Management Education Trends

What, according to you, are the emerging trends in Professional Management Education in India, as we move towards a knowledge economy? Have students been interested in pursuing research after completing their course?

Research Trends in Management Education: Renewed Emphasis on Holistic Approach

Prof Kuriakose Mamkootam, Dean, Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), Delhi University

The research undertaken by the faculty at FMS is largely in their own primary background such as Sociology, Commerce, Finance and related areas. Management is an interdisciplinary subject and therefore research topics vary accordingly. Corporate governance, poverty alleviation, entrepreneurship, and various kinds of health care systems are some of the few areas of research.”

The trend in management education is moving towards a holistic approach, which not just focuses on profit maximisation. The empahasis is to locate business in a larger societal context. Myriad stakeholder perspectives, and not just that of the investors, are to be taken into consideration. Therefore, issues like Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Governance, Work-life Balance are the emerging areas which business education has to adjust to sooner than later. 

From the curriculum perspective, changes occurring in the industry would also reflect in the course content. The attempt is to make the curriculum relevant and contemporary. We are in the process of revising the syllabus thereby incorporating these changes.

With regard to students' interest in research, very few pursue research immediately after completion of their course. The salary packages are quiet enticing, and it is difficult to retain students for the same. Usually, some of the students work for a few years, gather experience and  come back to pursue academics and research.”

Prof B S Sahay, Director, Management Development Institute (MDI)

“Management education in India needs to consciously focus on maintaining excellence and quality. The mushrooming number of business schools with proper accreditation is a positive aspect, although teaching standards have to be maintained.

However, one of the disturbing trends has been the decline in the ranking of management education. The World Economic Forum Report 2007, on management education in India, ranked it at 8th position. By 2008, it came down to 12th position. 2009 saw further decline in the ranking. This trend has to be arrested, and therefore, quality education in management is crucial.

The younger management graduates should also be encouraged to pursue academics to meet the dearth in the number of teaching faculty.”

Dr H. Chaturvedi, Director, Birla Institute of Management Technology (BIMTECH)

“The recent developments in the world economy have had major influence on the trends in management education. There is a renewed emphasis on business ethics. The focus is now heavily on key areas including Business Ethics, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Governance, and Sustainable Development. Some of the new areas that have emerged include: Management of business during recession or slowdown; Management of risks arising out of national and international relations; Entrepreneurship; Micro-Enterprise and Micro-Finance; Micro-Insurance; and Social Entrepreneurship.

Most of the students are interested in taking up lucrative jobs after they finish their course, and it is difficult to bring them towards academics. However, last year, owing to the economic slowdown and the dearth of campus placements, we had started the Research Fellowships programme. Seven students had enrolled in the programme and are pursuing  PhD and also earning a stipend. 

Management is an inter-disciplinary field and the research areas vary according to the area and interest of students.”

The Management Development Programmes have been offering significant expertise in different functional and cross-functional areas of business management. Could you elaborate on these training programmes?

Developing Industry Academia Interface through Management Development Programmes

Prof B S Sahay, Director, Management Development Institute (MDI)

“MDI's educational programmes attempt to help executives in broadening their understanding and improving their skills to prepare them to face the challenges at higher positions. More than 100 Management Development Programmes every year of varying duration are conducted. The structure focus is on the current areas of interest to executives at the senior, middle, or junior management levels. While the programmes provide inputs to fill knowledge gaps, the emphasis is also on broadening the horizons of participants through case studies, business games, role-plays and exercises.

Interaction with experienced faculty and fellow participants provide new insights and help crystallize concepts to enhance the thinking process for better quality decision-making.

The Advanced Management Programme (AMP) focuses on examining strategic issues – both functional as well as cross-functional – that leaders need to deal with in their quest for creating successful, globalised organisations.

The Quality Improvement Programme is for the faculty members of AICTE recognised business management institutes. The Government of India launched the Quality Improvement Programme in the year 1970. One of the main objectives of the programme is to upgrade the expertise and capabilities of the faculty members of the degree level institutions in the country.”

Dr H. Chaturvedi, Director, Birla Institute of Management Technology (BIMTECH)

“While continuously striving to raise our educational standards BIMTECH has been evolving and developing new skills and teaching & training methodology. Based on this strength, BIMTECH is offering these Management Development Programmes for the working executives. BIMTECH team has been designing and conducting custom designed training modules on industry specific requirements. Towards this, BIMTECH team undertakes a detailed training need assessment at the site of the requesting organisation. Based on the training needs as established by the assessment, appropriate training schedules are prepared.

