Higher Education Digest - Must Watch Business Schools in India

INDIA EDITION MUST WATCH

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JAIPURIA SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

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FUTURE ACADEMY

JUNE 2019

MAY 2019

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

Connecta

June 2019

Vol - 1 Issue - 3

Business School Special (India Edition) Chief Editor

Dr. Manoj Varghese

Managing Editor Sarath Shyam

Consultant Editors

Dr. Johny Andrews Anjana K Rose M

Jessica Jo Stanly Lui Emma James

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Art and Design Ajay K Das

Sales & Marketing Rahul Visakh Prathyoosh K Shaji

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Higher Education Digest June 2019 March 2019

CHIEF EDITOR’S NOTE

Indian B-Schools Need to Look Forward

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he revolution in Indian management education started with the establishment of IIMs in Calcutta and Ahmedabad in the early 1960s.

With the liberalization of Indian economy in the 1990s and its unprecedented growth in the following years, happened the proliferation of institutions offering management education. From 2010 to 2018, MBA/PGDM enrollment in India has been steadily increasing. Now, there are over 13,000 business schools and MBA departments across the globe and India hosts around one third of them, demonstrating a substantial quantitative growth of management education in the country. Big numbers, however, bring large problems to the standard and quality of Indian management education.

Indian institutions need to enhance their quality of business education and raise the bar to meet the international standards. For instance, not many business schools in India have international accreditations like AMBA, AACSB and EQUIS. Although, many institutions have achieved NBA and NAAC accreditation, a large number of them are still not covered by any of the accrediting bodies. It is imperative for India to have a high-

quality management education system in this fastdisruptive digital economy. We should equip our MBA/PGDM students to work across the times zones, languages and cultures. While designing the curriculum, which is now significantly influenced by the curriculum of US Business Schools both in terms of content and pedagogy, Indian academicians should put employability, innovation and theory to practice connectedness as the central focus.

In this issue of the Higher Education Digest, we have identified ‘25 Must Watch Business Schools in India,’ which are striving hard to give the students an in-depth mastery of the academic disciplines and applied functional areas necessary to every business leader’s success. The Cover Story features, Jaipuria School of Business, which is on a mission to stay ahead of time by imparting the latest knowledge and skills and grooming highly competent managers for the future. We hope that our efforts will help business education aspirants across the country to make informed decisions about their study destinations.

Happy Reading.

Dr. Manoj Varghese

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ADVISORY BOARD

Dr. Ajay Shukla, Ph.D, MBA, BE. Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Higher Education UAE

Dr. Kuldeep Nagi, Ph.D, MBA, BSc. Program Director of Ph.D, Recipient of Fulbright Fellowship Award & Dan Evans Award for Excellence and Writer columnist.

Dr.Varughese K.John, PhD, MBA, MPhil, MCom, LLB. Researcher and Data Analyst in Social Science

6 Mr. Sreedhar Bevara, MBA, B.Com Senior General Manager: Panasonic Middle East & Africa, Thought Leader, Speaker & Author of ‘Moment of Signal’ (Amazon’s International Bestseller)

Mr. Amulya Sah, PGD PM & IR, PG Diploma in PM&IR (XISS Ranchi) Senior Director HR. Head HR group Samsung R&D Institute India,Transformative HR Leader, Change agent, Digitization facilitator, Engagement architect, Trainer and Diversity champion.

Major General (Rtd.) Dr. Sunil Chandra, VSM (Vishishta Seva Medal), Ph.D, M. Phil, MA, M.Ed, PGBDA Ex-M D Army Welfare Education Society, ExCOO GEMS Education - India, Ex- Addl Dir Gen - Army Education, Mentor - Adventure-Pulse

Asst. Prof. Dr.Suramya Mathai, Ph.D,M.Ed,MA,BA. Teachers Training Expert, Writer, Author, Speaker & Social Worker

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

MANAGING EDITOR’S NOTE

Be Smart, Industry 4.0 is Here

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herever you are from, whatever your interests are or whichever industry you work in, you will have come across a tale about how ‘data’ is changing the way we live and work. The importance of data and automation has become so big in the world, we are already feeling it and some of us are even worrying about it. Whenever I get into a discussion on this topic, somebody would always ask me, ‘Will robots take our jobs?’ Well, I am not certain about which all jobs will remain for us, but, we do not need to worry if we take the time to understand what is happening, why is it happening, and why it doesn’t have to happen to us.

In fact, every generation sees new tools coming in to make the daily life more efficient. Apparently, during the Third Industrial Revolution, between 1972 and 2010, the number of people employed in the manufacturing sector fell 35 percent. Now, we are part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In the words of leading economists from the World

Economic Forum (WEF), we are living in the Cyber-Physical Age, where the physical world will integrate with the digital world through sensors and devices connecting everything and everyone. So, do we need to panic, as many of our jobs be gone with the next decade? We have two options; run around with our hair on fire awaiting doom and gloom or start preparing ourselves with the skills require to stay one step ahead of the robots.

To help business education aspirants in India who are looking for a cutting-edge management education that will prepare them to be the leaders of Industry 4.0, we have come with a list of ‘25 Must Watch Business School India.’ On the cover, we feature Jaipuria School of Business, one of the few business schools in India who saw the early signs of industry 4.0 and has been preparing students to be successful in this era of dynamic technologies.

Enjoy Reading.

Sarath Shyam

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JAIPURIA SCHOOL OF BUSINESS 10

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FUTURE ACADEMY

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CONTENTS

COVER STORY

44 52

80

70 60 86

44 - 48

52 - 57

60 - 65

ANNEX COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

JAGAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

JK BUSINESS SCHOOL

Instigating the Fourth Industrial Revolution

Incubating New Ideas

70 - 75

80 - 84

86 - 91

LEAD COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT

MANGALMAY GROUP OF INSTITUTIONS

PRESTIGE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH (PIMR)

Where Students Take the Lead Role

A Dream Campus for a Better Future

A Proud Alma Mater of 50,000 Prestigeans

Making Managers of Difference

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MENTOR’S MANTRA

COUNSELLOR’S TAKE

14 - 17

50 - 51

How to Make Our Education Better?

Planning to study in Australia? Follow these Tips and Secure a Seat in the July Intake

Dr. Sandeep Sancheti, Vice Chancellor of SRM Institute of Science and Technology and President of the Association of Indian Universities

Rohit Sethi, Director, ESS Global - Study Abroad Consultant

12 BOOK REVIEW

94 A Writer’s People: Ways of Looking and Feeling

Higher Education Digest June 2019

ACADEMIC VIEW

32 - 35

66 - 68

92 - 93

Why Do We Need a Holistic Approach Towards Skilling?

B- School Campus Placement trends in 2019-20

The Future of Research, Industry 4.0 and Skills

Shaheen Khan, Founder & CEO, CEDP Skill Institute

Kavita Pandey, Placement Officer, Alkesh Dinesh Mody Institute for Financial and Management Studies & Argha Chatterjee, Placement Officer, IIM Rohtak

Dr. Monica Khanna, Director & Professor of Marketing Management, K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research

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INDUSTRY PERCPECTIVE

18 - 20

36 - 38

76 - 78

What to Expect in the War for Talent?

Startup Ecosystem in the Indian Campuses

Why E-Learning is here to Stay?

Anil Ethanur, Co-Founder and Talent Specialist of Xpheno

Gaurang Shetty, Chief Innovation Catalyst / CEO, RiiDL (Research Innovation Incubation Design Laboratory) - Somaiya Vidyavihar

Anurag Bansal, Senior Director, Hughes Global Education

Higher Education Digest June 2019

MENTOR’S MANTRA

How to Make Our

Education Better?

Dr. Sandeep Sancheti, Vice Chancellor of SRM Institute of Science and Technology and President of the Association of Indian Universities

Dr. Sandeep Sancheti, known as Institution Builder, holds a Ph.D. from Queens University of Belfast UK, after obtaining a B.Tech (ECE) from Regional Engineering College, Warangal (now NITW) and M.Sc (Engg) from Delhi College of Engineering (now DTU) in 1982 and 1985 respectively. He has been recently appointed as 97th President of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), New Delhi. Prior to this, he was the President of Manipal University, Jaipur, Director National Institute of Technology, Delhi (NITD) and Director NITK Surathkal. He has also served as Director In-charge, NIT Tiruchirapally, NIT Calicut, School of Planning & Architecture (SPA) Delhi and Mentor Director, NIT Goa, NIT Puducherry and NIT Sikkim. Dr. Sancheti began his professional career at MBM Engineering College, Jodhpur, as Assistant Professor in the Department of ECE in 1984 and later moved to Malaviya Regional Engineering College, Jaipur (now MNIT) as Associate Professor in 1990.

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

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he claim that a culture of research is missing in Indian institutions may be just an assumption. Institutions are making every effort to promote research slowly yet systematically. The challenges include availability of materials, equipment, labs, funds and senior researchers.

Education sectors have realized their role and are progressing to meet the demands of the future. Now, the implications for the higher education research are clear.

The major focus from recent years is on research and specifically research across disciplines. We at SRMIST have taken various research initiatives over the years to mobilize the available knowledge resources for research and, to come up with innovative solutions. All the research centers of SRMIST function in a cooperative manner to identify and work on cross-disciplinary research projects.

We also embarked on a journey of search and re-search and follow the concept of learn and relearn to deliver the best results.

However, there is a shortage of quality faculty to guide research aspirants in certain specific areas. It is certainly a stumbling block in the transformation of higher education in India. We need to re-study the higher education system to find the best regulations, which can help us in several ways. We need to engage in promoting various aspects like teacher progression programs, teacher research programs, extra course completion etc. Some of the challenges Indian institutions face include the lack of financial support, heavy teaching load, lack of research skills and knowledge, research materials and resources. We at SRMIST give maximum financial support for research with research spending around 6-7 percent of the annual budget.

Faculty members pursuing research often complain about the lack of time. We therefore decided to provide them with teaching for four days in a week and reserve one day for them to undertake research. This is our way of helping them with free time which is made available

to them for research. SRMIST has established around 10 Centres of Excellence and 12 as Centres of Research. The research framework is ever expanding, and need based.

We recently established our own Statistical Centre for Training, Research and Consultancy in our campus. The aim of this centre is to bring together multidisciplinary students, research scholars, and faculty with the expertise to promote fresh thinking. It will also conduct training programs and short courses for both internal as well as external faculty members, research scholars and students.

We have 250 Memorandums of Understanding that are both Industry and Institution based. We also have implemented the FIIP (Faculty Industry Immersion programme), to bridge the gap between industries and students by allowing faculty members to be facilitators who in turn ensure that students are made industry ready.

We effectively engage in FAP (Faculty Abroad Program) to promote unique opportunities for interaction between foreign universities and Indian institutions. Faculty members would benefit from such exposure to a culturally varied and diverse faculty make-up, with an opportunity to exchange ideas and promote wider learning.

On the flipside, converting innovation to intellectual property is through patenting and commercialization. We are providing full support to our faculty and students in this respect. Institutions must use innovative methods to tap intellectual potential of all stake holders and support it further with bit of equity and partnership. Another important avenue in this direction is technology transfer and should be promoted aggressively at all levels by higher education institutions.

At SRMIST, we offer more than 20 courses on Entrepreneurship. Interested students can also take up entrepreneurial ventures, aided by the university, in lieu of final year project work which will help them to become employers creating much needed job opportunities rather

Today’s students are born with technology and seem to look at it as part and parcel of their lives

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Dr. Sandeep Sancheti

Students of today need new skills that will make them ready to collaborate with others on a global level

Higher Education Digest June 2019

than becoming employees. This provides them an avenue to take up entrepreneurship while they are in the formal education itself. To support this initiative further, we allow deferred placement in case such a need arises. We also have an entrepreneurship team in place that contributes effectively. We also engage in SAP (Student Abroad Program) through which we have exchanges with leading universities like University of Berkley, USA.

The Digital Era of Learning There has been a technological transformation in every field. E-learning has become a crucial aspect of the educational system. In such a technology-driven scenario, it has become a challenge for the teachers to accommodate e-learning in their teaching-learning processes. Today’s students are born with technology and seem to look at it as part and parcel of their lives. Due to this transformation, teachers need to be tech savvy failing which they may not be part of what they should be doing. There is also another contention whether technology can replace teachers.

Therefore, teachers must be flexible, effective, tech savvy and abreast in the subject and as well as in current events.

As learning becomes more personalized, onus lies on teachers for orchestrating what should be learnt, when, where and how because everything is available under the tap of the mouse and this could mislead students easily. Thus, academicians must pay heed to every detail.

Further, in Indian context another challenge for digitally driven knowledge delivery is the uninterrupted access to digital technologies that too at affordable cost particularly in rural areas.

Today, a major debate is going on in the developed and developing world on how higher education is going to come to terms with Education 4.0 in the era of the beginnings of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Information Technology has peaked into the digital era with stake holders in India deeply pondering on how the digital era, machine learning, big data and artificial intelligence are going to leave their mark on both teachers and students across campuses and cutting across all disciplines. Educators need to undertake training programs or special courses on digital transformation.

They need to be more open to transformations to be able to deal with matters in education system in the 21st century and move away from conventional methods of content delivery to knowledge delivery. It effectively means that teachers should become facilitators delivering excitement to students in a multi-disciplinary and multifunctional scenario.

What’s in for Students?

Students of today need new skills that will make them ready to collaborate with others on a global level. Memorizing facts will no longer be accurate or complete in the near future. Students need to know how to find accurate information, and how to use critical analysis for assessing the veracity and the current or potential uses of new information. Students need to understand how the workplace works and can see how to develop their skills to fit into it. They need to be ready to move across jobs and sectors and also engage in research more effectively. In this respect, the real challenge institutions face is that of handling diversity of students particularly with different backgrounds, abilities, communication skills, career aspirations and many more to be handled through the concept of one size fits all which is a herculean task.

