBMS?K: (After thinking for a few seconds) I don’t know Sir.M1: (Mockingly) You don’t know that and DBMS is your favourite subject. Okay, how good are you in Maths?K: I am interested in Maths but I tend to commit very silly mistakes. But Maths is my favourite subject.M1: Let’s see what silly mistakes you are going to do now. Draw the graphs of these two functions. (He writes 1) y = x^2 and 2) y = |x|/x)(Lucky to get such simple functions, I completed it in 15 seconds)M1: (Pointing to the first equation) What is the first order derivative of this?K: Sir, it will be 2x.M1: Yes, what do you mean by it? What do you mean by the first order derivative?K: (Stupidly) Sir, it means that the equation is differentiated once.M1: That is okay. You are saying it is dy/dx. What do you mean by that?K: (Stupidly again) Sir, by dy/dx we mean that y is differentiated with respect to x once.M1: You are taking it to some other place. What do we by finding the first-order derivative? Why do we do that?K: To find the critical points.M1: So if we differentiate it once, we can get to know the critical points ah?K: No sir, we need to equate the first order derivative to zero. The values satisfying this equation will be the critical points of our equation.M1: Why do we do that? Why do we need critical points?K: To find the local maxima and minima of our equation.M1: You are dragging it somewhere. We say the first-order derivative is f’(x). What do we do with that? How do you say maxima and minima exists at critical points?K: (In a totally consfused state)Sir, because the slope changes sign at the critical points. And by differentiating it again, we can find the local maxima and minima.M1: How?K: Sir, by equating the second-order derivative to zero. If it is less than zero, a local maxima exists at that point while if it greater than zero, a local minima exists at that point.M1: You have now taken it to f’’(x). (Looks at M2)M2: What are your hobbies?K: (Relieved) My hobbies are browsing, solving logical… (M2 cutting in)M2: (Mockingly) Browsing Quora is a hobby?K: Sir, I meant I do it in my free time. Apart from that I like to solve logical puzzles especially sudokus and I follow Cricket.M2: You follow Cricket. How long have you been doing it? From long back or only the current Cricket?K: Cricket is the first thing I took interest in apart from academics. I do it from 2002…. (M2 cutting in)M2: What are the records our current captain holds?K: (Confused for a couple of seconds whether he is mentioning Virat or Rohit as Virat is rested now) Sir, our current captain in the T20 International series against the New Zealand is Rohit Sharma. He…. (M2 cutting in)M2: Acha. I meant our main captain, Virat Kohli.K: He is the fastest to reach every number of centuries from 30 in ODIs…. (M2 cutting in)M2: What do you mean by that?K: Sir, I meant that he took the minimum number of innings. Hashim Amla is close on his heels to break this minimum number of innings record… (M2 cutting in)M2: Which country he is from?K: South Africa. Kohli holds 39 ODI centuries till date, the second highest.M2: Who has more?K: Sachin Tendulkar.M2: Any other records?K: He is about to break the record for highest number of Test wins as an Indian captain.M2: Whose record is he going to break?K: (At the moment, thoughts started running in my mind that why they are asking simplest of the questions) MS Dhoni.(M2 looks at M1)M1: Do you follow Current news? What’s happening around? Do you follow any?K: I do.M1: What’s your native?K: I am from a rural town called Nellikuppam in the Cuddalore District of Tamilnadu. It is a coastal district.M1: Do you know the Tanjore temple?K: Yes sir, the Brihadeeswarar temple.M1: Yes, what’s special about it?K: Sir, the Gopuram above the sanctum sanctorum was scripted with a single rock.M1: When was it built?K: Sir, around the turn of the second millennium.M1: Matlab, how many years back?K: Around 1000 years.M1: How did they built it back then without any modern equipments?K: (Using my hand to show the ramp they built) Sir, they built a slope to the desired height and used it as a road. They placed the rock over a wheel and kept changing the wheels. They also use man power to pull the rock to the top.M1: Which empire is behind the construction?K: Sir, the Chola empire.M1: Which king specifically?K: The Rajarajachola, sir.M1: What were the main dynasties of Tamilnadu.K: Sir, the three main dynasties of Tamilnadu were Cheras, Cholas and Pandiyas. The Palla…(M1 cutting in)M1: The Pallavas? Okay, go ahead.K: Yes sir, I was about to mention them. They ruled over the Southern Andhra and the North Tamilnadu. The Mahabalipuram temple is their architecture marvel.M1: What do you know about the three dynasties?K: They were known for their valour. The Cholas engaged in Coastal warfare extending their empire to North Srilanka, Myanmar, Thailand amongst others. That’s all I know, Sir.