Our university students recently got opportunity to attend the World Business Forum in New York. From UPES, Dehradun Aarkriti Joshi from MBA program and from UTM, Khushboo Singhania from MBA program participated in the event. At the forum, these students got chance to witness live-talks by great leaders. They also got chance to ask few questions with some of the professionals too. The Forum gave the students an opportunity to expand, connect, unite and multiply ideas from student representatives from all over the world. 27 universities students participated in this forum. Here a report by a student who attended the event

1. World Business Forum
October 1 & 2, 2013
At Radio City Music Hall
New York City
USA
Khushboo Singhania
R040112002
MBA Event Management
University of Technology and Management
Shillong

2. ABSTRACT
This document is about the knowledge and the learning I acquired during the four day visit to New
York City for the World Business Forum held on October 1 and 2, 2013 t Radio City Music Hall. I was
sponsored by my university to attend the forum and represent it at the global platform. The entire
experience was very enriching and memorable and the learning I received from being a part of the
event has widened my horizon and scope to develop, expand and explore the bigger and better
surrounding. Leadership skills, apart from networking, competence and knowledge are some aspects
I very importantly learnt in this visit. I observed and enriched my knowledge.
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3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I wish sincere thanks to the faculty members of School of Management, University of Technology
and Management, Shillong for selecting me to attend the World Business Forum, 2013. I am happy
they found me competent enough to be able to represent UTM at a very well-known global event.
I would want to show my heart felt appreciation to Laureate International Universities and its staff
for giving me a chance to be a part of an amazing group. Amongst all Laureate staffs, I would like to
especially and humbly thank Emiliano Diez (Vice President), Carolina Boquin and Monica Mayen
(Event administrators), Emely Jimenez (Creative Services Producer) and Paola Méndez (Senior Media
Producer - Products & Services) And Two other special people, Megan Jack and Cathrine Almqvist
(Kendall College, USA, interning with Laureate International Universities). Without their help,
support and most importantly a warm welcome, this trip would not have been as memorable as it is.
I would like to thank and appreciate all the new friends I made from other parts of India and the
world, for making the experience a wonderful one.
Last but not the least; I would like to express my deep sense of gratitude to my parents for always
being a constant source of inspiration. I thank them for letting me go to New York and having faith
and belief in me.
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4. PREFACE
Two days live in NYC – 365 days of inspiration
This report is about the experience I gained by attending the World Business Forum, a premier global
business summit held each year at Radio City Music Hall, New York City, USA on October 1 and 2,
2013. The event brought together a completely new group of experts and practitioners who are
shaping the future of business and offering an incomparable amount of knowledge on the latest
business trends, strategies and innovations from all over the globe.
Laureate being an active participant helped us to connect, share, learn and hear from the brightest,
most imaginative minds from around the world. 27 universities sent their students to be a part of
this forum.
Speakers at the WBF included renowned academics with the capacity to convert theories and
metaphors into new, challenging perspectives; business icons with the experience and charisma to
share success stories and instill best practices; and global leaders who are convinced that the best
way to learn and grow is to put ideas into action.
I got a chance to witness live-talks by great leaders like Jack Welch (Former Chairman and CEO of
General Electrics), Samuel Palmisano (Former Chairman and CEO of IBM), Steven Lewitt and Stephen
Dubner (Co-authors of the award winning bestseller Freakonomics and its sequel Super
Freakonomics), Maggie Wilderotter (President and CEO of Frontier Communication), Denise
Morrison (President and CEO of Campbell Soup), Ben Zander (Acclaimed Musician and Orchestra
Director), Gordon Brown (Prime Minister of UK-2007 to 2010), S.D. Sibhulal (Co-founder and CEO of
Infosys), among many others.
I live-interviewed Mrs. Shideh Sedgh Bina, the founding partner of Insigniam, an international
consultancy firm. I also got a chance to ask a live-question to Sam Palmisano and Jack Welch, during
the question-answer session after their talk. The platform gave her an opportunity to expand,
connect, unite and multiply ideas from student representatives from all over the world as there were
participants from Mexico, Peru, Chile, China, Malaysia, Panama, Spain, Ecuador, Thailand, United
Kingdom, Cyprus, Turkey and Morocco.
The experience of totally delightful and enriched with learning that has broadening my perspective
and giving me an edge over others in today’s world full of competition.