At present, Global fluency and perspective, IT skills, Communication skills, Ability to work under pressure, Resilience, Analytical skills, Teamwork are the key skills required for the students to find a job of their choice. In a nutshell, in addition to their core (subject/ specialization) expertise they should be more open and adaptable to a given situation, be ready for competition and develop the ability of lifelong learning.

A Word of Advice First, students must be keen observers of the current happenings. If they fail to observe such events, then they will have to read it from other sources as it will be history to them. Therefore, I urge that they should be aware of current events of their own region, country and the entire world particularly in the subjects of their direct interest. This will promote a better understanding about events globally.

“Thinking globally and acting locally” is also the mantra to be followed. Students must give back to the society because by doing so an intensely positive impact on the world could be created. Many people are reliant on the benevolence of others in order to get along. Without people who are willing to sacrifice their time and resources to help, there would undeniably be a lot more suffering occurring in our world. They can also be encouraged to respond/lead/voice their opinions through proper channels by maintaining their decorum especially in terms of language. Working to be a good human being and a responsible citizen before focusing too much on being a competent professional is very important. (As told to the Editor)

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INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

What to Expect in the War for Talent?

Hiring and retaining the best brains available in the market is essential for the companies to stay relevant in the changing times. However, the competition is fierce and the ‘war of talent’ does exist across the industries. In an exclusive interaction with the Higher Education Digest, Anil Ethanur, Co-Founder and Talent Specialist of Xpheno - a specialist talent solutions provider for Engineering Services, IT Staffing, Sales Staffing and Direct Hire - talks about the current job market and hiring challenges.

Anil has over two decades of experience in working with leading Indian and Multinational Staffing companies. At Xpheno, Anil leads the People and Culture building initiatives. He supports his leadership team in Customer Relationships, Finance and building Operational Efficiencies.

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Anil Ethanur, Co-Founder and Talent Specialist of Xpheno

Higher Education Digest June 2019

• What according to you is at the core of industry 4.0? What should HR leaders need to know before embarking on this journey?

At the outset, lets understand the buzzword, Industry 4.0. The transformation that is underway is a blend of advanced analytics, Big Data, Robotics & Automation, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT) and Process Digitisation across the business value chain.

This technological shift has always had far reaching impacts and this phase won’t be any different. Jobs will undergo a big transition in all of its dimensions – content, character and location of delivery. Many of the current day jobs will disappear giving way to new ones, many of those that we haven’t yet imagined. As Machines increasingly compliment (and or replace) human effort in the workplace, we will all need to adjust to reap the benefits and deal with the challenges that come with it. A McKinsey report suggest that 15% of the global workforce, or about 400 million workers, would be displaced by automation during the period 2016-30. At the same time, 550-800 million new jobs will be created, more than offsetting the number of job losses.

• In this era, what are the major challenges companies face while recruiting Indian talents?

The Indian labor market has forever been in this constant state of paradox – an excess (manpower) it can’t employ and a (talent) deficit it cannot seem to address. The war for talent continues as the job market dynamism accentuates many fold and skills will become transient. This makes it not just a hiring challenging but also an upskilling huge task for companies.

At one end of the spectrum there will be a demand for ‘Specialists’ from the STEM background while at the other end we need ‘Generalists’ with cross functional experiences

• What are the key skills that every HR Leader must consider when hiring fresh graduates?

At one end of the spectrum there will be a demand for ‘Specialists’ from the STEM background while at the other end we need ‘Generalists’ with cross functional experiences. Social, emotional, and higher cognitive skills, such as creativity, critical thinking, and complex information processing, will be critical.

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• Tell us about the opportunities available for fresh graduates in your industry.

Speaking about the staffing industry, a 6 billion USD sector, the entry point has typically for recruiters and operations talent. These entry level roles can graduate to roles in leadership, sales, marketing, technology, compliance, finance and so on. Since it has been an under-rated sector, not many people seek careers in this sector, which is expected to touch 20 billion over next 8-10 years.

• How do you keep employees motivated and engaged in this digital era?

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Companies continue to face talent shortages and will need to build a strong employer brand to attract candidates in a super competitive market

Employees look for flexibility, opportunities to learn and hone new skills, jobs that create impact and an enabling culture. Money won’t be the driving force for the millennial and Gen Z employees. Companies are forced to let go of some of the traditional HR practices and appeal to this new age worker. Flat organizations are in and bosses are being replaced by mentors.

• What is the one big change in talent acquisition you are looking forward to in the near future?

Companies continue to face talent shortages and will need to build a strong employer brand to attract candidates in a super competitive market. AI may to an extent solve candidate sourcing challenge but candidate hiring challenge shall remain.

• What is your advice to the students?

If you have the luxury of choice, pick a field of education/career that you are deeply passionate about. While your college/university tenure is capped, your career is akin to running a marathon.

Experimenting in early part of your career is fine to arrive at a point you have clarity. Work itself will undergo transformation making way for opportunities as contractors, freelancers and solopreneurs. Continuous learning will have to be the way of life which such rapid technological changes. So, be prepared for a roller coaster ride!

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

JAIPURIA SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

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By Sarath Shyam The Jaipuria Group’s contribution to the Indian education has a long history going back to the pre-Independence days. Established in 2008, Jaipuria School of Business is among the youngest of the Educational Institutions set up by the House of Jaipurias, which is now headed by Shri Shishir Jaipuria, Chairman & Managing Director of Ginni Filaments, a reputed Textile Company in India.

The institute’s Mission is to stay ahead of time by imparting the latest knowledge and skills and grooming highly competent managers for the future.

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cover story

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Dr. SK Mahapatra, Director

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W

ay back in 1956, Dr. Rajaram Jaipuria, a scion of the house of Jaipurias, was in a discussion with the Japanese Textile Machinery Suppliers.

When asked to give an official offer for machines, the Japanese wanted to know whether Dr. Rajaram’s focus was on quantity or quality. As a young businessman in his early 20s, Dr. Rajaram was thoroughly confused. He was at a total loss of words, as he had never thought in term of product quality until that time. For him, higher production was the only route to profitability.

Asking them to quote a price for both, Dr. Jaipuria went and met the Chairman of Fujibo, with whom he had a personal equation and who was guiding him through the process of finalizing the orders. The Chairman explained to him what the Japanese suppliers meant; he said, “If you want more quantity, they would offer you high-speed machines and if you want quality, they would offer you more machines because you would run them at a lower speed to ensure quality.”

As a youngster, the discussions with the Japanese was a useful lesson for Dr. Jaipuria. However, he was always open for new learnings in life. In his autobiography, Textile Legend Unravels, describing the

talks with the Japanese, he writes, “Even this useful lesson has lost its relevance – nowadays higher speeds do not necessarily imply lower product quality. In fact, new technologies are generally able to improve quality while enhancing productivity.”

A great Industrialist, Educationist, Entrepreneur, Philanthropist and above all a great human being, Dr. Jaipuria has always been a step ahead of his competitors.

Following the footsteps of his late father Padma Bhushan Seth Mangturam Jaipuria, who had set up the famous Jaipuria College in Calcutta way back in 1945, Dr. Rajaram Jaipuria established many educational institutions all over India, starting with the K-12 School in Kanpur in 1972 and also patronized the Char Dham Ved Nyas, imparting Vedic education in Sanskrit from ‘Prathama’ to ‘Acharya’ levels at five religious centres of India.

Jaipuria school of business was established in the year 2008 by Dr. Jaipuria.

The development story of India had picked up by then and there was a huge gap between the number of management graduates that were coming out of business schools and the number of skilled managers required by the industry. Dr. Jaipuria could visualize early that India would rise fast through the second and third decades of the 21st Century, and

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India would be home to the youngest workforce in the world during this growth phase. He thought of bridging the gap between demand and supply of competent managers and established the Jaipuria School of Business ahead of time.

Current Chairman of the institute, Shri Shishir Jaipuria believes in empowering the students with cutting-edge skills and competence to make the students battle-ready for the 21st century. Dr. SK Mahapatra, Director, Jaipuria School of Business, says, “We see ourselves as a Future Academy, and we constantly strive to stay ahead of time.” His message to students joining the campus is beautifully depicted at the entrance lobby, on a large picture hanging on the Wall, “Take your wings here; Experience personal care.” The whole campus from classrooms to corridors has ‘Speaking Walls,’ conveying subtle messages that would stay a lifetime with the students even after leaving the campus.

A Future-Ready Campus

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“During the first three industrial revolutions, the pace of industrial growth has been relatively slow, and it was possible for human mind to comprehend the journey and succeed. This year, speed of industry 4.0 has taken everyone’s breath away.

Powered by Internet and computer technology, the scientists have started dabbling with artificial intelligence, machine learning, Internet of things, robotics, design thinking, and a high degree of advanced data analytics,” opines Dr. Mahapatra. Jaipuria School of Business is one of the few business schools who saw the early signs of industry 4.0 and established an advanced center for Data Analytics.

The faculty who heads the Centre holds her MS and PhD degrees from the US.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

The PGDM programme of the JSB has been designed in such a way that the students get a right blend of strong theoretical foundations, analytical skills and their applications to the functional areas of management.

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Dr. SK Mahapatra, Director

Dr. Mahapatra has worn many hats in his long-distinguished career as an Academic and as a Corporate leader. Alumnus of Hindu College in Delhi, and Post-Graduate topper of Delhi University, Dr. Mahapatra started his career as a Lecturer in Political Science 36 years ago.

He moved onto Corporate and held distinguished managerial roles in the public sector as well as private sector. He took a break from Corporate career to teach at the Xavier Institute of Management for four years and returned to Corporate as Head of HR at TATA Metaliks.

Subsequently, he headed HR at a South Korean Steel major’s Indian Arm – the $12 bn POSCO India project and later moved on to head the HR functions at the largest Steel & Power project of Jindal at Angul in Odisha. He held the position of Group Ethics Officer at JSPL for two years before moving on to head HR at Bajaj Power as President.

Since July 2016, Dr. Mahapatra has been heading Jaipuria School of Business with a mission to transform Management Education in India. Dr. Mahapatra was felicitated as one of the most influential HR leaders in India at the 25th Convention of the World HRD Congress in February 2017. He is a recipient of the Rashtriya Shiksha Gaurav Puraskar 2018.

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At the Centre for Advanced Data Analytics, students of Jaipuria School of Business would get the chance to upgrade their analytical skills and develop capabilities to exploit data analytics for solving problems and identifying opportunities, so that they can make better business decisions. They can learn how to examine large data sets to uncover hidden pattern, unknown relationships, market trends, customer preferences, optimizations of services and other useful business information through live data of an industry. “The three most important competencies that has been identified for industry 4.0 are; critical thinking, creative problemsolving and communication. The faculty in business schools are expected to train their students in these skills and develop their competence,” pinpoints Dr. Mahapatra.

Jaipuria School of Business has already set up an advanced MOOC laboratory for students to enroll and get certified in new age skills going far beyond their MBA syllabus and language labs for learning communication skills in multiple languages. “We have integrated all the necessary facilities that are required for preparing students for industry 4.0. Incidentally, we also have a center for creativity and innovation. We also have an entrepreneurship cum innovation lab at our campus for giving live experience of entrepreneurship to our students,” states Dr. Mahapatra.

Indeed, creativity and innovation are close to the heart of Jaipuria School of Business. Dr. Mahapatra adds, “The modern-day business has a myriad of challenges in terms of sustainability. By adopting techniques of creative problem-solving, our students try to resolve complex problems of the society, be they related to the environment or related to economic growth and development.” The faculty members also encourage students to indulge in critical thinking and creative problem-solving. The institute has created simulated environment in the classroom projects for students to master the skills required for Innovation.

“As far as qualities we nurture among our students in campus, these are values easy to remember in an acronym - 7C. Each value we promote starts with a letter C. These values are mentioned in a specific order, and these are; Character, Commitment, Courage, Communication, Creativity, Collaboration, and Compassion. These are humane qualities which supplement the 8th C, called Competence, by providing it a razor-sharp edge,” explains Dr. Mahapatra.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

The whole campus from classrooms to corridors has ‘Speaking Walls,’ conveying subtle messages that would stay a lifetime with the students even after leaving the campus.

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The enthusiastic Library Management, commitment of talented Library staff and the support of top management makes the Library a most lively place on the Campus providing friendly environment that enables learning and advancement of Knowledge.

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The Battle – Ready Managers

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With a sprawling campus spread over 5.5 acres at Indirapuram, Ghaziabad within Delhi NCR, Jaipuria School of Business is a fast growing as an Integrated Business School with a mandate to contribute in building knowledge capital of the country by providing world class, value based and proactive professionals.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

It is difficult to comprehend the future of work in the current situation. People are apprehensive that there will be massive job losses due to the machines taking over jobs hitherto done by human beings. Dr. Mahapatra says, “There is another school of thought which believes that while the difficult jobs requiring muscular power and a little bit of logical analysis will go to machines, high-quality jobs requiring emotional quotient and complex reasoning, will still be available in plenty for human beings. The bottom line is that there is an apprehension of dehumanization of human society.”

In this changing times, Jaipuria School of Business remains futuristic owing to its strong collaboration with the leading industry players and global universities. “We have a deep association with the industry captains and we regularly hold round tables and conclaves inviting industry leaders to our campus,” claims Dr. Mahapatra.

Jaipuria School of Business has signed MoU’s with five reputed industries. For instance, Gold Plus Industries alone takes a dozen as summer interns and provides all of them with regular job offers after they complete their management course at Jaipuria School of Business. Dr. Mahapatra adds, “Our campus placement record is 100 percent, which is an indication of the acceptance of our students’ competence level by our industry partners.”

