INSEAD Blog by Zanat0s the INSEAD(er) @ Tokyo ! The Biggest among INSEAD MBA blogs. Insead is over, blogging not.

GMAT cheaters.. a step to far?

Zanat0s strikes again. 

This is a quite relevant topic for MBA applicants! The GMAT is a very difficult test that gets more and more competitive every year due to competition. Personally I only know a 800 GMAT holder. The GMAT started many many years ago(I should say decades) as a test to measure somebody’s ability to acquire business skills. I could start arguing here about the test’s merits and drawbacks but that would be futile. The Test is here to stay and nothing can change. So applicants need to do well if they want to join a good Business School.

It was to be expected that the proliferation of MBA schools and applicants has given a great amount of leverage and power to the GMAT council. In 1953, the organization now called the Graduate Management Admission Council(GMAC) began as an association of nine business schools, whose goal was to develop a standardized test to help business schools select qualified applicants. In the first year it was offered, the assessment (now known as the Graduate Management Admission Test), was taken just over 2,000 times; in recent years, it has been taken more than 200,000 times annually. Initially used in admissions by 54 schools, the test is now used by more than 1,500 schools and 1,800 programs worldwide.

The human ingenuity of course sprawled a massive new industry for services. Like every other exam a supporting artillery of experts came up willing to help the candidate “ace” the test for a fee. Publishing houses drew up complex tests and sold the books at a premium of course. GMAT prep cramp school were organized near undergraduate campuses. New technological advances helped fuel the boom for “online tutoring”. I am not here to criticize the industry or to eulogize it. Like most entrepreneurs these people show an opening, an opportunity and went for it. 

Unfortunately this system is self-feeding and it become a self-fulfilling prophecy. When people start preparing their applications they also prepare for their GMAT. It will be common for many students to start registering for GMAT courses or buying GMAT prep material (Crack the GMAT, Break the GMAT, etc). The ones outside the cycle will emulate their example when their time comes. We humans tend to copy conventional wisdom and right now spending in order to take the GMAT exam is the prevalent practice.

If one thinks he needs help to do well at the exam and he/she is willing to pay for that help then no harm is done. It is not like the guy is doing steroids or he has an unfair advantage over the other applicants. These services are offered to any interested applicant without any prejudice. I do understand the need to prepare thoroughly for the test. Not only are the questions difficult and the time limited but people are battling for a limited amount of seats in famous programs along the world’s top. They be damned if they do not prepare as good as they need. Some friends I have or some MBA professors will argue that these “helping hands” are just another camouflaged way to rob people of their discretionary income”.

On my Birthday a Scandal was unearthed. A website called Scroteto.com(do not go now it is defunct) was providing students with “live” questions. What are live questions? Questions still used in the GMAT Test. All other books or helping material use “retired” questions. The council now has a hard drive( I wonder how they found it) and will be analyzing payment information. Form snooping around I found it takes $30 to get access to those questions(the sensitive ones). The site was operated by a chinese guy(lei Shi) and I guess the issue was that he distributed copyrighted GMAT-related material.

The council dared to threaten students who used the service that their result will be void and business schools will be notified about the “cheating”. On top of that the “unlucky” students will be barred from taking the exam again so NO MBA for them! According to reporting by some online forums scoretop.com users will have access to “live” questions and users will debate which is the right answer. But GMAT is a computer adaptive format test that generates a random test for every new test-taker based on answers/feedback. The list of possible questions may number the thousands. It will be statistically improbable for a guy to cheat since there will be only 45 questions which he needs to give an answer to. The probability is virtually zero to see the same questions on the same exams.

On the website’s forum users will be posting their experiences and giving their reports. Imagine their surprise when they found this message on the board…

"GMAC takes cheating very seriously, especially attempts to obtain access to live test questions in advance of an exam. We also take very seriously any unauthorized distribution of our copyrighted GMAT preparation materials. If you are caught disclosing, accessing, or using 'real' GMAT questions your GMAT score will be cancelled [and] you may be subject to a civil lawsuit or criminal prosecution."

I, personally would be intimated a bit. The power relation is all towards the council. They hold the keys to power. It's unclear how individual schools will respond. More than 4,000 graduate management programs use the test as part of the admissions process, but many of those using sites like Scoretop seek admission to the most competitive programs. So the fallout is likely to be limited to top schools.