(M1 and M2 looked at each other and they said they were done. I thanked them and left)To sum up, almost all the questions were so basic that I was wondering during the interview whether am I in an old IIM interview. I could have done a lot better especially in the last question since I knew a lot about them but couldn’t recall at that moment.Personal Rating: WAT - 16/20, Resume Writing - 7/10 and PI - 21/30.Verdict: Awaited.Season 1:Profile:GEM Fresher.X - 95.6%(Tamilnadu Board)XII - 92%(Tamilnadu Board)UG - 66.2% at the time of the interview. (B.Tech.(IT) from PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore)CAT 2017 - 99.06 percentile (93.51|99.84|95.90)Having secured only 99.06 percentile in CAT, I wanted to retake CAT and XAT again and give it a one more push for IIM C, FMS and XLRI. So I just planned to attend the interviews of all those institutes which called me (IIM S, New IIMs and IIFT) without serious preparation and gain some useful interview experience for next year.Episode 3: IIM AmritsarDate: 14/05/2018Venue: Monarch Luxor Hotel, BangaloreWritten Ability Test(WAT):Is the era of Coalition Politics over?I believe I did a good work of my WAT. I wrote about how a slight swing of votes can hamper the ruling party’s majority status in the Center and the states where the ruling party has thin majority. I explained that the Coalition Politics has been effectively employed in the past to counter the emergence of a party as the single largest by mentioning various instances. I concluded by saying that the Coalition Politics is here to stay.Interview:There were five panels in total and I was allotted the second panel. I was the second one in my panel. There were two middle-aged male panelists(M1 and M2). M1 called me inside. I went in and M2 asked me to take the seat. I later came to know that M1 was from IIM K and M2 was from IIM ASR by going through the Faculty Directory of IIM K and IIM ASR.M1: (cheerfully) How are you, Karthik?K: I am good, Sir! How are you?M1: I am fine Karthik! Thank you. Can you tell us about your Final year project ?K: Mentioned that I am interning at Deloitte USI instead of doing a project in the final semester.M1: Tell us more about it.K: Briefly explained my job role.M1: Have you studied Statistics in your UG?K: Yes, sir.(A few questions from Normal Distribution followed. I answered those satisfactorily)M1: You have studied about Graph Theory, right?K: No Sir! It was offered to me as an elective and I didn’t take it. (But, it was a small part in the Data Structures course and what followed is a series of questions from Graph Theory and I answered most of those with a “I don’t know”)As the Graph Theory ordeal ended, M1 started to rapid fire GK questions and I answered most of those questions. M1 passed on the baton to M2 who was silent till now.M2: Did you take part in any Extra-curricular activities in college?K: **Finally! The question I was longing for** Answered in detail the various extra-curricular activities I have taken part in my UG and explained my responsibilities in the PoRs I had held.M2 seemed visibly impressed and followed it up with two Current Affairs questions. As M2 said that he was done, M1 asked about my calls and my preference. He further asked me “Why IIM Amritsar?” and finally wished me All the best!Scores: WAT - 10/10 and PI - 37/40. (Source: RTI)Verdict: Converted.Episode 2: IIM ShillongDate: 12/04/2018Venue: Monarch Luxor Hotel, BangaloreCase Discussion(CD):The case was about the Railways Department of a developing African Country. The trains were found to be often late and hence the General Manager has hired Mr.X to improve the situation in one year. Mr.X was give a one-year deadline to produce results and he was bestowed with high-profile decision making rights. But, even after regulating the whole process there seemed to be no improvement in the punctuality levels of the Railways. As the one-year deadline draws to a close, Mr.X is called for a meeting. What should be his stance in the meeting?The CD went well. It was evaluated by a two-member panel. I pitched in two times and made valuable points.Interview:It seemed that they had planned to have seven panels initially. Since the interview happened after the results of ABC were out, a significant number of people gave it a miss. So we were accommodated in five panels. I was allotted the third panel and I was the first one in my panel. There were two panelists - a middle-aged male professor, M and a middle-aged female professor F. I later came to know that F is the Dean(Research) of IIM S and M is a Consultant on contract in IIM S. M called me in and F asked me to take the seat.F began the Interview with the customary “Tell me about yourself”. F followed it up with a few GK questions like - “Which is the last country our PM visited?”, “What is the recent news about Donald Trump?”, “What is the number of Union Territories in our country?” and “Mention the Union Territories along with their capital”. I answered those questions satisfactorily. M then took over.M asked me a slew of academic questions(my grey area) starting from an easy one like “What is Cloud Computing?”