A sharp business acumen and a sense of industry were palpable among the participants of Jaco Corp 2023, a business conclave fest hosted by St James’ School, Kolkata. The event took place on November 17 and 18.
Organised by the corporate club of St James’ School, the event was a huge success, as the best and brightest business minds from all participating schools were given a platform to hone their business skills.
The fest was organised chiefly by Dighvij Chirimar, the chairman of Jaco Corp, Shaurya Dalan, the executive chairman, and their team. Both Class 12 students at St James’ School, their organisational skills were on full show as the two-day event progressed without a hitch.
Curtains up
The opening ceremony of Jaco Corp began with addresses from chairman Dighvij Chirimar, C. D’Souza (faculty head of Jaco Corp) and Mr Joseph Chacko (senior school coordinator).
Renowned industrialist, philanthropist, sports entrepreneur, and angel investor Pawan Kumar Patodia spoke at the opening ceremony about the business lessons he has learned over his career, and how one must look to and learn from innovators and leaders in their industries, such as Steve Job
The young Turks
Nine schools — Modern High School for Girls, Don Bosco Park Circus, La Martinere for Boys, La Martinere for Girls, Mahadevi Birla Shishu Vihar, South City International School, St Xavier’s Collegiate School, Delhi Public School Megacity, and the hosts, St James’ School— took part in the fest which comprised six unique and varied events.
Prééminence
This was a corporate simulation event to find out the ‘Best Manager’. Participants were asked to interview in front of judges and prepare professional resumes. Pictured are participants preparing for their initial interviews. Based on these, participants were assigned jobs in various corporate sectors. At the end of the event, a final interview with the judges would glean the progress in the participants’ efforts.
Véctigal
A finance and stock market event where participants were asked to prepare presentations on strategies for long-term investment opportunities and pitch those ‘options’ to the judges .
Accord
This event, inspired by the television show Shark Tank, involved participants presenting their products and asking for investment from the judges or ‘sharks’ .
Verus Praedium
An event where participants, who had all prepared their own real estate projects, were asked to pitch their concepts in front of a judge. The presenters were quizzed on a variety of aspects regarding the sustainability and development of their projects by the judge.
Exigéntia
Styled like a moot court, this was an event where the participants’ HR (human resource) and PR (public relations) skills were put to the test. The event, designed to be extremely procedural, as issues were raised and participants’ crisis management skills shone through. There was no shortage of drama, though, as participants showed a lot of passion for their causes- a group of students from one participating school even staged a walk-in protest as social activists, decrying the evils of using oil as an energy source.
Las Ofértas
A mock IPL auction. Participating schools each represented one team from the Indian Premier League (IPL), as they scrambled to bid for and ‘buy’ the best players in the world for their teams. Starting with the same auction purse, this event was a true test of squad building, as well as budget management.
What they said
“Since I was in Class 9, it was my dream to head Jaco Corp because over the years I had seen my seniors, the best of the batches, preparing for such events. For the past month or so, we have been preparing for this. It’s our 7th edition this time, and I am absolutely proud to head this event with my team, who are all so dedicated to their work.
“At the end of the day, what we at Jaco Corp want is to give Class 9 to 12 students that experience, participation, and understanding of what a business conclave is, before they go out into the real world.
- Dighvij Chirimar, chairman, Jaco Corp
“I believe that this event is very important for school students because our education system mainly focuses on learning curriculum. It gives them a practical knowledge of the business field, which will help them develop their business acumen.
- Shaurya Dalan, executive chairman, Jaco Corp
“This is a tremendous stage for developing students’ business skills. (Students) will get money confidence, which is going to hold them in good stead. The minute (Class 9 to 12 students) learn to respect money and business, it will go a long way
- Christopher D’Souza, faculty head of Jaco Corp Fest
“Many students have shown interest in business
“It gives students a lot more confidence when they participate in such events, because it prepares them for future endeavours in the business world. It gives them an idea about what the trends are like in today’s business and entrepreneurship. Not all students may end up becoming businessmen, but they learn a lot from one another from the exposure that an event like this gives them.
- Terence Ireland, principal, St James’ School
“The young generation today is the future of tomorrow. The seeds of entrepreneurship will start growing from the time students are in school. Leadership, analytical, and risk-taking qualities all start developing from this point. These (qualities) cannot be developed overnight. Persistence, resilience, and passion are the things you need to become an entrepreneur. Failure, and the ability to bounce back, are as important as success in this field. I am sure this event will help all the students here to hone these skills.
- Pawan Kumar Patodia, chief guest, Jaco Corp
Results
Photograph courtesy: St James’ School
The prize distribution ceremony took place on the second day of the fest, November 18. La Martiniere for Boys emerged as overall winners of Jaco Corp 2023. St Xavier’s Collegiate School was declared the runners-up.