I am not sure if the students actually cheated or even if they did whether they knew they were “bending” the rules. GMAC can behave like a tyrant and just ban all the takers whose information were found on the drive. There will still be enough candidates to fill the gaps. People won’t have an alternative so they will be forced to follow what the GMAC rules and decrees. On top of that I do not believe that this preparation gave the students an unfair advantage over other applicants. Come on lets be serious… Of course I have no access to the website so my opinion doesn’t count a lot. The most important factor is the answer to the question whether the students knew that they were breaking the rules..

Since the Scoretop site has been in operation since 2003, it's possible that students with tainted GMAT scores are in the application process, currently enrolled, or already graduated. For those in the application process, the applicants may be rejected, and for those currently enrolled, expulsion is a possibility, although a faint one.

Several years ago, when a Chinese national(what is with Chinese and cheating?) was caught taking the GMAT for dozens of prospective students. That case is completely different. The intention and knowledge about the cheating is obvious and that conferred an unfair advantage. 

TO all prospective applicants I have to say this: try to game the test but along the rules. Get as much help as you can but above all take the test yourselves.

Cheers!

Zani @ a luxury dinner! Report provided!

Last evening after work was done and had Japanese class I attended a dinner hosted by the FCC where the main subject was about affluence and trends in the APAC countries. The speaker was the President of AMEX Japan. American express is different than VISA and MASTERCARD. It is not so widespread but more targeted. They target HNWI *High Net Worth Individuals” with a lot of cash to spend. Basically in this case not cash but plastic.

Before the speech started the president of the FCC made some observations regarding marketing and digital marketing. Did you know that a commercial on Superbowl costs around 300 Million? That is an amazing amount. Other interesting subjects were that People watch more TV and more commercials than ever, a worldwide phenomenon. 11 minutes more than 1990 or 1998 I do not remember the exact year. Online advertising in social network sites is definitely not working, 4 out of 10.0000 people click on advertisements(not the best ROI). Apple loses around 240 million by people who buy iphones and they do not activate them with AT&T.

What will be even more interesting is that there are more female users on the internet and these statistics may be telling: Women online do more shopping, dating and parenting information search. Men search for more adult content, games, Healthy living(that is a surprise), news reading and active participation in communities. Ads targeted to men are supposed to be more effective( not sure though if I got this correctly). There is a backlash toward social network since now people have created their own communities and they do not want to be bombarded with advertisements any more(cue to Facebook and myspace).

After we heard this small report it was time for the main course. I wished I h ad taken notes but unfortunately I thought the presentation would be available to all of us. It seems it is company restricted though. I hope my memory is one of my strong points and I will try to recite what I learnt yesterday. First of all APAC accounts for the around 38% of the worlds’ HNWI and it is forecast to grow more than 40% till 2015. Of course this number may appear small if you consider that China, Singapore, HK, India are bustling with hot money but I suppose that also the definition of HNWI will also change. In today’s world HNWI are people who have financial assets(excluding first residence) of more than 15 million dollars.

Japan accounts for the highest number of HNWI in APAC, china a close second(proving the fact that although China is a poor country, still, the inequalities are rising). Singapore has the highest percentage of HNWI per population, affirming the charge that Singapore is by far a city for millionaires and their money. Hong Kong has also a big percentage. India is on the map but it gets dwarfed by the countries mentioned above. Though one has to say the middle class is growing the fastest in India. India middle class according to the presentation is about 5% of total population but is the fastest growth segment.

The luxury industry according to some estimates is about 80 billion USD per year and there are a lot related industries that have sprung, like luxury consultancies, premium services, new crafted products and anything else that appeals to the affluent. The major spenders in luxury are not the “old” rich, but the neo-rich. People who either grew in poverty or acquired money too fast. They want to have the extravagant and most new item. They believe that with money they can buy access to experience they couldn’t get otherwise. Like a fantastic private chef. Even if they do not understand his cuisine subtle tastes they feel satisfied with the fact that they can taste it and afford it.

AMEX’s research categorized luxury spenders in 4 categories: Meditative, Authoritative, Inquisitive and Acquisitive. The last one Acquisitive has to do with people who like to spend just to spend. They want the newest, the most expensive. Their purchases offer no functionality. EG one will buy a new car every year just because a new model is out, not because the new model offer anything else. China and India fit in this category. People spend money to feel better about themselves. They believe that with money they get respect.