Khushboo Singhania
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5. CONTENTS
Abstract
Acknowledgement
Preface
Table of Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 5
WOBI ................................................................................................................................................ 6
Laureate International Universities ................................................................................................. 7
World Business Forum 2013 ............................................................................................................ 8
About the speakers and their keynote addresses .................................................................... 9 - 18
My experience and learning .......................................................................................................... 19
Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 20
Bibliography ................................................................................................................................... 21
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6. INTRODUCTION
When conference keynote leaders like Jack Welch, Samuel Palmisano, Maggie Wilderotter, Denise
Morrison and others take the stage, their remarks are filled with references to achieve what is
possible, pushing people and organizations to the very limits of their true potential. In order to truly
ascertain the opportunity that exists to inspire people to better business results, such leaders
motivate individuals to ensure they are measuring up and helping to create a better environment
around them.
The lessons learned and shared with leaders in this forum go a long way to helping shape the
executive leadership mandate at a time when people are looking to leaders more than ever for
answers.
The topics discussed at this year’s World Business Forum at Radio City Music Hall in New York City
included new ways of thinking, new approaches, new trends, new paradigms, innovative skills and
contemporary knowledge to apply and enrich professional and personal lives and more. The
speakers shared a wealth of stories, backed by years of experiences and research. They offered their
insights on what must be expected of leaders and how they can meaningfully put their own personal
style of leadership into action — for the betterment of the enterprise, the customers it serves and
even the wider world we share.
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7. ABOUT WOBI
World of Business Ideas is a home of actionable ideas from
people shaping the business world. They discover the latest
trends, the most up-to-date thinking, and the inspiration to help
you and your company grow. They travel the world to seek out
and connect you to the leaders, thinkers, actors and disruptors
who are shaping the future of business. They do this by their
four media options:
WOBI Events
WOBI TV
WOBI Magazine
WOBI.COM
We are inspired by a conviction that the world has an ever greater need for simple and powerful
ideas, constant inspiration and exciting, new visions of the future. Their motto is Building better
businesses, better people, a better world.
WOBI Events: They constitute of transformational live experiences for thousands of business
executives. They organize events like the World Business Forum to focus on key management topics
including World Innovation Forum, World Leadership Forum and World Marketing Forum which
these are must-attend events for decision makers in the global executive community. From cities
around the world they gather business icons, global leaders, brilliant minds, and legendary CEOs to
discuss the issues and trends that are shaping the future of business.
WOBI TV: It is a unique blend of challenging, inspiring and entertaining programming. Reaching more
than 16 million homes, WOBI TV presents business as one has never seen before. They telecast
documentaries, special reports, reality shows, and interviews featuring the leaders, entrepreneurs
and experts who are shaping the business landscape; the companies that are pushing boundaries
and leading innovation; the hottest topics on the business agenda.
WOBI Magazine: It is Latin America's leading management publication. Published bi-monthly for the
past 17 years, WOBI Magazine features practical case studies; cutting edge ideas from the world’s
leading experts; stories of “doers” from all corners of the planet.
WOBI.com: An online platform that lets one watch the world’s most influential business thought
leaders from the ease of home. On WOBI.com one can find all the conferences from WOBI Events on
demand; more than 1,000 video shorts featuring ideas, insights and practical tips from experts on
every area of business; over 2,400 articles from WOBI Magazine; the best programming from WOBI
TV.
WOBI has now partnered this journey with the La Nación group and Laureate International
Universities.
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8. ABOUT LAUREATE INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITIES (LIU)
LIU
are
a
leading
international
network
of
quality, innovative institutions of higher education. They have a
network of more than 72 accredited campus-based and online
universities offering programs to more than 780,000 students
around the world. The students are part of an international,
academic community that spans 30 countries throughout the United States of America, Europe,
Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. The institutions offer hundreds of career-focused, undergraduate,
master's, and doctoral degree programs in fields including architecture, art, business, culinary arts,
design, education, engineering, health sciences, hospitality management, information technology,
law, and medicine.
Every institution in the network operates as its own unique brand, guided by local leadership,
proactively involved as a member of the community in which it operates. Relationships and
connections between and among all the institutions in its network are enriched with
shared curriculum, degree programs, faculty, and student exchange opportunities.
At the center of the vision is value — defined by the students and those who employ them.
Professionally-oriented curriculum and in-demand degrees are delivered with an international
perspective to help every Laureate student achieve a return in the global marketplace on their
education investment.
LIU’s community is vast and diverse, embracing Laureate students, faculty, alumni and families. With
a passion for innovation and excellence, Laureate International Universities are making a positive
difference in communities around the world. When the students succeed, countries prosper and
societies benefit.