. He then asked me some questions from my ‘Information Security’ and ‘Data Structure’ papers. I answered most of these questions although not satisfactorily. The interview ended with F offering me a toffee.Verdict: Rejected.Episode 1: Common Admission Process(CAP) for nine new IIMsDate: 23/02/2018Venue: Monarch Luxor Hotel, BangaloreI was asked to report at 08:30 AM. I reached there by 8:10 AM. The WAT venue was the sixth floor Banquet Hall of the hotel. The professors in-charge of WAT started the attendance sheet signing at 08:30 AM sharp. No document verification happened but our Personal Data Form was collected before the WAT.Written Ability Test(WAT):Government is thinking of making rural practice compulsory for new medical graduates. What is your opinion on this ? Suggest some other measures to improve rural healthcare. (Not verbatim)My WAT was decent. I wrote about the imbalance in medical accessibility between rural and urban citizens, the poor UG seats to PG seats ratio in medicine and the measures government should take to attract those medical graduates who were unable to make the PG cut to rural healthcare. I also suggested some measures like E-consulting and government funding for treatment of rural people in urban hospitals to bridge the rural-urban divide.After the WAT, we were informed that the Interviews will be conducted in the fifth floor and we were asked to move down there after having some refreshments.Interview:There were five panels in total and I was allotted the fifth panel. I was the second one in my panel. There were three middle-aged male panelists(M1, M2 and M3). M1 called me inside the room and M2 asked me to take the seat. I(K) exchanged pleasantries with the panelists as M1 starts reading loud my Personal Data Form.**Thoughts inside double asterisk**M1: (reading my Personal Data Form) You are from Tamil Nadu. Tamil theriyuma ? (Translation: You know Tamil ?)K: Theriyum Sir. (Translation: I know Sir)(After a short pause)K: (Smiling) Nallavey theriyum Sir. (Translation: I know well Sir)M3: (reclining in his chair) You are from Cuddalore. There is a famous waterbody which supplies water from Cuddalore to Chennai. You know the name of it ?K: Yes Sir, Veeranam Yeri.M3: You know the history of the lake ?K: I don’t know Sir.M3: Do you know the reason behind its name?K: Sorry Sir, I don’t know.M3: You studied at Coimbatore. Mention a famous businessman who studied at Coimbatore and is holding a top position in a famous company now.K: Shiv Nadar.M3: No no.K: Shiv Nadar studied at Coimbatore. He is actually an alumni of PSG College of.…. (M3 cutting in)M3: Okay. Let’s make it simple. I’ll give you an hint. I am looking for the name of the Chairman of Tata Sons.K: Sorry Sir, I couldn’t recollect.M3: His name starts with Chandra. Now you should get it.K: No Sir, I could still not recollect.M3: His name is Chandrasekaran. Do you know the person who was the Chairman before he took over ?K: Yes Sir, Cyrus Mistry.M1: (Looking at my Personal Data Form) Why is your UG score this low?K: To be honest, I didn’t give much importance to academics initially. In the first two years, I wasted my time in….. (M1 cutting in with a shocked expression)**Hear me, I have a nice story to tell**M1: Why ?K: I was ignorant when I entered the college. I thought getting into a good college will mean passing out with a great job and I don’t….. (M1 cutting in)M1: Then you’ll do the same thing here again. You’ll get into a good MBA program and repeat the same thing thinking a job is assured.K: No Sir, I have learnt my lesson. From the third year, I have started to work hard. I held….. (M1 cutting in)**Not again**M1: Your grades are still the same in your third year also.K: Sir, I have improved my English a lot from my third year. At the end of the second year, I struggled to hold a single complete conversation in English without stammering. Also, I have done a lot of Extra-curriculars. I have….. (M1 cutting in)**Seems like I’ll not get an opportunity to talk about my Extra-curriculars and academic projects**M1: Why was that? (asking about my poor English in the past)K: That’s because of my background. I…. (M1 cutting in)M1: Are you from Tamil Medium ?K: No Sir, I studied in English Medium only. But they teach everything in Tamil.M1: Are