On the other hand Singapore is on the inquisitive side. Singaporeans also care about the experience for exampling sampling a nice bottle of wine. It is more about the experience money can buy. Hong kong and Australia according to AMEX are authoritative consumers. They seek authenticity on what they do. It is more about authenticity that distinguishes the individual. They like mass luxury but avoid it if possible.

Japan now and Most of Europe are on the meditative site. For Europeans consumers and Japanese now spending a lot of money on luxury is not because they need to show to others they have money or that they are successful. It is about self fulfillment. These are people who are mostly mature, had money thought their life, grew up in an affluent society. Luxury must not be screaming “LOOK AT ME” but rather be understated and sublime. Some of the quotes were really telling. A woman who lets say can buy any kind of shoes, goes to a specific store in omotesando since it is the only one that offers her custom made shoes with very high heels. They are not branded by the big companies but to her it adds more value.

Value, that it is all about! Value and how we define it. Another person wanted to enjoy a nice dinner on Christmas but wanted to avoid the trouble of going to crowded restaurants. AMEX arranged for him, his family and friends a special treat. They brought to his house a world-renowned Chef, who prepared a special dinner for them(according to their requirements), live music was included. What a special experience. For people who want something for their inner self and do not need to show off, value means unique and personal. There are a lot of business getting built around this concept. Hotels which offer rooms designed by different architects, personal jet services, specialized sake, custom made clothes(especially suits).

What I enjoyed mostly was a quote form a successful silver era person who bought a huge field in Japan to prepare his own labeled sake for him to enjoy. Another person goes only to one restaurant(it wasn’t specified how many Michelin star it has) and where he is treated like a king and pampered. Of course There are the apprentice affluents, who although may not have the economic flexibility to afford luxury but they do in any case. Case in point japan where you are NOBODY unless you own at least one LV bag.

I liked the presentation although ti didn’t offer any new specific knowledge other than reaffirmed my concept that Japan is a cash society, where credit card transaction represent only 8% of all transactions. People are not afraid to carry cash, A LOT of CASH, since Tokyo has virtually no muggers. Another point is that people who have money do not care to buy what others consider good or “IN”, but they follow their own desires. For example art spending is going through the roof. That doesn’t mean the quality of art is increasing, rather than just people are willing to pay a higher price and artist oblige. Moreover since art is subjective, the price doesn’t reflect general value, but the value the individual assigns to the art object.

There were a lot of questions which I didn’t really remember. One in case was about the affluent giving back to society and charity. This had to do with the Meditative concept. From the feedback I got this is all talk. Other questions had to do with the Japanese market. I would like to close this report by reminding you that not everything that glitter is gold

Brutal Facts out!

if you don't get a job then...

then you can do business with the kind people from Africa who just want to make you rich....

CONFIDENTIAL PROPOSAL FROM.
MR hamza : bello;
THE CHIEF AUDITOR INCHARGE,
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (ADB).
OUAGADOUGOU BURKINA FASO.
WEST AFRICA.

My Good Friend,

How are you doing together with your family? I guessed all is well. My massage should not be a surprise proposal to you because i got your contact information from the international directory in few weeks ago before i decided to contact you on this magnitude and lucrative transaction for our future survival in life.
Moreover, i have laid all the solemn trust in you before i decided to disclose this successful & confidential transaction to you.

As i have said, I AM MR hamza : bello; THE CHIEF AUDITOR INCHARGE OF FOREIGN REMITTANCE UNIT, AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK OUAGADOUDOU BURKINA-FASO.
Now i have the intent to contact you over this financialtransaction worth the sum of NINTEEN MILLION, THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND UNITED STATES DOLLARS ($19,300,000.00 ) for our future success.

This is and abandoned sum that belongs to one of our bank foreign customers who died along with his entire family through plane crash disaster since few years ago. Meanwhile i was very fortune to came across the deceased file when i was arranging the old and abandoned customers files in other to sign and submit to the entire bank management for an official re-documentation and audit of the year against 2008.

