THE ART OF GROUP DISCUSSION

A group discussion consists of:

1. Communication Skills
2. Knowledge and ideas regarding a given subject
3. Capability to co-ordinate and lead
4. Exchange of thoughts
5. Addressing the group as a whole
6. Thorough preparations

Communication Skills
The first aspect is one's power of expression. In a group discussion, a candidate has to talk effectively so that he is able to convince others. For convincing, one has to speak forcefully and at the same time create an impact by his knowledge of the subject. A candidate who is successful in holding the attention of the audience creates a positive impact.

It is necessary that you should be precise and clear. As a rule evaluators do not look for the wordage produced. Your knowledge on a given subject, your precision and clarity of thought are the things that are evaluated. Irrelevant talks lead you nowhere. You should speak as much as necessary, neither more nor less. Group discussions are not debating stages.

Ability to listen is also what evaluators judge. They look for your ability to react on what other participants say. Hence, it is necessary that you listen carefully to others and then react or proceed to add some more points. Your behavior in the group is also put to test to judge whether you are a loner or can work in a group.

You should be able to convey your thoughts satisfactorily and convincingly before a group of people. Confidence and level headedness in doing so is necessary. These add value to your presentation. In case you are not good at it, you might gain by joining an institute that offers specialized courses in public speaking. For instance, British Council Division's English Language Teaching Centre offers a wide range of courses like conversation skills, business communication skills, business writing, negotiation skills and presentation skills. Mostly people attend these courses to improve their communication skills. Students here are involved in activities which use communication skills and teachers provide inputs, monitor and facilitate the classes. The course at the Centre makes you confident enough to speak before people without any nervousness.

Knowledge and Ideas Regarding a Given Subject
Knowledge of the subject under discussion and clarity of ideas are important. Knowledge comes from consistent reading on various topics ranging from science and technology to politics. In-depth knowledge makes one confident and enthusiastic and this in turn, makes one sound convincing and confident.

Leadership and Coordinating Capabilities
The basic aim of a group discussion is to judge a candidate's leadership qualities. The examiner withdraws and becomes a silent spectator once the discussion starts. A candidate should display tactfulness, skill, understanding and knowledge on varied topics, enterprise, forcefulness and other leadership qualities to motivate and influence other candidates who may be almost equally competent.

Exchange of Thoughts
A group discussion is an exchange of thoughts and ideas among members of a group. These discussions are held for selecting personnel in organisations where there is a high level of competition. The number of participants in a group can vary between 8 and 15. Mostly a topic or a situation is given to group members who have to discuss it within 10 to 20 minutes.

The purpose is to get an idea about candidates in a short time and make assessments about their skills, which normally cannot be evaluated in an interview. These skills may be team membership,leadership skills,listening and articulation skills.

A note is made of your contributions to the discussion, comprehension of the main idea, the rapport you strike, patience, assertion, accommodation, amenability, etc. Body language and eye contact too are important points which are to be considered. .

Addressing the Group as a Whole
In a group discussion it is not necessary to address anyone by name. Even otherwise you may not know everyone's names. It better to address the group as a whole.

Address the person farthest from you. If he can hear you everyone else too can. Needless to add, as for the interview, attend the group discussion in formal dress. The language used should also be formal, not the language used in normal conversations. For instance, words and phrases like "yar", "chalta hai", "CP", "I dunno", etc. are out. This is not to say you should use a high sounding, pedantic language. Avoiding both, just use formal, plain and simple language. Hinglish, (mixture of Hindi and English) should be discarded.

Confidence and coolness while presenting your viewpoint are of help. See that you do not keep repeating a point. Do not use more words than necessary. Do not be superfluous. Try to be specific. Do not exaggerate.

Thorough Preparation
Start making preparations for interview and group discussions right away, without waiting till the eleventh hour, this is, if and when called for them. Then the time left may not be adequate. It is important to concentrate on subject knowledge and general awareness. Hence, the prime need for thorough preparation. Remember, the competition is very tough. Only 460 candidates make it to the final list from 2.75 lakh civil service aspirants each year.