Last year, over 60 companies visited the Jaipuria campus for recruitment and the students had as many as five options each. “We are proud of all our students.

They come from humble backgrounds but make it to their coveted companies. The number of preplacement offers is rising every year and its almost one third of the students going for summer internship projects,” says Dr. Mahapatra. Jaipuria School of Business has received many awards for academic excellence and for outstanding placements. Dr. Mahapatra pinpoints, “As far as placement is concerned, we believe that everybody is talented and has a good destiny. Our job as faculty is to give proper education and create the first job opportunity for every student.”

Although, the students of Jaipuria School of Business get some of the best companies as recruiters at the end of their PGDM program, for Dr. Mahapatra and his team, the company where a student starts her/ his career does not matter much. For them, where the student finishes his career-journey and how much she can rise matters most. Therefore, the institute does not encourage students to focus on how much money they can get in their first job, what designation or role

with which they start their career or what is the brand of the company they join in their first job. Instead, the institute teach the students to focus on a job-role as close to their area of interest. Dr. Mahapatra explains, “We believe that every child has a positive destiny, and the student should eventually find his or her career destination for which he or she is naturally gifted. We encourage students to create their own brand-identity and be a happiness multiplier for the society. Earning money and status has to be a byproduct only.”

On the other side, Jaipuria School of Business has given a lot of importance to entrepreneurship, which is the essence of management education. “Every subject that is taught in a Business School is relevant for conducting effective business. However, in the limited sense of starting a new business, there are specific courses, which are offered to student so that they get an idea of how to start a new business from zero level, with an idea in mind and an empty pocket,” claims Dr. Mahapatra. From selling the idea and sourcing funds for business, from market research to product or service design, from developing prototypes and beta testing to factory level upscaling of operations, from frugal manning to full manning, Jaipuria School of Business covers every aspect of entrepreneurship in the syllabus. Dr. Mahapatra adds, “An Innovation Lab is being added to the Campus in the current year for budding entrepreneurs, with a support system which can be accessed globally from ideation to fundraising, operations and marketing. We have partnered with reputed Innovators to bring in their expertise to our classroom.”

From this academic year, the Innovation cum Entrepreneurship Lab of Jaipuria School of Business will become the embryo for incubating startup entrepreneurs. The institute is also hosting an International Conference on 31st August 2019, at India International Centre, New Delhi on a theme, that is most relevant for today, ‘Emergence of Artificial Intelligence & Internet of Things and how it is impacting our Society, Business and Education.’ “At the moment. our Campus is getting ready to receive the 12th Batch of PGDM students, 120 bright young men and women, who shall formally commence their management education from the current academic session. In coming September, we shall have the 10th Annual Convocation for the batch of students who have successfully completed their 2-year program and who are already members of the corporate world now. We wish them good luck and God Speed,” concludes Dr. Mahapatra.

Dr. SK Mahapatra, Director, Jaipuria School of Business receiving the ‘Best Business School in NCR for 2019’ award from the Chief Guest, Dr. Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman of AICTE, along with Dr. KK Agarwal, Chairman, NBA, at the Indian Education Festival organized

by CEGR on 18 April 2019.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

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ACADEMIC VIEW

Why Do We Need a Holistic Approach Towards Skilling?

Shaheen Khan, Founder & CEO, CEDP Skill Institute

In addition to 12 years of professional experience in the Education Industry, Shaheen has hands on experience in the field of learning and development. She is a master of NLP and certified coach. Since the inception of CEDP, Shaheen has been effortlessly working towards providing training to the youth in a holistic manner. With a mission is to ‘Empower the Youth of India with job-oriented courses,’ Shaheen has contributed significantly towards the National Mission of ‘Skill India’ to modernize and revitalize the existing skill education system that had lost its vigor and become rusted over time.

Shaheen’s previous experiences include Kaya Skin Clinic and IBM.

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he era of Industry 4.0 has already begun where the industry has widely adopted information technology, material sciences, production technologies, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, robotics and many advanced tools to improve the productivity and quality. This rapidly evolving world has a major impact on the current workforce and the education system. According to the World Economic Forum, “The fourth industrial revolution will make 75 million jobs obsolete by the year 2022. But also create 133 million new jobs, a net gain of 58 million.�

As all the industries will eventually get evolved, we will be experiencing that a lot of jobs will become obsolete and make way for job opportunities which are in sync with the time. Thus, formal and updated skill training is imperative to keep up with technological advancement and globalization. If we provide industry-relevant skills, it can give impetus to our efforts of skilling India and making the youth employable.

For instance, electric and driverless cars are touted to be the next thing in the automotive industry. For the same, a workforce who is accustomed to servicing these cars will be in high demand and be relevant in the job market. Similarly, various globalization factors would also enable the creation of more job opportunities.

The GCC countries are expected to have a booming the tourism market in the upcoming years, which will have a trickle-down effect on the hospitality industry, and it will be well poised to create a lot of job opportunities in the sector.

Thus, creating a requirement for a skilled workforce which is ready for the hospitality sector. Moreover, along with skilling, focused efforts towards re-skilling and up-skilling would be critical to staying relevant.

While earlier professionals and graduates could rely on the industry to upgrade themselves with new machines, now the hired employees are expected to work with smart technology.

In this scenario, industry leaders and academicians hold a responsibility of transforming the education system and generating the efficient workforce. But first, we need to understand what the new industry demands. In the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the new employees need to hold specialized knowledge with a fundamental understanding of the industry. Hence, to meet this expectation the education system needs to adopt more skill based specialized course.

With technological advancement, new job functions have emerged that needs to be catered. Hence, new curriculums and reskilling should be introduced at the university and institutional level. In India, we do have the infrastructure but what we lack is a holistic approach towards skilling. The development programs around skilling in India have not been up to par.

Looking at the industry demands, academicians must move beyond the traditional teaching method and practice upgraded tool in the classroom

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Our country faces a unique paradox. In a country where it is estimated that close 1.5 million engineers pass out every year, finding a decent plumber who can fix your sink is a difficult task at times. The current roadblocks being faced by the youth today in terms of skill development is that we have only managed to focus on the supply side of things rather than the demand side, an outdated curriculum that is a knowledgebased education rather than a skill-based one.

As a society, we have low social acceptance of vocational training, delays in channelizing funds for skill development, little standardization and credibility of certification. All this having a trickledown effect on the employability factor of our youth. As a result, we are basically living in a world where we have more doctors but a smaller number of skilled nurses and supporting staff. We have more cars on the road but less skilled auto technicians to repair them. We are constantly focusing on achieving formal education and often neglecting the need of the hour of having skilled workers.

Time and again industry stakeholders have pointed out towards India’s problem of the substandard education system.

Except for the IITs, IIMs and a handful of other reputed institutes, most institutions are unable to provide education that would get the students suitable jobs. At the root of the problem is ignorance to development of a curriculum which designed as per industry needs.

Taking cognizance of this at CEDP Skill Institute with the help of the 800 strong partner brands we’ve successfully developed curriculums which addressed the employers’ needs and make the students employable as per the job requirement.

This has enabled us to be a part of more than 15000 success stories through our students who’ve been placed at various companies within the country as well as in the abroad. We strongly feel that a collaborative effort among the institutes, stakeholders and employers will effectively tackle the problem of employability.

As per All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE), in 2016-2017 close to 3 crore students enrolled themselves in the undergraduate programme. Even if we consider a total of 70 percent must have passed out of it as graduates, we are looking at close to 1.7 crore students looking at entering the workforce and the rest 35-40 lakh students pursuing further studies. In such a huge pool of job seekers, at times it becomes difficult for hiring managers to differentiate between candidates, as most of them have basically the same set of qualifications in their respective sectors. Its skills that can help one in a significant way.

While job-specific technical skills are important, landing a job is about much more than ticking off boxes; in these days it’s more about demonstrating the soft skills that make you a viable candidate across jobs and industries. Soft Skills are

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Soft Skills are important to basic job skills because they help to bring forward an individual’s best self to the employer and create an impression on them as well

With regards to technical upgradation and digital reforms, education is one of the last industries to undergo extensive change, holding on to antiquated methods and practices

important to basic job skills because they help to bring forward an individual’s best self to the employer and create an impression on them as well. Without these associate skills, all the practical knowledge a person has will not be of any use.

For example, a young professional doing a presentation may have immense knowledge on the topic, but may lack the skill of making an eye-catching PPT. Or, a person who is going for a job interview is extremely qualified for the job but does not know how to articulate and put his or her point across because of his average speaking skills. Such problems are faced by the youth time and again. Even though they are skilled in different aspects, more importance needs to be given to soft skills as well. Once this is done, we can accommodate conceptual and personalized learnings, driving student engagement.

With regards to technical upgradation and digital reforms, education is one of the last industries to undergo extensive change, holding on to antiquated methods and practices.

However, with the recent increasing gap between supply and demand in the workforce, now the time has come to create a second wave of institutions, where the education trend must be in parallel with the industrial demands. Industry needs higher educated people who are skilled and who can drive our economy forward. Following this, the role of academician has become much more challenging where their profile has broadened from a classroom lecturer to a professional and an industry expert.

Looking at the industry demands, academicians must move beyond the traditional teaching method and practice upgraded tool in the classroom. At CEDP Skill Institute, we hire industry professionals who are well versed with the current technology and aware of the future tools. This has enabled us to make several advancements in our curriculum, laboratory, classroom, kitchens and so on. Further to this, we are working towards bringing in Virtual reality in day-to-day training methods. For instance, transporting the students into a hospital setup or hotel kitchen right from their classroom for their respective training is very much possible. If you have the technologies at your disposal, why not make the most of it?

I believe students are aware of the business environment, which is under rapid evolution, influencing the employment scenario globally. To make the cut, students should embrace the concept of lifelong learning, as just having a formal education degree will not be enough to have a successful career. Enrolling for industry-relevant skill courses and upskilling courses will not only aid you in getting a job but also make a pivotal contribution in excelling in it right from the start. Furthermore, students should also focus towards acquiring soft skills, which are not industry-specific, but it trains you on things like digital literacy, creative problem solving, critical thinking and the ability to work with a team and so on. (As told to the editor)

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INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Startup Ecosystem in the Indian Campuses

By Gaurang Shetty, Chief Innovation Catalyst / CEO, RiiDL (Research Innovation Incubation Design Laboratory) - Somaiya Vidyavihar

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Shetty is currently the Chief Innovation Catalyst / CEO at RiiDL (Research Innovation Incubation Design Laboratory).

He also leads the Developer Circles community for Facebook in Mumbai. RiiDL is the Innovation centre and the Technology Business Incubator (TBI) of the Somaiya campus. It was created in 2010 to facilitate 38000 students and 1800 faculty of the Somaiya campus and Shetty was working to accelerate RiiDL since inception. RiiDL raised a $0.8mn grant to setup the TBI. Shetty has also established a FABLAB affiliated with Center for Bits and Atoms, MIT USA and Do it yourself Biology Lab. He has conceptualized and initiated India’s biggest maker movement, Maker Mela (www.makermela.com), which has attracted over 10000+ innovators and every year the event hosts 100 teams from across Asia. He was also shortlisted by YCombinator for the start-up school program in Silicon Valley, California, 2016.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Many institutions have started conducting audit courses on entrepreneurship, design thinking and they have created specialized programs to support aspiring entrepreneurs

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he startup ecosystem in India gained good visibility in January 2016, when the Startup India Program was launched. The government saw it as an avenue to resolve India’s rising unemployment issue and build a culture of Innovation in the country.

Startups take a lot from the founders, so it’s important for the founders to be in a good frame of mind. It must be a good time for them personally to start. Also, founders must be able to identify the timing of the market. For student founders, it becomes challenging because they have to juggle between school and work. On the flip side, students have nothing to lose, so even if the startup does not work, they are still in college.

To facilitate the startup ecosystem Government bodies, the Department of Promotion for Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), NITI Ayog, Department of Science & Technology, DBT BIRAC, MSINS and many more along with private players have created grants which enable educational institutions to set up Technology Business Incubators / Bio incubators.

The Technology Business Incubator / incubation center will charge minimal or not charge any kind of fee from startups and shall provide free facilities like rapid prototyping tools, office space, angel funds, prototyping grants, mentor hours and many more. The time for software startups to stay back is 12 months; for a hardware startup it can go up to 24

months and 36 months for bio tech startups.

Many institutions have started conducting audit courses on entrepreneurship, design thinking and they have created specialized programs to support aspiring entrepreneurs. For instance, Startup School India is one of the best programs for early stage entrepreneurs to build prototypes, launch their idea and get feedback from gurus in the program. It is a hands-on program to accelerate early stage startups.

Many Incubation centers supported by government schemes run programs to support early stage startups. Some incubators also, provide tech support to startups and their programs usually support a cohort which is supported by industry.

In fact, many institutions offer, top-class mentors, experts across industries on a full-time basis, exposure to other startups in similar domains, and assistance in raising investments, all without any charges or a stake in the startups. They also have labs to foster creativity and imagination among entrepreneurs and startup employees and to help them inculcate self-reliant skills such as Machine Learning AI, computational thinking, adaptive learning and so on.

Some of the incubators in institutions are accessible to the selected startups round the clock and through the week, and they also provide operational advice, banking support, and guidance for IPR laws and applications.

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The success ratio of startups is very low and not many people talk about the hardships of the journey

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Gaurang Shetty

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Major responsibilities of the startup hubs usually revolve around the following points listed: ● Facilitate and extend government schemes / grants to startups. ● Provide prototyping and office facilities to entrepreneurs. ● Work with industries and an extensive network of institutional partners to help entrepreneurs launch and scale. ● Attract the best entrepreneurs from across the globe ● Help startups to get equipped with entrepreneurship skills required to succeed, using methodologies that transcend traditional learning ● Operating as a node to lead or support entrepreneurship efforts of the government.

