Next
wave, going global
Globalisation is not a cosmetic
it is about mindset which is finally changing global in
Going
global is not just about setting shop overseas, signing up exclusive faculty
and student exchange agreements, not even about getting foreign students on the
campus but it is about the mindset change, of thinking global, trying to learn
how the world does it and learning from the overseas experience, something
Indian B-schools on their way to maturity have started becoming serious about.
“Globe is already at our door. There is an urgency in acquiring the tools and skills to be
relevant in the changed context”, comments Dr K A Sreekanth,
Director HR of Computer Associates. Agrees Mukesh Aghi,
CEO of Universitas21 Global, an on-line MBA institute with participation from a
global network of b-schools “there is a paradigm shift in corporate education.
Globalization of management practices has necessity to acquire skills to become
player of global recognition”.
Fueled
by an unsatiated demand for b-school graduates,
thanks to a recent upswing in the corporate fortunes and also led by their own
vision of future an increasing number of Business schools of India
are reworking their priorities, investing in infrastructure,
experimenting with new faculty models, reviewing their governance models,
looking at locating in more than one centre, introducing new courses and above
everything else consciously keeping
globe as a benchmark. Unfazed about the
small number of students—around 153 to be precise from
“There
is no denying that global work practices are already here and our boys better
get to know these”, comments Dr Devi Singh Director
of IIM Lucknow says. Business
Business
India had been
tracking the growth and development in b-schools systematically for the last five years
through the Best B-schools Survey and we could see that despite the doomsday
predictions, the b-school bazaar has been on a spin and it is gathering
momentum with a recognizable group of
players putting in all that it takes to
push Indian MBA to the next level,
namely international. For once everyone, whether it is the IIMs,
any of the other top ten B-schools, those from the fast growing set of schools agree
that
“I
would expect induction of foreign academia on Indian B-school boards, global
accreditation, foreign students pursuing full time MBA education in large
numbers in Indian schools and Indian schools being part of international
management training and research programmes”, Prof Pritam Singh of MDI, Gurgaon
says. His is no nostalgic dream but something that is achored
on hard reality. MDI already has 40 foreign students pursuing a semester of
course and the institute along with ICFAI of Hyderabad are the first two schools to get global
accreditation with the efforts already underway .
Indian
schools sets shop overseas
The
year 2004 marks the milestone
in the Indian B-schools when the first tentative steps were taken
by the Indian b-school community to actually found campuses overseas. XLRI,
Symbiosis, SP Jain and ICFAI set up their campuses overseas—the first three at
Knowledge Village Dubai and the last institute at
“It is
only natural and in the scheme of things for Indian B-schools to look overseas
for their next wave of expansion”, comments Wharton professor, Vipin Gupta. He is excited that the Indian b-schools , at least the few which are in the quality race are showing signs
resembling the global schools almost in all respects. For people like Vinay
Pasricha, co-founderof Wigan Leigh, one of the first to bring the global education
into
Overseas
experience
“our experience has been fulfilling to say
the least”, comments M L Shrikant, Dean of SP Jain, the first Indian private
B-school to set up a full fledged campus in the familiar overseas destination
Dubai. The indomitable Symbiosis brand of Pune also
now has a presence at the Gulf with the first school bearing its familiar label
set up in the Knowledge Village of Dubai. The head of Symbiosis Majumdar is happy that Symbiosis has now become an international player. His vasudeva
kudumbakam,
he hopes would spread to other parts of the world as well. Even
IIM Calcutta and XLRI which already
had a foothold with a joint venture arrangements in the Gulf to float their courses have further consolidated their
presence in this growing Emirates education hub.
Gulf
may a good beginning, even though Europe and the
‘I am just back from the tour of Europe and the
“our
next stop is Sri Lanka”, is the pithy rejoinder of the youngest director of any IIM, Dr Devi Singh, from IIM Lucknow, who
is quite excited about the possibility of
taking his institute out.
Singh’s
mentor Dr Pritam Singh of MDI, known as a serious
risk taker, sees overseas adventures in a more sober light. “Our approach will
be to strengthen our offerings matching with the best in the world, get this
endorsed through global accreditation. Teams from AMDISA and EFMD have already visited the campus
and the institute is also looking at AMBA for its endorsement. “We have also
received feedback that to be truly global school we would need to get AACSB
endorsement as with other global schools”, says Dr Pritam
Singh “without international
accreditation there would be no credibility for your diploma’, Singh says emphatically.
Learning
from the world
It
should also be said that like the schools themselves, the views about what one
would learn from the
world is as varied and as bizarre as one can get. For some it is
about faculty “we have aggressively gone ahead to acquire faculty with
international credentials to align with the world”, states Sushil
Kumar, professional Dean of Amrita Institute of Management, one of the fast and
upcoming schools in the distant south. For of IBA Bangalore,
globe means understanding cross cultural issues which is the underlying theme
of education in his school. IIFT sees
renewed global thrust means knowing about the all important WTO. A centre for
WTO has been set up which designs and delivers courses on WTO to its students, besides actively
assisting the bureaucrats to know about
WTO compliance
For
others getting foreign students on the campus is the litmus test of having gone
global. “We have 40 students on campus who will study for a semester at the
institute”, informs Mukul P Gupta , Dean Continuing
Education and international linkages of Management Development Institute, Gurgaon.