you placed anywhere?K: Yes sir, I am currently interning at Deloitte U.S. India Consulting from 29th January.M1: Location ?K: Bangalore, Sir.M1: How long is your internship ?K: It extends till 27th of July, Sir. And, after that…. (M1 cutting in)M1: MBA programs starts from June or July. So how could you join then ?K: That’ll not be a problem, Sir. I can resign after converting.M1: Then how can you graduate without completing the internship?K: I’ll be graduating in May, Sir. I can show the work I have done in the internship till the end of April to satisfy the requirements of graduation.M1: What after July? You have an offer there after that?K: Yes sir, I have a full-time offer also.M1: Salary?K: ToldM1: Excellent! So you could work there for two years, get some experience and then come to MBA. Why are you here now?K: Sir, in this offer, I’ll be into Technology Consulting, not S&O consulting. It’s more like a service-based IT role. I don’t think it’ll be much relevant to MBA…. (M1 cutting in)M1: No work experience is irrelevant to MBA.K: I can work to gain some work experience points in the admission process but I believe the quality of work experience is more important.M3: So you are from IT background. Tell me what is the difference between CS and IT?K: Explained them the minor curriculum variations between CS and IT in the Anna University affiliated colleges.M1: (Looking into my Personal Data Form) Okay, hobbies?K: I like to solve logical puzzles, sudokus and I follow Cricket.M1: (Looks up and stares at me with his eyes wide open) Logical Puzzles ?(M2, who was busy till now munching on the dry fruits kept in the table, joining in)M2: You know about Fibonacci series ?K: (excitedly) Yes, Sir.M2: What’s so special about the series?K: Sir, it finds application in many real-world scenarios. The sunflower is one. And, also I have read somewhere that everything…. (M2 cutting in as I was about to talk about the series’ ubiquitousness in nature and using it as an approximate mile to kilometer converter.)M2: What do you mean by an application?K: **cursing me for my poor choice of words** Sir, I meant it is just a fact which I have read about. I have also read about….. (M1 cutting in)M1: Where does Fibonacci series come in Sunflower ?K: Sir, the seeds in the Sunflower’s face are arranged in that pattern.M3: So, tell us how many prime numbers are there between 90 and 100 ?K: Umm, 93 and 97. So two, Sir.(A question which I can answer even if asked in the middle of my sleep and I get it wrong in an IIM interview. I realized that I had committed this silly mistake only on my way back from the Hotel)M1: You sure about 93? Check again.K: **They’re checking my confidence** (confidently) Yes sir, I am sure.(I couldn’t stop laughing at myself on my way back from the Hotel for this super silly answer of mine)M3: What do you mean by a Prime Number?K: A prime number is a number which has only two factors, one being that number itself and the other being one.M2: So tell me how many squares are there in a Chess board?K: Asking him permission to use the notepad, I started writing the steps saying it follows the same logic as sum of squares upto n and here the n is equal to 8. I committed a minor calculation mistake which I corrected in an instant and arrived at the answer, 204.M2: Good.M3: Can you tell me the different types of software development methods ?K: Waterfall model, V-Model, Prototype Model, Spiral Model, Agile methodology…. (M3 cutting in)M3: What is the difference between Waterfall Model and Agile Model?K: ToldM3: What are the teams in the Agile Model called?K: Scrums.M2: Do you follow politics?K: A bit.M2: Why is there a black colour in Kamal Hassan’s party flag?K: I don’t know, Sir.M2: Think, think. Think and tell.K: Sir, I remember there is a black colour surrounding the central star. But I couldn’t recollect the reason.M2: You know the name of his party at least ?K: Yes Sir, Makkal Needhi Maiam and he has said that he will follow a centrist ideology.M3: What is your CAT percentile?K: 99.06, Sir.M3: You have a very good percentile. So you’ll be good at Numbers, right?K: To an extent, Sir. Actually my Quant and Verbal percentile are a bit on the lower side comparatively. DILR is my strength, Sir. I have scored 99.84 in that section.M1: Expand DILR.K: Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning.M2: Logical Puzzles. Interesting hobby.M3: With this academics which are in the 60s, do you think you can make it to the IIMs?K: Sir, there are some IIMs which give lesser weightage to academics. I believe I can make it to those IIMs. Also, my tenth and twelfth scores are good. I have 90+ in both tenth and twelfth.M3: Did you ask for a change in the Interview center ?K: Yes Sir, initially I had opted for Chennai.M3: Why did you change the center ?K: Only after the submission of my application, I got my internship offer letter specifying the location. So I opted for a center change.