"The things taught in schools and colleges are not an education, but the means of education.”-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
People often confuse between MBA (Master of Business Administration) and EMBA (Executive MBA). MBA is basically meant for the freshers who do not have any business or working experience. In contrast, EMBA is mostly meant for the experienced and the working professionals to upgrade and update their skills and abilities for better career prospects. However, the admission to MBA and EMBA differs from institution to institution and from country to country. In some cases, students who have worked in industry for sometime with engineering background or other domain backgrounds also take admission into MBA. For admission into EMBA, the individuals must have already worked in the industry with managerial or business experience without any formal professional management degrees. In this context, let us briefly know about EMBA.
What is Executive MBA?
It is basically meant for aspiring managers in senior positions and also for the senior level leaders to hone their skills. It helps the working managers and leaders who do not have formal business and management training.
The first EMBA program was started by University of Chicago way back in 1943. The objective of the program was to impart managerial education to the working executives who had no formal management training. EMBA has undergone several changes since then.
In most of the cases, the companies send their loyal and experienced executives for these courses for taking up challenging roles and responsibilities at senior levels. Those who have ambition to become entrepreneurs also take up this course with their own money to become successful businesspersons.
Merits of EMBA:
• EMBA enhances corporate performance and productivity.
• It helps the companies to be creative, competitive and innovative.
• The participants of EMBA gain lot of ideas and insights from the faculties, colleagues and from the professional ambience.
• It also helps in exposing to cross industry experience and promoting cross functional skills, cross cultural skills and networking skills.
• It brings out behavioral changes among the participants professionally.
• It helps the executives to think differently from others.
• There will be several invaluable takeaways from this course.
Conclusion:
Graduation is not the end; it's the beginning."-- Orrin Hatch
As education is a life long learning process, those who pass out of business schools with MBA degrees and those who don’t have formal MBA degree should pursue EMBA for reaching senior leadership positions quickly.
The End
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
How to Overcome Challenges in Management Education (MBA) in India?
"The foundation of wealth is humanity and moral. If the wealth is not based on true reasons, the wealth will never sustain" Eiichi Shibusawa (The father of Japanese capitalism)
The present economic meltdown has thrown several challenges to business managers and leaders across the world. Everyone started blaming business schools for the present mess. Is it justified to blame them? If not, then who is responsible for the current global mess? Is it the business schools or faculties or students or parents or all to be blamed?
Challenges in Management Education:
The current curriculum in management education does not teach students in facing the challenges in business environment. How to manage uncertainty and complexity are not taught in business schools. It merely teaches the concepts with case studies. It does not focus on the challenges arising out of rapid growing technology and the challenges involved in running an enterprise.
Unfortunately, the best talent is going to industry where salaries are lucrative. Those who come to academic area are the ones who could not be absorbed in the industry or those who come to this profession by chance or those who chose this career out of passion. However, we can count very few professors joining out of passion towards teaching profession.
The inability of AICTE to act tough with unauthorized business schools is a cause for concern. The management of business schools looks for loopholes in the existing laws and exploits the same. They believe in growing their budget rather improving the quality of business education which is very sad to note.
Most of the students pass out successfully from business schools due to their self-preparation. Students fear to give negative feedback to their teaching faculties as they fear for their internal marks which are in the hands of faculties. Everyone knows the problems but nobody is ready to address the same.
Engineering vs. Management Education:
Engineering students have the advantage of checking the theoretical concepts at laboratories through experiments. However to have the feel of the same for the management students, they have case studies where in the students get exposed to the practical problems through simulation. Academicians transfer the case studies from books to classroom which may not have the desired results. On the contrary, when academicians with industry background transfer the knowledge of case studies there will be more effect as it is based on their real life corporate experiences.
Overcoming Challenges:
Provide decent salaries and professional ambience to faculties. Send the faculties regularly for training programs to update their skills and abilities. Develop right mindset and attitude. Focus on quality of education not quantity. There has to be interactive sessions for the students rather than mere preaching what is mentioned in the books. You cannot become a crack shot unless you lose some ammunition. The students have to be exposed to the industry through interface so that they understand the practical problems in corporate world. This boosts more confidence among the students.
It is essential to have more visiting faculties with diversified and rich industry experience. It is like having diversified menu on a platter. It should be made mandatory for every business school to have a fulltime faculty for each functional specialization like Human Resources, Marketing, Finance, Production, etc., Besides, they can have visiting faculties who are passionate towards teaching for every specialized functional skill.
Look for the professors who are passionate in teaching rather than who pass their time in classrooms. The passionate professors would love to share their knowledge, experience, expertise with students to take on the real corporate battles. Take the professors with research, consultancy, and industry and also with teaching experience as it enriches the teaching process. Blending all these ingredients would make a faculty as outstanding.