The success ratio of startups is very low and not many people talk about the hardships of the journey. Starting a startup in college may not be the best thing to do, unless you have support from both families, your maker space / incubator / community, friends and many more.

Students can connect with various competitions-based projects such as robocon, Formula students teams and so on. This will help them build technical skills and enable them to work in a team for a focused activity. Peer to peer learning is another important activity which helps students to learn quickly. Joining such active groups will help students shape their overall persona.

The best way to start your entrepreneurial journey is to experience it, by directly jumping into it. Another way would be to join a startup as an intern / employee and help them grow. Focused programs like startup school India can be a good kickstart for aspiring entrepreneurs.

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ost liberalization of the economy, India has seen a rapid and extensive growth of management education. It has paved the way for the emergence of thousands business schools across the country, making India the home to the largest business education community in the world. Undoubtedly, the talented graduates who have come out these institutions have made their mark on the world scene. However, Indian management education itself has not been able to gain the global visibility that it was expecting.

The leading business schools in the country still fail to attract international talents, both as students and faculty members. According to the reports from the industry, exchange of students and faculty members in Indian management colleges remains abysmally low, despite having several collaborations with international institutions.

Indian management institutes have also been reluctant of applying for international accreditation agencies such as AACSB, Equis, AMBA, ACBSP and so on. Perhaps, it is one of the reasons why Indian management institutes are not on

the radar of aspiring students from Europe, USA, China, Japan or other Asian countries much as their quest for diversity in business learning experience leaves enormous scope for what India offers. While, the situation is getting tougher every passing year, it is a high time for us to think about changing the business education patterns of the nation. If outdated pedagogies and curriculum are to be replaced, what should take their place?

Are we brave enough to experiment, and try to design our own models? Or, as usual, should we copy the methods and practices from the west?

This issue of the Higher Education Digest has identified ‘25 Must Watch Business Schools in India’ that are reinventing the business education to prepare young generation to be the leaders of the 21st century. We sincerely hope that our efforts to feature the premier management institutions imparting best facilities for research, innovation, placements and entrepreneurship will help students and faculty members from all over the country in their educational journey.

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Institute Name Annex College of Management Studies

State

Kolkata

West Bengal

Bharathidasan Institute of Management

Tiruchirappalli

Tamil Nadu

DC School of Management and Technology

Konginipadavu

Kerala

FORE School of Management

New Delhi

Delhi

Goa Institute of Management

Sattari

Goa

Chennai

Tamil Nadu

Indian School of Business

Hyderabad

Telangana

Indus Business Academy

Bangalore

Karanataka

Institute of Management Technology

Ghaziabad

Uttar Pradesh

International Management Institute

Bhubaneswar

Odisha

International Management Institute

New Delhi

Delhi

Jagan Institute of Management Studies

New Delhi

Delhi

Jaipuria School of Business

Ghaziabad

Uttar Pradesh

Great Lakes Institute of Management

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City

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Institute Name

City

State

JK Business School

Delhi

Delhi

Palakkad

Kerala

Behra

Punjab

Loyola Institute of Business Administration

Chennai

Tamil Nadu

Management Development Institute

Gurgaon

Haryana

Greater Noida

Uttar Pradesh

LEAD College of Management LM Thapar School of Management

Mangalmay Group of Institutions MICA (Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad)

43 Ahmedabad

Gujarat

Indore

Madhya Pradesh

Mumbai

Maharashtra

Pune

Maharashtra

T.A. Pai Management Institute

Manipal

Karnataka

Xavier School of Management

Jamshedpur

Jharkhand

Prestige Institute of Management and Research Prin. L.N.Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance

Higher Education Digest June 2019

ANNEX COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Instigating the Fourth Industrial Revolution

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he advent of efficient and cost-effective technologies has created a huge impact across industries. Apparently, many academicians in India are unaware of some of the most exciting advancements in digital operations that are taking place behind the scenes in factories, warehouses and the like. Vikash Kumar Singh, Chairman and Group Director of Annex Group of Institutions - a young entrepreneur who has made his mark in the field of quality Education and training from the age of 20, however, has always been continuously updating himself with developments in digital transformations that are disrupting the traditional Pedagogy of education and business. Vikash Kumar says, “According to me, the core of Industry 4.0 is innovation. This can be done by the optimal analysis and utilization of the 6 Pillars of Industry 4.0; Big Data Analysis, Industrial IOT, The Cloud, 3D Printing, Cyber Security, AI and Autonomous Machines.”

Innovation in sectors like manufacturing has exploded, thanks to Industry 4.0. The term was coined to reflect the increasing trend towards the use of technology, automation and data acquisition in manufacturing. Companies can now integrate their operations vertically and horizontally, leveraging previously untapped data analytics to get a handle on every aspect of their Operations cycle. “Universities should assimilate the nuances of each of these pillars, keeping in mind that each has a cost for usage and implementation. This has to be mapped on to the ROI for it to be functionally operative and acceptable. Consequently, in all courses, the precepts of Industry 4.0 should be analyzed, illustrated and imbibed seamlessly and in stages. All this must be with Innovation as the guiding principle,” explains Vikash Kumar.

Annex College of Management Studies (ACMS), an ISO 9001:2000 Certified Institution involved in disseminating the highest quality of professional education in Kolkata over the last 29 years, was established under the benevolent guidance of St. Teresa and other distinguished luminaries. Many stalwarts have bestowed their invaluable inputs, advice, insight and guidance which form the core standards and philosophy of the institutions under the Annex Group. “We have been conducting Workshops, Panel Discussions and Lecture Series on all the 6 Pillars of Industry 4.0 since 2015. We organized these through experts, Institutes and organizations who had started the knowledge quest and practice sessions much earlier,” shares Vikash Kumar.

Imparting the latest concepts can be challenging, especially when an intuition is bound to follow the stringent curriculum prescribed by the affiliating University. The updated exercises carried out in ACMS were non-credit courses, as the universities did not have regular subjects as a part of the courses approved

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ACMS is almost entirely Wi-Fi enabled; internet connectivity is available to the students in the classrooms, auditorium, library, IT Labs and many more.

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by them. Vikash Kumar states, “We developed course content and course material parallelly and started communicating with the university for their review, all the while applying for their kind consideration for inclusion of these as credit courses.

As a result of the efforts of our college and the university, we have got five of the six Pillars included as credit Courses. 3D Printing is being discussed and is in the final stages of review.”

Undoubtedly, preparing students for the industry has been the philosophy of ACMS since its inception in 1990 and continues to be so. ACMS is currently associated with CII-Eastern Region, All India Management Association (AIMA), New Delhi, Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICC), Public Relations Society of India(PRSI) National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN), Birmingham College, UK, JIBS, Sweden and several other professional bodies. “Being an active member of CII and National Entrepreneurship Network,

Vikash Kumar Singh, Chairman and Group Director Vikash Kumar Singh has grown up in the education industry which he entered at the adolescent age of 20. He has widely travelled across the globe and at each port of call he analyses the systems and course contents of each Educational institutions with an objective of identifying courses, pedagogy affiliation and linkage to world class education system – both for content as well as systems. With a Graduate Degree in Commerce followed by a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management during his working Career at Annex, Shri Singh has served in various subcommittees of All India bodies set up for furthering the cause of Education. In recognition of the invaluable services rendered by him to the cause of education, Vikash Singh has been awarded the prestigious Rashtriya Ratna Award in 2002. He has also been awarded Society Icon 2017 by Society Magazine.

we are able to expose our students to the activities of Innovation Club of CII and help them to participate in Competitions and Workshops on Innovation,” pinpoints Vikash Kumar.

For the last two years, ACMS has been exposing the students to Webinars conducted by various institutions like All India Management Association (AIMA), CII, IIMs, IITs, AON and several other organizations specializing in the 6 Pillars of Industry 4.0. Vikash Kumar adds, “The Webinars have been well received by our Faculty and students and have been instrumental in raising the knowledge bar. We are now in the process of establishing linkages with the most renowned B-Schools for our students to benefit through V-Sat Communication in Virtual Classrooms for Lecture Sessions and Workshops conducted by internationally reputed thinkers and faculty.” The Boards of Governors and the Advisory Councils constituted by ACMS, which include industry experts and academicians of repute, have been instrumental in bringing such latest teaching techniques to the classrooms of ACMS. These Bodies meet once every quarter to review the progress of studies, placement, strategies for development in the light of the rapidly changing requirements of the industry in India and abroad.

“Every Thursday, we conduct Industry-InstituteInterface Session with the active participation of professionals invited from the industry. These are 1-hour lectures followed by Question- Answer Session and Interaction with the speaker(s). This improves bonding with the industry, professional relationship with the individuals and a continuous feedback of the students from industry experts,” explains Vikash Kumar. ACMS also has a Mentorship Programs, where three students are assigned to an Industry Professional. The mentees work at the office of the Mentor on designated projects/Jobs during Saturdays/Institute holidays/ Inter Semester breaks. This gives them an insight into the actual situation in Industry. Vikash Kumar proudly claims, “During the mentorship program many students are given Pre-Placement offers.

We also conduct Placement Drives, Continuous Interaction with Industry, Customized Training for specific Organizations, ‘Employability Programs,’ to achieve 100 percent placement every year.”

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Vikash Kumar Singh, Chairman and Group Director of Annex Group of Institution and Consortium, receiving the 2nd Service Excellence Award 2018 for Education and Consultancy from ASSOCHAM.

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ACMS library has a huge collection of study material, reference books, periodicals, journals to enrich the students with knowledge.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Today, many ACMS alumni are occupying positions of decision- making in their respective organizations.

“We feel proud when our Alumni come to the college and interact with the present students to share their experiences, how they ‘made it’ and how their juniors can also achieve their goals and ambitions,” says Vikash Kumar. On the other side, ACMS uses the exposure from Innovation Club of CII and National Entrepreneurship Network very extensively to hone the Entrepreneurial Talents of its students. ACMS also organizes Entrepreneurship Competitions and Seminars to identify Bankable Projects for infusion of Venture Capital. “Over the years we have identified a number of viable Ideas, helped to incubate them and four of these have been developed into Entrepreneurial Ventures, which are working very well. The efforts are continuing, and we are trying to convert as many students as possible to ‘Job Givers’ instead of ‘Job Seekers,’” shares Vikash Kumar.

ACMS is now interacting extensively with top universities and colleges abroad to keep abreast of the upcoming changes in the environment – both Industrial and Academic. “We are simultaneously trying to communicate with the university to include new courses, subjects, chapters and topics in the curriculum so that the knowledge platform of the students is improved. More intensive interaction with the Industry is being done to modify the pedagogy to suit the future needs of industry. Alliance are being done with institutions and organisations to expose the students to a rapidly changing world of the future,” concludes Vikash Kumar.

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COUNSELLOR’S TAKE

Planning to study in Australia?

Follow these Tips and Secure a Seat in the July Intake

By Rohit Sethi, Director, ESS Global - Study Abroad Consultant

With more than a decade of experience in the international education consultancy service, Sethi now works as the Director of ESS Global – Study Abroad Consultant. Sethi’s professional experience encompasses Sales, Business Leadership, Personnel Management, Operations, General Management & Administration, Budget Development, Advertising, Media Planning, Relationship Management and Competition Analysis. ESS Global is a technology focused organisation, working with a mission to help students realize their international academic aspirations with high integrity, continuous innovation and unparalleled commitment

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It’s always advisable not to choose a university or opt for a subject blindly just by taking advise of friends and relatives

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ustralia has emerged as the new favourite destination for Indian students to undergo higher studies, welcoming more than 62,000 Indian students every year. However, from the last couple of years, students have started applying even for several undergraduate courses in the Australian universities. Thanks to the Australian government that ensures excellent academic as well as employment opportunities for international students, and of course welcoming visa policies that makes this country convenient and welcoming for foreign students to attain education.

So, while you decide to make a shift to Australia for studies, remember these tips.

Homework – Always do an in-depth research and proper homework on what subject to pursue, which university to apply, meeting the eligibility criteria, and most importantly, availability of adequate funds. It’s always advisable not to choose a university or opt for a subject blindly just by taking advise of friends and relatives.

Procedure to apply – There are three ways to apply for an Australian university. One, directly through the respective university’s website; second, through a local university and third, through an external agent. Go for the third option if you aren’t confident enough to apply for it by yourself; the appointed agent will come to your rescue and guide you through the entire process.

Understand the ‘Why’ – Whatever course or studies you are opting for, always understand the purpose before choosing that. If you are selecting a subject, for instance, accounting, then there should be a reason behind that.

You are choosing it either due to decent job opportunities, which the course is offering or maybe due to your innate interest on the respective subject. So, ponder over the ‘Why’!

Accept and embrace change – Living abroad can be extremely challenging in the initial years of relocation, especially if you are homesick. Also, because of our parent’s concern on several factors such as safety, culture, circle etc. In that case, try and learn to embrace this change and always stay open to it. Your ideologies may not meet with others, but that’s fine; stay open and upbeat. That’s the perfect way of learning the new culture and making good friends.

Brim with passion – Ignite your innate passion to learn newer things and never hesitate asking questions. Listen carefully to what others say and stay open to opportunities of grasping the new learning atmosphere.

Health – As a foreigner, you must ensure you are covered with a proper health package - Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC). Read the guidelines of the package carefully to understand how it can help you with potential expenses at the time of emergencies or abrupt health issues. Explore all the nearby hospitals and emergency centers once you accommodate there.

