The Engineering Community across India celebrates Engineers Day on 15 September every year as a tribute to arguably the greatest Indian Engineer Bharat Ratna Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya. Feel like testing your engineering quotient? Take or quiz to find out!

Our journey of the Hindu Business Line Cerebration 2019, presented by Union Bank of India, began in the grand old city of Hyderabad, renowned for its quizzing tradition. Thus, it was no surprise to us when upwards of eighty teams contested in what was a prelim decided on very fine margins. Our homeboy Miraj Vora was as enthralling as ever, entertaining the audience with quick witted humour and kept them on the edge of their seats with an exceptional twenty questions prelims. Out of the frying pan and into the fire went our six finalists, Adieu ED, Sai Mitra Constructions, Univariety, Deloitte, Ekincare and Infosys. The finals were contested in four rounds: a general round of six questions, two audio-visual rounds of six questions each, and a buzzer round of six questions. The finals were a gruelling extravaganza of questions ranging for Les Horribles Cernettes (The CERN band consisting of physicists) to the Prada Marfa (an installed sculpture which has no sales). The competition was close between Ekincare and Infosys, but the employee health management start-up bested the tech giant, and in a testament to the growing fraternity of quizzing in India, took home the first spot in the Grand Finale, not to mention a neat cash prize and a winners’ trophy.

Quizmaster Miraj C Vora hosting the Prelims in Hyderabad

Next, we moved on to our hometown of Bangalore, where a team from Bizongo, a B2B packaging company, won the Bengaluru edition. The finalists were –Mu Sigma, Red Scarab, Cloudtail India, Strand Life Sciences, and Amazon India. Our next stop was Chennai, the spiritual home of The Hindu Group.

In a nail-biter, IIT-Madras edged out Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to emerge winners of the Chennai round. The top six teams who made it to the four-round finals were TCS, IIT-Madras, Cognizant, Freshworks, Ford and Samsung with questions pertaining to the world of business in text, visual, audio and video formats.

Chennai Winners IIT Madras with the Prize

We next moved on to the Queen of the Arabian Sea. Kochi, Team Capgemini, emerged the winner of the Kochi round. The top six teams were Capgemini, SMS Cusat, Suguna Holdings, University College, Malayalam Manorama, and St Thomas College.

Our next pit stop was the capital city, New Delhi. LNMIIT, in one of the major upsets of this decade, edged out the pros of Delhi. The nail-biter went to a tie-breaker round after a Mexican standoff at the end of the buzzer round. The first prize was clenched by two engineering students of the LNM Institute of Information Technology in Jaipur. Teams from Barclays and Ernst & Young finished as runners-up and second runners-up respectively.

Finally we came to the financial capital of the country, Mumbai for the final regional round and as expected we received a huge turnout for the event. In the finals we had the team of Network 18, besting the likes of IIT Bombay, SIMSR, Discovery India, HDFC Life and SAIL Bhilai.

Finally, after 35 days, 1500+ participants and 308 questions, we came down to our six national finalists who competed for the crown of India’s Biz Quiz Champion. In the grand showdown, we witnessed one of the most nail-biting finishes in Cerebration’s history, as IIT Madras piled up point after point on the buzzer, but had to pay the price for taking up too many negatives in the earlier stages. Capgemini maintained their acquired lead well into the finals and picked up the winner’s cheque and trophy. We would like to thank and commend the Hindu Group for their enormous hardwork and painstaking labor for bringing this year’s Cerebration to a resounding success. Through their continuous efforts, Cerebration has indeed become the mega event for quizzing aficionados throughout the country. Finally, to conclude, we would also like to commend the hard work put in by our venue partners, ICBM School of Business Excellence, Christ College, Hotel Savera, Rajagiri Business School, Fortune Institute of International Business and Hotel Sahara Star; and production/event managers, Woot Factor, who left no stone unturned to provide us with a seamless experience.

