F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 5This month, we got some of our colleagues

talking about ‘love’. After all, it is the MONTH OF LOVE! Happy reading.

SPJ BUZZ

Dear Associates,2015 promises to be another milestone year in our history. Why? Because with a brand new Mumbai campus, and many new programs we expect to launch later this year, we hope to increase student numbers by around 25%. Our growth calls for further streamlining of processes. To make this everyone’s collective responsibility, I had initiated ZTI (Zeal to improve) last year. But this has yet to gather traction. I very much hope that each of you will set aside a few hours to think about this and look within your teams to identify areas for improvement. If you get stuck at any point, you may take the help of the ZTI teams at your campus.

I also reiterate the need to conform to all our values, all the time. Your growth, awards and all forms of recognition are linked to this.

CONGRATULATIONS ARE IN ORDER FOR:

Nihar Kumthekar from Dubai Nihar has been named the ‘Academic Manager of 2014’! He exemplified all our values and is a most worthy recipient of this title. We also have the following winners for Associate of the Quarter awards:

K Sreekumar from Dubai Has been exceptional in his work, and has spearheaded several new IT initiatives including upgrading Blackboard to the latest version (all by himself and thereby, saving the School precious time and money), and designing the IT requirements for the new Mumbai campus including the development of several new technologies. Most recently, he helped setup Lync Communicator to ensure seamless communication across teams online. He is a team player and supports all initiatives. Haydee Feliciano from Singapore She goes beyond the function of HR and has been extremely active in supporting all members of other business units. As an HR practitioner, her engagement with her colleagues is highly professional. The campus and employees appreciate her efforts in bringing togetherness and camaraderie among employees through campus events.

Please join me in congratulating all winners!

We have not had any candidates in Mumbai or Sydney that were deserving of the AOQ awards for Oct – Dec of 2014.

Lastly, I wish everyone in Singapore a very Happy Chinese New Year in advance!

Best wishes,NJ

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

CAMPUS UPDATESSINGAPORE

SYDNEY

BBA ORIENTATION:

PICNIC AT NORTH PALM BEACH:

The S P Jain journey for our very first January intake of BBA students commenced with an orientation ceremony in Singapore. This time, we had the opportunity to welcome students from India, Fiji, Cambodia and Albania. In addition to being introduced to important policies and academic and non-academic matters, the orientation program provided a great opportunity for the newcomers to interact with our current students, staff and faculty. The highlight of the day however, was a live performance put up by students from the BBA class of 2014 to welcome the new students.

Lyn Malakou organised a picnic at Palm Beach for all of our staff and over 200 students currently stationed in Sydney. Students, happy to get a break from hectic classes and assignments, were seen enjoying games of beach volleyball and cricket. A BBQ lunch was also part of the day’s agenda. After all, “barbie (slang for BBQ)” is an integral part of the Australian food culture. Students also had a chance to take lessons in CPR and surfing at the venue.

DUBAIMGB & GMBA (CLASS OF MAY 2014) RE-ORIENTATION:

COFFEE CONNECT AND KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE SERIES:

The re-orientation ceremony commenced with the lighting of the lamp and a prayer, followed by a welcome address by Professor Christopher Abraham. A welcome address and preview of academic affairs by Dr. Preeta George and introduction to student life activities by Professor Arindam Banerjee came next. The re-orientation ceremony also included important sessions on visa, transport & hostel guidelines by Rajesh Tripathy, Mentoring & Counselling services by Bijal Oza, library usage by Durai Murugan, and Career Services support by Chandrasekhar Singh.

Last month, had the opportunity to connect with our Dubai-based alumni through our COFFEE CONNECT and KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE series. Professor Arindam Banerjee conducted the very first Knowledge Exchange Session of this year on “Expo 2020: How Prepared is Corporate Dubai”. The Coffee Connect session was equally eventful with alumni continuing their discussion on nominating office bearers for the Dubai Alumni Chapter. Alumni were requested, in advance, to submit their nominations, which were then evaluated during the course of the gathering.

THE MARKETING TEAM OF SINGAPORE, DESCRIBE THEIR ROLES AND FUNCTIONS THEY PERFORM AT S P JAIN AND GIVE A BRIEF ABOUT THEMSELVES IN THEIR OWN WORDS.

MEET THE TEAM

Susan Tran: “Resourceful, attentive and hardworking. That’s how I would describe myself.” Susan handles marketing, student recruitment and business development for Vietnam for both undergraduate and post graduate programs.

