Dost log!!!
Congrats. You will soon be stepping in your third year with two years of IIT colors seen and felt, moments of various shades felt and lots of good friends made. The second year to third year transition, I feel is revolutionary. You are no more a person as in the second year, who was enthu to be involved in all the interesting things happening in the campus. There are hazaar organizations ;-), sports, drams, litgiri and YES above all, the HOSTEL. Hostels are dear and so are many other things. But now with the third year ahead of you, it is time for you to set your priorities and have according time-management. I am not asking to give up on anything but just to do what you like. Set your priorities wisely and set them firm. Only what matters is Satisfaction and Happiness!! And yes take my word for it, TECHFEST has it all. With you all now as an integral part of the Techfest family, it is very important for all of you to realize your necessity to Techfest. You all are like gears of a clock which would function only when all work in tandem. The point is not to work, but to work together. Let the team feeling inside you become strong that your bonds of togetherness face the toughest of situations. Remember that story, twenty sticks can be broken one by one but not when they are tied together in one bunch.
You carry the image of the institute and Techfest in front of all the participants as well as inside IIT Bombay.
You all for the next one year are not just some student of IIT Bombay. You are managers of Techfest. As Ravi had rightly said "You are the Brand Ambassadors". You also now have to carry the cooperate image and be professional. Be very prompt in your responses!! It takes that one bit of extra effort and most of the things much easier. Deadlines are meant to be met. They gave me the dragging force to work and they should be taken as a challenge by you too. Being a manager, you are important, but showing it off really is not always right. Never try to get into arguments in public to prove anything about Techfest or for that matter anything related to yourself. Let your hard work and capabilities do the talking. You have proved your capabilities and now it's time to live up to the expectations of your seniors and pitch in appropriate hard work and sincerity. Respect others too, people other than you too are important and equally or more capable. To put it straight samne waala kabhi bhi chu@#$% nahin hota
Team meetings are one of the most important things for a successful Techfest. Be there without fail and always on TIME. The meetings are the place where you will have to sell your idea. You should be prepared with points of why Yes and why No. The motive or aim for everything should be clearly visible to all in unity. This will unite you into one single team and not a majority. Techfest 80% majority par nahin chalta. This will bring innovation out of you all. Be there mentally in all the discussions. This will make your grey cells to think. Sometimes meetings may look to be of zero productivity. It really is upon you to make the meeting fruitful. Zero productivity meetings are necessary but go away with the CHALTA HAI attitude. Meetings will see the discussion of everything. Sometimes even the most trivial of things are discussed. Please don't assume anything, question the existence of everything. Just because something was done in the previous Techfest does not imply that it was right. You decide your right and wrong. This is only possible if you all know the aim of everything very clearly.
Coming to events, events people are officially the people who need to do the thinking and bring out new things. But, more important than thinking and bringing out the new things, you have to be alert to catch the idea. Count the feathers of a flying bird. Ideas may spark off and die, but you have to catch the spark and get going on it. Listen, see, hear, feel and talk. You are sure to get the best for your Techfest. Professors brain our festival. They are there behind everything happening in Techfest. We just mould it. Talk to as many professors as possible. They will always have things to give. Just catch the spark. Now my competitions, you know competitions are the heart of Techfest. Techfest walks on the power of competitions. This is not to boast upon but to realize the responsibility. For competitions, the problem statement is very important. It should be clear and simple. We may go on a single track when getting a problem statement so be careful. Queries are very important. They must be replied to and that too promptly. Again for the best of events, catch the spark.
Execution is another never to be overlooked or taken for granted thing. Clearly 30 days before the DAY is the deadline. Every event, deal and calculations should be freezed, nothing doing after that. Please devote your time then after to execution. Events managers tend to neglect the execution part which may lead to disastrous consequences. Concentrate on all the possibilities; keep back up plans for all possibilities. Do all things systematically. Just to mention a few examples - competition desk, all stationary possibly needed should be there, list of venues, all possible infra requirement, judges point marking sheets should be given to them with proper lines drawn on them, no of tables, plug points, software, computers, project (of different types) needed for an event should be known and told in advance keeping in mind the no of participants and etc etc. In the last month, you may at times find yourself free from the thinking process or your work and you may get lured to involve in some other happenings too. Please stick to your clearly defined domain. This is so because in the last three days, it would not be possible for you to manage a lot of things together. Even if you have been involved in some other happenings since past, please allocate the work and responsibilities to someone trustworthy. Stick to ONLY your assigned portfolio in the last month. All this is so because execution has to be damm good. No Putches what so ever. Strive towards perfection in execution. Please start things on time. To get this, you be punctual yourself.
Next, your coordinator and organizer team is important. Get hold of good coordinators, and get hold of them as early as possible. Give them responsibility and trust them. You cannot do everything without them in the final days.
Work culture is important, the relationship you have with all in the team is important. Trust everyone, in one way or another. Give your co manager time o adjust in the new place. Leaving the assigned work and commitment aside, you all have an undefined responsibility too. Never make anyone being felt ignored or unimportant. The feeling of being left out pinches and may take some one integral to Techfest away from everyone. Make everyone in the team feel he/she is important. If someone lags or is not open, then it's on to each one of you to fill the gap by pushing him/her. The clock would work with time only if all gears were together. Respect should come on its own, you all would be best of friends but never loose your respect for any one in the team. Especially the OC. He is in one of the most uncomfortable positions because he tries to see tf2k3 in tf2k4. Give him the support and the will to keep going. He is just another team mate but not to forget, he has the experience which gives him the vision to predict. He is surely special to your Techfest.
I am going to loose what I cared for. To love and let go what one loves is tough. But I believe you will do it and make it happen in style and flying colors. The onus is upon you.
Pavnesh Arora
Manager Events
Techfest 2003