Manik Gupta
Class of 2008

Previous Occupation: Project Manager
Present Occupation: Geo Products Lead, Japan and Asia Pacific (Google)
Sector: Internet
Work Experience: 8-years Internet experience – 4 years dotcom entrepreneur, 4 years at Hewlett-Packard in its e-commerce operations team for Asia-Pacific and Japan
Professional Interests: Technology, Consumer Behavior, Online Business Models, Wisdom of Crowds
Personal Interests: Reading, Squash 

The fascination to understand the theory behind business was the impetus for Manik Gupta to apply for the Post Graduate Programme in Management at the ISB. “I had almost eight years or professional work experience and somewhere along the line I felt the need to undertake management studies.” The School’s location was an added advantage as he was always keen to experience India.

Prior to joining the ISB, Gupta worked as a Project Manager at Hewlett-Packard (HP) in Singapore, from where he had earlier completed his undergraduate studies. At HP, his responsibilities included running the IT Operations for HP’s direct sales business targeted at selling its products to consumers via the Internet and call centres.

Learning at the ISB

For Gupta the learning experience was fantastic. Summarising the multiple sources of learning he says, “First were the professors who undoubtedly are among the world’s best and at the cutting edge of business research. Second was the peer group. Reading about a case in a textbook is one thing. Having someone explain the real meaning behind it from his experience is completely another. Third, we had several industry visitors who addressed students during their visit to ISB.”

Gupta affirms that the ISB provided him with relevant knowledge about the business world. He graduated with over 400 individuals whom he considers special as he can always reach out to them whenever he needs assistance.

The GSB Experience

“At first I set the mandate for the student body - focussing on overall career development, promoting inclusiveness, and ensuring an enriching on-campus experience. One of my key responsibilities was the ISB’s flagship event, the ISB Leadership Summit (ILS) 2007,” says Gupta recalling his days as the GSB President.

Over 30 CEOs and business leaders attended the event and shared their insights with the Class of 2008 on the theme, “India – Fostering Sustainable Inclusive Growth.” Other than ensuring maximum student participation, he also implemented various new initiatives like Student Moderators and had eight professional clubs host tracks for the first time at the ISB.

Gupta also initiated a scorecard which strengthened the transparency factor in the functioning of the GSB. It was a platform that allowed the student body to raise questions and clarify doubts to/from the GSB Core. “As a team (GSB Core), we definitely accomplished a lot. I was indeed fortunate to have a very strong and cohesive team that truly believed in pushing ISB forward and leaving a legacy behind. One of our initiatives – the Co2008 Lounge is testimony to our willingness as a class to take ownership of issues and transform problems into opportunities.”

The Road Ahead

Gupta is presently working with Google as the Geo Products Lead forJapan and Asia Pacific based in Bangalore. His responsibility is to manage Google Maps, Local Search and other Google Geo products for desktops and mobiles. “In my current job the key skills needed are a very good understanding of consumer behavior and the ability to develop new business models. ISB has equipped me very well for both,” states Gupta who specialised in Strategic Marketing and Analytical Finance.

His words of wisdom to prospective students are, “Real learning happens when you push yourself to the limit. ISB is going to give you the opportunity to experiment in a risk-free environment. So, go ahead and take risks – fail, fail miserably and therein lies the true learning.”