(M3 looks at M1 and M2. They say they’re done.)M3: I have one more question for you. You know about the abbreviation GAFA?K: Sorry Sir, I don’t know.M3: Write it down. You can decode it better.M3: (as I write on the notepad) Very famous US Technological Giants.(I misinterpreted his ‘Giants’ as ‘Giant’s’ and that changed my entire thought process)K: Sorry Sir, I still couldn’t get it.M3: G is simple, we use that daily.K: Google ?M3: Yes. The rest?(Since I thought the abbreviation is used to denote a single Giant, I started to think only on the Google angle)K: Alphabet?M3: No no. Okay, first tell me what is the difference between Alphabet and Google?K: Sir, Alphabet includes all its subsidiaries like…. (M3 cutting in)M3: Okay. You got that. Now answer the previous question.(As I was thinking)M3: A is fairly easy to get. To give an hint, one of the devices in this table is a product of A.(Now it dawns upon me that it is ‘Giants’ and not ‘Giant’s’)K: Apple?M3: Yes, the next?K: Facebook. Ummm, Adobe?M1: No no.K: Amazon.M3: Yes. Two of those four companies have started e-wallets in India. You know which two?K: Yes Sir, Google with Tez and Amazon with Amazon Pay Wallet.M3: Yes.M2: That’s it. Thank you Karthik! All the best!I thanked them individually and left the room.Scores: WAT - 14/20 and PI - 29.045/50. (Source: RTI)Verdict: Rejected at Trichy, Ranchi and Rohtak. Waitlisted at Udaipur, Raipur and Sambalpur. Converted Bodh Gaya, Kashipur and Sirmaur.

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The #1 Stock In The World:if you want to pick just one and hold it for twenty years, XIV could be a great choice. Either the market will collapse or it won't; if it is still here in twenty years, then XIV price will probably be much, much higher.Summary4x the S&P 500 returns since inception.Durably exploits a non-economic affinity for low volatility.This has been my #1 favorite stock in the world for almost 5 years.A recent article asked the following questions,1. If you could only own one company in your portfolio, which would it be? Why?2. If you had $25,000 to invest today on one company and you planned to hold it for 10 years or more, which company would you buy? Why?For years, my #1 favorite stock in the world has been the Credit Suisse AG - VelocityShares Daily Inverse VIX Short-Term ETN (NASDAQ:XIV). It has returned almost four times the S&P 500 (NYSEARCA:SPY) total returns.It is my favorite stock in the world... or my favorite security trading on a stock exchange (since it is not, as many will be quick to point out, a stock. It is an exchange traded note).Other than expected value, what factors impact your investing decisions?I always ask that question in search of non-economic counterparties. In late 2012, I found that,It appears that one common answer since the financial crisis has been a strong, pavlovian dread associated with volatility. I ask this question because we always start by asking what investment counterparties want - or want to avoid - for reasons other than expected value. Who are the non-economic actors and what are they doing? Over the past few years, the answer appears to be "dreading volatility".Volatility, in and of itself, is neutral to expected value but investors appear to be utterly price-insensitive in attempting to avoid it. With the emergence of faddish financial innovation in the form of various exchange traded notes, it is convenient for investors, including low information retail investors, to express this preference in the capital markets.Over the past year, this trade has represented an almost perfect transfer from volatility avoiders to expected value seekers. Perhaps the most infamous example is the iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (NYSEARCA:VXX). This security has an expected value of $0.00 over time (and can be directly shorted via either the equity or indirectly via equity derivatives) but serves the purpose of near-term volatility avoiders in the interim. It allows both sets of investors to achieve their stated aim. Over the past year, it is down by over 84%; it will probably achieve similar results in the future.XIV is close to the perfect security: VXX is fundamentally flawed and XIV is the opposite. In 2013, I wrote that,This is close to the perfect security: VXX is fundamentally flawed and XIV is the opposite. VelocityShares Inverse Short-Term Volatility ETN (XIV) is the inverse of the VXX ETF. VXX has been one of my favorite short ideas since the fourth quarter of 2011. Ipso facto, XIV is one of my favorite longs. VXX owns forward months one and two volatility futures and rolls some of