Ivy Javierto: Ivy’s belief is that “Life is simple but people insist on making it complicated” Ivy has recently joined the SP Jain family as Marketing Executive at the Singapore office, supporting the Marketing and Admissions teams in all their initiatives.

Rodalyn Ramirez: ‘Though my faith is a work in progress, I live by Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” .Zane, my son, is my dose of daily vitamins. I start and end my day face timing with him. I want to take Photography seriously, and take photos of happy people.’Rodalyn is Marketing Manager of the Executive MBA program at the Singapore campus.

Rashmi Udaykumar: “I am a little of everything rolled into one - a rare species about to be extinct in the human race! I like to give all my support and encourage people who lose hope and whose minds are clouded. I really try my best to lift their spirits and become a driving force to them and such intrinsic rewards motivate me personally and professionally.” Part mentor, part philosopher, part guide and part friend. Rashmi is Head of Admissions at the Singapore office.

Neha Pai: A huge foodie, fun, spontaneous and vivacious. That is Neha for you! Neha is General Manager of Marketing of the Executive MBA program in Singapore.

Scott Anthony: The man with the booming laugh and one who is lucky to have met the Pope in person; Scott is inevitably charming with the ladies, a fun friend to hang out with and an approachable and extremely supportive team leader.

Krishti Chatterjee: “If you love what you do, you never have to slog a single day in your life.” That is the mantra Krishti lives by. A travel addict, she works only so that she can pay for her next exotic vacation. If she wasn’t doing Marketing, Student Recruitment and Business Development in South East Asia, she would have been hand raising tiger cubs in Africa.

“I LOVE YOU! Three magical words that give life a whole new meaning! Three magical words that drive men and women crazy around the world!

As a child, I have secretly fallen in and out of love many times. I stopped counting after the twentieth girl complained to the class teacher! I stopped counting because I lost that part of my memory after a sound trashing by my teacher ;-)

Today, any of our powerful search engines can help us find about 1000 different ways to SAY the three magical words without getting into trouble. But love is beyond words -- it’s about expressing your feeling to someone close. It could be our parents, our spouse, or our friends. These very people stand by our side always, no matter what! We tend to ignore them and continue our search for “eternal love”.

Love does not begin or end with you kneeling down with a flower in hand and screaming out to the world! It is a feeling of happiness, knowing that someone really cares and means the world to you. It’s about letting someone know that come what may, I will be there for you! We cannot compare the love of a parent and child to that of a friend or to that of the love between spouses. In each relation, love has a special meaning. How did you feel when someone said “I Love You”? That is important.

So dear friends, this Valentine’s, don’t run behind chocolates, gifts or flowers, enjoy the feeling in its truest form…. with your parents, your spouse, or your friends.

Brillian S.K.(Director – Human Resources)

“I LOVE YOU

A heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others

HEALTH & WELL BEINGYes, you read that right. Purple tea is slowly making its way into the urban lifestyle. Fast replacing the green tea, the year of 2015, most certainly is the one for Purple tea.

Kenya hopes to launch a new variety of tea in April 2015 that has abundant medicinal value as pointed out by Tea Research Foundation of Kenya in Reuters. This new purple variety has superior properties when compared to its better-known green and black counterparts. Its seeds also produce oil that is suitable for cooking and use in cosmetics and pharmaceutical items.

For long, health experts and scientists have spoken about the health benefits of consuming tea, especially green tea. Now, the focus seems to have shifted to this new variety bursting with antioxidants.

PURPLETEA!So, what is special about Purple tea?1. It has low caffeine content and is high in antioxidants that provide anti-cancer benefits 2. It improves vision, lowers cholesterol and blood sugar metabolism3. The purple colour comes from anthocyanin. These pigments also make the tea more astringent 4. Purple tea has a more earthy, brisk and rustic flavour than regular black tea5. It has a unique thirst quenching quality and can reduce the risk of hypertension and cardiac arrests

We’ll be back with more wellness tips in March. TILL THEN, STAY HEALTHY!

SOUMYA SHETTY(Executive - Corporate Communications)

?FUN AT WORKTRIVIA

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

LET’S QUIZ UP!