Be informed clearly that it was stated in our banking rules and regulations which was signed lawfully that if such fund remains unclaimed till the period of 6 years started from the date when the beneficiary died, the money will be transferred into the treasury as an unclaimed fund.

As a honour and advantage bestowed to our foreigncustomers base on the rules guilding our bank, it was stated obviously that if you are not a citizen of Burkina Faso , you have the absolute authority to claim the fund hence you are a foreigner despite your differences from the country of origin of the deceased.

So the request of you as a foreigner is necessary and legit to apply for the claim and transfer of the fund smoothly into your reliable bank account as the NEXT OF KIN OR EXTENDED RELATIVE to the deceased costomer.

On the transfer of this fund into your account, { 39% } being ( US$7,527,000.00) will be your share in respect of the account provision and your assistance rendered during the transfer of the fund into your bank account,{ 52% } being (US$10,036,000.00) will be my share being the codinator and the pillar of the transaction while the rest { 9% } being (US$1,737,000.00) will be shared to the respectable Organisations Centers such as CharityOrganisation, Motherless Babies homes, and helpless disabled people in the World.

Now, if you are really sure of your trustworthy, accountability,confidentiality on this transaction, contact me and agree that you will not change your mind to cheat or disappoint me when the fund have getting into your account. Besides you should not entertain any fear because i am sure of the success as an insider in the bank.

Please reply with the assurance, include your private telephone and fax numbers necessary for facilitate an easy communication in this transaction.

As soon as you reply , give me a call through my private telephone number on ( +226 76718919 ) so that i will let you know the next step to follow in order to finalize this transaction immediately.

I expect your urgent communication and my best regard to you and all members of yourfamily.

Yours sincerely,

MR hamza : bello

MakeMytrip, INSEAD, VOBM and REALITY

1 month ago we had some indian Entrepreuners at our campus. One of them had setup an INDIAN online travel company called Makemytrip.com! During my search for some advertisements on youtube I stumbled upon Makemytrip.com! I felt intrigued. It is nice to see when your education coincides with real life. INSEAD is trully a great place and Phillip Anderson did a great job brining all thos Entrepreuners to our school

I found the advertisements a bit cheeky(except one of them), but probably i am not their target customer(I am not Indian).

The blind Girl or How people change....

The Blind Girl
There once was a blind girl who hated
herself just because she was blind.
She hated everyone, except her loving
boyfriend. He was always there for her.
She said that if she could only see the
world, she would marry her boyfriend.
One day, someone donated a pair of eyes
to her and then she could see
everything, including her boyfriend. Her
boyfriend then asked her, "Now that you
can see the world, will you marry me?"
The girl was shocked when she saw that
her boyfriend was blind and refused to
marry him. Her boyfriend walked away in
tears, and later wrote a letter to her
saying, "Just take care of my eyes, dear."
This is how humans change when their
status change. Only few remember what
life was before, and who was always
there in the most painful situations.

Greek Army

Greek ARmy is tough. loufa and parallagi is the most successful greek movie. It has to do with the Greek army. You should check out this music video. Also the next video features the Greek Version of the Fanta advertisement. Look what soldiers do when they are bored. At least they had a camera to kill time. Oh god it is over! i am so happy i do not have to become a soldier again. Long live peace.

List of famous misquotations

Wikipedia has  a big list of misquoations. Try to test how many you know...........

Brutal Fact: Suckers are plenty all over the world.

So... Is there a conspiracy? Why did i ever come to do an MBA? Look what was waiting for me today in my mailbox! You feel probably jealous right? So i will do you the favor and share it with you. The secret to instant riches. honestly i would like to receive more of these mails. They make my day you know. I will leave INSEAD tomorrow to embark on a new adventure.  Thank you so much Dr.Samailla Nuhu. I cannot wait to become a galizionnaire.

BANK OF AFRICA (BOA)
OUAGADOUGOU BURKINA-FASO,
WEST AFRICA.
BANK WEB SITE:www.bkofafrica.net

Dear friend,
I am  Dr.Samailla Nuhu. the Director in charge of Auditing section Bank OF AFRICA(BOA Ouagadougou Burkina-Faso in West Africa. Forgive My indignation if this message comes to you as a
surprise.As it may interest you to know,I got your contacts through burkina online internet research.

