Planet Finance Business School, Chairman: Mr. DSS Praveen Kumar Interview

DSS Praveen Kumar is the chairman at Planet Finance Business School, Hyderabad. He is affectionately known as "S F M Praveen Sir" among finance students and is a highly accomplished Chartered Accountant with a stellar academic record and 15 years of invaluable industry experience in Financial Markets. Currently serving as the Managing Director of "planetFINANCE," a prestigious educational institution in Hyderabad specializing in Investment Banking courses with comprehensive placement support. Mr. Praveen Kumar is a distinguished graduate of DATA ANALYTICS from IIT Hyderabad and FINANCIAL ANALYTICS from IIT Kashipur. He has held key positions, including Treasury Manager at TOYOTA MOTORS CORPORATION in Muscat, overseeing the hedging of $7 billion in revenues, and as a Senior Equity Research Analyst at BSE in Mumbai. His expertise extends to consulting for numerous mutual funds and contributing insightful articles to the Economic Times on the Indian economy.

Mr. Praveen Kumar's passion for education and training is evident in his impressive track record, having guided over 8,000 CA Final aspirants and more than 5,300 MBA students from various colleges and B-Schools, ensuring their placement in prestigious MNCs with lucrative packages and suitable profiles. His dedication to meeting corporate demands led to the creation of specialized Investment Banking courses for a wide range of students, from MBAs to BBA, B. Com, M. Com, CA-IPCC, and CA-qualified individuals.

What is the reason for you to get the best packages compared to other B-schools?

Before I answer your first question, I just want to inform everyone reading this interview that we are the only B-school in the country that publishes the contact numbers of the previous batch in the prospectus. Any student who wants to join us can contact the previous students, check their feedback, and make an informed decision. I want to emphasize that we are the only B-school in the country offering this unique program, where we exclusively train candidates in financial data analytics. We do not teach HR and marketing. Therefore, from day one, students will receive exclusive training in finance and data analytics, allowing them more time to delve into these areas and prepare for the corporate world.

How does the placements differ in this B-school compared to other B-schools?

As I mentioned in the earlier question, we complete our program this way. So, I will phrase it as a question and seek the answer. We have a program where we send the candidates for a one-year full-time internship in the second year itself. Then the syllabus for finance data analytics will be completed in the first year. By the second year, specifically in the third and fourth semesters, they will be working in an MNC. Consequently, when the candidate goes for a job by the end of the fourth semester, they will already have one year of experience in the company. Therefore, in the second year, if they secure a package of 5 to 5.5 lakhs, and by the time they complete their PGDM, they will be able to obtain a package of 7 to 8 lakhs. This is the reason why we are witnessing substantial placements. The highest package reached 17 lakhs, and even 14-15 lakhs are common. However, the typical trend is that 7 to 8 lakhs is easily achievable in the MNC.

Do you send candidates for sales or Marketing Jobs?

No, we will never send our students for sales or marketing jobs at any cost. The candidates will be placed in MNC jobs in investment banking, private equity, hedge funds, market risk, credit risk, reference data management, trade settlement, collateral management, corporate actions, financial reporting, and fund accounting, including hedge funds. These are the main roles for which we place our candidates.

Check Planet Finance Business School Courses & Fees

What motivated you to establish planetFinance Business School?

I visited almost all the colleges in Hyderabad, approximately 35 to 40 in total. However, these colleges do not align their teaching with corporate requirements. For instance, nobody teaches hedge funds or reference data management. Thus, I realized that if we could establish our own B-school that meets corporate demands, we would be able to place a greater number of candidates. This is the reason why I initiated the B-school in 2020. In fact, I have been in the teaching profession since 2011 and have trained more than 13,000 individuals at the CA Final and MBA levels.

What is the syllabus you cover in the classes?

Our syllabus is designed in collaboration with corporations. Corporations express their needs, and we update our syllabus accordingly to meet these requirements. This is where we have achieved a significant success rate in terms of placements. As a result, our syllabus includes contemporary topics such as credit risk, market risk, hedge funds, private equity, reference data, corporate actions, financial reporting, financial spreading, financial modeling, advanced statistics, derivatives, currency markets, bonds, fixtures, and derivatives. Moreover, a critical aspect is the inclusion of various tools. We cover advanced Excel powered by Tableau, as well as in-depth training in SQL and Python.

How do you tend to build an industry connect with this program?

The basic problem with the education system is that they are not updating the syllabus in line with corporate requirements. For example, if a company needs someone who understands finance along with being an Alteryx developer, these kinds of candidates are hard to find. Therefore, companies are willing to consider candidates who have this combination on their CVs. What we do is design our syllabus to match corporate needs. This is why, in the last five years, we have successfully placed more than 5200 candidates in MNCs. As a result, companies are pleased to collaborate with us and readily hire our candidates.

What were the challenges that you faced while inculcating this program ?

The initial challenge was that many students were skeptical. Why does a finance guy need analytics? This was the biggest question somebody was asking. Why does a finance guy need to know Python? But I had the vision. I knew that if I wanted to send you for the best-paying jobs, you must have the best knowledge. So in the first batch, these questions were raised. Then I told everybody they must learn Python, and when people saw the placements in the first batch, from the second batch onwards, nobody asked why you have this combination of syllabus in their curriculum.

Check Planet Finance Business School Placement

Tell about your faculty profile?

We have a team of 20 faculty members who are qualified as CA, FRM, or IIM Ahmedabad alumni, and some are also CFA-certified. Almost all of our faculty members come from Chennai, Bangalore, Pune, Abu Dhabi, and Singapore. Our primary objective is to have faculty members who are currently employed in the industry. This way, they can teach from their own practical experiences and provide an in-depth understanding of the processes, preparing students for immediate job placement. This approach is why we consistently produce high-quality students who secure positions in MNCs.

What are the benefits and career options after pursuing this course?

As I was mentioning earlier, we are the only B-school in the country that publishes the contact numbers of the previous batch in the prospectus. This enables candidates with two to three years of experience to potentially secure a package ranging from 13 to 15 lakhs. Furthermore, once they reach the VP/AVP level, their packages can increase to 30-35 lakhs. It's also possible to achieve this level of package after four to five years of experience.

Can they get management roles after completing MBA/PGDM?

After completing an MBA or PGDM, no company will give you a management role, even if you are from a top-tier college. You will be joining as a fresher but possibly at a higher level with a competitive package, maybe as an Associate Analyst. After a couple of years of experience, you will be promoted to AVP or management roles based on your comprehensive knowledge.

What is the course fee of the program?

The course fees are zero. Yes, indeed. Don't be shocked because the fees amount to five lakhs, but the entire sum will be recoverable in the second year itself. So, I can confidently say it incurs zero cost by the time they complete their course.