It may so happen that you are called for interviews and group discussions from three or four organizations but are not selected by any. The reason obviously lies in your not being well-prepared.

In a group discussion you may be given a topic and asked to express your views on it. Or in a case study GD, students have to read a case study and suggest ways of tackling the problem. For this you should have a good general knowledge, need to be abreast with current affairs, should regularly read newspapers and magazines. Your group behaviour and communication skills are on test, i.e. how you convince the others and how clearly you are able to express your points of view. You should be articulate, generate ideas, not sound boring, should allow others to speak, and adopt a stand on a given subject. During the course of the GD this stand can even be changed, giving the impression that you are open to accommodate others' viewpoints.

Additional marks may be given for starting or concluding the discussion.

Points to Remember

• Knowledge is strength. A candidate with good reading habits has more chances of success. In other words, sound knowledge on different topics like politics, finance, economy, science and technology is helpful.
• Power to convince effectively is another quality that makes you stand out among others.
• Clarity in speech and expression is yet another essential quality.
• If you are not sure about the topic of discussion, it is better not to initiate. Lack of knowledge or wrong approach creates a bad impression. Instead, you might adopt the wait and watch attitude. Listen attentively to others, may be you would be able to come up with a point or two later.
• A GD is a formal occasion where slang is to avoided.
• A GD is not a debating stage. Participants should confine themselves to expressing their viewpoints. In the second part of the discussion candidates can exercise their choice in agreeing, disagreeing or remaining neutral.
• Language use should be simple, direct and straight forward.
• Don't interrupt a speaker when the session is on. Try to score by increasing your size, not by cutting others short.
• Maintain rapport with fellow participants. Eye contact plays a major role. Non-verbal gestures, such as listening intently or nodding while appreciating someone's viewpoint speak of you positively.
• Communicate with each and every candidate present. While speaking don't keep looking at a single member. Address the entire group in such a way that everyone feels you are speaking to him or her.

MBA GD Topics

• Is India moving away from a secularist state?

• Education in India - or the lack of it

• What ails Indian sports?

• The Age of Information

• Is Philosophy just an armchair theory?

• Success is all about human relations

• Borderless worlds - Dream or reality?

• Quality is a myth in India.

• Education and success - Is there a correlation?

• We don't learn from history, we repeat it

• Do we need a global policeman

• Indian villages - our strength or our weakness?

• Agrarian Economy in India - boon or bane

• if there were no armies in the world......

• Indian customs - are we in a time warp?

• "How green was my valley........". Is nature paying the price ?

• Management Education - Is it necessary to succeed in business

• The role of NGOs in economics and politics

• NGOs - Do they serve peoples interests or are they pressure groups?

• Death of Socialism

• Role of women in development

• Kids today are not what they used to be

• Casteless India - A pipe dream

• Should Trade Unionism be banned in India

• Repeated elections - Should taxpayers pay for it?

• Indian bureaucracy - foundation strengths or colonial hangovers?

• In India, the whole is less than the parts - Do we lack in team spirit?

• Generation X - Drivers of our future or are they our lost souls?

• Do we need a cut in the defence budget?

• "Dot.com" companies - Is there room for everyone?

• Artificial Intelligence - Will man be ever replaced by machines?

• if I were to choose my person of the millennium...

• All the world is a stage....

• when managers become Hamlets...

• If Patel were our first Prime Minister.......

• Materialism - Have we sold our souls to the Devil?

• You've come a long way, baby - The rise and rise of feminist power.

• Role of ethics in tobacco industry, liquor industry etc.

• Should gambling be legalised in India?

• Are we unfit for Democracy?

• Survival tools for the new millennium

• Examinations - has it killed education

• Cultural Invasion through the air waves

• Should doctors be tried in Consumer Courts

• Abortion and Euthanasia - Is it morally right for society

• Are beauty pageants necessary?

• The relevance of Gandhism today

• India and the WTO

• Did India handle the hijack issue properly?

