All the schools encourage their graduates to stay connected to their alma mater through return visits and alumni networks. However, not many institutions welcome all of its alumni and their families back for reunions on a yearly basis with the style and fanfare that is uniquely ISB.
 
Each December, the ISB hosts its alumni and their families on campus for Solstice – the annual alumni reunion of the School. This is intended to offer them an opportunity to connect with each other while also giving them a taste of the year spent at the ISB.
 
This year the homecoming celebration was enjoyed by over 600 alumni and their families from different parts of the world at the School’s Hyderabad campus. It was significant for the alumni of the Class of 2004 and 2009 as it marks their homecoming after 10 years and 5 years respectively.
 
To commemorate the 10th year reunion of Class of 2004, Mayura Balasubramanian, an ISB alumnus from Class of 2004 who runs a social venture called Craftizen, conceptualised a unique artwork titled “Kaleidoscope”. Alumni attending Solstice from Co 2004 were asked to bring an item that reminded them of their student year – something they actually used or something symbolic. Contributions included original memorabilia from flagship events organised during 2003-04, academic course pack covers, newsletter issues, tee shirts, drumsticks, a badminton racket and various other quirky items each of which came with its own unique story. Ganesh Nallari, one of the most acclaimed fashion designers in Hyderabad, artist and human rights ambassadors, assembled all these eclectic items into a striking collage in just 6 hours. All members of Co 2004 present also signed the artwork. The unique artwork was unveiled by Dean Ajit Rangnekar and will be permanently displayed on campus. On being asked what inspired this artwork, Mayura said, “the year we spent studying at ISB was transformative in so many ways, and I wanted to celebrate it in a format that was creative but also collaborative. The artwork is a humble attempt to highlight vignettes from what was truly a life altering journey.”
 
The highlight of this year’s Solstice was the “Entrepreneur Meet” where some of the alumni entrepreneurs shared experiences of their entrepreneurial journey and the business models of their ventures. This was an opportunity for sharing and learning that also ignited the minds of many budding entrepreneurs. In addition to the more formal interactions, social events such as networking over meals and a range of fun events were organised. The campus hosted food and flea market, adventure zone, video game zone, art corridor, sporting activities, and live band performances that spiced up the evenings.
 
ISB alumni are a key stakeholder of the School and are its brand ambassadors. ISB has a 5251 strong network of PGP alumni (16% abroad and 84% in India) and around 180 PGPMAX alumni, spread across 25 countries. They contribute to the School in numerous ways through their work, wisdom and wealth. They also take on responsibilities which directly benefit students, such as participating in orientation programmes for new students and mentoring them during the year – through initiatives such as CV reviews, mock interviews, gyaan sessions, and the shadow an alum programme. Also, several alumni have co-founded ventures with fellow ISBians and many of them return to campus to recruit students from the current batch for their ventures.
 
Over the years, the increasing student body has improved the turnout and livened up the participation in the ever-more-colorful Solstice. Behind the colourful banners and lights adorning the campus, was the hard work of more than 100 volunteers from the present batch, who had toiled for the last four months to roll out the red carpet for their alumni and present them “the ISB experience” all over again.