RESEARCH SKILLS ANALYSIS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PG NO

1. INTRODUCTION
………………………………………………………… 2

2 . WHY MBA FROM LIVERPOOL JOHN MOORES UNIVERSITY… 2

3. REFELECTIVE REPORT ……………………………………………… 3

3.1 REFELECTION FROM MODULES …………………………… 3

3.2 SELF DEVELOPMENT …………………………………………… 4
3.3 TIME MANAGEMENT …………………………………………… 5
3.4 LIFE OUTSIDE LJMU …………………………………………… 5
3.5 MOTIVATION……………………………………………………… 6

4. FUTURE PROSPECTS ………………………………………………… 6

5. REFERENCES …………………………………………………………… 8

6. APPENDICES ……………………………………………………………… 9
6.1 BEBLIN AND PERSONALITY TEST……………………………. 9
6.2 PREVIOUS C.V…………………………………………………… 10
6.3 CV AFTER PERSUING MBA…………………………………… 11
6.4 PROOF OF WORKING AT KFC(PAY SLIP)…………………… 12
6.5 PAY SLIP FROM ROYAL MAIL………………………………. 13
6.6 PAY SLIP FROM RGIS…………………………………………… 14

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1. INTRODUCTION:

Right from childhood, the author life shaped like a dream. She has dared to dream of
the best and have always achieved it. Author believed that all accomplishments are
related to a person’s frame of mind. Most people are scared of dreaming, while there are
other’s who like to dream, but only for a moment. There are even fewer people who are
not able to pursue their dreams. This is because most people are scared of losing. But
after all, no battle is won without a fight. The author is from the background of bachelor
of engineering and technology. She joined the program with a institute affiliated to
Jawaharlal Nehru technological university in India and opted electrical and electronics
engineering which was not a choice but a forgone conclusion as it is the most appealing
and interesting. Now the author is pursuing masters in business administration (MBA)
from Liverpool business school, Liverpool, United Kingdom. During the course the
author got the opportunity to develop her in build skills which she was unaware of hidden
inside. The author particularly observed a development in her communication skills,
interpersonal skills, group working, cultural coordiance, her competences etc. Author also
believes that theses skills are not easy to develop within oneself without any kind of
proper guidance which she got from all professors and the taught modules. Thus, the
author discusses why she has taken MBA program from LBS, what skills she has gained
and how communication helped her in shaping her overall personality.

2. WHY MBA FROM LIVERPOOL JOHN MOORES:

The author always cherished her dreams and at the same time decided definitive path to
follow in order to achieve them. She always strived for the best, which is reflected in her
academic records. But what is not visible, is her quest for fundamental understanding.
There are several reasons that made author choose MBA. There are several universities in
India like the IIM (Indian institute of management), ISB (Indian schools of business)

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where good MBA is taught. To her doing MBA in the UK helped in gaining good
exposure and develop good communication skills which are difficult for a postgraduate
student studied from Indian institutions. In the MBA programme the teaching sessions are
highly interactive, the diversified work experience is highly valued and the professional
and active attitude is expected during the class sessions. Hence these reasons make MBA
have a touch with the real business world and add value and quality to the MBA
programme. The author started to do research about UK universities and the modules
offered by them. She visited many consultants in different cities and discussed her current
position and interest in the specific field. After the enormous and extensive research, the
author decided to do her masters from Liverpool John Moores University; now Liverpool
Business School(LBS). Her application to the MBA degree is strongly propelled by a
desire to explore comprehensively, the subject of her choice and broaden the horizons of
her knowledge. Having made a bold choice, it is only natural that she prepared herself to
be a leader in the required field by acquiring the required academic and professional
capabilities. The way of teaching students in LJMU is totally different from what the
author has been taught before. According to the author this is the best way to teach a
master level student. The author was also inspired to do MBA from LJMU because of its
good ranking and reputation, excellent course modules and comparatively less fees from
other universities within UK.

3. REFELECTIVE REPORT (CHALLENGES FACED AND

LESSONS LEARNT):

3.1 REFELECTION FROM MODULES:

The author started her MBA in January 2008 after successfully completing her bachelor
course. The author got really inspired by the teaching style and deep knowledge of all the
tutors during her course. She started to show keen interest in all the modules. There are
many key skills which author has developed during the masters course and one of the key
skills which author developed is how to work with people in groups of different culture,
age and work experiences. The main problem which the author encountered in the course
was the formation of group as every one of team member were from different

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undergraduate back ground. During intial stage of the group formation, the author forms
a group of four members. According to Hartely(1997) “ An individualistic culture
emphasizes individual independence from groups, a collective emphasis co-operation
and group loyality”. According to Amanson and Sapienza(1997) and Wiersema and
Bantel(1992), group diversity is beneficial as it promotes cognitive diversity, creativity
and wide range of problem solving. However Watson and Kumar (1992) claimed that
ethically and racially diverse groups experience conflicts with in the group and lack in
communication and cohesiveness. The author’s group experienced a limited diversity as
all the group members were of more or less same age, but the cultural back ground and
work experiences diversity helped the group to bring together different solutions to a
similar task and helped to choose the best solution. The author have done several modules
and gained different knowledge in each module depending on their core topics. These are
the topics covered in her MBA programme.

