To avoid a repeat of the Common Admission Test (CAT) paper leak in 2003, the Indian Institutes of Management(IIMs), which conduct the exam usually, spend a tense few months to ensure there are no leaks and glitches. This time around, aided by technology and a professional examination conducting company, the IIMs are confident there will be no security breaches.

IIMs use biometrics to prevent CAT applicants from cheating

Business Standard

After a two-month long tussle with the union ministry of human resources (MHRD) over pay scales and autonomy issues, the All India IIT Faculty Federation (AIIITF) is looking forward to the IIT Council meeting to present some proposals which it believes &ldquo;will ensure that IITs keep excelling by attracting talented faculty into the system and preserve the culture of flexible cadre system that has contributed significantly to the success of IITs.

'Flexible cadre' issue to be raised at IIT Council meet

The issue of faculty salaries caused a lot of heartburn after the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) raised a pay hike demand with the HRD ministry. While the issue has been settled with the premier technology institutes, their management institutes chose not to pursue the matter. In an interview with Pradipta Mukherjee, IIM Calcutta director Shekhar Choudhuri says the institute is devising a model to evaluate &lsquo;exceptions&rsquo; &mdash; as suggested by Union HRD minister Kapil Sabil.

'We add five new faculty members every quarter'

Delhi-based premier management school Faculty of Management Studies (FMS) has recorded 100 per cent summer placements for the batch of 2011 comprising 142 MBA students and 63 MBA (Management of Services) students. Besides traditional recruiters like P&amp;G, HUL, Standard Chartered and HSBC, first-time recruiters like Nomura services, Lazard Ltd and JP Morgan Chase also picked up students.

FMS completes summer placement for MBA batch 2011

The CAT, which is administered by IIMs, is accepted as the qualifying exam by many other institutes other than IIMs. MAT is a relatively new test, administered by AIMA for other institutes. Though very few students in metropolitan cities appear for the MAT, most students in smaller towns try to adopt a combined strategy to crack both the CAT and MAT, in the hope of making it to at least one exam.

MAT beats CAT to become first computer-based test

The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) India and US universities are proposing to set up an India-US Education Council that will coordinate the bilateral relations in education between the two countries as many universities in America are keen to know India&rsquo;s road map for the education sector. The areas of collaboration that the two sides are looking at include research, distant education, vocational education, skill development, exchange of faculty, models of public-private partnership and also expertise for the setting up of universities.

MHRD mulls India-US Education Council

    This Indian entrepreneur named one of the ITES companies he set up by the Latin word for the number &lsquo;4&rsquo;.

The Strategist Quiz (#119)

    What is the term used to describe a person working for a group or cluster of different employers, or job and a business, or whatever combination comes together best for him or her? It involves the expansion of the concept of freelancing beyond that of self-employed professionals.

Answers to last week's quiz (#118)

Despite the economic slump which slowed down Manipal Educ-ation&rsquo;s construction of campuses in Dubai and Jaipur by around six months, the education major has completed construction of its Antigua campus and is firming up plans to make a second phase of investment into it.

Manipal plans to expand Antigua campus for $20 mn

Committees to review IIT admissions, syllabus.

IITs likely to up minimum Class XII marks for JEE

How Hyundai plans to find its space in a crowded market.

Small is sensible

Parle's looking to bite into Britannia's Bourbon biscuit market.

The battle for Bourbon

Investment analysts were bullish on Intel, the world&rsquo;s largest chipmaker. They had upped their earnings forecast for the company in anticipation of its third-quarter earnings. They reasoned that the demand for personal computers (PCs) in the third quarter of the year (July to September) had been stronger than expected, in particular for notebooks. And Intel&rsquo;s Atom processor is the &lsquo;heart&rsquo; of notebooks. They were right. Not disappointing investors, Intel posted sales that surpassed projections by as much as $1 billion. Its revenue at $9.4 billion was up $1.4 billion from the prior quarter although less than the year-ago quarter of $10.2 billion. The company said the numbers offered evidence of a &ldquo;recovering market&rdquo;.

&#39;Not many first-time buyers purchase low-cost PCs&#39;

Tube Investments, which manufactures Hercules and BSA bicycles, has diversified into electric scooters in the hope that it will be able to replicate its success with bicycles. &ldquo;Bicycles have stopped being relevant to urban commuting and are increasingly used for recreation. With e-scooters, we are looking to get back in the urban commuting space,&rdquo; says BSA Motors Vice-president K B Srinivasan.

BSA Motors: From bicycles to scooters

Barely three months after emerging out of bankruptcy, General Motors has launched its luxury Sedan, the Chevrolet Cruze, in India. Built on a global platform called the 300 series, the Cruze will compete with the Honda Civic, Skoda Laura and Volkswagen Jetta for a space in the executive segment.

General Motors: Ready to Cruze?

The Indian book retail industry is estimated to be over Rs 3,000 crore, out of which organised retail accounts for only 7 per cent.

KIT: Book retail in India

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
Authors: Randolph H Hudson and Bernard J Selzler 
Publisher: Jaico Publishing 
Price: Rs 350
ISBN: 8179924688.
ZIGLAR ON SELLING
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Publisher: Jaico Publishing 
Price: Rs 175
ISBN: 8179925870.
MARKET OPPORTUNITY ANALYSIS
Authors: Robert E Stevens, Philip K Sherwood and J Paul Dunn 
Publisher: Jaico Publishing 
Price: Rs 425
ISBN: 8179927601.
MANAGING THE PROFESSIONAL SERVICE FIRM
Author: Maister David 
Publisher: Free Press 
Price: Rs 766
ISBN: 9780743231565.
WHARTON ON MAKING DECISIONS
Authors: Stephen J Hoch, Howard Kunreuther and Robert E Gunther 
Publisher: John Wiley &amp; Sons
Price: Rs 1,657
ISBN: 0471382477.
WHAT THE CEO WANTS YOU TO KNOW
Author: Ram Charan 
Publisher: Random House
Price: Rs 175
ISBN: 0609608398.
THE BOOK OF LEADERSHIP AND STRATEGY
Author: Thomas Cleary 
Publisher: Random House 
Price: Rs 843
ISBN: 0877736677.
EXPERT PRODUCT MANAGEMENT
Author: Brian Lawley 
Publisher: Happy About

The top 10 business bestsellers

For the first time in recent years, the number of applicants for the Common Admission Test (CAT) has taken a fall. In spite of an extension of 10 days for the online registration of CAT, 241,000 applications registered this year, against 290,000 last year &mdash; a 17 per cent dip. The CAT exam is a pre-requisite for aspirants wanting an entry into top management schools.

CAT registrations dip 17% despite extension

Pankaj Chandra, director of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM-B), says it&rsquo;s time now to take on the INSEAD and IMDs of the world.

IIMs plan to join hands for overseas foray

United Spirits banks on its flagship brand to become the world's largest selling liquor company.

Bagpiper punch for Diageo

In October last year, personal computer manufacturer Dell&rsquo;s market share in the small and medium enterprises (SME) segment was just 3.2 per cent. A year later, the figure has improved to 5.2 per cent &ndash; a creditable performance considering that PC sales have been south-bound in this period.

Page 691 - News