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9. WORLD BUSINESS FORUM 2013
WBF is a transformative experience dedicated to building better
businesses, better people and a better world. The innovative,
dynamic and comprehensive World Business Forum is a platform to
expand, connect, unite, distribute and multiply ideas; a space
dedicated to democratizing knowledge, best practices and cutting
edge insight and a global meeting point for those who strive to
create, grow and accomplish. It is indeed a powerful network of
businessmen and women who belief in the transformative potential of talent, enterprise and
endeavor.
This year, the World Business Forum was organized on October 1 and 2, 2013 at Radio City Hall in
New York City. It brought together a completely new group of experts and practitioners who are
shaping the future of business and offering an incomparable amount of knowledge on the latest
business trends, strategies and innovations from all over the globe.
The conference allowed Laureate participants to connect, share, learn and hear from the brightest,
most imaginative minds from around the world. The objective of the event was to expose students
and faculty members to new ways of thinking, new approaches, new trends, new paradigms,
innovative skills and contemporary knowledge for them to apply and enrich their professional and
personal lives, regardless of their disciplines.
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10. ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Jeb Bush and his talk on leadership on the move and global influencers:
Jeb Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician who served as
the 43rd Governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is the second son of
former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush.
Coming from a family that has committed its life to public service, Jeb Bush is
determined to shape the future of America. He is the former Governor of
Florida. Throughout his talk, he spoke about how it is important to not say
what plans one has for his people, but to state clear objectives and actually do them. When
participating in a campaign he states that the agenda should not be high dreams and aimless
objectives, but rather concrete achievable goals like business men state.
“If you don‟t have the courage of your convictions, or if you don‟t have a
clear will to do things, it is very hard to accomplish it.”
He mentioned 5 main leadership qualities that are needed in today’s arena. The first step in
leadership is to have the courage of your convictions and to say with honesty what you plan to do,
so that people believe in you and only then will they follow it. The second is to set aspirational goals.
Goals that is big but achievable. Then he mentioned asking the question “why not” in times of
constant change to facilitate growth. He also spoke about the need for the leaders to be humble and
good listeners.
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11. Stephen Dubner and Steve Levitt talk on ‘Beyond Super freakonomics’:
An award-winning author, journalist and media personality, Stephen Dubner is the co-author of
Freakonomics and Super Freakonomics with economist Steven Levitt.
Steven David "Steve" Levitt (born May 29, 1967) is
an American economist known for his work in the field of crime, in
particular on the link between legalized abortion and crime rates. In
April 2005 Levitt published his first book, Freakonomics (coauthored
with Stephen J. Dubner), which became a New York Times bestseller.
Levitt and Dubner also started a blog - www.freakonomics.com. Levitt is an honorary professor
at McGill University.
Originally published in 2005, Freakonomics began a cultural phenomenon and spent four years on
The New York Times bestseller list, selling 5 million copies in 35 languages. Its sequel
SuperFreakonomics continues to apply economic reasoning to a wide range of real-world questions.
The literary side to the Levitt-Dubner combination, thanks to Dubner’s contributions the
Freakonomics enterprise lives on through their award-winning blog, documentary film, and publicradio project.
They believe in debunking the conventional wisdom- wisdom that has been passed on to us since
generations that our moms always thought was right, are not necessarily wrong, but they sure are
conventional.
They take interest in controversial topics, getting super freaky with topics like what prostitutes,
suicide bombers, and global cooling have to do with economics. Thinking outside the box has always
been their approach for solving any issue, be it economical or business. At WBF 2013, they spoke
about “Unpredictable thinking about an unconventional economy.”
Levitt says,
“There is no such thing as „You can‟t‟, it is just about how much money is
somebody going to pay you for the thing you don‟t wanna do”
They opine that we believe more on the barriers that we think exist than on issues to actually solve
them. If we always spent time thinking that a task cannot be done, it never has been done and it will
not be done, then we should instead set back and rethink about these superficial barriers that are
merely in our minds.
Dubner says:
“Redefine a problem you are trying to solve. Don‟t accept barriers. They
can be artificial.”
Also, they mentioned that a good leader is one who admits not knowing all the answers. If you don’t
know the answer, once or twice simply admit it; so that when you actually know the answer, people
will believe in you more than they believed in you earlier when you acted like knowing all the
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12. answers. Lastly, they spoke about how important feedback is in any kind of communication or
action. Business should have a mechanism to measure their actions by regular feedbacks.
