During the ongoing Fall Session (August 2008), students of Ist Semester MBA along with Asst. Professor - RBS Bangalore, Mr Suresh Babu undertook a local Industry Visit to Parle-G on 1st August 2008.

The main reason for this first "trip" to Parle-G was to provide first hand knowledge of organizational structure, including the Marketing Procedures, HR Practices and the fully automated Production Activities.

On the day of the Visit, students reported for it by 8.45 a.m. There were 137 students who boarded in three buses. Our B-Wagon started with a big bang at 9 a.m. As our buses neared the factory on Tumkur Road, a delicious aroma greeted the students making them aware of the proximity of their destination. We reached the Parle plant at 10 a.m.

After formal security procedures the students were allowed into the plant. The students were first taken into the training auditorium, followed by an hour's presentation about the company and a movie about Parle. The training gave an insight about the company's growth and achievements over the last decade which revealed the following facts:

Parle Products has been India's largest manufacturer of biscuits and confectionery for almost 80 years now. Makers of the world's largest selling biscuit, Parle-G, and a host of other very popular brands, the Parle name symbolizes quality, nutrition and a great taste. With its reach spanning even the remotest of villages in India, the company has definitely come a very long way since its inception.

Many of the Parle products - biscuits or confectioneries, are market leaders in their category and have won acclaim at the Monde Selection, since 1971. With a 40% share of the total biscuit market and a 15% share of the total confectionary market in India, Parle has grown to become a multi-million dollar company. While to consumers it's a beacon of faith and trust, competitors look upon Parle as an example of marketing brilliance.

After the interactive session, students were briefed about the plant and its operations.

Production Manager and Plant-Head briefed us about the varied activities in the unit, and the students realized why Parle is the world's biggest biscuit manufacturing company. The students were stunned after they saw "THE STEPHEN OVEN", Asia's largest oven, which was baking 9900 biscuits a minute. The students were shown all the seven stages of baking a biscuit, starting from Raw Materials to the final Packaging stage.

The Resource Team was kind enough to answer all the queries of the students and they were overwhelmed by the students' interaction.

The day ended with a fun-filled evening at Shivana-samudram (SHIMSHA) where the students enjoyed the Bluff Point (Cauvery Falls) which revived their energy and then they returned to the campus by 10 p.m.