I have decided to contact you on a project that will be very beneficial to both of us.During our auditing in this Bank,I came across some amount of money belonging to a deceased foreigner Mr.Sheu Yuan-dong who died with his wife and their only daughter on February16,1998 in a plane
crash.The fund has been dormant in his account with this Bank without any claim of the fund in our custody from his relation before my discovery to this development.

He was the Governor of Taiwan Central(Reserve)Bank.The said amount is U.S$25.600,000.00 dollars(twenty five Million, Six Hundred Thousand US Dollars).I want you to know that I never master minded the death of the deceased fellow.

Their death was occured Naturally.Please View thiswebsite: http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9802/16/taiwan.crash.update2/

For your information,your nationality will not pose any problem for the sucessful transafer of this fund
to you as bonafide next of kin.

I look forward to receive your urgent reply,more details will be given to you immediately you indicate
your willingness to assist me in this transaction.Urgent respond needed.

Yours truely,
Dr.Samuel Nuhu.

Yours truely,
Dr.Samuel Nuhu.

The Space belongs to the US(only).

ok the us is overdoing it now. This is the official page of their space policy. what else can they do?Didn't they have enough?
Like who will oppose at space? The grey aliens?

U.S. assets must be unhindered in carrying out their space duties, the Bush space policy says, stressing that "freedom of action in space is as important to the United States as air power and sea power."

Without fanfare, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) rolled out the National Space Policy on October 6 — a document that supersedes a September 1996 version of the directive. President Bush signed off on the new space policy on August 31.

A 10-page unclassified version of the U.S. National Space Policy was posted Friday on the OSTP website.

Across the solar system

The White House document spells out U.S. space policy goals, including the implementation of a sustained "innovative human and robotic exploration program" geared to extending human presence across the solar system.

As a civil space guideline, the policy calls upon NASA to "execute a sustained and affordable human and robotic program of space exploration and develop, acquire, and use civil space systems to advance fundamental scientific knowledge of our Earth system, solar system, and universe."

The Bush space policy supports use of space nuclear power systems to "enable or significantly enhance space exploration or operational capabilities." The document adds that utilization of nuclear power systems "shall be consistent with U.S. national and homeland security, and foreign policy interests, and take into account the potential risks."

The policy highlights an interagency approval process for space launch and in-space use of nuclear power sources.

Risk from orbital debris

Among a wide range of topics — including commercial space policy and international cooperation — the Bush space policy includes an orbital debris section. It labels human-made space junk as posing a risk to continued reliable use of space-based services and operations, including the safety of space travelers and property in space and on Earth.

"The United States shall seek to minimize the creation of orbital debris by government and non-government operations in space in order to preserve the space environment for future generations," the space policy explains.

In regards to curbing space debris, the document encourages foreign nations and international organizations to also take steps toward debris minimization.

Freedom of action

For 50 years, the U.S. has led the world in space exploration, developing "a solid civil, commercial, and national security space foundation," the document notes.

"Space has become a place that is increasingly used by a host of nations, consortia, businesses, and entrepreneurs," the space policy states. "In this new century, those who effectively utilize space will enjoy added prosperity and security and will hold a substantial advantage over those who do not."

Additionally, the Bush space policy is designed to "ensure that space capabilities are available in time to further U.S. national security, homeland security, and foreign policy objectives." Moreover, a fundamental goal of the policy is to "enable unhindered U.S. operations in and through space to defend our interests there."

The policy calls upon the Secretary of Defense to "develop capabilities, plans, and options to ensure freedom of action in space, and, if directed, deny such freedom of action to adversaries."

Overhead intelligence

In a section called "Space-related Security Classification," the new space policy lists several unclassified facts, such as: The U.S. government conducts satellite photoreconnaissance that includes a near real-time capability, as well as overhead signals intelligence collection.

Among a number of tasks, U.S. government photoreconnaissance is used to "image the United States and its territories and possessions, consistent with applicable laws, for purposes including, but not limited to, homeland security."

The Director of National Intelligence is charged by the policy to "provide a robust foreign space intelligence collection and analysis capability that provides timely information and data to support national and homeland security."

Apple VS PIRATEBAY! U HAVE TO READ THIS

some people cracked some bits of Apple's operating systems and started distirbuting it. Here is the response of piratebay to them . They sure have balls. Death to The i-pod