Public transport – Although there is nothing to worry when it comes to using Australian public transport, you must skim through all the timelines and schedules of the services. Many transport services also give student concessions; ask for it and make sure you have proper transport cards basis your status and age.

Get habituated with new grades – Although India has also started grading students with letters, the letters used in Australian universities denote different meanings; for instance, HD stands for High Distinction.

In addition to the aforementioned points, remember that the minimum wage in Australia is A$ 17.70 per hour, and you can also work as tutors. So, what are you waiting for? Do a proper homework and fly off to Australia to kickstart your education.

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JAGAN INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Incubating New Ideas

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hat is the new lifeblood for the knowledgebased economy of the 21st century?

Undoubtedly, it is our educational institutions, which are the source of most scientific advances, scholarly discoveries, creative processes and innovations. When it comes to the business education in India, apparently, not many colleges are seeking to be a substantial force for the scholarship of discovery by expanding their student’s entrepreneurial ambitions. Located in Delhi, Jagan Institute of Management Studies (JIMS), however, has been an exception in this scenario. JIMS intends to become an institute of academic excellence that incubates new ideas in Management and Information Technology with a holistic concern for better life, environment and society.

In fact, JIMS in 25 years of its being has created a niche for itself in the fields of Management and Information Technology. Established in 1993, it has now acquired a commendable position as one of the premier institutes of the country. The Postgraduate programs namely, PGDM, PGDM-International Business, PGDMRetail Management are approved by the All India Council for Technical Education and are accredited by National Board of Accreditation (NBA). All programs have also been granted equivalence to MBA degree by Association of Indian Universities (AIU). The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has accredited JIMS with A grade.

It is also among the few top management colleges in Delhi to start a Fellow Programme in Management, a full-time doctoral level programme to equip students for careers in research and management. The institute has been awarded the prestigious accreditation certification named South Asian Quality Standards (SAQS) from the Association of Management Development Institutions in South Asia a SAARC recognized body. The Institute continues to remain in the list of Elite B-Schools (Top 75) of India for the 4th year in a row in National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) of the Ministry of HRD, Govt. of India.

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Dr. Pooja Jain, Director

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Dr. Jain has been associated with JIMS, Rohini since 2002 in various capacities as lecturer, associate professor and professor. With more than 17 years of experience that includes both academic and corporate, she is actively involved in teaching, research and training, in areas related to consumer behavior, Sales management and rural marketing. She has completed her doctoral on ICT application for rural consumers. She regularly conducts Management development programs on diverse topics for junior and middle level business executives. She has presented number of papers in national and international conferences and published research work in various esteemed journals. In addition, she has also developed multiple cases for classroom teaching and some of them have been published in journals of repute.

She is passionate to learn and explore new dimensions of marketing. She also loves to mentor young minds and help them channelize their thoughts into practice.

She maintains a fine balance between administrative acumen and academic excellence.

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Apart from a leading teaching institution, JIMS is well recognised for its empirical and topical research work which benefits the industry, corporate and startups directly.

Creating an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem “Nowadays there is an immense need to bring students into ‘start-up culture’ and provide a platform where they can convert their bright ideas into innovation. We have established Jagannath Incubation Centre (JIC) in the campus to encourage, support and promote entrepreneurial abilities among the students across all programs – MCA, PGDM, PGDM-IB, PGDM-RM,” shares Dr. Pooja Jain, Director, Jagan Institute of Management Studies (JIMS).

The objective of JIC is to give boost to ‘Make in India’ and ‘StartUp India’ initiatives of the Government of India and make the students ‘Employment Provider’ rather than the ‘Employment Seeker’. Dr. Jain adds, “JIC has a vision to develop, enhance, and carve out the inner entrepreneurial potential of the students by way of providing them an opportunity to present their views in front of venture capitalist, firms and investors. The incubation centre aims to convert feasible ideas into actual business propositions which will not only add value to individual but will also benefit the nation as a whole.”

The practical approach of the Post Graduate Diploma in Management offered by JIMS encourages student to experiment with new ideas and develops their entrepreneurial drive. JIMS has also established an Institutional Innovation Cell as per the norms of Innovation Cell, Ministry of HRD, Government of India under which it organizes various events related to entrepreneurship, innovation and design thinking.

“Our E cell named Tarkash is very proactive in organizing events every year for the knowledge enhancement, exposure, guidance and hand holding of our students. E summits, Entrepreneurship week, Business plan competitions, Simulation exercises, guest lectures, mentorship sessions, participation in events pan India are among the few from the gamut of activities,” claims Dr. Jain. Apart from this, the students at JIMS benefit from the diverse faculty experience in developing their ideas. Few of the Patents filed by faculty members recently are: Relational Artificial Intelligence System, Method and System of the data-warehousing and business intelligence using a data storage model, Load Balancing of Server Clusters, Method of Constructing and Designing Fuzzy Controllers and many more.

Dr. Jain pinpoints, “As businesses are changing and industry expectations are changing, we have revamped our research endeavors according to industry expectations with regular discussions with them. We are now focused to solve business problems and design solutions for them in the form of short term consultancy assignments and designing training and workshops as per their requirements.” For instance, JIMS has signed MoU with Bawana Industries and Badli Industrial Estate to bring a closer coordination and connect among the academia and industry in the areas of research, consultancy and training. “For Institutes, motivations to collaborate with industry include the improvement of teaching, chance to apply theoretical learning into practice and understand real business scenario. For firms, the motivations to collaborate with institute includes gaining access to complementary technological knowledge learning in form of MDPs/trainings from experience faculty and getting pool of skilled workers,” explains Dr. Jain.

JIMS always works towards strengthening relationships and expanding partnerships with Industry and big corporate entities. The institute has adopted multi-disciplinary approach to learning with exposure to industry through visits, guest sessions from renowned industry speakers, annual corporate meets along with experiential learning through internships and

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JIMS has two well stacked and fully equipped libraries separately for management and information technology programmes.

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engagements such as seminars, conferences, symposiums, workshops, conclaves and so on. In addition to that, faculty members of JIMS conduct FDPs/MDPs on regular basis to bring together key researchers from academic and industry to create a platform for enhanced learning. “JIMS strongly believes in “learning from others”. This philosophy is at the heart of our new endeavor - ‘Academic Collaboration’. We have tried to collaborate with reputed universities and institutions to provide a larger platform for student learning, faculty growth and collaborative research,” states Dr. Jain. Auckland Institute of Studies (New Zealand), Malaysian University of Science and Technology (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), Lincoln University College (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), Nilai University (Malaysia), University of Sunderland (U.K) and Northemburg University (New Castle) are the few international collaboration JIMS has managed to make in last 2 years.

In Tune with the Latest Tends Industry 4.0 is fourth Industrial revolution. It refers to the combination of several major innovations in digital technology that includes advanced robotics and artificial intelligence, cloud computing; the Internet of Things; data capture and analytics; smartphones and other mobile devices and so on.

“As an Educational Institution or an academician, we adapt to prepare students learn the latest technologies. Our curriculum has been designed keeping into consideration the requirement of different industries such as Banking, Financial Services, manufacturing, FMCG, Telecom, Insurance, Consumer Durable, Hospitality,” says Dr. Jain. JIMS revises its course curriculum every three year in consultation with Industry representatives, academician, alumni’s and inhouse faculty members. Dr. Jain adds, “At JIMS we aim to make our students corporate ready and take up responsibility with a difference.

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Students are enriched with industry updates through guest lectures, workshops and seminars, wherein an intelligent awareness on current corporate issues and challenges is discussed. The curriculum also comprises of self-directive learning modules including MOOCS, Social Sensitivity Project, Live Projects, Industrial Visits and many more.”

JIMS offers quality management education to all aspiring managers of tomorrow through Virtual Learning in all its programmes. Dr. Jain shares, “Our faculty members use an array of teaching methodologies for different courses, thereby improving the learning experience. The process of teaching and learning methods include - simulation exercises, Advance excel training, SPSS and

JIMS students are encouraged for experimenting new ideas, pursuing entrepreneurial aspirations, undertaking industry projects and enhancing their knowledge base through various academic and cultural activities.

training on Data Science using R and Python and Application Development.” The institute also offer students to enroll for courses through Massive open online course (MooCs) which is a new and flexible way to learn skills. In addition to that, JIMS has installed Smart Boards in every classroom to enhance students’ learning experience by projecting visual elements.

Online Aptitude Test series are also designed to help in increasing employability of the students.

“We equip students with the skills that are required to succeed in the corporate world through one-on-one mentoring, Group discussion and interview preparations, résumé writing and career education workshops. We have 100 percent placement record for the last year batch with highest package of Rs 21 Lakh,” claims Dr. Jain. In a nutshell, Post Graduate Diploma in Management program, a two-year full-time program, offered by JIMS is designed to equip students to develop skills and to take on managerial, entrepreneurial and leadership roles in this rapidly changing world.

“We emphasize on building strong conceptual and analytical foundation and enable our students to be better decision makers. We not only groom students for shaping their career in domestic business organizations but business organizations that have international presence,” pinpoints Dr. Jain.

While, JIMS proves to be an ideal place for those wishing to engage in academic pursuits and seek intellectual fulfillment, Dr. Jain and her team have several plans for the coming academic years. “We at JIMS are committed to leading the changes required to sustain and grow in the higher education industry. Till date, we have taken some important steps in this direction; however, other broad-based and cross-disciplinary initiatives are also needed on which we will work on: Increasing International visibility, Deliver High-Value, Technology integrated Business programs to Educate, Increasing faculty interaction with outside world through research, consultancy, longer duration MDP, workshops, FDPs, IPR’s, Strengthen Relationships and Expand Partnerships with Industry/Corporate,” concludes Dr. Jain.

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

JK BUSINESS SCHOOL

Making Managers of Difference

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K Organization, a household name in India, is a Rs 21,000-crore conglomerate with a workforce of over 40,000, and has business interests across the globe, spanning over 90 countries. Having a long commitment towards Community Welfare, with a special focus on education, the organization has created prominent educational institutions including Universities across various locations in India, imparting quality education to more than 31,000 students. JK Business School (JKBS) is the business education service provider of JK Organization, set up to groom and develop efficient managers and business leaders in an integrated learning environment of research, consultancy, training and development. The institute is working towards equipping the future business leaders and rendering them capable of responding to challenges in the emerging markets.

Dr. Sanjiv Marwah, Director, JK Business School, opines, “We are going through 4th Industrial revolution; it is altering the way we live, work and relate to one another. It is in its own transformation of scale, scope and complexity, unlike humankind experienced before.” Undoubtedly, the Fourth Industrial Revolution is now playing out in society, affecting job requirements the most. In fact, the jobs of 20-20 might not even have been created yet. The kinds of jobs that this generation is going to fit into, the profiles that are going to be created have just beginning to take shape. Dr. Marwah adds, “AI, Cloud technology, Block Chain Technology and Fintech are already affecting the way work is done. There needs to be a paradigm shift in the way higher education is being carried out. We need to equip the young minds to curate and build necessary skills that make them corporate ready.”

Offering postgraduate and undergraduate programs in management, JKBS has a strong faculty base comprising both core and visiting. Many of them are from IIMs/IITs, having impressive understanding and exposure to the industry. “PGDM program being delivered at JKBS is more of the training rather than conventional teaching methodology.

Industry experts design the curriculum keeping in the mind

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Dr. Sanjiv Marwah, Director Dr. Sanjiv Marwah is PhD in Customer Relationship Management. He is an expert in the areas of Strategic Management and Customer Retention. He has more than three decades of experience in corporate functioning, academics and administration of academic institutions. He has published two course books on ‘Research Methodology’ and a text book on ‘Project Management’ distributed by Wiley. He has also edited a research based book for Academic Leaders on “Leadership & Management”. Awarded with Rashtriya Gaurav Samman 2017, Academic Leader of the year 2016, he is currently the Director of J K Business School | Top 39 Business School (Business World 2018 Survey), Exceptional service in skill development from CII and NITI Ayog 2018.

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the challenges today’s businesses are facing.

It helps us foresee the industrial/business requirement in the future, and train our students are per requirement,” explains Dr. Marwah.

JKBS introduces its students to real time issues/ challenges of 2018/19, which businesses are facing. The attempt is to open up the minds of the students by discuss these challenges in form of case studies, presentations, symposiums and bringing experts of the field to business school.

Dr. Marwah adds, “The core pedagogy adapted is that of hands on experience by way of case studies, applications involving real industry data, live projects and extensive corporate connect by way of veterans from the industry handling the academic delivery.”

JKBS regularly organizes credit-based workshops on Block Chain technology, AI, Cloud computing, Robotics and Fintech.

Recently, the institute conducted its annual event Conclave 3.0 on a controversial and thought-provoking topic ‘BLOCKCHAIN – Solution looking for a Problem?’ The conclave witnessed a niche gathering of academicians, entrepreneurs and leading corporate personnel discussing the topic with great fervor, embracing

and developing cutting edge block chain technologies focusing on the future of enterprise technology. The discussions covered Block chain for Enterprise, Block chain Platforms and Strategies, legalities related with Block chain adoption, trust issues, Crypto currency and Financial Services, Developing Block chain Applications, adoption of Block chain by various Governments across the world.

Finetuning the Talents with Industry Requirements

Keeping aside the best quality education, it is infrastructure provided by the JKBS that enhances the grooming opportunities in students.

The ever-evolving nature of business dynamics today commands that students develop certain skills before they are absorbed into industry. A dynamic and ever-evolving business environment requires high quality human resources that can quickly adapt to change and be productive in little time; a need industry expects educational Institutions to fulfill. “The most successful organizations of today, be it Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Alibaba, Airbnb, Tesla, Uber and Samsung are doing simple things like connecting everyone and everything, everywhere all the time. They are focused on continuous innovation for customers and organized to be simple, adaptable and able to adjust on the fly to meet the shifting whims of marketplace driven by end users.