this exposure each day. The negative roll yield is massive, averaging over 10% per month over the past few years. In short, VXX buys high and sells low as if that is its job… because for all intents and purposes, that is its job. What happens when a portfolio with a 100% roll yield turns over each month? This happens:The XIV is the opposite - an ETN that is the inverse of the VXX, shorting forward month one and two volatility futures and rolling them forward on a daily basis. XIV buys low (month one) and sells high (month two) when the volatility futures market is in its typical upward sloping curve. Here is what has happened thus far:Risk is always and everywhere a function of price, not volatility. However, there is a significant part of the market that is arbitrarily adverse to volatility because it is frequently used as a (quite flawed) proxy for risk analysis. Anyone who does not equate volatility with risk, but who recognizes that there are many counterparties that do, can be a service provider for such counterparties by owning XIV. Here is the XIV, versus VXX, with the SPY tossed in for a comparison:Since then, the XIV has almost doubled the S&P 500 total return, gaining 38% versus 20%. In 2015, I invested my one public model portfolio in XIV; it is up about 69% so far this year. I pitched the investment in an interview in April in which I was asked the following.EH If you had to pick a stock today and hold it for 20 years, what would it be?CD: The Daily Inverse VIX Short-Term ETN.EH: Why?CD: It is the closest thing the world offers to the perfect security. It is a transfer mechanism between anyone who thinks of risk as volatility and those of us who think of risk as the risk of overpaying. The price-insensitive preference to avoid volatility is a real, durable, expensive preference that is so different than how I think about risk that owning XIV would be a natural thing for me to do for 20 years. It has been a long idea of mine since it was first launched, and I still own it today.Since then, it is up over 41x the total return from the S&P 500.Other authors have picked up on this opportunity. In May, Dane Van Domelen mentioned that,I recently analyzed XIV performance since inception and concluded that it had excellent properties. It boasts a massive compound annual growth rate (39.6% as of May 1, 2015), and seems to have positive alpha, meaning it tends to gain even when the market is flat.I'm not the only one who is high on XIV. Chris DeMuth Jr., probably the most visible contributor on Seeking Alpha, recently said that if he had to pick one stock to hold for the next 20 years, it would be XIV.For the past 4 years, 6 months, and 8 days, XIV has been my #1 favorite stock in the world. The opportunity has been due to counterparty selection. There have been enough counterparties that want to avoid volatility regardless of price. The following is how I think about the importance of finding the right counterparties. It is, in fact, the most important part of what I try to do.I like a good value investor…I like value investing. Sharing ideas with fellow value investors is fun. The opportunity to learn from and hone ideas with people who share our investment philosophy is something that I will always appreciate. We are on the same side of the table. The world can be a tough place, so it is a comfort to feel less alone sometimes. There is a lot at stake, both personally and professionally. It is just money, but some of the investments that I am responsible for are very impactful to family and philanthropies. Being a good steward is my highest duty.… but I love a good counterpartyBut while I like a good value investor, I love a good counterparty. I can transact business without another soul in the world who is on my side, but I can't get to work until there is someone on the other side. So, what do I look for in a counterparty?My working assumption is that the average potential counterparty is at least as well informed, at least as smart, and at least as hard working as I am. So that eliminates any opportunity for me to invest based on the theory that I am informed, smart, or diligent. Also, there are trading commissions and taxes. So net of fees and after tax, I assume that the natural state of an investment is to turn a dollar into slightly less than a dollar.Then, there is the matter of cheating. If only one in a hundred investors are effectively cheating (and assuming that they win every time that they cheat), getting cheated massively impacts the value of an investment dollar. While the average potential counterparty might not be too smart, hard-working, or well informed with either legal or illegal information, the likelihood is much higher when it comes to a counterparty that enthusiastically seeks you out