During my year-long training at Officers Training Academy (OTA), I learnt and understood that nothing is impossible. The military training breaks your conceptions of limits and sets new boundaries, even to the sky itself. The academy helped me believe in myself and remain unfazed, whatever be the magnitude of the problems we faced.
After my training, I got commissioned to an Army unit in Jammu & Kashmir, where I learned to apply the knowledge on the ground, and to identify the magnitude of correction a given situation requires. Within a short span, I got the opportunity to command my team of 100+ soldiers and ensured operational readiness in harsh and challenging conditions.
My battlefield exposure in the Army also helped me develop empathy towards my subordinates. At the same time, I realised that mistakes are a part of the job, and as far as they are genuine, they need to be handled maturely.
Applying technical knowledge
Following my initial field tenure in forward areas, I was shortlisted to be part of Information Systems Wing of the Indian Army, where I got a plethora of opportunities to exercise my technical knowledge as a computer science engineer. As a project coordinating officer, I led proof of concepts (PoC) using Deep Learning (DL) framework such as TensorFlow and Keras to solve real-time problems in an operational environment.
As most of the in-house developers in my team were from the Indian Army, the battlefield team-spirit was prevalent, even while developing software. Our team was always interested in working in an innovative and challenging environment and aspired to give the best to our nation.
During my tenure in the Army, I spent most of my time away from my family. Hence, after the successful completion of my initial tenure, I decided that it was in the best interest of my family not to extend my service in the Army. I will always be grateful to the Indian Army for giving me countless opportunities to learn, lead and grow, both personally and professionally, and a variety of experiences to cherish forever.
At the end of my career in the Army, I found IIM Bangalore to be the best fit to transform myself from a military leader to a corporate leader. I firmly believe the EPGP will help me reskill and stay competent in the fast-evolving market.
(The writer, a Major in the Indian Army, is a student of EPGP 2020-21 at IIM Bangalore.)