They don’t follow 20th century management principles to solve the issues or upscale,” pinpoints Dr. Marwah.

JKBS constantly strives to bring the latest business processes, concepts and technology to the campus. The curriculum of the institute reflects the adoption of latest practices and technology

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advancements, with a student focused learning pedagogy, resulting in better placement opportunities across domains. “It is a universally acknowledged fact that for institutions to create a high-quality body of knowledge, industry should play its part by contributing to such development initiatives and fostering links with knowledge creators in order to facilitate the creation of a bidirectional channel for knowledge transfer.

Organizations and entrepreneurs should provide opportunities for research, contribute inputs for curricula development and collaborate with academia to share live project experience with students,” states Dr. Marwah.

At JKBS, the industry directly involves in the planning and strategizing for the curriculum and various academic and non-academic areas.

As a result, 100 percent students graduated from JKBS have received campus placements. In past few years, students of JKBS have managed to cross the magical figure of placement worth Rs. 15 Lacs in PGDM and Rs. 10 Lacs in BBA. Interestingly, CRC - the department responsible for placement of students - is being run by JKBS students only. JKBS students contact HR head or Recruitment heads of reputed companies and seek opportunities. Dr. Marwah proudly adds, “HR conclave which one of the most talked about

event of JKBS is also organized my students only.

Working in CRC department, students become more responsible and professional. They are not only accountable for themselves, but also for the entire college placements.” Berger Paint, HDFC Bank, AXIS Bank, HFFC, Finedge, ITC, Bata, Calvin Kline, Grant Thornton, OYO, Square Yard, Byju’s, Jaro, Extramarks, Om Logistics and Safexpress are the few companies visiting the college.

On the other side, JKBS has been one of the pioneer institutes in India to adopt blended learning in the classrooms. The institute encourages students to sign in for MOOC courses and there is active faculty participation and guidance for students to complete these courses. In addition to that, JKBS allows students to get upto 20 percent credits through MOOC courses. “Partnership with IIM Banglore is our latest endeavor towards the commitment to provide best educational opportunities to our students and make use of our state-of-the-art technology. In fact, we are the first business school in North India to have signed an agreement with IIM Bangalore for their IIMBx program in order to provide an opportunity to our students to up skill themselves through digital learning and to prepare them for rigors of management education,” explains Dr. Marwah.

Fully equipped Classrooms of JKBS are designed in such a way that allows the teacher to maintain eye-contact with every student giving an opportunity for them to leave a greater impact.

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65 JKBS is working towards equipping the future business leaders and rendering them capable of responding to challenges in the emerging markets.

Since its establishment in 2006, JKBS has always tried to boost diversity in regional representation, work experience and graduate education streams. The institute has made the learning experience more enriching for the students. “We also prepare the students to adapt to the rigorous corporate culture while they are still with us.

Inquisitiveness and risk-taking abilities are two important attributes we to try and instill in them. Various initiatives and rigorous training and exposure has equipped students for the globalized world,” says Dr. Marwah.

The institute’s encapsulated corporate -academia blend has indeed enabled students to brace themselves for future challenges by way of experiencing the real-world scenarios in their controlled classroom environment. In the coming years, JKBS plans to join hands with many more industry leaders to launch several skill-based courses, which can prepare students for future jobs.

“Going forwards, we would be updating Digital Marketing and Business Analytics curriculum in involvement with Industry and Govt bodies. We also have plans to introduce more courses in Fintech, Financial engineering, Sustainable Management to prepare students for global careers,” concludes Dr. Marwah.

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ACADEMIC VIEW

B- School Campus Placement trends in

2019-20

By Kavita Pandey, Placement Officer, Alkesh Dinesh Mody Institute for Financial and Management Studies & Argha Chatterjee, Placement Officer, IIM Rohtak

66 Kavitha has pursued her M.A. (History 2006) and Masters in Marketing Management (2013). Academically, she has been honored with “Kashinath Tribak Telang Gold Medal (2006)” and various prestigious awards and scholarships by University of Mumbai. She is passionate about industry-institute interaction and campus placements. She has also delivered various guest lectures in the area of campus placements and students grooming. So far, she has got published more than 16 research papers in various International and national journals, magazines and newspapers. Currently, she is pursuing her Ph.D. in the area of Management on the subject of “Disability and Employment in IT & BPO” Sectors.

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s per India Skills report (2019), the last five years in India’s talent market could be termed as the most defining ones”. The report further states that the Indian workforce is estimated to increase to approximately 600 million by the year 2022 from the current 473 millions. As the workforce is continuously increasing by 27 %, it encourages the overall composition of unorganized sector & organized sector to change from 92 % to 8 % to 90 % (Organized sector) & 10 % (Unorganized sector) in 2022.

Today, the job market is dynamic and modern in its approach. Variety of external forces such as demographic dividends, globalization, automation, data analytics, and so on are changing our functions and approaches towards B-school’s talent landscape. Because of the emergence of new jobs and requirements, there is a different need of skills and expertise that will be required for success in the emerging environment.

Therefore, it becomes imperative for corporate, academia, policy makers as well as the job seekers to understand the current market trends and prepare students to be job ready as per the market requirements.

Today, when we talk about “jobs” or “placements” then it is not limited to permanent placements.

Today’s youth are ready to take risks, explore markets and create their own space

Today, when we talk about “jobs” or “placements” then it is not limited to permanent placements. Today’s youth are ready to take risks, explore markets and create their own space. Time has gone when “sarkarinaukri” was a dream for everyone. Today’s youth look for “horizontal career growth” and explore multi- options or opportunities with themselves. The recent change/trends in Indian schemes related with labour market wherein lots of focus has been prioritized on Stand-up India, Startup India, Digital India and Entrepreneurship, there is an entirely new ecosystem of job ready.

Infrastructure, smart cities, focuses on sustainable development is creating enough buzz among youth to develop their inclination towards unconventional sectors. However, with all the above mentioned changes, the demand for skills has also changed.

All the traditional sectors equipped with modern technologies are coming up with new offers and profiles. Thus, it proves that there are lots of new changes and trends are emerging for B-School campus placements in terms of emergence of new sectors/job roles for campus placement hiring in 2019-20. Some of them are as follows: 1. Automation industry: Technological advancements in automation industry is creating lots of changes in India’s information technology and business process outsourcing sectors. As per industry estimates, companies could hire up to 2.5 to 3 million more workers by 2025. today, the artificial intelligence, and machine learning have created an opportunity in the area of analytics, robotics, and cloud-based data management systems. Such sector has a very high space to grow in terms of market and packages.

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E-Commerce firms are looking for management students who specialize in operations for job roles like supply chain, logistics, vendor management, inventory management, delivery, and returns

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2. Digital Marketing: Lots of companies whether it is a start up or conventional firms know about the importance of social platforms. Though the initial package in this sector is low as compare to other sectors, it promises huge scope of growth and recognition for aspiring managers. companies are creating a separate and defined job role for digital marketer and look for management aspirants to make their career in this field.

3. Business Consulting: Business consulting, considering as one of the most dynamic sectors does not restrict management students to get expertise in one domain. It provides an overall exposure in the general management subject therefore students are inclined towards consulting sectors. Though, it is a very demanding sector, it offers a good package, growth and enrichment in career for a long term.

4. PR and branding firms: The 4.0 industrial revolution talks about collaboration and less about competitions. PR and branding firms enhances organization images, reputation and creates a database of clients for their business. Companies are in constant need of blogger, content writer who help businesses to plan their business, execute and measure their strategies to ensure a great success.

5. Start-ups and entrepreneurship: As per NASSCOM reports, India will expand 3100 tech start-ups to 11,500 by 2020. The government efforts to encourage start up and SME’s are bringing lots of changes in job market. Startups not only provide the holistic development and growth to their employee, but also has a very impressive share of perks and incentives in their salary structure apart from monthly salary. We strongly feel that B-schools should leverage the opportunity and encourage students to explore their career in start-ups.

6. Future of work is Gig work: As we know, gig work is a project based set up where a person is hired to deliver certain outcomes and gets paid for it. The gig worker can do multiple projects at one time. This is a flexible type of work which is gaining momentum in India. Lots

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of sectors like Media, Market research, Event agencies, PR & communications, Consultancies are in need of gig works and paying lucrative salary to students. The best advantage to be a gig worker is that it breaks the limit and obligation to an employee and provide an opportunity to minimize less on career sacrifices and explore more about themselves so that the best of their performance can come out.

6. E-Commerce: We all are experiencing the power of E-commerce and their entrance into our daily activities and life. Today, it is one of the most promising sectors which offers not only the highest packages but the exposure as well in all areas. Many good e-commerce companies continue to look for multi-skilled talents and hire them through campuses. E-Commerce firms are looking for management students who specialize in operations for job roles like supply chain, logistics, vendor management, inventory management, delivery, and returns. Companies in the field of IT and ITES are looking to hire management students for their back-end operations to work for the parent companies in the areas such as banking, financial services and so on.

There are many other sectors like payment agencies, fintech, research, design, research and development which may also be explored to get the best placements through campus. Today the demand of employers in terms of required skills have also been changed as compare to the year 2018.

In 2018 (India Skills Report) wherein the companies were hiring students based, on in the areas of Learning Agility (13%), Domain Expertise (19%), Integrity and Values (15%), Interpersonal Skills (4%), Numerical and Logical Ability (10 %), Cultural Fitment (10%), Communication (14%), Adaptability (6%), and Result Orientation (9%). Today, in 2019, top 3 skills which employers look out for learning agility (40%), adaptability (35%) and English Language (25%). It is important for B-Schools to take a note of it and get ready for most successful year for B-School campus placements.

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LEAD COLLEGE OF MANAGEMENT

Where Students Take the Lead Role

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ocated in the screen backdrops of Palakkad District in Kerala, LEAD College of Management is an epitome of student-run colleges in India. In fact, the state-of-the-art campus of the LEAD is essentially managed by the students through various LOTs (LEAD Operating Team). “LEAD is like a family where each member by default has a sense of ownership and responsibility. We believe that through participation in the various processes of the organization students will get hands on experience of decision making, responsibility and team building. Hence, at LEAD, students are the owners of various LOTs which have a specific set of responsibilities,” explains Dr. Thomas George, Director, LEAD College of Management.

At LEAD, housekeeping, maintenance, food and beverage, canteen, hospitality, security, accounts keeping, dealing with stakeholders, admission process, induction of students, internships and many more are upfront done by the students. However, faculty members of the institute always ensure that there is there is a voluntary participation from their side to augment respective support to each programme.

For instance, Public Relation and Placement LOT of the institute, which comprise of students and faculty members takes the lead in all placement related activities for the students. Their responsibilities include maintaining contacts with eminent personalities in the corporate world and alumni.

They provide placement assistance and prepare the students by organizing mock interviews and group discussions.

“The recruiters come back to LEAD again and again indicating the quality and the characters of the students they already hold in the payrolls. This gives us an immense satisfaction as the educators and the institution is proud in increasing the number of recruiters year after year by word of mouth and increasing the number of recruitments and package,” says Dr. George. As a result, LEAD today walks through the admission status well in advance in early May/June and has become an enviable organization for the contemporaries, while a vast majority of the institution suffer for MBA admissions.

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Transforming Ordinary to Extra-Ordinary A large number of students at LEAD are coming from backward and the most backward society. They are economically poor and study the program taking loans and other financial assistance. “They are the children of a wood cutter, daily cooli and the like who wage a war with nature and wrestle with their livelihoods. I am happy to see after the program a lot number of the students are well employed and therefore transforming their life and life of the family and perhaps the society. This is indeed my first moment of truth,” shares Dr. George.

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Today, alumni members of the LEAD are working all over the world. The institute also has LEAD alumni associations in 10 countries, and they meet regularly and communicate frequently. “The alumni strength who are present across the globe are my next important moment of satisfaction, as those students not only have great name and fame with reputed organizations, but also help LEAD to recruit a greater number of students from every batch of LEAD year after year,” pinpoints Dr. George. Interestingly, LEAD is the only Institution under the University of Calicut having a sanctioned strength of 27 Foreign nationals for MBA.

LEAD campus is located at a picturesque, scenic location at the foothills of Dhoni in Palakkad, which is a popular picnic spot in the reserve forest area that has a small but beautiful, splendid and captivating waterfall in the middle.

Dr. Thomas George, Director Dr. Thomas George K had his Engineering Degree in Electronics and Communication and did MBA in Systems, further he pursued M.Sc. in Applied Psychology, M. Phil in Psychology, M.Phil in Management and obtained his Doctorate on the thesis ‘Enhancing Competencies of Engineering and Management Students’ from Bharathiar University, Tamilnadu. In 1994, he started his professional career as an entrepreneur of a startup computer firm called Prompt Computers which mainly dealt with the sales and services of computers and accessories in Palakkad, Kerala, Southern state of India. Prompt Computers has developed India’s largest touch screen network for Indian Railways. Later in 2002 he opted out a career as a soft skill trainer focusing mainly among the youth and students. Then as the time passed by, he became an “International Trainer” of JCI wherein he has visited 35 countries for training.

He is currently the Chairman of NIPM (National Institute of Personnel Management) Palakkad Chapter, Executive member at ASMIK (Association of Self-Financing Management Institutions in Kerala, Secretary at AMICU (Association of Management Institutions under Calicut University) and Treasurer at VISWAS (Victims, Sensitization, Welfare and Assistance).

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“The two years at LEAD is about transformation.

