Pathik Bhatt

Category: Marketing & Advertising

  • 40 Posters From Nasty Women and Their Friends in Chicago

    This isn’t a post about the impressive size, diversity and broad reach of the post-inauguration march that took place on January 21, 2017. Please go to the official site to learn more about that and what you can do to help. This is simply an appreciation for those who took the time to use their creativity for something positive. More specifically, this is a post about all the posters at the Women’s March on Chicago and anti-hate (or anti-Trump) rally yesterday.

    It was impressive. Good art leaves an impression. It makes you feel something. That’s what these posters did for everyone in attendance, and I’m glad that 1) my friends came in from the suburbs and inspired us to attend, and 2) that so many people made an effort to essentially create marketing pieces that will help increase the longevity of this protest.

    In no particular order, here are about 40 posters and scenes from the march yesterday:

    And I’ll end with this one…

  • How AGILE Greece Strengthened My Kelley Direct Online MBA Relationships

    kelley direct in athens greeceThere are few greater joys in life than the liberation you feel after letting down your guard. You know that moment when you see their eyes widen – that smile of acknowledgement appears on the others’ faces. You are no longer a stranger, a colleague or a classmate – you are recognized for you, the individual. It wasn’t until 3 months of weekly phone and Skype calls, ongoing online chats, 1 weekend together in Philadelphia, and 4 days in Athens, Greece that this moment finally happened with my Kelley Direct AGILE study abroad team. (more…)

  • Tips for Entrepreneurs from the Founders of Elegance Decor

    elegance decor outdoor weddingIt is with great pleasure that I share this behind-the-scenes look at Elegance Décor and the founders, who are 3 the most creative minds in the wedding and event décor business. Both my wife and I went to the University of Illinois in Champaign with them and since then we have shared many great times together with this family. We were also fortunate enough to have them help us with the décor for our wedding events (even though they attended), which made everything look beautiful! But of course that’s not the point of this post. In this interview Swetal, Bhavik and Ronak Patel reveal the not-so-glamorous side of working on a start-up and share the fears that they had when they started. They have great insights for new entrepreneurs, and after reading this you will be reassured that you’re not alone if your struggle – and that it’s totally worth it! (more…)

  • Tips for Entrepreneurs from Sumeet Patel – Co-founder of BrandBacker

    Sumeet and I competed in an Indian dance competition many years ago back when I was on the Illini Raas Team and he was on Berkeley’s Raas Team. Fortunately, my team won that night – his placed 3rd. Although his dancing may not have been up to par (kidding of course), I can’t say the same about his knack for business. Sumeet has started three start-ups – BrandBacker is his latest. I got in touch with him recently to find out more about it and his other ventures. (more…)

  • Guest Post for Future MBA Students Featured on TopMBA

    I’ve made a habit of sharing my takeaways from conferences that I attend on my blog. My most recent post about what I learned at the 2014 Higher Ed Conference got some decent visibility after I made many of the active tweeters from the conference aware of the post. That was enough for one of the leading MBA websites to take notice and share it on their blog. Someone from QS TopMBA followed up with me shortly after they linked to my blog post:

    topmba-emailWhat do you think I said? (more…)

  • 11ish Takeaways from the 2014 Higher Education Summit

    pathik bhatt kelley badges I had the opportunity to attend the SalesForce Foundation’s 2014 Higher Education Summit in Tempe, AZ earlier this month – my first higher education conference after becoming a “higher education professional” this year. It was a great learning experience with nearly 600 attendees who were very willing to connect and share ideas with each other. In that same spirit I wanted to share some of my takeaways from the conference as well, so here goes: (more…)

  • Why MBAs Should Be More Like Noah and Less Like DRose

    As mnoah1uch as it hurts me to say this, Derrick Rose is approaching his off-court role as a Chicago Bull all wrong. He did not see it as his job to recruit talent such as King “flop-master” James to the team when we so badly needed him. I like everyone else outside of Miami will diss LeBron, but that’s only because he’s so freaking good and would gladly take him on my team. Back to my point: Rose said he didn’t have a problem with recruiting and would do it if the team asked him to do so. That, my fellow MBA candidates and alumni, is precisely the attitude that results in 2 championships in ANOTHER CITY. (more…)

  • 6 Reasons Why You Should Visit Zappos When You’re in Vegas

    My wife and I had the privilege of going on a Zappos Tour on our Vegas trip last month, and I’m so glad we did! I knew I wanted to make it out there ever since I finish reading Delivering Happiness, the story about their company & how they built a great culture written by their CEO Tony Hsieh. zappos-family-sign (more…)

  • The 2013 Kelley Connect Week Takes MBA Students into the Emerging African Market

    I just got back from my second Kelley Connect Week, the week-long experience that Kelley Direct MBA students get to share with their classmates and professors each year. I did not expect to learn about Africa much less Swahili from my MBA program, but that’s exactly what I got this week.

    The Kelley Connect Week Experience

    Before I go into the details of this Connect Week, I want to describe what this experience is like for the uninitiated. During these Connect weeks, we attend classes with some of the same professors who teach our MBA classes and get to spend a lot of time with other students. As online MBA students, this is something we cherish and really take advantage of. Part of the reason you get your Nick's on IU CampusMBA is to meet and build relationships with other motivated people. Kelley Connect Week not only gives us the chance to do this, but really encourages it. Something new that KD tried this year was giving us open meal vouchers to spend at any Bloomington restaurant. That was a great way for us to go explore Kirkland Ave on our own – although I should note our team just decided to go back to Nick’s (IU’s most popular campus bar) because we were craving good pizza.

    (more…)

  • Tips for Entrepreneurs From Aalap Shah – Co-Founder of SoMe Social Media

    Aalap Shah of SoMeI had the opportunity to work with Aalap Shah on the board of the 2012 NetIP Conference hosted in Chicago last year. Both us were Social Media Co-chairs and Aalap also spoke on a digital marketing panel with other marketing experts there. It was great working with him and I’m glad he took some time out to share some lessons he’s learned about entrepreneurship while starting his company, SoMe Social Media. (more…)