Some Questions:

• This musical was the longest running production on Broadway, from 1982 to 2000. Winner of seven Tony Awards, the musical is set to hit the big screen in 2019. Which musical is being described here?
• Nitish Roy is an Indian film art director, production designer, and costume designer in Hindi cinema and a Bengali Film Director, who is also known for his work with art cinema directors. What is his most famous contribution to the Hyderabad city?
• In the late 1980s, dedicating the brand of X (meaning daughter) to his daughters, Dr. Ravichandar revamped his entrepreneurial spirit with new dreams. It has specialised in curating, patenting and serving delicious Andhra delicacies such as Chicken Kshatriya, Sholay Kebab, Bamboo Chicken, Carrot 65 and more. With 15 branches, X holds the legacy of being one of the pioneers in introducing Andhra Cuisine to Bangalore.
• How are Boyan Slat Taylor Wilson Vitalik Buterin and Ritesh Agarwal connected?
• It was a noted Indian film production company and studio based in Mumbai most known for stunt, fantasy and mythological films, including Hunterwali. The company’s logo has a ship, honouring their family legacy as their ancestors came from the shipbuilding family. Name the production house.
• This is a three-act opéra comique with music by Edmond Audran and words by Alfred Duru and Henri Chivot. The story concerns a farm girl who is a “_______”: someone with the mystic power to bring good luck to all around her, so long as she remains a virgin. Which English word and business concept came into being because of this opera?

SHRM India Annual Conference & Expo is the most premier HR event in the subcontinent. The top thought leaders from business and HR world gather for a 2-day event and debate on the latest trends on the world of HR. BI Worldwide India, the global leaders in employee engagement solutions, are an active participant at all SHRM Conferences.

At this edition, to engage the conference participants, BI Worldwide conceptualized the “Moments of Inspiration Contest” – an engaging contest that encouraged attendees to share ideas on how to inspire existing employees to become a company’s brand advocates. A subset of this programme was the unique MOI quiz – a quiz based on Employee Value Proposition and all things HR. Participants were selected on an “Invite Only Basis” and there were 4 teams of 2 contestants each. The profile of the contestants were CHRO’s, CEO’s and Influential Bloggers.

To engage the contestants in a 30-minute activity, a 3 round quiz was designed.

Round 1 was based on the EVP Framework of BI Worldwide. BI WORLDWIDE utilises, “Make every moment count” Framework to drive EVP strategies in market to attract, engage and retain talent. In this round, the quizmaster based the questions around some real-life examples of any of the Inspiration Idea as given in the EVP framework.

Round 2 and Round 3 questions were around the general HR landscape, including Total Rewards, Learning and Development, Employer Branding and HR Concepts.

The quiz was a mixture of Text, Visuals and Audio Videos.

To incentivise the winners, attractive packages were awarded like “BI Indulge Experiences” consisting of fine dining experiences, adventure treks, spa packages etc. Other prizes were Google Home Mini, Zebronics, Bluetooth Speakers and Headphones.

The event was voted as the “Most Fun Event” of the day on the twitter handles of BI Worldwide India

CYPHER 2018 is India’s largest analytical conference. Conceptualized by Analytics India Magazine, it aims to connect the analytics industry – old and new – by chronicling technological progress in the space of analytics, artificial intelligence, data science, and big data by highlighting the innovations, players, and challenges that are shaping the future.

Held from Sept 26^th to 28^th at Bangalore, this conference attracts the most definitive representation of the industry – Chief Analytics Officers, Head of Analytics, Analytics start-ups, Data Scientists, CTO’s, CIO’s, VC’s and Analytics aspirants. To engage this set of Audience, Analytics India Magazine (AIM) organized a series of engaging contests like hackathons, workshops, flash contests etc. However, to engage a larger audience within a definitive timeframe, AIM was exploring a contest that would be both informative and interactive. Thus, “AI.Q” -India’s first quiz based on Artificial Intelligence was designed.

Open to all conference participants, the quiz was held for a duration of 2 hours and was the perfect ending to the Conference. Participants registered in teams of 2 belonging to different entities and it attracted an audience consisting of various designations ranging from students to assistant managers to C-Level Executives. Over 140 contestants participated in the engagement programme.