It not only imparts knowledge, but also reinforces in us the spirit of creative action. One is repeatedly confronted by hard questions and challenges which have no easy answers and a deep reflection ensues. We suddenly discover that we are capable of so much more than we had given ourselves to believe,” says Nithin Gosh, an alumnus of LEAD who is now working as Territory Sales in Charge at Reckit and Benkiser. Since its inception in 2011, LEAD has always ensured that their students get best possible education, which goes beyond the prescribed university curriculum. The institute encourages the students to take online courses in addition to the university curriculum whereby the students are mapped to the best of the management education like oursera, Code Academy, HubSpot Academy, Moz, Learn Vest, Niche consultant courses, edX, Khan Academy and MIT Open Courseware.

“By relying almost exclusively on the case method of instruction, students or participants are forced to move from dependency to engage in problem solving, critical thinking, and experiential group exercises that will help them make decisions not only in the classroom session but also in business settings. We have a dedicated room and technical outfits to engage with the smart classrooms across the world and shortly we are contemplating to have a separate IP too for virtual transmission,” explains Dr. George. In addition to that, LEAD has MoU signed with 25 institutions of heterogeneous type and size actively to interface the classroom teaching with that of the workplace knowledge. Dr. George adds, “Our students are constantly in touch with top notch companies and working in organizations like Amul, Redington, Vodafone, Airtel, EY, KPMG, Wipro, ESAF, Envestnet,

Sundaram Finance, Nestle, Berger Paints, Soft-land India, Kitex, VKC, IDEA Cellular, OTTO, OYO, Bijus, Karvy, Impex, Arya Vaidhya Pharmacy, OPPO and many more to mention.”

Mentoring at its Best LEAD has an impressive faculty strength having a combined wisdom of about 300 years of experience and exposure. “Mentoring and enduring with life skill practices are the hallmark of excellence at LEAD. The Mentorship program is offered to support students in their self-development, confidence building, to equip them with all the skills required to complete the MBA program and to assist in the transitioning from campus to corporate life,” states Dr. George. Each faculty member of the LEAD acts as a mentor to a group of students and guides them throughout their academic years with their career and interest and personal well-being. Dr. George explains, “As our students are from different educational backgrounds, diversified cultures and practices, they face different issues and problems as they get accustomed to the college. Mentoring acts as a platform for the students to discuss and interact with faculty members, seek advice, develop judgment skills and strive to achieve their longterm goals effectively.”

Life skill programs at LEAD is a unique feature of the organization wherein Breakthrough and Turning points are the two vital components. Break through is a threeday adventure camp for professionals and youth to get in touch with the true spirit of life through exploration of nature. The trekking and mountaineering camp will be an exhilarating experience in one’s life which he/ she can cherish throughout their lives. The focus areas

At LEAD, the instructor’s primary roles include setting suitable experiences, posing problems, setting boundaries, supporting students, insuring physical and emotional safety, and facilitating the learning process.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

LEAD believes that students working in small groups tend to learn more of what is taught and retain it longer than when the same content is presented in other instructional formats.

are Recreation, Excitement, Confidence building, conquering fears, Risk Taking traits, Instant Decision Making, Team building and Challenges your limits.

On the other side, LEAD is now focusing a lot on enhancing entrepreneurial capabilities of its students.

The institute conducts Entrepreneurship Awareness Programme in the first year following by Entrepreneurship Development programme in the second year. As a part of these programmes, LEAD will organize several activities including Entrepreneurship meet, Entrepreneurship awards, National Conference on Entrepreneurship, Journal on Entrepreneurship, Trade exposition, Sandhaio9 (learn while you earn), Seminar by funding agencies like MSME + 1-FDP on Entrepreneurship, Startup NIDHI activities and industrial visits. “We are expecting incredible outcomes such as starting of 20+ companies by students in the locality and outsiders availing the facilities of the LEAD and having a minimum of five enterprise inside the campus,” shares Dr. George. LEAD’s 201920 academic plan is largely outcome oriented and its methods and contents are based on three essential concepts or philosophies; enterprising behavior, the entrepreneurial process and the

student’s self-knowledge of their own competences in relation to carrying out entrepreneurial processes.

Over last 7 years, LEAD has made outstanding contribution to Indian Education Sector and received extolment from various governmental and nongovernmental agencies. LEAD could achieve this position under the able direction and guidance of the Human Engineer, Dr. Thomas George, an international trainer turned entrepreneur who received “BEST INSTITUTION BUILDING” award by the National Institute of Personnel Management, India for his outstanding performance in developing LEAD into an enviable position among the MBA institutions in Kerala. “In our way forward, we want to provide 100 percent employability/ entrepreneurship initiatives to all aspirants who join with LEAD. NBA accreditation in 2020, International accreditation like AMBA, AACSB and EQIS, starting strategic alliance with national and international B Schools and more corporate, and energizing industry 4.0 initiatives and industry/ industry associations’ interactions are also in pipeline,” concludes Dr. George who is striving hard to elevate LEAD to become one of the top 10 business schools in South India by 2030.

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INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Why E-Learning is here to Stay?

Anurag Bansal, Senior Director, Hughes Global Education

76 Anurag Bansal, Senior Director and Business Head of HUGHES Global Education is a Mechanical Engineer from National Institute of Technology (NIT) Calicut, erstwhile Regional Engineering College (REC) is a pioneer in the field of training and education. He has over 17+ years of professional experience with Ashok Leyland Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd and Career launcher Ltd. He has also mentored over 5000 students and corporate executives all over India.

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igital learning is fast emerging as a preferred mode of learning with a growing acceptance among students across both urban and rural areas. The rapid increase in Internet connectivity in the last few years has been an important catalyst for the growth of e-learning in India. According to a study by KPMG, the Indian online education industry will touch $1.96 billion by 2021, with an increasing number of learners finding online learning more convenient and in tune with their learning pace.

Technology has enriched the learning experience for students and changing attitudes towards digital learning techniques have given a positive impetus to the digital learning sector. The government’s push for e-learning has further added to the momentum.

Beyond the academics, there has been an increasing interest among working professionals and Corporate looking to address training needs and up-skill professionals amidst an increasing competition across industries. This emerging trend is expected to further add to the tremendous growth we are already witnessing in this sector.

Effectiveness of E-Learning Programs E-learning as a concept is witnessing growing acceptance among students in India breaking away from misconceptions about the effectiveness of this medium.

However, there continues to be a series of misconceptions or more of myths surrounding e-learning especially with respect to the credibility of the course and the institution, accreditation of the degree, evaluation processes, and a lack of interactivity. The effectiveness of any e-learning course depends on numerous factors from course content, learning module, and ensuring swift delivery cycle. At the same time, interactive learning is critical to make any digital course interesting and meaningful for students.

For instance, Hughes Global Education is a pioneer in providing the ‘Interactive Online Learning Platform’ for the working professionals to pursue an Online Executive Diploma/Certificate Programs. Over the years, Hughes has established itself as the premier destination for digital learning with a proven track record and a range of certified courses from prestigious institutions. With its unique state-of-the-art online interactive learning platform, Hughes brings a teaching approach which is

E-learning as a concept is witnessing growing acceptance among students in India breaking away from misconceptions about the effectiveness of this medium

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Learning is a continuous exercise and one needs to upgrade skills and knowledge to remain competitive

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highly interactive and provides a blend of offline and online teaching with scope for developing a greater connect between students and the institution.

The course is designed by the eminent faculty and the pedagogy is a blend of lectures, case studies, online lectures, projects, peerto-peer learning, self-learning, and simulations. With Hughes, students benefit from mentoring by faculty and remote access to learning resources of prestigious institutions including the likes of IIM’s, XLRI, IIFT, AIMA and edX Inc. In addition, we also ensure uninterrupted technical support in conducting online classes and ensuring the best of experience on both ends.

among students across geographies further adds to the challenge.

Using the best of technology, Hughes establishes a deep learning environment providing teachers greater control over the conduct of the classroom. The platform offers interactivity similar to a live classroom session, where a student sitting in any part of the country, at any given point in time, can interact freely with the professor, raise questions, queries and so on, making the interaction as spontaneous and natural as in a regular classroom.

There is an extensive use of video, voice and data. This not only makes it easier for students to clear their doubts but also add to the teaching experience.

Role of Instructors in E-Learning In order to create an engaging learning experience, the role of the instructor is vital. This becomes even more critical, especially when it comes to digital learning. As the courses are delivered online, there’s minimal scope for customization and teachers are required to bring a personal touch to the teaching experience. Maintaining discipline and building greater interactivity

Digital learning is set to play a significant role in shaping the future of education in India by enhanced productivity of employees and students and increased ROI for Corporates and business.

The emergence of cutting-edge technologies, especially cloud computing, machine learning and artificial intelligence, and augmented reality are set to emerge as the major trends in the online education market.

From predicting learner behavior

Higher Education Digest June 2019

The Future

to helping personalize the learning experience, and implement learning content, technology is set to play a much broader role in redefining the learning experience. Video-based learning is also gaining popularity and will be an important trend to watch out for 2019. Moreover, the competitive educational landscape, increased demand for re-skilling, has also given impetus to microlearning, and greater gamification.

Learning is a continuous exercise and one needs to upgrade skills and knowledge to remain competitive.

Today, professional workforce realizes that merely moving up the hierarchy is not enough. What keeps a career vibrant and increasingly relevant are the experiences that employees gain through different on-the-job opportunities for learning and career building.

More and more organizations are experiencing varied client demands for specialized skillsets.

This, in turn, puts the emphasis on up-skilling to meet future demands.

Through specialized e-learning modules, working executives can learn the requisite skillset and perform better in sustaining business momentum and upgrading in their professional journey. (As told to the Editor)

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

MANGALMAY GROUP OF INSTITUTIONS

A Dream Campus for a Better Future

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

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he advent of Industry 4.0 has instigated the need of Education 4.0 to prepare the students who can take up the challenges of future workplaces. However, there are many aspects the educators in the country need to know before empowering their students for the Industry 4.0. Anuj Mangal, Vice Chairman, Mangalmay Group of Institutions, says, “Universities and academicians need to know before preparing students to embark on this journey to create new standards in education practices, while imparting quality education in synergy with industry requirements and expectations which are in tandem with the social responsibilities along-with developing multiskilled and Competent Engineers/Managers/Researchers.”

Located in Greater Noida, Mangalmay is ISO 9001, 14001, 45001 Certified Institute which focuses on reinventing business education. The institute has various tie-ups for preparing students for industry by providing training in various technologies like Java, .Net, PHP, C & C++, Android, Python, Software Testing (Manual), Networking, Cloud computing, Oracle Developer, Autocad, Catia, Solid Works, Ansys, 3D Modeling & Printing, Revit (MEP), Primavera, Autocad, Staad.Pro, PCB, PLC & SCADA, embedded System, Digital Marketing, Lean Six sigma, Financial derivatives and Tally.

The institute follows experiential learning through on-the-job training and corporate internships, with which students gain valuable work experience and exposure to real-life situations.

“We commenced its operations with the intent to impart quality education in the field of Engineering, Management, Biotechnology, Commerce, Computers and Education in the year 2002. Academic Excellence, Holistic Education, Innovative Approach and Global Relevance continue to be the cornerstones of our educational philosophy,” pinpoints Anuj Mangal. Mangalmay leaves no stones unturned while exposing its student to industrial environment and work conditions. The institute keeps an active corporate interface through Seminars, Workshops, Industrial Plant Visits, Allround Personality Development and Personal Mentoring of student, various extra-curricular activities and industrial visits.

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The Institute has a peaceful campus with green surroundings.

Library and Computer Labs provides the best support for studies.

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Higher Education Digest June 2019

With the help of a strong industry-institute interface, Mangalmay has always been able to offer best in class placement opportunities to its students. Wrapping up the final placement for 2018-2019 batch, over 70 percent of the Mangalmay graduates received campus placement from various big CMM 5 Level companies. Jindal Udyog Ltd , Oppo Mobiles, Haeicheng VIVO Mobiles Ltd , Thoughts 2 Binary Consulting Ltd, Nine leaps technology solutions, Appventures Pvt Ltd , Experis IT Consulting , ,Great Developers Infotech Pvt Ltd, Karvy Stock Broking Ltd , Calvin Klein & Tommy Hilfiger ,IndusInd Bank , Future Retail Ltd , Jaro Education , Hike Education , Haeicheng Vivo Mobiles Pvt Ltd , Capital Via Global Research Ltd , Naukri. com are few to name among them.

On the other side, Mangalmay has formulated Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, keeping in view the vision of the Institute, which strives to encourage entrepreneurship. “The centre aims to act as a platform to create an interface between academia, business and research. It also aims to prepare men and women of character to lead, innovate, and think entrepreneurially

Anuj Mangal, Vice Chairman Anuj Mangal is a resolute and determined entrepreneur and educationist by heart who is on a life mission of creating learning platforms and imparting professional education and training to the society. Known for his ethics and morals, his work has always been appreciated by all the concerned beneficiaries. Anuj Mangal possesses an endless strategic planning skills and limitless courage to bring in the salubrious breeze of transformation in the organization.

He has made a pivotal contribution in shaping the destiny of Mangalmay Group and gave the required vision, direction and nurtured it from its inception. Having over 28 years of hard-core experience, he was member of Jaipur Stock Exchange since the year 1988 and 1995 onwards he was Member of National Stock Exchange. He has done his graduation in commerce from University of Delhi and has Master of Business Administration to his credit.

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84 The Communication labs of Mangalmay are specially designed to improve the communication skills at individual and group level.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

whether in business, ministry, or public service–to be role models and job creators, rather than just job seekers,” states Anuj Mangal. MBA graduates of Mangalmay can integrate their entrepreneurial education with other functional business aspects like marketing, accounting, economics, finance, and general management.