You cannot make a successful manager in classrooms. What is needed is the industry interface which builds confidence among the students. Whatever the doubts the students posses can be clarified and verified with their exposure to corporate world. The theoretical background in the classrooms along with practical exposure in the corporate world can make successful professionals.
The project work should be contextual, relevant and should focus on the current scenarios. MBA is a professional degree and it should train and groom the students to be true professionals to take on the challenges being faced in the business environment.
Make accreditation mandatory to ensure quality of education. Take stringent action against the illegal and unauthorized MBA colleges.
Mintzberg and MBA:
Prof. Henry Mintzberg, a globally renowned management guru is a strong critic of management education. The educational institutions are damaging the management education by not focusing on action learning and practical problems. He criticizes the management programs where in students are enrolled without having any real world experience. He champions for revolutionary changes in management education. We need to take serious note of his observations and comments about MBA education to make it more meaningful and qualitative.
Conclusion:
"There is no need to reach high for the stars. They are already within you - just reach deep into yourself!"—Anonymous
There is failure in management education which is evident with the current economic downturn. The educational system failed to forecast the recession and failed to check the overheated economy.
The four pillars for effective management education are industry experience, consultancy experience, research experience and teaching experience. When faculties possess these four areas of experience and expertise, then it ensures qualitative management education.
The problem with us is to imitate the western management education blindly. By the time we take best out of them, the content and curriculum gets outdated thus resulting into obsolescence. Let us be creative and innovative in preparation of curriculum and methodology of teaching.
Educational qualification is the brick and mortar of a specific career path. Let us make Indian management education qualitative and affordable to all.
The End
The present economic meltdown has thrown several challenges to business managers and leaders across the world. Everyone started blaming business schools for the present mess. Is it justified to blame them? If not, then who is responsible for the current global mess? Is it the business schools or faculties or students or parents or all to be blamed?
Challenges in Management Education:
The current curriculum in management education does not teach students in facing the challenges in business environment. How to manage uncertainty and complexity are not taught in business schools. It merely teaches the concepts with case studies. It does not focus on the challenges arising out of rapid growing technology and the challenges involved in running an enterprise.
Unfortunately, the best talent is going to industry where salaries are lucrative. Those who come to academic area are the ones who could not be absorbed in the industry or those who come to this profession by chance or those who chose this career out of passion. However, we can count very few professors joining out of passion towards teaching profession.
The inability of AICTE to act tough with unauthorized business schools is a cause for concern. The management of business schools looks for loopholes in the existing laws and exploits the same. They believe in growing their budget rather improving the quality of business education which is very sad to note.
Most of the students pass out successfully from business schools due to their self-preparation. Students fear to give negative feedback to their teaching faculties as they fear for their internal marks which are in the hands of faculties. Everyone knows the problems but nobody is ready to address the same.
Engineering vs. Management Education:
Engineering students have the advantage of checking the theoretical concepts at laboratories through experiments. However to have the feel of the same for the management students, they have case studies where in the students get exposed to the practical problems through simulation. Academicians transfer the case studies from books to classroom which may not have the desired results. On the contrary, when academicians with industry background transfer the knowledge of case studies there will be more effect as it is based on their real life corporate experiences.
Overcoming Challenges:
Provide decent salaries and professional ambience to faculties. Send the faculties regularly for training programs to update their skills and abilities. Develop right mindset and attitude. Focus on quality of education not quantity. There has to be interactive sessions for the students rather than mere preaching what is mentioned in the books. You cannot become a crack shot unless you lose some ammunition. The students have to be exposed to the industry through interface so that they understand the practical problems in corporate world. This boosts more confidence among the students.
It is essential to have more visiting faculties with diversified and rich industry experience. It is like having diversified menu on a platter. It should be made mandatory for every business school to have a fulltime faculty for each functional specialization like Human Resources, Marketing, Finance, Production, etc., Besides, they can have visiting faculties who are passionate towards teaching for every specialized functional skill.
Look for the professors who are passionate in teaching rather than who pass their time in classrooms. The passionate professors would love to share their knowledge, experience, expertise with students to take on the real corporate battles. Take the professors with research, consultancy, and industry and also with teaching experience as it enriches the teaching process. Blending all these ingredients would make a faculty as outstanding.
You cannot make a successful manager in classrooms. What is needed is the industry interface which builds confidence among the students. Whatever the doubts the students posses can be clarified and verified with their exposure to corporate world. The theoretical background in the classrooms along with practical exposure in the corporate world can make successful professionals.
The project work should be contextual, relevant and should focus on the current scenarios. MBA is a professional degree and it should train and groom the students to be true professionals to take on the challenges being faced in the business environment.
Make accreditation mandatory to ensure quality of education. Take stringent action against the illegal and unauthorized MBA colleges.