The quiz content contained a judicial mix of core AI trivia along with the latest trends dominating the industry. 20 question prelims set decided the Top 6 teams. The finalists consisted of teams belonging to Academic Universities and leading global corporations such as American Express, SAP, IBM, Analytix Lab, Times Professional Learning, Manipal Pro-learn, Edvancer, 3LOQ, Praxis, Reva University. The 6 finalists on stage were engaged over a 4 Round Finals by our engagement specialist, Miraj Vora. Cash prizes worth Rs 75,000 were distributed among the Top 3 teams. Audience prizes consisted of JBL speakers.

Here’s the testimonial of the quiz event-

Taking forward a legacy of well over 40 years of jubilant celebration of the arts, music, creativity and global culture; Festember, the largest inter-collegiate cultural festival of South India has never failed to surprise, intrigue and inspire. Festember is the annual cultural festival of the National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli also known as NIT Trichy. It is a 4-day event usually held in the month of September. It was founded by the students of NIT Trichy in 1975 as an all-encompassing medium of unfettered expression and is a completely student-run fest. The fest, which had a humble beginning with a near zero budget slowly gained momentum over the years with the help of sponsorships and collaborations. It now boasts a massive annual footfall of more than 17,000 students from 500 colleges across the country. The logo and brand name ‘Festember’ has been trademarked since November 2017.

Ranging from the mellifluous Classical Night and the energy-fuelled EDM Night to the breathtaking Popular Night that blasts peppy numbers left, right and center, Festember has seen world-class artists like Amit Trivedi, Shravan Sridhar and many more perform their inimitable shows on stage over the years. Apart from exhilarating performances from accomplished artists, Festember also plays host to a variety of inspiring personalities who recount remarkable moments in their lives, such as singers Sid Sriram, Srinivas, and Unni Krishnan, directors Mahesh Dattani and Suresh Triveni, and actor Anita Ratnam. Attendees of the extravaganza have a plethora of cuisines to indulge their taste buds as they experience an all-round sensory treat. Festember consists of a large number of events related to dance, music, drama, lits, fashion and more. Interesting workshops such as ventriloquism, mind reading, card throwing, and salsa are also held, apart from a multitude of informal events.

Festember is preceded by a number of outreach events such as the Festember Football League (FFL), Gigahertz, a rock band contest, and Rolling Reels Film Festival (RRFF), a short film festival, all of which are usually held in major cities of South India. Aptly dubbed ‘A Fest to Remember’, the fest provides an excellent opportunity to make new connections and explore. The 44th edition of this adventure will serve as a voyage into the exquisite palaces and the golden sands of Arabia from the comforts of the NIT Trichy campus, as the true spirit of the Middle East is effortlessly brought to life. Festember 2018 is set to take place from September 13th to 16th with the theme for the year as ‘An Arabian Odyssey’ and will be witness to 4 nights of vibrant hues, exotic cuisines, and unforgettable emotions.

Real Estate businesses are complex and people-intensive. Most of the major Realty houses maintain large in-house teams of Architects, Interior Designers, Structural Engineers, Field Officers, Sales & Marketing managers, HR, Admin, Finance and miscellaneous staff. Such a multi-disciplinary array of personnel is required for the smooth functioning of the company and to sustain its competitive edge.

However, over a period of time, employee engagement with the company and its core values begins to drop, among such a diverse workforce. In such a scenario, cookie-cutter initiatives to improve employee engagement don’t always work as one realty company discovered.

A leading Indian realty major was keen to improve employee engagement in the company and was exploring innovative methods to achieve the same. Coupled with their existing employee-friendly policies, QuizWorks was engaged to design an interactive quiz. The objectives of the event were two-fold: –

• Create an environment of fun and learning
• Drive participation and engagement rates among employees

Both during and after the event, the employees were monitored for the following metrics

• Participation Rates: How many employees registered and attended the event
• Engagement Rates: How many employees stayed back for the quiz
• Awareness Rates: How familiar were the employees about the company’s policies and offerings

The program content was broadly focused on the following areas: –

• HR Processes and Policies
• Core Values of the Company
• Competitive differentiators of the company
• General Quiz Topics like Sports, Movies, Technology, Cuisine etc.

