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How to win J&J QUEST Season 7? -By Team Starfish from ISB
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Johnson & Johnson QUEST Season 8 is a unique opportunity for B-Schoolers, as the competition turns into an actual “Consulting Engagement” midway. Every problem statement is based on a real issue that J&J is trying to solve.
We all had some experience with the healthcare vertical and this connection led to a friendly bond even before the J&J QUEST case was announced. We decided to name ourselves Team Starfish as a tribute to the first inroads in immunology discovery.
Honestly, we won because we became such good friends through the competition. We spent every moment together and became completely addicted to working on this problem. There was no conflict that a hot cup of tea couldn't solve!
Arpita Kulkarni was our marketing guru and was superb at field research. She knew exactly how to ask all the tough questions and could bond with absolute strangers. Hari Venkat Kiran Garimella was great at technology and had a photographic memory. We could put him in meetings and he would know everything by heart. Tushar Sadhu was both our sector and creative expert. He made a hand-drawn handbook for patients that the judges loved and always put together beautiful presentations. Namrata Rajagopal's extreme focus and determination coupled with the inherent consultant in her was one of the strongest drivers for our success. Any problem would start with Namrata breaking it down into a 2x2 or an issue tree and then we would take it from there.
We learned so much about healthcare in India! We also got to see the practical side of our MBA course. We would learn a new concept in the classroom and implement it in our J&J project the next day. J&J QUEST taught us the power of primary research rather than just making assumptions about reality. The entire project was to identify, create, communicate and capture value. It was an incredible experience understanding how a large organization goes through this process.
For the finals of J&J QUEST, 14 teams were selected from every major Indian B-School and every team had a different problem statement. The best teams had three things in common: they had done tremendous field research, knew their material well enough to answer questions and communicated their findings well. There was no substitute for hard work in this competition.
The journey to the finale required a lot of hard work. Our problem statement required a lot of sector expertise. Hence, our very first step was to make a long list of people we should be reaching out to. We cold-called and networked until we were interviewing leading sector experts and ISB professors. We used design thinking frameworks and converted our field learnings into ideas that J&J could implement. Then we found research papers that could take our ideas to the next level. Our greatest strength was the level of creativity that we brought to everything. We actually shot ad campaigns, created a Virtual Reality demonstration and had exhibits that our judges could hold in their hands while we presented.
Managing a three-month-long B-School competition in a one-year MBA course is very challenging. The campus round was a day after our first midterm examinations. While all our classmates were nervously studying, we were going on field visits. After we won the finals, we reached our campus at 3 am and proceeded to give two exams from 9 am. We really learned to push ourselves to the limit.
After the campus round, we were given connections from the organization to understand how things work on ground. Our mentors provided regular insightful feedback on our research. For example, just three days before the finals, our mentor suggested we drop an idea we were developing because it was not implementable. His clear feedback helped us deliver a much stronger presentation on the final day. In our opinion, the best part was that J&J valued our work throughout. Our final presentations were made to Managing Directors, who immediately talked about implementing our recommendations within a year. Nothing can beat that feeling of accomplishment!
The competition has given a different level of experience and a lot of memories to carry forward. At the airport, we got a call from a stakeholder we had interviewed multiple times. He wished us luck for the competition and said that this was our opportunity to change the system. This made us equal parts emotional and nervous for our flight to Mumbai. We spent the entire night cutting out exhibits for the judging panel. Without a wink of sleep, we walked into a grand hall in a five-star hotel where the finals were taking place. Throughout the day we sneaked out to practice our parts. Finally, our turn came and the judges reacted in the best way imaginable. They immediately offered us PPIs and said they were blown away by the amount of work we had accomplished. This was the best moment of our entire MBA journey. We flew back home with a massively sized cheque that airport security laughed while helping us carry. The level of exhilaration we felt that night was truly amazing. For all those considering J&J QUEST, please give it you’re all. We can guarantee it is worth the effort!
The dream team of J&J Quest
We all had some experience with the healthcare vertical and this connection led to a friendly bond even before the J&J QUEST case was announced. We decided to name ourselves Team Starfish as a tribute to the first inroads in immunology discovery.
Honestly, we won because we became such good friends through the competition. We spent every moment together and became completely addicted to working on this problem. There was no conflict that a hot cup of tea couldn't solve!
Meet Team Starfish
Arpita Kulkarni was our marketing guru and was superb at field research. She knew exactly how to ask all the tough questions and could bond with absolute strangers. Hari Venkat Kiran Garimella was great at technology and had a photographic memory. We could put him in meetings and he would know everything by heart. Tushar Sadhu was both our sector and creative expert. He made a hand-drawn handbook for patients that the judges loved and always put together beautiful presentations. Namrata Rajagopal's extreme focus and determination coupled with the inherent consultant in her was one of the strongest drivers for our success. Any problem would start with Namrata breaking it down into a 2x2 or an issue tree and then we would take it from there.
From classroom to the real world
We learned so much about healthcare in India! We also got to see the practical side of our MBA course. We would learn a new concept in the classroom and implement it in our J&J project the next day. J&J QUEST taught us the power of primary research rather than just making assumptions about reality. The entire project was to identify, create, communicate and capture value. It was an incredible experience understanding how a large organization goes through this process.
The Finale
For the finals of J&J QUEST, 14 teams were selected from every major Indian B-School and every team had a different problem statement. The best teams had three things in common: they had done tremendous field research, knew their material well enough to answer questions and communicated their findings well. There was no substitute for hard work in this competition.
Cold calling to hot leads
The journey to the finale required a lot of hard work. Our problem statement required a lot of sector expertise. Hence, our very first step was to make a long list of people we should be reaching out to. We cold-called and networked until we were interviewing leading sector experts and ISB professors. We used design thinking frameworks and converted our field learnings into ideas that J&J could implement. Then we found research papers that could take our ideas to the next level. Our greatest strength was the level of creativity that we brought to everything. We actually shot ad campaigns, created a Virtual Reality demonstration and had exhibits that our judges could hold in their hands while we presented.
When limits don’t limit anymore
Managing a three-month-long B-School competition in a one-year MBA course is very challenging. The campus round was a day after our first midterm examinations. While all our classmates were nervously studying, we were going on field visits. After we won the finals, we reached our campus at 3 am and proceeded to give two exams from 9 am. We really learned to push ourselves to the limit.
From PPT to implementation
After the campus round, we were given connections from the organization to understand how things work on ground. Our mentors provided regular insightful feedback on our research. For example, just three days before the finals, our mentor suggested we drop an idea we were developing because it was not implementable. His clear feedback helped us deliver a much stronger presentation on the final day. In our opinion, the best part was that J&J valued our work throughout. Our final presentations were made to Managing Directors, who immediately talked about implementing our recommendations within a year. Nothing can beat that feeling of accomplishment!
Large emotions and a large check!
The competition has given a different level of experience and a lot of memories to carry forward. At the airport, we got a call from a stakeholder we had interviewed multiple times. He wished us luck for the competition and said that this was our opportunity to change the system. This made us equal parts emotional and nervous for our flight to Mumbai. We spent the entire night cutting out exhibits for the judging panel. Without a wink of sleep, we walked into a grand hall in a five-star hotel where the finals were taking place. Throughout the day we sneaked out to practice our parts. Finally, our turn came and the judges reacted in the best way imaginable. They immediately offered us PPIs and said they were blown away by the amount of work we had accomplished. This was the best moment of our entire MBA journey. We flew back home with a massively sized cheque that airport security laughed while helping us carry. The level of exhilaration we felt that night was truly amazing. For all those considering J&J QUEST, please give it you’re all. We can guarantee it is worth the effort!
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