Mintzberg and MBA:
Prof. Henry Mintzberg, a globally renowned management guru is a strong critic of management education. The educational institutions are damaging the management education by not focusing on action learning and practical problems. He criticizes the management programs where in students are enrolled without having any real world experience. He champions for revolutionary changes in management education. We need to take serious note of his observations and comments about MBA education to make it more meaningful and qualitative.
Conclusion:
"There is no need to reach high for the stars. They are already within you - just reach deep into yourself!"—Anonymous
There is failure in management education which is evident with the current economic downturn. The educational system failed to forecast the recession and failed to check the overheated economy.
The four pillars for effective management education are industry experience, consultancy experience, research experience and teaching experience. When faculties possess these four areas of experience and expertise, then it ensures qualitative management education.
The problem with us is to imitate the western management education blindly. By the time we take best out of them, the content and curriculum gets outdated thus resulting into obsolescence. Let us be creative and innovative in preparation of curriculum and methodology of teaching.
Educational qualification is the brick and mortar of a specific career path. Let us make Indian management education qualitative and affordable to all.
The End
How to Improve Management Education (MBA) in India?
"The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows."-- Sydney Harris
It is the time where students take admissions in Business schools to acquire coveted MBA qualification. There are certain things the students should take care before entering B-schools. Let us first find out the significance of management education.
Importance of Management Education:
Management education adds value to the existing qualifications. It helps students irrespective of their domains in graduation as it widens their knowledge base and encourages them to think differently. Management education enhances managerial and leadership skills by sharing of ideas, insights through healthy, meaningful and case study discussions. Having students with cross cultural backgrounds adds value to management education as there is probability of generating multiples ideas.
Apart from providing requisite skills and abilities to get going smoothly at the corporate world, it provides an opportunity to network with others and promotes cross-cultural diversities. It helps in equipping the executives with competencies and capabilities to take on the corporate challenges with confidence. Now a days, we find there is growing demand for the programs in the domain of strategy and leadership development in MBA education.
Role of B-Schools:
Mushrooming business schools is a cause for concern both for students and parents. It indicates that there is huge potential in management education and also there is a possibility for unauthorized and illegal institutions. The students should take all precautionary measure before joining business schools as selection of the right business school is the first step towards achieving right management education. They should look for accredited business schools.
Few business schools promise moon to students such as free international tours with laptops. What is needed is to provide relevant course content, case study discussion, industry interaction and proper placements. There is strong need to make them as competent mangers and successful leaders rather than believing in freebies.
The business schools should focus on nitty-gritty of general management and also about a functional specialization so that the students can become jack of all trades and master of management. The Indian Business schools should reinvent themselves with changing times and redesign their academic curriculum for facing the current challenges in the business environment.
The course curriculum should be designed to suit new perspectives for building managerial and leadership skills. The responsibility lies with business schools to do the needful in this regard. It is not the students or the faculties to be blamed for poor performance at business schools but the management involved in running business school for the drawbacks in the present management education. It is not the gun that should be blamed but the person who pulls the trigger.
B-schools hit the newspaper headlines by stating that their students getting highest pay in campus placements. Is it the yardstick to rush to conclusion that the specific B-school is bigger and better than other schools?
As parents provide right character and base to their children, similarly business schools should filter out and select the students not only with right aptitude but also with right attitude with a special emphasis on ethical and moral values. In the long run, it helps in shaping, training and grooming them as successful managers and leaders. Of course, it is easier said than done.
Role of Faculties:
The faculties should be from excellent academic background with an industry exposure. They should be a special breed of people driven by passion rather money. They need to inspire and motivate the students through right communication skills. They should preferably have industry experience in a reputed organization. It is desirable to have research experience in management along with consultancy and teaching experience. The combination of the four areas of expertise such as consultancy, teaching, research and industry would make faculties outstanding. Above all, the faculties should be strong scholars with an exposure to multiple audiences.
Role of Top Industrialists in India:
The top Indian industrialists should set up business schools the way they set up their business enterprises not with the sole intention of making money rather adding value to management education. It would revolutionize the Indian management education the day top brass is involved in this. The successful students should be encouraged to work in the companies of their choice without any strings attached. The motto must be to produce the world class managers and leaders. It should be treated as an investment rather than expense. They can charge the students with nominal fee. They should see management education as a kind of a corporate social responsibility so that the fruits of management education would reach the students of lower middle class as well.
Conclusion:
The present business education is broken and need to be reinvented with changing times. The four pillars for effective management education are industry experience, consultancy experience, research experience and teaching experience. When faculty possesses these four basic ingredients besides being passionate towards teaching profession, the day is not far away where we can produce world class management graduates.
It is unfortunate that India with a billion plus population could not produce global leaders like Jack Welch, Peter F Drucker, Bill Gates, Michel Dell; It is time India took a relook at the methodology of management education. It is also the time Indian B-schools took stock of the situation and set their houses in order. The silver lining in the dark cloud of management education in India is the Indian School of Business (ISB) which is ranked as the 15th best Business School in the world surpassing other premier management institutions like IIMs.