for a transaction.Without an edge, this is a loser's game - it is "fair" or circular, allowing a participant to churn through a dollar to get a dollar of expected value before paying trading commissions. For me, costs also include fund auditors, fund tax advisors, onshore administrators, lawyers, personal accountants, office support, and office supplies including about five hundred pages of paper per day that I go through just to keep up with SEC filings that I read.Counterparty ConstraintsI am not looking for someone with bad judgment; I am looking for someone with constraints. The most common form of this constraint is someone who is price-insensitive because he is time-sensitive. That happy circumstance fits perfectly with my situation which is the opposite: I am infinitely price-sensitive and infinitely time-insensitive. All I want is to underpay, and I am willing to accommodate any counterparty preferences that allows me to do so. I would not know how to be a value investor without the ability to wait out events.The institutional reality for many investors in high pressure, hierarchical bureaucracies forces short-term priorities. Earnings are judged by the quarter, and compensation is handed out by the calendar year. When something goes horribly wrong, frequently the most responsible, knowledgeable person is focused on keeping his head down and not getting fired instead of measuring prospective upside, prospective downside, and probability.Narrow MandatesVery few asset allocators want to break the rules or to get into trouble. So, if their investment mandate requires them to do something or precludes them from doing something else, they will usually follow those rules regardless of the costs. When an index fund manager owns a security in his index that is the target of a corporate transaction resulting in proceeds that are outside of that index, he will sell those proceeds. He typically sells them on the close (which simplifies accounting and is always a defensible closing mark) regardless of the price. In the recent case of Safeway (NYSE:SWY), sellers sold the Casa Ley rights at a price around half of the offers we received for our rights the next day. These sellers were not ill informed, stupid, or lazy. They were doing their jobs.During the financial crisis, I was an active buyer of senior secured loans whenever large financial institutions were dumping them on the market in bid-wanted-in-competition/BWIC situations. The sellers were simply trying to recoup their collateral and otherwise cared little for price. They kept marking prices down more and more until they were able to clear out their inventory. That was their job and they did their job. As for other bidders, there were some that had mandates explicitly defined as owning loans that cost over 80% of par. So at $0.60 on the $1, they were out of the bidding but promised to return to the bid side of the market after the prices recovered. We were able to pay $0.60 in a market with an implicit bid at $0.80.Agency ProblemsWhile I have immense respect for my sources of outside capital, I have a special place near and dear to my heart for my own money. I plan on using it to date my favorite wife, raise my favorite kids, visit my favorite places, and support my favorite philanthropies. My identity as an investor is as a principal, and everything that I have ever done has had a principal orientation. I am my own audience and do only what makes sense to me. When others invest alongside me, their interests coincide. It is that alignment, not my intentions, which one can always rely upon. Investors know that when my ideas have good outcomes, I will be at least as happy and when they have bad outcomes, I will lose at least as much as they will.But many other investors, including investors with important roles in the industry, have no particular incentive to go to great lengths to ensure that you make money. In one second step mutual conversion that I participated in, I sent in a check for $9 million. The post-conversion shares traded up about 25% within a week, I wrote calls against the entire position, and it was called away. I spoke with a fund manager at a large Boston-based mutual fund company who turned down an allocation in the conversion and then actively built up a large stake in the public secondary market. Why didn't he participate in the conversion at 80% the price? He said that he just preferred to speak with his broker than to deal with mailing in a check (which generates no commissions) even if the price was higher. His decision cost his investors $17 million but saved him having to fill out a form and mail in a check. He didn't doubt that he could have saved the money; he just didn't have a reason to.Picking My Counterparty: Jim Cramer's Mad MoneyMad