Dr Reena Ramachandran of
Indian
global campuses
Instances like the Pune based IIMM developing a massive Rs 30 crore project in its 20 acre plot, or the swanky new
facility in which the Cochin based SCMS
has moved into just weeks ago, the world class new campus of Welingkar, Mumbai bristling high tech gizmo, or the truly
world class facility at a school of business at Lucknow,
or the posh “white house” a classic structure in an otherwise ancient neighbourhood of the Heritage city Varanasi
of SMS, are more a rule than exception for schools on their way to becoming
world class. “we have planned for massive expansion which we expect to take
place in our schools” explains Col Balasubramaniam of
IIMM.
“My
own experience is that without good infrastructure, spacious and airy class
rooms, excellent hostel facilities and all other creature comforts, it would be
difficult to conceive a good business school”, explains Prof M S Pillai former Director of SCMHRD and now the proud founder
of a new school for business SCMLD based in Pune.
The
other view
Unfortunately
not all schools could be on such growth path. In fact the percentage of schools
thinking global, sprucing up their act and investing heavily into their
future is quite minuscule. The Indian
corporate and academic leadership do not
think that no more than 10 per cent of
around 1000 odd schools working in the country would qualify
for any recruitments from them “I would think perhaps 20 to 30 schools alone
matter”, comments Pavan Chaudry,
country head of the French pharma MNC, Vygon.
What is happening on
the ground is
consolidation and clear cut segregation of schools which CAN DO
and the rest which are continuing to be mere shops. Many schools from
the nineties era are showing sure signs
of maturity with multicrore campuses, good faculty
numbers, a business plan which is less and less dependent upon fee income—at
least from MBA students. Equally they are suffering for want of quality
faculty, good curriculum, clear direction, while the market is lapping up
whatever they would produce.
Neelesh (name
changed)is busy having his bath. while
I wait. His paraphernalia of Armani suit, a well polished set of leathers,
shoes & Belt is lying scattered
about, three or four shirts with matching pants and a dozen or more ties, all
are spilling over from the over stuffed weekender on the spotless bed in the
five star hotel room he is staying. “It
is all about image, Mr Raman, I have to give the guys
the right impression about our school”, Neelesh says
tapping his fingers nervously on the table.
Nervous
he should be as it is his big day when he has called the Capital’s dozen or so
top recruiters to table to give his jazzy presentation about his school over the choice of liquors the hotel
can provide. At the end of the session he may or may not have word of assurance that one of the guys
present at least would send his team to his campus for recruitment. Neelesh runs one of the most modern MBA schools in the back
of the beyond
Cut to
MDI Gurgaon Campus, a sheepish Chairman of State Bank
of India who is also the Chairman of the
Board of Governors of the prestigious institute admits that “I came hoping to
recruit at least 12 candidates but I can get only three”. Even the Chairman of
the schools Board! Some 80 to 100 companies were turned away from top campuses
like MDI for want of students to recruit.
Neelesh’s school
is far younger and even better equipped with airier class room, better gizmo
and almost five star hotel type of hostels and his boys proudly carry
around IBM think pads to their class. And he would be lucky
if 20 of his batch strength of 120 would be placed somewhere, anywhere.
Welcome,
the mad mad world of Indian MBAs, which is all set to
go global. The Indian B-school bazaar is
all decked up and ready offering a variety of wares, and yet the big boys know
where to source their manpower, the big b-schools, with a strong
legacy of performance and of course all of them owned by the government and
heavily subsidized while Neelesh’s of this world who would have put in his own money and that
of the banks and financial institutions, borrowed at very heavy interest rates
with no hope of recovering his
investments in the straight way. Neelesh like those of his ilk, is a deft magicians, playing with
education ware offering every kind of
menu for education hungry, past master in hoodwinking, subterfuge and overplay.
The game is survival, any thing goes.
“The
director said the
MBAs fetched Rs 7.5 lakh
per month salary. He even showed us press cuttings. The school had an
impressive building, plenty of lawns, well appointed hostel rooms, beautiful classrooms and very
smart young teachers. I spent Rs 4 lakh on my son’s MBA and he is still on the streets”, P.R. Sawhney from the suburbs of Roorkie
rues his day when he sent his son to the business school in the NCR region of
Sawheny is no
uneducated dumbster, he is an executive engineer at the State Electricity Board.and he did try do his homework. But the school had
hit him hard, soaked him with
literature, copies of the books of the school had produced,
proceedings of international seminars held at the school, plenty of expensive
junk, all of which adorn the well appointed library of his living room.
The
Indian MBA is caught in an uncanny web of seemingly plentiful number of schools, large
number of seats, outwardly impressive infrastructure resources, a matching high
performance at the placements, equally impressive range of international
schools staying rooted in
A.Thothathri Raman