• Is E-Commerce the best thing for India

• Managerial skills learnt in the classroom can never
  match those learnt from experience

• Democracy is hampering India progress

• MBA in India is highly overrated.

• Religion is a private affair and should be of no concern for the state

• Decreasing defense expenditure and increasing social expenditure is the need of the hour

• Hot Topics:
  
  1.How to deal with international terrorism.
  2.Should we pursue our policy of dialogue with
  Pakistan?
  3.Is peace and non-violence outdated concepts?
  
  Current Topics:
  
  1.A Unipolar World spells disaster for underdeveloped
  countries like
  India.
  2.Is Globalisation Really Necessary?
  3.What shall we do about our ever-increasing
  Population?
  4.Corruption is the price we pay for Democracy.
  5.Foreign Television Channels are destroying our
  culture.
  6.What India needs is a Dictatorship.
  7.With media publishing and telecasting trivia,
  censorship is the
  need of the hour.
  8.Kaun Banega Krorepati is less about knowledge but
  more about money and personality.
  9.Beauty contests degrade womanhood
  10.The rise of regional blocs threatens independent
  nations like India
  11.Six billion and one bronze!
  12.Is dependence on computers a good thing?
  13.Should the public sector be privatised?
  14.China and India are similar nations with
  contrasting ways
  15.Is India a Soft Nation?
  16.Value based politics is the need of the hour
  17.Religion should not be mixed with politics
  18.How to deal with high oil prices
  19.Our cricketers are not to blame for match fixing
  20.Why cant we be world players in industry as we are
  in software?
  21.Multinational corporations: Are they devils in
  disguise?
  22.Should there be limits on artistic freedom (the
  controversy on
  Fire).
  23.Should there be private universities?
  24.Does banning fashion shows and New Year parties
  save our culture?
  
  Social Topics:
  
  1.Are Big Dams Necessary?
  2.Films are corrupting the Indian Youth
  3.A Gandhian State selling liquor is an anomaly
  4.Bride burning and dowry may look bad, but are an
  integral part of
  India.
  5.Our Culture is Decaying
  6.We are not serious about saving Wildlife/Environment
  7.The education system needs serious reforms
  8.The impact of MTV on our psyche
  9.Showing Violence and Crimes should not be allowed in
  films and on
  television.
  10.Let us legalise gambling
  
  Management Topics:
  
  1.Is management an art or a science?
  2.The Rush for MBA is really a rush for big money
  3.Ethics in Business are just a passing fashion
  4.The objective of Management is to maximise profits
  5.Do professional managers have a chance in our family
  run businesses?
  6.The Internet is an exercise in hype
  7.Is an MBA necessary to succeed in life?
  8.Family owned business vs professionally run
  businesses
  9.Smaller businesses and start-ups have more scope for
  professional
  growth.
  10.Dot com or doubt com?
  
  Creative Topics:
  
  1.The Wheel is Turning Round and Round
  2.If I was the Finance Minister/Prime Minister
  3.There is no right way to do a wrong thing
  4.Group Task: How can we have Mount Everest in India?
  5.Do Beauty and Brains Go Together?
  6.When I woke up in the morning I saw…
  7.A ship docked in harbour cannot face the storms
  8.Up the Down Staircase
  9.Just as we have smoke free zones, we should have
  child free zones
  10.Marriage is a social trap
  
  SOCIAL TOPICS:
  
  1. The Internet chains have come on the wings of
  science and
  technology but are no less restrictive for all that.
  2. Secularism has become a tool to justify the wrongs
  done by the
  minorities.
  3. Media is a mixed blessing/How ethical is media?
  4. To fight AIDs, stop being coy about sex education.
  5. What should India strive for- Westernization or
  modernization?
  
  ECONOMIC TOPICS:
  
  1. Developing countries need trade, not aid.
  2. Why do we lag behind China?
  3. Capitalism is a very flawed system but the others
  are so much
  worse.
  4. Flexibility of labour laws is the key to attracting
  more Foreign
  Direct Investment.
  5. Is the business of business only business?
  
