CDL MBA Olympics – A Success!

Author: Snigdha Nandan, India
Co-chair (CSR Club)

Dreams turned into reality when B Schools in Singapore got together
on 14th Nov 2010 to celebrate the ‘ CDL MBA Olympics’, organized by CSR club of THE NANYANG MBA. MBA graduates from schools such
as NUS, INSEAD, SMU and SP Jain and Nanyang Business School, who are otherwise entangled in their fast paced curriculum, took time off
on a joyful Sunday morning to participate in this ‘first of its kind’
sporting and fundraising event. The goal of the event was not just to bring B schools together on a playground for fun but also to raise
funds for ‘The Cambodia Trust’.

Despite some B schools having exams during the week, 52
participants attended the event displaying sportsmanship,
enthusiasm and amicability all through. Various sponsors for the
event were CDL (title sponsor), DHL, SPH (magazine sponsor),
McDonald’s (beverage sponsor) , GNC and Frolick.

The day began with a welcome note where they were familiarized
with the campus and schedule for the day. Students were also
provided with an exhaustive information document and campus map.

As the day progressed students participated in various
aforementioned sports. Excitement and Enthusiasm was reflecting in
every drop of sweat. During the event DHL had set up a recruitment
booth with Diana Sani (representative from DHL), providing insights
to students on ‘In house consulting in Asia Pacific’ and job
opportunities at DHL.

The games were followed by a dinner event which was graced by
Vivian Lim (Manager, Corporate Communications, CDL). Vivian gave
away prizes (lucky draw) and medals to winners and encouraged the
participants. The winner for various events were-

Badminton doubles- SP Jain

Badminton singles- SP Jain

Table Tennis- NUS

Basket Ball- Nanyang Business School

Futsal- Nanyang Business School

The day was concluded at the Staff club with a round of drinks and
dinner, where students were seen exchanging experiences and
rejoicing new bonds. Total Funds raised for the event were 6800
SGD, out of which 5500 SGD would be donated to Cambodia Trust.
The CDL MBA Olympics indeed created some beautiful memories for
each one to cherish!

Life in Trimester 2

Author: Gregory Edwards, Canada
Student Exco President

Mid-way through the first week and Trimester 2 (T2) is in full swing. Hard to believe the full timers have all been together now for 3 months already. The pre-orientation party at
Oosh and after party at Zouk feels like it was just yesterday.


Some of the planning over T1 by the various social and business clubs is coming to
fruition and quickly it seems. T2 is starting out with a flurry of different activities
including the MBA Olympics, T2 Welcome back party, seminars and speaker series, and
even a tour of an ocean going tanker ship. Additionally, a Diwali celebration is coming
up which promises to have lots of food and dancing and live up to last semester’s
Mooncake Festival which set a high-benchmark for organization, commitment by the
organizers, and fun!

The previous batch grads are gone from campus but not forgotten. We hope that they
can find time in their “new lives” to come and visit, attend a party now and then, and
give us updates. I have to thank Vishal Bansal, outgoing EXCO President, and the other
members of the previous EXCO team for their support and guidance in getting the
current EXCO up and running.

For myself, I had the first course of the Waseda portion of the NTU-Waseda Double MBA program last night and came away impressed. I am looking forward to tonight’s session
and other upcoming courses. To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect from a
Japanese-led MBA even after living in Japan. The open attitude and personality of the
professor, Dr. Hideki Shirai, made it informative, encouraging, and engaging.

I also attended the Value-based Innovation recess course as part of the Double MBA, a
one-week course presented by Shlomo Maital, a visiting professor from a university in
Israel with experience at MIT. Like myself, Shlomo spent some of his formative years in
a small town in Canada, so we have some shared background. Like most in the class I
was impressed by his experience, energy, and positive nature. Taught over 5-and-a-half
days, he never seemed to run out of batteries. Once you understand that he has run
marathons and climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, teaching an MBA course seems less difficult.

With one-third of my program completed, I look back and think about all the things we
have done already; pre-orientation parties, orientation week, the migration to Grad Hall,
meeting new friends and getting a better understanding of cultures, various group
projects, day trips and extended vacations, the birth of the first child for one of our
classmates, and of course the EXCO elections, getting things started, and moving
forward.

With so much done in only a few months I can’t wait to see what the next few months
bring!