Organizational structure and culture INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT

Skills to attain an organizational goal- PROJECT MANAGEMENT
with proper time management.
Organizations marketing, financial and INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS AND
operational strategy TRADE
Different strategies that lead to success STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
Analyzing critical business situations BUSINESS ANYALISIS

3.2 SELF DEVELOPMENT:

MBA module gave importance to develop skills and expertise in Problem solving, Self
awareness, Adaptability, Personal and Professional commitments, Interpersonal skills by
always emphasizing on open communication with the tutors, group discussion and
providing knowledge through live case studies. Hence, this provided her a perfect blend
of ‘fun and learn’ style of education. The author also got to know about her personal traits
during the start of her course. The group got some difficulties while assigning the roles
and responsibilities matching to the personal traits of the group members. During the
subsequent meetings, the group randomly assigned the roles and responsibilities to the
group members. The group later noticed that the assigned roles and responsibities did not

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match to the personal traits of the individual members. Hence, the group performance
was lagging behind group expectations and therefore group undertook the A/B test and
the Belbin test (appendix ).After the test, the correct roles were assigned to the
individuals to optimise group performance. The author got to know about her personal
trait (sharper and specialist) and significantly contributed to the group discussions and
report writing. Another trait was the author had hidden qualities of beign a team leader,
which was been taken up by her and been successful with the work assigned to her.

3.3. TIME MANAGEMENT:

Time is the only resource available to one and all in neither perfectly amounts, which
neither expands nor contracts. Stress in author view defines the character of an individual
giving the joy of challenge of performance with a sense of responsibility. Time and stress
management are some of author personal assets. The writer also developed her time
management skills as the writer was the leader for the group and she also managed to
work so as to understand the practical world and earn quick money for her expenses. This
thing also helped her to develop her communication skills and quickness for performing
jobs within the group and also managing the time dedicated to work.

3.4. LIFE OUTSIDE LJMU:

Leading a student life in Liverpool was an awesome experience for the writer. Initially,
she feared strangers and the environment but gradually adapted herself to these
conditions and life was happy since then. As she was away from parents, all alone, it
sensed her the emotional bonding with parents and their importance. She took up many
jobs by registering in agencies such as WORKBANK, RGIS, BLUEARROW, and
ROYALMAIL to support living where she learnt professionalism. Author also workes
in KFC, to learn business techniques and customer relation management as my business
interest lied in the same. She enjoyed many trips to York, Bradford, Lake District and
Edinburgh organised by the Liverpool Student Union. This international MBA got her
some valuable friends from all over the globe which she truly cherish. This course helped
in understanding the life better and inspired her to do something towards the welfare of
the society and make the world better place to live in.

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3.5. MOTIVATION:
The author has learned how motivation among the group members helps in achieving the
common goal. According to Jacques(1991), fluid leadership within a group helps in
motivating the group members and makes the group more productive with time and
learning. Moxon(1993) considered the discussion loop to ensure productive discussions
which make it easy to share the ideas and feelings with a view to gain some form of
consensus agreement. The discussion loop helped the group in knowledge and leadership
sharing and a methodical way of performing our task. It also facilitated feedback from the
group to the individual members on their various topics which is necessary for the
learning purpose. This model helped us gain a deeper understanding of the entire task at
hand which was proved during the question and answer session that follwed the
presentation, where each and every member took an active part.This helped the author in
identifying the exact needs for the group work, delegating the right task to the right
person and the right time and how to work togther to achieve the common goal. The
continuos interaction with the group members in the tutorials and meetings helped the
author in developing her communication skills and confidence. She learnt how to express
her views and share knowledge with the group members. The author also improved her
own learning and interpersonal skills by identifying the targets, doing detailed planning
and work to achieve the common goals.

4. FUTURE PROSPECTS:
This course has helped the author in developing both her interpersonal and conceptual
skills which are required to get a good job in this highly competitive business world. She
is persuing her course with an enthusiasm, flexibility, open mindness and desire to learn.
This course has also widened the scope for job opportunities all over the world rather
than only to her country. The author currently working in KFC , HUNTSCROSS,
LIVERPOOL, as a part of crew member(appendix). She is continuously watching the
financial handling and customer management of the organization for last 9 months and
has decided to do her Disseratation on Recruiting, Traning, Developing and Staffing
Models by such food court organization and how they assess their risk and potential

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competitors. The author is also interested and looking forward to work in any customer
call centers like ORANGE or O2, as she has keen watch over the customer service and
practical experience in the present job. This will help her in applying the theoretical
modles, which she has learnt during her MBA course, in disseratation as well as in the
practical business life. The author major modules are Business Anaylsis and Project
Management, which will help her finding the best job as the author chosen modules will
become the competitive edge over the other fields. The author belives if she applies her
knowledge and the skills which she has learnt during her master’s course , her future
prospects are bright and she can make her dream into reality. Her ambition to be at the
top rung of the ladder will be successfully achieved.

5. REFERENCES:

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• Amason, A.C. and Sapienza, H.J.(1997), “Effects of top management team size
and interaction norms on cognitive and affective conflict.” Journal of management
23(4), 495-516.
• Haleblian, J., and Finkelstein, S. (1993), “Top management team size, CEO
dominance, and firm performance: the moderating roles of environmental
turbulence and discretion”, Academy of management journal, VOL. 36, pp 844-
863.
• Hartley,Peter(1997), “Group Communication” Routledge Publications, London.
• Jacques ,D(1991), “Learning in groups”, 2nd Ed. London: Kogan Page.
• Moxon ,P(1993), “Builiding a better team: a hand book for managers and
facilitators.” Gower.
• Watson,W.E and Kumar, K. (1992), “Differences in decision making regarding
risk taking: a comparision of culturally diverse and culturally homogeneous task
groups.” International Journal of Intercultural Relations 16, pp 53-65.

6. APPENDICIES:

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6.1APPENDIX 1: BEBLIN AND PERSONALITY (A $ B) TEST:

NAME BELBIN TEST PERSONALITY

TEST

Divya Reddy Shaper and 102

Doma Specialist

Arun Das Implementer 100

Harry Team Worker 96

Bincy Co-Ordinator 83

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