- From where are topics for GD chosen?
- How should a candidate conduct himself in a GD?
- Dos and don'ts in a GD
Companies are intent on selecting the ‘best’ candidates for
their organization on the basis of several rounds of selection process. The
placement trend at NIILM CMS and at many other B-schools in India suggests that
a group discussion among the prospects on campus, or at the company’s office
(off-campus) is an important part of this selection process.
Most students wonder how to prepare for a Group discussion, and
of course, if it is really possible to prepare for it. To answer the second
question first, it is really not possible to prepare for a specific topic in any competitive GD process simply because the
topic chosen by a company can be from among a plethora of such topics. Saying
that of course does not mean that a student can make the cut by mere gut feel.
Daily dose of a few activities can make clearing the GD a cake walk – reading a
general purpose newspaper, reading a financial newspaper, and brushing up
communication (particularly if one not very fluent) are absolutely essential.
An alternative to reading (which many students dread) is to actively follow a
news channel and a business channel.
From where are topics
for GD chosen?
At NIILM CMS we advise students to focus on three types of
topics for the GDs – topics that are based on current business stories, topics
that are based on current affairs other than business, and general topics that
have been in vogue for a long time (for instance, ‘Is honesty really the best
policy?’). Students often ask the rationale for topics related to politics and
social issues – the rationale is very simple – business operates in a public
domain, which influences and shapes business policies and operations.
Therefore, a candidate’s seriousness to get selected gets a huge boost when his
prospective employers come to know that he understands, and is actively engaged
in everything that is happening around him.
It is important to remember that the reading habit cannot be
cultured suddenly, and nor can one start speaking fluently without adequate
practice. Therefore, in order to do well in a GD, one needs to be consistent at
least from the third semester onwards.
The first step for any candidate is to read about current developments,
next to discuss them with others, and last to form his own opinions. However,
many students often commit the mistake of having strong opinions with no
logical or factual backing. They are only opinionated, and convey the
impression of being adamant and forceful, and stand to be rejected in the group
discussion.
How should a
candidate conduct himself in a GD?
1. You can initiate a
discussion in a GD if you understand the topic well, and have at least two-three
points that you can cover. Though an initiator is often perceived to be someone
who is willing to take initiatives and is ambitious, if you have nothing substantial
to say, this will go against you. So, always start only if you know the subject
well.
2. You are more
likely to succeed in a GD if you take a stand in a topic, instead of trying to
appear as though you are trying to please everyone by saying ‘yes’ both for and
against the topic. If you decide to speak either in favor or against the
motion, you must not only say so, you must substantiate your stand by offering
facts and data. Merely saying something because you ‘feel’ so does not score
you points. For instance, if your topic is “FDI in retail”, you cannot keep
arguing that it is bad, without facts to help you out. So, you can give
arguments such as the elimination of middleman and their means of livelihood, or
failure of the same policies in other countries.
3. The critical
success factor in a GD is to contribute new arguments and keep substantiating
it with facts and data.
4. Sometimes a
student may get stumped with a topic about which he knows nothing. In this
case, it makes sense to listen to a few others talk about it, gather opinions
of others before starting to speak. After hearing atleast two speakers, one
would know something about the topic to talk about it.
5. Some candidates
are not very aggressive, and are always scared of a group discussion where
presumably only aggressive people are successful. It is important to understand
that this process of selection cannot be wished away. Therefore, it is best to
design a strategy to cope up with the process in case one is not very
aggressive, or one fears speaking in public. Such candidates should focus on
the friendliest person in the group and address as many points as possible to
him/ her. The other (better, but more difficult) method is to look at everyone
but not focus on anyone in particular, and really pretend that one is talking
to an empty space (comes only from practice). Essentially, the idea is to not
feel conscious of many pairs of eyes staring at you when you speak, which is
what causes nervousness.
Ideally, such candidates should use their entire MBA course
as a practice session to get rid of their phobias. They should make as many
presentations as possible in the class, talk to as many people as possible
during their course, participate in co-curricular and extra-curricular
activities in college and actively practice speaking in public. At NIILM CMS,
we constantly tell our students to practice these methods.
6. Though it is
widely publicized that one must use terms such as ‘my friend has said this, but
I don’t agree/ I agree’, and ‘my friend, let’s understand that what you are
saying is not always true,’ and so on, the use of the term ‘my friend’ (in my
opinion), is not always appropriate. Everyone knows that all the participants
of the GD are competitors, and also that most may not even know each other. So,
instead of feigning friendships and sounding artificial, one can just say
candidate 3 or 7 said this, but I don’t agree. Or even use the third person,
such as, ‘even though some participants have said this, I don’t agree because…’
Another common blunder is to appear too friendly by
constantly saying ‘please, my friend, you haven’t spoken so far, you please
speak,’ which does not make sense at all. In a GD, everyone should have the
ability to speak on his/ her own. Once in a while, if there is a candidate who
is unnecessarily aggressive or insensitive, such words can be used to calm him down
or give opportunities to others. But in general, one should focus on doing his/
her job, which is to contribute to the GD, and not ask others to do so.
7. Body language is
as important as spoken words. Appear interested and keen in what others are
saying. Be attentive, because sometimes, the moderators can ask you specific
questions at the end. For instance, you may be asked about your opinions about
the topic, or you may be asked to sum up.
8. In some GDs, you
are allowed to write down points. Write your points to initiate and carry
forward the discussion, and also note down important points that have been discussed
during the course of the discussion. This will be helpful later.
9. Regarding
summarization, unless the moderators ask you to summarize, there is no need to
appear unnecessarily enthusiastic and say that I will now sum up. Sometimes
there are no summarizations in the GD, which is perfectly all right. At other
times, each participant is told to individually sum up in 30 seconds or a
minute. In other GDs, two-three candidates may be chosen by the moderators to
sum up.
Dos and Don’ts in a
GD
1. Always be calm and
composed. But be alert and attentive.
2. Never launch a
personal attack on anyone.
For instance, if the topic is “Gender sensitivity of
policemen”, and a lady in the group vociferously defends her standpoint that
cops are not at all sensitive to issues on women, one cannot accuse her of
being biased because she is a woman.
3. You can rebut an
argument, but only if you have something substantial to contribute.
For instance, in the above example, you (either gender) can
rebut the lady and say that she is wrong. But you must either defend your
argument with facts or add a contrary point. For instance, you can say that
gender sensitization is a part of police training (to rebut her and defend your
rebuttal). Or add a new dimension to the argument that police sensitization
cannot decrease crime rate against women (and quote an example from some other
country).
4. Trying to help out
another candidate is good, but remember that your own selection is more
important.
Many books will advise you to be helpful to other candidates
by inviting the others to speak especially if they are weak and no one else
wants to hear them. This should be done in the rarest of instances, else this
will become your main contribution to the group.
5. Don’t repeat
points. If you have a limited stock of points, spread them over the GD, and
with every point, give data, and explain.
6. Never look at the
moderators in a GD. This is a group discussion, wherein you are expected to discuss amongst
yourselves, not with the moderators.
'very good info shared this will help us all to get prepared'
ReplyDeleteNice Article really!!!
ReplyDeleteGood Information shared for Help in GD
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