Hosted by Runal Dahiwade, the quiz consisted of a preliminary round of 20 questions followed by the finals which involved 5 rounds of quizzes for the top 6 teams. Teams consisted of employees who belonged to multi-functional departments which encouraged bonding among the employees. The quiz consisted of text, visuals and Audio Video based questions – thus making it a highly interactive event. Audience questions were also asked

At the end of the event, the quiz program witnessed 80% participation rates and was voted as “One of The Best Employee Engagement Events” in the Annual Year Survey. Awareness rates increased by 65% compared to traditional methods of training.

The company now plans to make this an annual event and even replicate the same across other locations for maximum benefit.

If you are looking for an employee engagement activity at your company, get in touch with us at daksha.ballal@quizworks.in and we would love to have a conversation.

Take a deep breath, sit back and play the Yoga Quiz.

June 9th, 2018 marked the first edition of HR Wiz conceptualized by NHRD Bangalore Chapter. Not since the SHRM First People Contest did we witness an interactive session of knowledge and fun among the leading HR professionals of the country.

The Grand Finale, held at St. Josephs Institute of Management, Bangalore was attended by over 200 HR & Business Leaders & Professionals. Sponsored by leading Indian companies like Manipal Pro learn, KPMG, Uniq Security Services, Vantage Circle, Lifestyle etc, the Grand Finale was a specially curated event for corporate working professionals. An online quiz event, held from May 28th- May 30th, shortlisted Top 75 teams out of 450+ corporate teams.

Prelim of 30 questions was conducted to select the Top 8 teams. The finalists had leading quiz teams from the corporate circuit like Deloitte, TCS, EY, Fuller Life etc. The Chief Guest, David Rasquinha, Chairman & MD of Exim Bank, delivered a special keynote address on ‘India’s competitiveness in the global economy and what can we do to improve it’.  There was a special corporate HR Standup Comedy Act by Expressionist.

The quiz finals, conducted by Venky of Nexus Consulting, had an interesting mix of questions related to latest trends in the HR world. One round that stood out was the “Expert Round” where CHRO’s of leading companies questioned the audience and the teams on stage. This form of engagement sparked constructive discussions among the attendees.

After an exciting final, top 3 winners were – ICRA, Deloitte, EY. The winners received attractive cash prizes and a special feature on HR Katha Magazine and NHRD website.

You can check out some of the questions below: –

Q1. In the late ‘90s, this man wanted a sabbatical, so he rented a beach house in Hawaii. On the islands, he connected with locals and learned about many of their traditions and customs, including the concept of X. In Hawaiian culture, X represents the idea that families-blood, related, adopted, or intentional-are bound together, and that family members are responsible for one another. When he created Y in 1999, he made sure that X was in the company’s foundations. Today, Y is rated as one of the best companies in the world to work, for which X is often credited.
Name X and Y.
Ans: – Ohana and Salesforce

2. They can be categorized into two: hard and soft. The ‘soft’ ones are shared values, skills, style, and staff. Developed more than two decades ago by two leading thinkers, its name also reflects the organization they were working in when it was developed.
What are we talking about? What are the ‘hard’ ones?
Ans: – Mc Kinsey’s 7S Framework. The hard ones are Structure, Strategy, and Systems.

3. The term first gained currency after it appeared in a 1989 article in Industry Week. An extract is given below:
“A Minneapolis consultant and author, Dick paints a picture of managers struggling to capture a mythical thing called [,,] – a proportioning of their [existence] with sufficient weight on professional activities, but with a healthy counterweight of family and personal interests.”It used to be that____ was a boutique issue, “he says. “You know, something that would be great to worry about whenever-and if –one had some free time. But [,,] is killing people!”
What term?
Ans: – Work-Life Balance

4. The X effect is when a possible first impression good looks, pleasant behaviour, results in the negative characteristics of the person being ignored. We start seeing the person in the X of the positive first impression. The Y effect is when a negative first impression tends to override all others positive qualities of the persons. This is a cognitive bias with severe consequence in situation like interviews or appraisals.
Ans: – Halo and Horn Effect