An Exclusive Interview With The National Winners Of TVS Eurogrip TORQ Challenge From FMS Delhi

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"We were surprised at first, then were filled with ecstasy and joy. We were hoping to be in the top 15 since we had made it to the top 25 in the previous round, but being declared as the national winners was beyond our wildest dreams. The case was very unique and it was really wonderful to see our efforts getting recognized. We were delighted that through the PPI we may be able to get into the company as well! We would like to thank the team at TVS to give us such a wonderful opportunity.", says Team Argonauts from FMS Delhi.  

In an exclusive interview with Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete) here is what the National Winners of TVS Eurogrip TORQ Challenge have to say about their journey.

This competition was far better than other competitions. They did not limit the structure of the competition just to the presentation but also went back to study the ppts in detail after the presentation to ensure that no point was left. They did not mind when we overshot the time by a few minutes. The timeline was apt and gave us enough time to work on our presentations while managing college work simultaneously. 

Sharing his thoughts on the quality of the challenge, Jaydeep says,

In terms of judgment quality and competition structure, TVS Eurogrip TORQ Challenge was excellent. They gave sufficient time to justify the case problem. One of the most intriguing parts of the competition was the thought-provoking questions asked during the presentation!

The industry was entirely new to us. We knew nothing about tyres before registering for the competition. We just had a little marketing knowledge and thought the competition would be a great way to challenge ourselves. So the case premise seemed challenging and, at the same time, exciting to take on. 

The case study was very detailed and provided us with enough background about the company and its challenge. The case, jury questions, and the competition provided the challenge we were looking for.

On this, Vedang Sharma says,

Being a mechanical engineer, I am inclined towards competitions of mechanical companies. But more importantly, I liked the case given in this competition. Unlike some other competitions, which do not provide anything concrete to work on, this case had properly defined deliverables that provided detailed guidance on what is expected from us. The case was such that it gave us scope to use a mathematical approach, especially in deliverables such as ROI projection. 

Crafting a winning strategy

We knew nothing about either bikes or tyres. So we sat down together and had an hour-long discussion just about tyres - including how to buy them, how to change them and everything. This is where the project started for us. We began with thorough secondary research on Google and then conducted several interviews with regular bike riders and tyre dealers - this was one of the best parts.

The preparation required for each deliverable was different. To identify customer profiles and chart their purchase journeys, we created questions, selected the methodology as direct interviews, and then interviewed as many people as possible. 

For ROI, we calculated the estimated revenues from the competitor analysis and found costs per our suggested services. We went through the basics of finance, such as discounted cash flow methodology for this deliverable. We have worked almost continuously since the case was disclosed. There were gaps between, such as between the rounds, but even in the breaks that we took, the case was continuously in our minds. 

Conflicts are inevitable; the key to success lies in your team bonding

We didn't encounter any significant conflicts. There were specific roadblocks, but nevertheless, it was a smooth experience for us. The challenging phase was when we tried to design a solution around the most influencing stakeholder - tyre dealers and mechanics.

Another challenge was that each team member was free at different times of the day. Sometimes it was challenging to get the team together due to other priorities such as college assignments, live projects, and competitions. We managed it by prioritizing and scheduling our work.

On this Sumedha quoted, 

Challenges and conflicts are an inevitable part of working in teams, and we had our share of them. But it's easier to resolve them if you calmly try and understand the other person's point of view.

Another problematic aspect was finding out the costs. The analysis would have been complicated if the competitor had not mentioned a few key figures or had not found a few key sources.

Vedang says, "Some of the challenging parts for me was rendering photos of the TVS stores we proposed as I do not have much knowledge of photo editing software and creating a 3D model on CAD software seemed too difficult. However, with hard work and consistent efforts, everything worked out well."

Our team's bonding played a vital role in overcoming every challenge and conflict.

Our team forte was diversity. We are from different backgrounds and have diverse interests and specializations. This enabled us to get a diverse perspective on things and made it easier to allocate and distribute work according to the talent sets of the team members. 

There is only one thing that matters - Learnings!

The most significant learning was never to stop looking for answers. The category was tricky, but we kept on going, reading, and talking with customers and relevant stakeholders. We learned a lot about the tyre industry and got a good idea of using data to justify our recommendations.

When talking about the significant learnings and takeaways, Vedang shared that he also learned image rendering to some extent, discounted cash flow methodology, 3D map feature of Excel, choropleth map functions of R, and improved upon ppt making and presentation skills. He also gained practical experience in conducting interviews and market research. 

All in all, talking to bike riders and tyre dealers was one of the most exciting parts of the journey. The moment after our final presentation was exceptional. It was when we could finally calm down after working for more than a month. The only thing left to do was wait for the results as we had done everything we could to the best of our abilities!

For more such competition stories, click here.