On the global education front, Mangalmay has collaborated with foreign universities like IBS (International Business School, Hungry), University of Southern Queensland & IEEE, USA – Faculty and Student Chapter. “For meritorious students, we offer online certification courses from more than 10 International Universities including Georgia Institute of Technology, USA, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Spain, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, H.K. , SDA Bocconi School of Management, Italy, University of Maryland, USA, Duke University, USA, Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne, Switzerland and North western University USA. We are also using tools like webinars in collaboration with IITs, IIMs and the institutions of repute,” shares Mangal.

As an innovative campus that encourages students in various activities along with academics, Mangalmay is a perfect place for students who seek all round development. “At Mangalmay, Students must gain valuable work experience and exposure to real-life situations, at least one technological skill and good personality with discipline,” pinpoints Anuj Mangal. Going forwards, the institute has many ambitious plans in mind.

Expansion of boundaries through addition of new courses, Foreign tie ups, Mission Skill India Promotion and New Corporate Empanelment are few to mention among them.

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PRESTIGE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND RESEARCH (PIMR)

A Proud Alma Mater of 50,000 Prestigeans

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restige Education Society as a group has a very strong conviction and dedication towards entrepreneurship. Being self-made leaders & first gen entrepreneurs in fields of agri-business and education, the founders at Prestige believe in the power of passion and innovation. Therefore, entrepreneurship is the buzzword of the Prestige Institute of Management and Research (PIMR), Indore, one of the leading premier Management Institutes of Central India.

“Having a lead in the education sector with thousands of students from Kindergarten to Ph.D., we are promoting entrepreneurship at all levels. We believe that the solution to burgeoning unemployment in the country lies in producing jobs creators, instead of job seekers,” opines Dr. Davish Jain, Vice Chairman, Prestige Education Society.

In order to translate this vision into reality, PIMR in association with the NITI Aayog, a Government of India policy-making body, created Atal Incubation Centre (AIC) at their UG campus in 2018, under Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of the Government of India, primarily to encourage students to set up their own startups and provide employment opportunities to the management graduates passing out from PIMR and other institutes. Till date, 12 incubatees have been registered with Prestige Inspire Foundation. In addition to that, PIMR MHRD Innovation Council has been actively conducting seminars, workshops and leadership talks on the campus to encourage more and more students towards entrepreneurship and to facilitate them to start their own startups at the incubation center.

Recently, PIMR MHRD Innovation Council organized the third episode of leadership talk on Facebook Live for students of PIMR. During the talks, Ajit Dhobhal, NSA, Government of India shared his views on innovation in a student’s life, decision making, and critical success factors in decision making, entrepreneurship development and opportunities of entrepreneurship in the Indian ecosystem.

Dr. Yogeshwari Phatak, Director, Prestige Institute of Management and Research stated that, “PIMR also conducts

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Dr. Davish Jain, Vice Chairman

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A Ph.D. holder from Open International University, Dr. Jain has been actively spearheading the varied aspects of Soybean Production, Processing, and Marketing in Prestige Group. With his meticulous planning and broad vision, Dr. Jain carved the basic road map for the success of the group. His knowledge and experience in trade practices and his networking on global as well as local level makes him a truly ‘Global Leader’. He is also a member of Consultative Committee of the Food Corporation of India for the state of Madhya Pradesh, nominated by the Govt. of India, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. He has also been nominated as the Chairman of The Soybean Processors Association of India (SOPA) for a 3rd consecutive term. As the Chairman of the SOPA, Dr. Jain has been instrumental in highlighting the concerns of oil sectors and oil manufacturers in India.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Summer projects, OJT, International Internships, Certifications, Cross-Cultural Activities, International Conferences, Seminar Presentations, Industry Visits, Sector Analysis, Student research consultancy based projects to promote innovation and creativity among the students.”

Preparing for Industry 4.0 Industry 4.0 refers to a new phase in the Industrial Revolution that focuses heavily on interconnectivity, automation, machine learning, and real-time data.

“Industry 4.0, also sometimes referred to as IIoT or smart manufacturing, marries physical production and operations with smart digital technology, machine learning, and big data to create a more holistic and better-connected ecosystem for companies that focus on manufacturing and supply chain management,” opines Dr. Jain. While every company and organization operating today is different, they all face a common challenge—the need for connectedness and access to real-time insights across processes, partners, products, and people.

PIMR is a leading Management Institute, where experiential learning, blended learning, and online resource software have been integrated into the teaching pedagogy for an Industry ready curriculum.

Be it in administration, teaching or assessment techniques, the Institute has moved to digital platforms. PIMR prepares students through various subjects like Digital Marketing, Artificial Intelligence, IOT, Data Analytics and many more for the Industry 4.0. Students of PIMR also have the opportunity to

PIMR has a wellequipped, spacious and fully computerized library with around 40,500 books reports/monographs on a large variety of management, computer applications and allied subjects.

get various certifications along with foreign universities, corporate and professional bodies in the area of ICT. Dr. Phatak explains, “We have conducted various workshops on Digitization, Intellectual Property rights, Cloud Computing, Green Computing, Experiential Learning, Big data Analysis to ensure that students get updated with the latest technologies and are industry ready once they step in the corporate world.”

A Strong Industry Connect Industry and academic collaborations are the essence of the Institute as it provides huge opportunities to both the students and the faculties. “We believe that the role of Academicians has changed many folds now. Their responsibility is not only limited to classroom lectures; rather they have transformed themselves as business

coaches and curators of such collaborations,” pinpoints Dr. Jain. PIMR faculty members and students perpetually learn new teaching tools, advancing their spectrum of knowledge and experience to solve problems. This helps them gain diversified experience while creating cutting edge knowledge. Dr. Jain adds, “Further, offering exposure to the students to get them prepared to handle real-life challenges also helps us reflect our culture and value as an institution.”

Leading in Campus Placements PIMR has emerged as a leading Business Management Institute of Central India with a high percentage of campus placements. Today, 95 percent of PIMR students are getting placed in reputed companies, while the remaining 5 percent take up entrepreneurship or join their own family

The institute is an autonomous institution since 2006 with twice NAAC “A” grade with a score of 3.33 out of 4 confered by UGC.

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business. Federal Bank, Deloitte, S & P Global, HDFC Bank, HDFC, ICICI Bank, Colgate Palmolive, Nestle, Mondelez, GSK, GlaxoSmithKline, Future Group, Aditya Birla, D’ Mart, Airtel, Reliance Jio, Byju’s, TTK Prestige, Asian Paints, Cease Fire, Hinduja Leyland, Next Education are some of the top corporates in India where the Prestigeans are getting placed in a large number. PIMR has its alumni across the world holding top-notch positions like Vice Presidents/GMs at many big corporates, multinational companies, and institutions of repute.

“The current Deputy Mayor of London is an alumnus of PIMR, Indore. PIMR is a proud alma mater of 50,000 alumni working in blue chip companies in India and abroad,” claims Dr. Phatak.

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Emerging as a Major Center for Research Activities PIMR besides being a leading institute of management studies in Central India has also emerged as a recognized research center since 1996. Currently, the Institute has 49 Ph.D. guides and 97 research scholars registered with it. Till date, 100 research scholars of PIMR have been awarded Ph.D. degrees.

The Institute has a large student base with over 5000 students currently pursuing various programs.

Host of many International Conferences Dr. Jain says, “PIMR, over the years, has emerged as one of the leading hosts of various national and international conferences with delegates from countries across the globe including the USA, China, Brazil, Romania, Czech Republic, Nigeria, Thailand, Nepal and Bangladesh taking part in these conferences.” Now, PIMR enjoys an autonomous status granted to it by the University Grant Commission (UGC), India in 2006. It has also been recognized by the UGC under 2(f) and 12 (b), while its MBA program was accredited by National Board of Accreditation under AICTE in 2003, and later in the year 2006 and 2012 also. The institute is having prestigious ISO 9001:2008 certification as well.

Because of the world-class management education, highly talented faculty, exceptional infrastructure and academic environment, the Institute has also been accredited by National Assessment and Accreditation Centre (NAAC), India, besides receiving the prestigious NAAC ‘A’ Grade Accreditation from the UGC in 2009 and 2014.

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Dr. Yogeshwari Phatak, Director

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PIMR believes in overall grooming of a candidate and has started various clubs in areas of specialization like Marketing, HR, Finance, IT and Economics.

New Courses To ensure experiential learning, the institute has launched three Unique Skill Based Programs; BBA-Analytics, BBA-Logistics, BBA-Business & Finance. “We are coming up with a University by 2021. It will have more than 35 acres of land with Eco-Friendly Infrastructure. The programs will prepare industry ready students,� concludes Dr. Jain.

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ACADEMIC VIEW

The Future of Research, Industry 4.0 and Skills Dr. Monica Khanna, Director & Professor of Marketing Management, K J Somaiya Institute of Management Studies and Research

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Dr. Khanna has an academic experience of 23 years in the area of Marketing, Strategic Brand Management, Marketing Research, Services Marketing in Institutions such as K J Somaiya, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade at New Delhi, IIT Bombay Shailesh J Mehta School of Management, NITIE & Don Bosco Institute of Management Studies. She has an industry experience of 4 years in Engineering & Industrial Automation with Siemens Limited at Mumbai.

Higher Education Digest June 2019

Simply chalk-and-talk won’t work with the youngsters, unless a teacher brings in latest pedagogical tools into the classroom

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ndia is among the oldest civilizations in the world and has been a cradle of knowledge. In current times, the culture of research in India is evolving or is in nascent stage. As per a study, Indian institutes are traditionally positioned as teaching institutes rather than research institutes. This is primarily why Indian Universities and Institutes perform poorly in International rankings. We need to strengthen the culture of research and bring back our past glory.

At present, we do not have a dominant research culture; the number of research papers being published is lower and the number of PhD guides/candidates coming out of universities is fewer. However, there are some faculty/universities that are doing good research and are putting efforts to become world class. India is the fastest growing economy and a lot of companies are looking at India to do business, so it is an opportune moment for institutes to collaborate with industry and come out good quality research. It requires a complete mindset shift and focus. Serious commitment to research is needed to come out with path breaking and quality output.

Education in the Digital Economy Customer engagement is going to be the biggest challenge in this evolving world. Students (consumers), who are millennials or centennials, are much ahead of technology usage when compared to teachers (service provider).

Simply chalk-and-talk won’t work with the youngsters, unless a teacher brings in latest pedagogical tools into the classroom.

Industry 4.0 is a lot about digitization and consumer insights in this hyper competitive environment. Consumer insight is the king but along with insight you require foresight as well, you need to predict the industry trends.

The education system must be the change agent to provide quality inputs to the students to prepare them for the new world of Industry 4.0.

Some of the major challenges are knowledge obsolescence, faculty reskilling with retraining to keep pace with pedagogical tools especially with technologybased tools, exposure to more of experiential learning and on-the-job training. Theoretical learning will set the framework for right thinking, but as practical and application-based learning happens, it will be more beneficial for the industry.

Skills to Survive The biggest skill is to possess self-confidence, also patience and perseverance is a must. Along with these traits, an open mindset to learn new things also comes in handy.

In this ever-changing world, one must learn, unlearn and relearn on a continuous basis. Education is just the starting point of one’s career.

Self-transformation leads to world transformation, service to self is service to nation. In this fast-moving world, it is very easy to get distracted with irrelevant things. Hence, it is important to stay focused. Only then will positive progress and change happen. (As told to the Editor)

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BOOK REVIEW

A Writer’s People: Ways of Looking and Feeling

By Sarath Shyam

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nonfiction work is not everyone’s cup of tea, so does the book ‘A Writer’s People: Ways of Looking and Feeling’ written by the Nobel laurate, V.S. Naipaul. First published in 2007, A Writer’s People is Naipaul’s penultimate book and it talks about the works of other writers through a collection of five essays. The books itself is an amalgamation of reviews of several great literary works by people like Derek Walcott, Edgar Austin Mittelholzer, Samuel Selvon, Seepersad Naipaul (Naipaul’s father) Pandit Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, Nirad C. Chaudhuri and many more.

Naipaul was in his mid of 70s when he wrote these essays and he proves that age is again just a number. Like a bottle of wine that gets better and better over the time, Naipaul’s writing skills and observations were at its best when he reached the book, A Writer’s People. As the ‘Observer’ observes, “As ever, Naipaul’s sentences are tightly coiled and muscular; they embody the very qualities they praise. His recapitulation of the movement of a poem by Virgil is as delectable as the poem itself. His characteristic excursions into the byways of history and autobiography are often revelatory, opening up new vistas.”

The Nobel Prize and the Booker winner’s oeuvre may have over 30 books including the famous “A House for Mr. Biswas” (published in 1961), but Naipaul has never attempted to write an autobiography, until he died at the age of 85. Naipaul always thought that fiction never lies and reveals a writer totally, but at the same time, an autobiography can distort, and facts can be realigned. However, those who want to know how he progressed as a writer and what influenced him to continue this job, A Writer’s People may give some insights.

The book starts with a small description of Naipaul’s childhood in Trinidad. There, he writes, “Sixteen years later, in Landon, in a darker time, when I had grown to feel that I would never get started as a writer, I remembered the street and the people, and the they gave me my first book.” Now, how did a person who thought he would never become a writer, became a Nobel Prize winning writer, is something that will make a reader curious to read more. Naipaul’s five essays that follow that small description will satisfy that curiosity. ‘A Writer’s People: Ways of Looking and Feeling’ is a must-read for young boys and girls who wish to become a writer like Naipaul.

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V.S. Naipaul

Like a bottle of wine that gets better and better over the time, Naipaul’s writing skills and observations were at its best when he reached the book, A Writer’s People

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