Money with Jim Cramer began airing on CNBC in early 2005. Stylistically, it was hysterical, clownish, and somewhat drug-addled; in other words, it offered perfect source of counterparties.Overnight returns following his stock picks are +3% on average and as much as +7% for smaller capitalization stocks. He moves the market capitalization by over $50 million with his picks. Typically, this show is taped an hour or so before it is aired. Historically, there has not been any price response during taping, but there is an observable spike in both volume and prices during the airing. Such spikes dissipate over time; after a few days the abnormal returns are gone.There is no evidence of any skill in security selection. In fact, a portfolio of his ideas purchased the day following the recommendations would underperform the market by over 1% a month. His underperformance is statistically significant enough that one could profitably short his long ideas.While I did not watch the show, in its earlier years I was a regular caller. When placed on hold, callers could hear the only partially muted feed of the show's live taping. I listened for his stock picks, bought them during taping, and sold them during airing or in the following morning.These were perfectly identifiable counterparties. They were paying for entertainment and getting what they paid for. As for me, I just wanted the money. We each got what we came for.Picking My Counterparty: High Flying SheiksCredit was loose and asset price inflation was everywhere. But what could that be for the bargain hunter? We price-sensitive sleuths search the world for price failures, for counterparties whose time-sensitivity leaves them little room to negotiate effectively on price. Often, these counterparties are in a bad way - pressured, leveraged, failing, and out of control. However, there can also be price-insensitive counterparties at the other extreme - not a care in the world, ultra liquid, prospering, and able to indulge every whim.So what do they want? Sometimes, they want to be a first mover, to get what they want and to get it now. They want to be first in line. That can cost a lot.One strategy that can aid in moving towards membership in the ranks of the idle rich is to invest in high-end wait list deposits. These places in line can often be purchased and re-sold for a serious profit to billionaires who can pay practically anything for what they want but were not quick enough to secure an early place in line.For example, in 2011, the new Gulfstream G650 from General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) went for about $65 million. The manufacturer took an initial order from two hundred customers from various climes (China and the Middle East were well represented). It was the fastest civilian jet in the world, could go 8,000 miles on a tank of jet fuel, and cruised through the dark purple sky at 51,000 feet over undesirable weather and mortals alike. When you step on board, you are not forced to remove your shoes, board by row, or get groped by someone in uniform unless you want to be. If you didn't have one, you didn't have everything.The catch was that they only delivered fifty per year for the first four years starting in 2012. Starting with the working assumption that everyone wanted one, there were going to be many disappointed billionaires standing around waiting for their plane. So, forget about spending $65 million. Anyways, that would just be the beginning. Hangarage, insurance, jet fuel, landing fees, captain, co-pilot, and flight attendants who let you call them stewardesses cost another $3 to $4 million per year. I had a better idea: just focus on buying a place in line - an initial $500k eventually reaching a full deposit of $3 mil. The chance that you would lose that $3 million or have to cough up another $62 million while standing in line was zero. You never get to the front of the line. Instead, you resell your place in line for twice what you paid and the buyers hardly feel it.ConclusionSo I am just a fellow looking for a structurally disadvantaged counterparty. If you are one or know of one, please contact me anytime. If you know where to look, suggestions are most welcome in the comment section below. For almost half a decade, my favorite counterparties have been the volatility-avoiders that created the return potential in XIV.As of today, I have new favorite ideas. If you are interested in finding additional constrained counterparties for mispricing opportunities, please continue the conversation here. However, if you want to pick just one and hold it for twenty years, XIV could still be a great choice. Either the market will collapse or it won't; if it is still here in twenty years, then XIV price will probably be much, much higher.