Yes, we know – February is the month of love. But that’s not all. Here are some other occasions/events worth remembering this month:

The more you read, the more things you will know... The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go – Dr. Seuss

1. How many squares are there on a chessboard?

2. Where did Titanic depart from?

3. In 2011, which country hosted Formula 1 racing for the first time?

4. What’s the capital of Bahamas?

5. Which sign of the zodiac is also called The Waterbearer?

1. 204 2. England 3. India 4. Nassau 5. Aquarius

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The whole month is February is celebrated as Parent Leadership Month

February 11 is Japan’s National Foundation Day

February is National Birdfeeding Month

February 4 is Sri Lanka’s Independence Day

February 12 is Abraham Lincoln’s birthday

February 12 is International Mother Language Day

It all started sometime in AD 269. Roman Emperor Claudius II had just ordered young men to refrain from getting married. The Emperor supposedly did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. To their rescue came Priest Valentine who agreed to secretly perform marriage ceremonies for young couples in love. Soon enough, Emperor Claudius found out about this and had Valentine jailed and executed. Centuries later, paper cards, red roses, chocolates came into the picture, to honour and commemorate the martyrdom of St Valentine. Today, Valentine’s Day is one of the most popular holidays celebrated across the globe. In India, the feeling of love begins sometime early February, when malls, flower shops, and gift shops adorn the traditional hearts and cupids, and offer special offers and discounts to help you make that special someone happy. However, have you ever wondered how people in other cultures ‘love’?

We did a little research and this is what we found out - Japan:In Japan, it is customary for the women to buy chocolates for the men they like. A reciprocal day called ‘White Day’ is celebrated on March 14. On this day, men give ‘return gifts’ to their valentines. The return gifts are normally white chocolates or marshmallows and therefore, the name ‘White Day’. Japanese women also give what is called ‘giri-choko’ which are chocolates that are given to male bosses as a way to show respect and not with romantic intentions. South Africa:Besides celebrating this day with lovers and friends, many young couples also honour a Roman festival called ‘Lupercalia’, where young men and women pin their names on their lovers’ sleeves. This is to acknowledge their attraction openly and express deep feelings. Brazil: In Brazil, Valentine’s Day is replaced by a similar holiday – Boyfriend’s/ Girlfriend’s Day – and is celebrated on June 12. It is a time when lovers gift each other flowers, cards, chocolates and other presents in the name of love. Korea:Besides Valentine’s Day, an additional day known as ‘Black Day’ is celebrated on the 14th of April. Mostly, men who did not receive any Valentine’s Day gifts celebrate this day. They usually gather in groups to drown in misery and eat ‘Jajangmyun’, which are noodles in black sauce. China:The Chinese have a concept similar to Valentine’s Day called ‘Night of the Sevens’, which falls on the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar. The Chinese Night of the Sevens is commonly known as ‘The Daughters’ Festival’. On this day, lovers usually flock to the ‘matchmakers’ and pray to the Gods for their love and a possible marriage. Single people do the same in the hopes of finding good luck in their love lives.

Traditions of Lovefrom around the world

EMPLOYEE CORNERARRIVALSDubai: Ms. Jaishree Chaturvedi - Head of Admission (January 6) Ms. Samantha Miles – Manager, Student Life, BBA (January 4)

MumbaiMs. Kasturi Kadam - Program Coordinator (January 2)Mr. Tushar More - Manager - Digital Marketing (January 7)

DEPARTURESDubai: Mr. Anudeep Raghtuman - Academic Manager, Marketing (January 20) Ms. Jyothsna Singh - Academic Manager, Marketing (January 30)

ANNOUNCEMENTS Our heartiest well wishes to Ms. Nurinah Bakri who got married on January 18

PROMOTIONSPlease join us in congratulating Dr. Parvinder Arora – Assistant Dean – GMBA, EMBA & MGB (Sydney)Prof. Veena Jadhav – Assistant Dean – GMBA & MGB (Singapore)Tharwat Andrawis-Acting Dean BBA (Sydney)Preeta George-Acting Dean GMBA, MGB (Dubai)Prof Arindam Banerjee- Director (Student Recruitment)on their well-deserved promotions

BIRTHDAY BABIESBirthday greetings and wishes for many more years of good health, success, joy and prosperity to3rd February – Carolyn Seah5th February – Han Zhenchang10th February – Rajendra Babu14th February – Ashok Chistopher Abraham15th February – Nitish Jain18th February – Priyadarshini Parab21th February – Denise Adversalo22nd February – Madhukar Shinde

YOUR SAYWe would love to hear your feedback and thoughts.

If you wish to feature in any of the sections, if you have any interesting stories and updates to share from your campus or if you are proud of any personal or professional achievement we would love to hear them all.

You can write to us at SHWETA.GOVIND@SPJAIN.ORG (Ms. Shweta Govind-Executive Corporate Communications)

Have a great month!

We thank our colleagues who contributed to the issue

Brillian SK Jeni VarugheseFlynn Francisco Madhu Panda Haydee FelicianoManju Varughese Krishti ChatterjeeSoumya ShettyTamana Yete

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS