Are there any people with poor academic record who still got into any IIM, XLRI or FMS? If yes, why not share your stories here?

One of my cousins got into XLRI without breaking much sweat and his story still continues to baffle me as getting into XLRI is not an easy job.

• He scored an aggregate of 76% in class 10 board examinations and a modest 68% in his 12th examinations.
• He was a student of computer science engineering from a private college. By the 8th semester he had accumulated 16 arrears and it was a chore clearing them in one go.
• After his engineering, he joined an IT company and worked the night shift. He was not satisfied with his job. 
• He dived headlong into his preparation for CAT/XAT. 

His CAT result was 81 percentile and his XAT result was 99.7 percentile. His XAT score earned him a call from XLRI. He did not perform well in his group discussion and personal interview due to his poor skills in public speaking. He failed to get any converts.

In his second attempt, he worked on the development of his soft skills. 

• He joined ToastMasters at his company and volunteered to speak at every meeting. 
• He also won a triple crown award by completing the CC, CL, ALB tracks. 
• He helped in organizing a TedX event and took up leadership roles in the NGO he joined. 
• His conversational and public speaking skills got a huge boost.

As he had spent so much time honing his public speaking skills he did not get much time to prepare for his CAT/XAT which resulted in him underperforming.

In his final attempt, he studied without giving in to any distraction and also focused on his extra-curricular activities.

In the end, his CAT results were 99 percentile and XAT was 98 percentile. He managed to convert all his calls except one due to his now improved skills in public speaking. He has now completed his MBA.