In addition to the in-house resources available at BIMTECH, we also associate industry experts in specified functional and operational areas to conduct the programmes, which meet the customer's specific needs and requirements. BIMTECH has, in the recent past conducted more than 60 such in-house programmes for organisations like State Trading Corporation (STC), Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) and many others.

There are specific training programmes we have been offering to the industry, which includes Green Business, attended by 21 countries.

We have designed a unique programme for inclusive marketing in collaboration with MART, a leading consulting agency in rural marketing, with the objective of disseminating entrepreneurship skills among the rural and urban poor.

We are trying to integrate technology with sustainable development, and we are the first B-school to launch an MBA for sustainable development.”

Dr Anwar Ali, Director, Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Ghaziabad

“IMT, Ghaziabad offers management development programmes in different areas of management focusing on the twin objectives of broadening the horizon of thinking and strengthening the skills of the practicing managers and developing industry academician interface.

Our MDP's are designed and executed to broaden the horizon of thinking and strengthening skills of the practicing managers.
Programmes are offered in diverse functional areas.

Participants gain valuable insights on the subject through participation in classroom activities and interaction with other participants in the group.

Looking at the ever-increasing need for such programmes, IMT decided to set up a separate MDC building dedicated to the MDP programmes. The institute has in-house experienced and learned training facilitators in the field of HRD Management, Financial Management, Operations Management, Marketing Management, Information Technology and Strategic Decision  Making etc.

MDP & Consultancy has remained a major focus area in the last year. The MDP & Research Centre has a dedicated facility of 3 ultra-modern, state-of-the-art class rooms for conducting programmes and a MDP hostel for offering residential programmes.

Some of the list of companies for whom programmes have been conducted by IMT inlcude NTPC Ltd. , Alstom Power, Steel Authority of India, Planning Commission, Cyber Media etc.”

Collaborative and exchange programmes with various institutions in India and abroad have facilitated inter-cultural knowledge sharing and promoted greater regional understanding. Our readers would like to know more about the same.

Academic Collaborations: Advantage students and faculty

Dr Anwar Ali, Director, Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Ghaziabad

“IMT Ghaziabad is one of the prestigious institutions to have signed the Erasmus Mundus 2009-2013 which aims at excellence in quality and international cooperation between European and other countries.The objective of the ERASMUS programme is to encourage and support academic mobility of higher education students and teachers within the European Union and other countries. The ERASMUS programme aims to improve the quality and increase the amount of multilateral cooperation between higher education institutions and enterprises and to spread innovation and new pedagogic practice and supports to developing closer links between universities.

Thus, this programme would enable the students and faculty at IMT to avail scholarships and grants for their research and academic exchange programmes. Furthermore, it would open a window of opportunities due to the alliances with a number of prestigious institutes in Europe. We are working on the execution, implementation and research opportunities through this arrangement.

This initiative further reiterates our commitment to strive to keep up the quality of our academic collaborations by ensuring quality partnerships that would help in value addition to the students and faculty at IMT. It would definitely add an international flavour in all our academic endeavors henceforth.”

Prof Mamkootam, Dean, Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), Delhi University

“We have had faculty exchange programmes for many years and our first lot of professors were trained in Harvard and Cornell. This scheme was revised in the eighties, when we started sending the faculty to universities in Europe. For the last two years we have again started sending our faculty to Harvard for short term training programmes.

The world for which the MBA's are preparing is multicultural and multinational. Keeping this in mind, the FMS has given its students an opening to develop and apply functional, management and cross-cultural skills and concepts in global business contexts. FMS has a rich history of collaborations with institutions around the world.

As far as students are concerned, we are exploring the possibility of developing the exchange programmes further. Through Universita 21, we have entered into an MoU with 21 universities across the world. We are exploring the possibility of sending our students to these Universitites for a semester.”

Dr H. Chaturvedi, Director, Birla Institute of Management Technology (BIMTECH)

“BIMTECH is one of the few business schools which started  the student exchange progamme as an integral part of the education and exposure process for students. MINT B-School 2008 methodology ranked BIMTECH in the top 10 in India and 4th in private business schools on international collaborations. The student and faculty exchange programmes are key to our success and growth. Few of our International partnerships include Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (Australia), Erasmus University (Netherlands), Chartered International Institute (UK), Philadelhia University (USA).

Our National partnerships include TCS ( Delhi), Bombay Stock Exchange (Mumbai), Mysore University (Mysore), Reliance World (Mumbai).” 

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