Throughout their casual talk, they related economics to daily life’s simple observations. Practicing
and learning by observation is an important way to analyze oneself and his actions.
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13. Denise Morrison and Maggie Wilderotter talk on leadership, personal traits and
education:
Denise Morrison is an American business women executive who
serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Campbell Soup
Company. Named the 21st Most Powerful Woman in Business
by Fortune Magazine, Morrison was made the first woman CEO in
August of 2011. She is also the founding member of the Healthy
Weight Commitment Foundation, an initiative to combat obesity in
places of work and schools. Previously, she was Vice President and
General Manager of the Snacks and Confections division at Kraft Foods. She has occupied leadership
positions at Nabisco, Nestle and Pepsi-Cola. She is Maggie Wilderotter’s sister, the CEO of Frontier
Communications.
Fortune named Wilderotter one of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Business; she has contributed to
growth of the telecommunications industry for over 30 years and she is a fan of constant change and
learning. Before becoming President of Frontier Communications, she was senior vice president of
Microsoft's Worldwide Public Sector and CEO of Wink Communications.
At the WBF, Denise’s talk revolved around how they believed adopting business leadership qualities
at a young age helped them in establishing and achieving goals today. The leadership model for
success was possible only by developing confidence and how important communication was for
strengthening strategies. Maggie, on the other hand spoke of technology and communication and
the advantage of the changing industry, passion for the consumer is the competitive advantage that
will make you unstoppable and great people do great service for great consumers.
Denise Morrison says:
“You have to make your own opportunities and see around corners”
Both the sisters believe in profits and making a difference. They believe that a lot of what they do
today as CEOs has to do with their upbringing. Corporate Social Responsibility is not just for
portraying a good image to society but to actually help the employees of the company who live in
those societies. It is important to believe in what we do and apply them to business. The experiences
from one’s day-to-day live is more enriching than learning then from books that only teach you what
the authors of the book felt or learnt.
“Our parents didn‟t allow us to use the words „I can‟t‟. They said it‟s not
you can‟t but how can you”
From their life’s lessons, they recall being taught to taking risks at a very early age. When they were
asked to try something and if it didn’t work, try something new. This practice helps them even today
when they have to take big business decisions about acquisitions and market share. But they
remember their parents always supporting them by not stopping them but being prepared in their
risks – which today they call calculated risks in the business world.
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14. Having a disciplined approach to taking a decision is very important. And discipline should never be
confused with bureaucracy.
Maggie Wilderotter says:
“Leadership is more about saying no and having the courage to say so”
They both talked about creating one’s own opportunities. There is innovation in choosing your
career too. Taking cross functional assignments teaches you a lot about all the various fields thus
giving you a larger picture of things. They also play a key role to mentor the women of the next
generation and believe that there are more openings than seen for women. Everyday their strive to
set good examples and become role models for the women of today.
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15. Jack Welch and his talk on winning in times of uncertainty:
Jack Welch (born November 19, 1935) is an American business executive, author
and chemical engineer. He is the former chairman and CEO of General Electric
(1981 and 2001). During his tenure at GE, the company's value rose 4000%. In
2006, Welch's net worth was estimated at $720 million. When he retired from GE
he took a severance payment of $417 million, the largest such payment in
history.
In 2009, Welch founded the Jack Welch Management Institute, a program at Chancellor
University that offered an online executive MBA degree. The institute was acquired by Strayer
University in 2011. Welch has been actively involved with the curriculum, faculty and students at the
online business school since its launch.
“Once you have become a leader, it‟s no longer about you; it‟s about
them, the people you are leading”
At the WBF, he spoke about challenging management fundamentals, transformative leadership
practices by delivering innovative but sustainable results and recruiting, developing and retain the
best people. When dealing with negotiations, he starts off by saying that rules should be same for
all. We cannot have on group earn more than the other in a negotiation because that gives space for
more options and eventually brings to the downfall of the entire negotiation in the first place. One
has to demonstrate leadership though constant transparency and give purpose to the job.
He spoke about generosity gene at length and suggested that leaders today have energy, edge,
executive skills and passion; but most importantly they have the generosity gene - a person who is
happy to see others getting promotions, a person who is excited to take an idea from others and
build a strong team.
“Without generosity, you don‟t build great teams”
His take on online education as a new and affective approach. Executive MBA as opposed to
traditional practices allows one to apply the learnt methods in the same week than after two years
of completing the course. It sure has its weaknesses with being less sociable, but improving
technology is going to eliminate this missing link.