There is a strong need to focus management education glocally (i.e. think globally but act locally). When the course content is customized based on the market needs then students will not face unemployability problem. Let us make Indian MBA on par with global standards. We need to get out of the mindset of being copycats. We need to reinvent ourselves as leaders from being followers. To sum up, it is vital to have holistic and integrated approach towards improving management education in India.
The End
It is the time where students take admissions in Business schools to acquire coveted MBA qualification. There are certain things the students should take care before entering B-schools. Let us first find out the significance of management education.
Importance of Management Education:
Management education adds value to the existing qualifications. It helps students irrespective of their domains in graduation as it widens their knowledge base and encourages them to think differently. Management education enhances managerial and leadership skills by sharing of ideas, insights through healthy, meaningful and case study discussions. Having students with cross cultural backgrounds adds value to management education as there is probability of generating multiples ideas.
Apart from providing requisite skills and abilities to get going smoothly at the corporate world, it provides an opportunity to network with others and promotes cross-cultural diversities. It helps in equipping the executives with competencies and capabilities to take on the corporate challenges with confidence. Now a days, we find there is growing demand for the programs in the domain of strategy and leadership development in MBA education.
Role of B-Schools:
Mushrooming business schools is a cause for concern both for students and parents. It indicates that there is huge potential in management education and also there is a possibility for unauthorized and illegal institutions. The students should take all precautionary measure before joining business schools as selection of the right business school is the first step towards achieving right management education. They should look for accredited business schools.
Few business schools promise moon to students such as free international tours with laptops. What is needed is to provide relevant course content, case study discussion, industry interaction and proper placements. There is strong need to make them as competent mangers and successful leaders rather than believing in freebies.
The business schools should focus on nitty-gritty of general management and also about a functional specialization so that the students can become jack of all trades and master of management. The Indian Business schools should reinvent themselves with changing times and redesign their academic curriculum for facing the current challenges in the business environment.
The course curriculum should be designed to suit new perspectives for building managerial and leadership skills. The responsibility lies with business schools to do the needful in this regard. It is not the students or the faculties to be blamed for poor performance at business schools but the management involved in running business school for the drawbacks in the present management education. It is not the gun that should be blamed but the person who pulls the trigger.
B-schools hit the newspaper headlines by stating that their students getting highest pay in campus placements. Is it the yardstick to rush to conclusion that the specific B-school is bigger and better than other schools?
As parents provide right character and base to their children, similarly business schools should filter out and select the students not only with right aptitude but also with right attitude with a special emphasis on ethical and moral values. In the long run, it helps in shaping, training and grooming them as successful managers and leaders. Of course, it is easier said than done.
Role of Faculties:
The faculties should be from excellent academic background with an industry exposure. They should be a special breed of people driven by passion rather money. They need to inspire and motivate the students through right communication skills. They should preferably have industry experience in a reputed organization. It is desirable to have research experience in management along with consultancy and teaching experience. The combination of the four areas of expertise such as consultancy, teaching, research and industry would make faculties outstanding. Above all, the faculties should be strong scholars with an exposure to multiple audiences.
Role of Top Industrialists in India:
The top Indian industrialists should set up business schools the way they set up their business enterprises not with the sole intention of making money rather adding value to management education. It would revolutionize the Indian management education the day top brass is involved in this. The successful students should be encouraged to work in the companies of their choice without any strings attached. The motto must be to produce the world class managers and leaders. It should be treated as an investment rather than expense. They can charge the students with nominal fee. They should see management education as a kind of a corporate social responsibility so that the fruits of management education would reach the students of lower middle class as well.
Conclusion:
The present business education is broken and need to be reinvented with changing times. The four pillars for effective management education are industry experience, consultancy experience, research experience and teaching experience. When faculty possesses these four basic ingredients besides being passionate towards teaching profession, the day is not far away where we can produce world class management graduates.
It is unfortunate that India with a billion plus population could not produce global leaders like Jack Welch, Peter F Drucker, Bill Gates, Michel Dell; It is time India took a relook at the methodology of management education. It is also the time Indian B-schools took stock of the situation and set their houses in order. The silver lining in the dark cloud of management education in India is the Indian School of Business (ISB) which is ranked as the 15th best Business School in the world surpassing other premier management institutions like IIMs.
There is a strong need to focus management education glocally (i.e. think globally but act locally). When the course content is customized based on the market needs then students will not face unemployability problem. Let us make Indian MBA on par with global standards. We need to get out of the mindset of being copycats. We need to reinvent ourselves as leaders from being followers. To sum up, it is vital to have holistic and integrated approach towards improving management education in India.
The End
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