An article written by me for SP Jain School of Global Management website published at the link: http://www.spjain.org/The-Amazing-Race-Getting-to-know-Singapore-in-a-dynamic-style.aspx

1. GMBA – MGB “Success”
An articleby Prajakta Talathi,GMBA Sep’13
It was 9.30 am on 14th
September 2013, when strength of 83 students gathered in the Leadership
Hall,completelycluelessaboutthe mostexcitingdayaheadintheirlives.We were addressed by Mr Albert
and Mr Joshua,whowere the co-ordinatorsforthe AmazingRace. Mr Albertexplainedusour targets, rules
and timelines and repeatedly asked us to ensure the safety of the individual as well as the group.
Figure 1: Group photograph of all the participating students
We had an “Amazing” Amazing Race arranged by SP Jain so that we get to know the city and each
other very well in contrast to the normal way that would have been to sit in a bus and roam around the
city, with a Tour Guide showing us around. But that is not what we at SP Jain do. We believe not in doing
extraordinary things but in doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way. Prior to the beginning of our
adventurousday,we hadto jotdownour expectationsfromthisactivity.Notone butall expected to enjoy
the day to fullest,gettoknowthe Singapore culture andpeople,show some team bonding and team spirit
and last but not the least to win this game!

2. Figure 2: Food Republic
On our firstdayof orientation,we weretoldthat we remember 90% of the things that we do. And
so we setout on exploringthe cityonour own,of course the tasksand the challenges played an important
role inchannelizingus.Ratherthanthe conventionalgroupnameslike GroupA, B, C and D, we instead had
Group nameslike Amazing,Beautiful,CreativeandDynamic.True tothe names,we all set out on a mission
to accomplish the assigned tasks. To keep a check on our integrity, we were assigned Honest Leader, a
leaderfromamongstourteam,who ensuredthatwe didnotcheat and complete ourtaskschronologically.
Figure 3: International Cuisines

3. Each team had 4 different places to explore: Chinatown, Raffles Place, Botanical Garden and
Sentosaand6 differenttaskstoperform.The firsttask required the team to use the MRT and public buses
to reach the destination. Itwasfollowedbyatask to get toknow some insightsabout eachteam members’
lives. The next task involved the food challenge, where each team member had to try different types of
cuisineslikeLocal cuisine, Indian food, Muslim food, fruits and Western cuisines. To the at most surprise,
we had to feed each other.
Figure 4: Bonding time
Postthe wholesome meal,the teamswere sentonafast-pacedhunt,asthere were negative points
for not reaching SP Jain campus by 1:50 PM. The tasks ranged from clicking pictures at the locations
mentionedinthe clues,tofilling in blocked out words from the notice boards at the respective locations.
Once all the taskswere completed,the teamswere torushback to the campus before time, to prevent the
minus points. All teams had a fantabulous chance to explore many new places like Asian Civilization
Museum, Fullerton Hotel, Marina Bay Place, Boat Quay which demonstrated the beautiful Singapore
History and Culture and even more beautiful, the people of Singapore. Few teams found out the
significance about Singapore flag and acquired the knowledge of Public Housing and HDB.

4. Figure 5: Singapore Botanic Gardens
Once the teams arrived back in SP Jain campus, they had to prepare a short presentation on the
places that each team visited. Creative thoughts flowed through colours on the board and each team
shared in pictures and words, the beauty of all the places. The team with the maximum points was the
winner and was asked to cross in slow motion, a red ribbon finish line, similar to a real Olympic race. The
atmosphere was filled with music and cheers from rest of the sporty participants. The teams checked if
theirexpectations,whichwerejotteddownatthe beginning of the race, were met and Bingo! The returns
of the day exceeded far from the expectations.
Figure 6: Winning team and prize distribution ceremony

5. After the prize distribution by Ms Mumtaz, the day concluded with the vote of thanks and few
words of encouragement from Prof. John Davis, Ms Mumtaz Moiz and Ms Biraj Shah. The students of SP
Jain, redefined the Law of Conversation of Energy; The energy can be created and passed on from one
person to another during such wonderful activities. This day definitely can be called as “GMBA and MGB
Success”.