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16. Sam Palmisano and his talk on Leadership, legacy and continuity:
Former CEO of IBM, Sam Palmisano’s leadership transformed the company into a
globally integrated enterprise. During his 39-year career with IBM, Palmisano
helped the organization become the largest IT company in the world, successfully
leading change in a competitive tech market. Palmisano's goal was to reestablish
IBM as a standard-setting company. He was influenced by the company founders
who "always defined I.B.M. as a company that did more than sell computers.
“You have to reflect on where you want to be, not where you have been”
At the WBF, he spoke about putting the enterprise above the individual, developing quick
organisational reflexes to encourage innovation and ‘learning by listening’ concept. These he said
were the most important leadership lessons. If answers to the three W’s of management: What
makes you unique? Why work for you? And why invest? are known to leaders, it cannot stop them
from building a healthy work environment and a strong business. Being a good listener is essential to
be a good leader, which will help one to collaborate with your team.
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17. Ben Zander and his talk on the art of possibilities:
Benjamin Zander is the conductor of The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and a
guest conductor around the world. With London's famed Philharmonia
Orchestra, he is recording the complete cycle of Mahler symphonies for Telarc,
recordings which have been received with extraordinary critical acclaim and
several awards. Their latest recording of Bruckner’s 5th Symphony was
nominated for a 2010 Grammy.
By far, the most inspiring speaker in the World, he communicates like musical notes out of a piano.
He believes in doing simple things, but differently. He spoke to us about the art of possibility.
“My job is to remind the players what the rhythm of transformation is.”
He explains that there are three responses to life: resignation, anger and possibility. It depends
which one we want to stand with. One has to learn to fall in love with the person he/she wants to
become. Once that transformation is made, you never lose it until the last day of your life. Being a
conductor himself, he says that the power of a conductor depends on his power to make others
powerful. Likewise a leader depends on his leadership to make other better leaders.
The art of possibility dies when the little voice in your mind weakens your ability to transform.
Nothing is impossible if you believe in yourself. His version of “Happy Birthday to you” will always be
with me. The simplicity of that song conveyed and awakened a possibility of conviction in each one
of us. Lastly, he said,
“Possibility is just one sentence away.”
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18. Clayton Christensen and his talk on disruptive innovation and how to create new growth
businesses:
A five-time recipient of the McKinsey Award for the Harvard Business Review’s best
article of the year, Christensen’s theories on innovation have been adopted by
leaders across multiple fields: from education to the healthcare system, and from
international companies to state governments. The innovation consultancy firm he
founded, Innosight, has helped thousands of world-renowned companies turn
innovative ideas into tangible return investments.
At the WBF, Christensen revealed the power and reach of disruptive innovation and the faults of
rationality in business. Secret to why companies invest in innovation now and how important is
social innovation - health care system and educational reform.
He spoke about how relevant disruptive innovation is in today’s world. His theory is based on the
fact that we need to make the products more affordable. His model of disruptive innovation explains
the phenomenon where we make the luxury products more affordable in nature for the consumers.
This creates jobs as well as utilizes capital. e.g. Mini Computer empowers innovation. Similar yet
differentiating from the concept of disruption is sustaining Innovation; where luxury products are
made even more expensive to maintain the niche market. The job opportunities get limited and
capital utilization also limits. Then he spoke about efficiency Innovation and making the products
cheap and readily available. It frees the capital and eliminates few jobs in order to achieve
economies of scale. E.g. Walmart
According to disruptive innovation, Sony made computers and photocopy machines more accessible.
The deep lying factor in understanding any product or market is to understand the purpose behind
it. He quoted Peter Drucker by saying, “The customer really buys what the company thinks it’s
selling.”
“Customer in fact buys a product for a specific purpose behind it. We
need to access that purpose in order to formulate a product.”
For example, Clayton Christensen did a study where the sale of coffee was maximum from 6 to 8 am
in the morning. When he studied the purpose behind it, it was believed that the drivers needed
something that woke them up during the long hour drive to office. The purpose was different to
what the company must have perceived – taste and brand name.
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19. Other eminent leaders:
Among other notable speakers were Alec Ross (Former Innovation advisor to Hilary Clinton), Bob
Moritz (The Chairman and Senior Partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers), SD Shibulal (Co-founder and
CEO of Infosys), Susan Sobbott (President of American Express Open), Gordon Brown (Former Prime
Minister of United Kingdom), Claudio Fernandes-Araoz (Top global expert on hiring and promotion
decisions) and many more.