  POLITICAL TOPICS:
  
  1. Reserving seats for women in Panchayat has not only
  been a farce but
  has distracted from developing a more genuine voice of
  women.
  2. Have the nuclear tests of 1998 benefited or harmed
  India?
  3. Voters, not, political parties are responsible for
  the criminalisation of politics.
  4. The voters are required to be well informed and
  educated about
  their candidates so that they can elect the right
  aspirant by their own
  assessment.
  5. India should go for the presidential form of
  democracy.
  
  ECONOMIC TOPICS:
  
  1. In our economic matters, there is an excessive
  tendency towards the
  thinking rather than doing.
  2. Every cloud has a silver lining
  3. Can the economy achieve an 8 percent growth rate?.
  4. Is disinvestment really that good for India or is a
  rethink in
  order ?
  5. Are co-operatives relevant in today's globalised
  environment?.
  6. Foreign aid is a dangerous drug that can stimulate
  in small doses
  but
  become fatally addictive in larger doses.
  7. Modern day sport in industrialised society is an
  industry, as
  anything else.
  8. Government should clean its own hands before
  pointing finger at the
  private sector for corruption.
  9. Is the NPA ordinance too harsh?
  10. Reforms have to grow up.
  11. The future lies with glocalisation .
  12. Is the consumer really the king in India?.
  13. Globalisation versus nationalism
  14. Conditional access system for cable TV watchers:
  boon or bane? 15.
  If India is poorly governed, the reason is that we
  have designed our
  system of governance for protecting, if not
  encouraging,
  corruption?
  16. Commercialisation of health care : Good or Bad ?
  17. For globalisation to succeed in India people must
  be able to see
  what is in it for them
  18. Is the US economy headed the Japanese economy way?
  19. Economic freedom not old fashioned theories of
  development will
  lead
  to growth and prosperity
  20. Markets left to themselves encourage greed.
  21. For globalisation to succeed in India people must
  be able to see
  what is in it for them
  22. Should businessmen run the finance ministry
  23. Should important services like transport be left
  to market
  forces?.
  24. Is there any point in having a business strategy
  when the world
  changes from month to month?
  25. Is the patents bill good for India? .
  26. Is the business of business only business?.
  27. Globalisation is good for developing countries
  28. Public sector being a guarantor of job security is
  a myth.
  29. Is industryless growth here to stay ?
  30. Capitalism is a very flawed system but the others
  are so much
  worse ?
  31. How can business get rid of the bad name that it
  has earned?
  32. Government pumping money into the economy is not
  the solution for
  our economic problems
  33. Business ethics are no longer a luxury for
  corporates but a
  necessity?
  34. How should privatisation proceeds be utilised ?
  35. Is the budgeting exercise of any use?
  36. Should agricultural subsidies be stopped ?
  37. Will Mumbai's film industry ever evolve into a
  truly modern
  corporatised one?
  38. Will market reforms enrich rich states further,
  while poorer ones
  lag further?.
  39. Why do we lag behind China ?
  40. Who says MNCs are superior to Indian companies ?.
  41. Why not use a brand index to measure national
  prosperity?.
  42. What we need to reduce scams is better regulatory
  bodies.
  43. War rhetoric is misplaced in a country like India
  which is trying to globalise its economy.
  44. Trade can help the poor ?
  45. The power ministry should cut off supplies to all
  the defaulting
  SEBs.
  46. Steal a few lakhs and you're a criminal. Steal a
  few hundred
  crores and you become an industrialist.
  47. Should PSUs be divested through strategic sale or
  public offer? 48.
  The state is above the law?
  
  Management Education Topics
  
  1. Managerial skills learnt in the classroom can never
  match those
  learnt from experience
  2. Democracy is hampering India progress
  3. MBA in India is highly overrated.
  4. Religion is a private affair and should be of no
  concern for the
  state
  5. Decreasing defense expenditure and increasing
  social expenditure is
  the need of the hour