Gordon Brown says
“Neglecting education is creating generations of dependent and unemployable people”
These great minds at the same platform spoke about the latest trends and changes in the leadership
scenario. Susan Sobbott spoke about flexibilities in the leadership scenario, especially for women.
Susan Sabbott believes that today’s world has many opportunities for women. In fact, women are
the drivers of the business world today. It’s important to innovate in the work atmosphere bearing
them in mind.
Claudio Fernandes Araoz says
“Surrounding ourselves with the best, and helping the best become better
is the key for a better world”
Susan Sorbott says
“People work for people, not organisations. Be the people you want to
work for.”
SD Shibulal, said that it is important to be a people’s leader. In the Indian context, Infosys gives
flexibility in the working hours and the work culture. In their Bangalore campus where no vehicles
are allowed inside, the rules are adhered equally by the CEO as well as the junior most employee.
Similarly, at the food court there is no separate dining area for the CEO. Infosys believes in equality
and flexibility.
SD Shibulal says,
“The leaning process is life-long”
According to Bob Moritz, job rotation is very important. Today, employees are hungry for knowledge
so why not give them an opportunity to learn from various aspects and sectors. It will lead to
efficiency growth in them as well as the company and also reduce attrition rate as the employees
will be satisfied with their jobs. The more they learn, the happier they are.
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20. MY EXPERIENCE AND LEARNING
The honor of witnessing keynotes by such great
speakers and eminent orators under one roof at a
venue which in itself is a historical place was very
valuable. The entire hall was filled with executives and
senior management people from various organisations
from the world, and amongst them, being an MBA
student and having the chance to sit with them for the live show was an outstanding experience.
Being able to ask Sam Palmisano and Jack Welch a live-question in front of the entire audience
required courage and I managed to do that. I doubt it would be possible in any other setting; but
since I was marveled at being able to attend a one of a kind summit, the energy just came from
within. My question was about India and its global issues, which was answered very correctly by Sam
Palmisano first and later more insights to it were added by Jack Welch. It was an honor to be able to
ask questions to two great legends of the business industry.
I also got a chance to live interview Mrs. Shideh Sedgh Bina, the founding partner of Insigniam, an
international consultancy firm. Asking her questions regarding the consultancy firms and
understanding from her the mechanisms of such firms was wonderful. It taught me so much about
the consultancy firms and how in spite of being in the same industry, did they differ from their
competitors like McKinsey and the Boston Consulting Group.
Throughout my trip, I learnt so many things that books could not have ever taught me. I have been a
Mass Communication and video production student and I have done both online and offline projects
in my college studio; but actually witnessing a live show being recorded and telecasted all around
the world, and being a part of the entire team taught me a lot. Pursuing my MBA in Event
Management now, and having a chance to be a part of a globally renowned event has taught me so
much about management and professionalism.
Another very important aspect of businesses today is networking, which was abundantly possible
there. Meeting executives and exchanging business cards to knowing students from all round the
world, gave me a lifetime opportunity to build professional and friendly relationships.
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21. CONCLUSION
I learnt the art of professionalism, business, management and networking in the best possible
scenario; an experience which will always remain a part of me. Looking back, I realize how important
it is to step outside one’s nutshell and see the world from a completely new point of view.
From the very first minute as I landed in New York City, my experience was amazing. Stepping out
from the airport into the Yellow cabs and the cab driver associating India with Amitabh Bachchan
and Hrithik Roshan to us reaching hotel Yotel; the ‘silent’ Times Square at 8:00 hours to fully
crowded and happening Times Square at 23:00 hours; from meeting the Laureate Organizers to
interacting with other students from other Laureate schools and parts of the world; from the very
first official dinner party and camera-anchor training to the actual day of the World Business Forum
at Radio City; from the entire formal event and backstage activities to the casual site seeing in the
gray-line buses, subway and the ferry ride to Statue of Liberty; every moment was special and
enriching.
Witnessing this event in person has given me ample scope to develop and grow. The experience
taught me to be self-dependent and take decisions which I felt were right. It has made me a better
observer and widened my horizon to think. Attending the World Business Forum has taught me so
much, an experience that will always be alive in my heart.
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22. BIBLIOGRAPHY
www.wobi.com
www.laureate.net
www.facebook.com/LaureateConnect
http://www.youtube.com/user/LaureateChannel/videos
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