Announcements
22 September, 2017: As a part of the PG Orientation Program, CMR University – School of Management and School of Economics & Commerce arranged for an interactive session with the theme: “Corporate Academia Interface for PG Management Education: Needs, Issues and Path Forward.”
Mr. Tarun Kumar Singh, a seasoned risk management and insurance professional with 18 years of work experience; Mr. Adithya Karthik, Associate Director – Channel Sales Europe and Asia Bangalore with 15 years of work experience and Dr. Gopal Raghav – A Clinical Psychologist, Parapsychologist and Hypnosis Practitioner and Master Trainer at Department of Collegiate Education, Government of Karnataka and an External Faculty for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises, Government of India for Entrepreneur Development Program, Entrepreneur Skill Development Program and Management Skill Development Program. Prof. Rajesh Kurundwad- School of Management was the moderator for the discussion.
When asked about his opinion on whether the current educational system prepares students to meet the requirement of the industry Mr. Tarun Kumar Singh said; “ the answer is no” in his opinion although there are as many jobs as there are MBA graduates, they are not ‘qualified’ in terms of job requirements. He added that although the education system has done no good, the blame game is a vicious circle and this gap really in fact lies within the mindset. The shift in education over the years from textbooks to the Google culture has made students lazy and we need to re learn how to really think.
Mr. Adithya Karthik agreed upon this point and asked students what made them different from the other 3.5 Lakh MBAs passing out each year. He states the example of an IIM curriculum where students go through roughly 1200 cases in a year and this where most institutes lack. He also adds that teachers need to go upgrade their knowledge of the latest trends as the market is volatile and the scenarios may change overnight and the need for more quality interaction between industry experts and students.
When asked what are the expectations from industry today, he said the employers are looking for clarity of thought, not just the knowledge of concepts but more importantly the applicability of concepts in real situations. Companies favour a structured thinking process wherein an applicant when given a scenario is capable of clearly defining the problem, logically think about the theoretical basis and understand it in the current situation to apply their knowledge in efficient problem solving.
Dr. Gopal Raghav was asked for suggestions for applicants from a psychological perspective. He responded that “psychology” is a blatant term and the key is to have control in life is to understand behaviour and what triggers these behavioural responses and success, failure, and career and an integral part of life. He asks the student to focus on proving their mettle and figure out what is that one quality that differentiates them from others. He says quality can be broken down into commitment and consistency and that is where students and applicants must focus.
Mr. Tarun Kumar Singh is of mind that in order to fortify output changes from Academia, certain key changes are required. Educationalists need to “stop teaching, and start discussing.” He says that ease of access to internet as a knowledge repository has made students lazy and suggests the facilitators to “teach them life”.
Recalling his own experience, he shares that the best teachers were the ones that did not teach from books and the ones that made them teach instead. According to him, today there is no place for traditional teaching methods in post graduate and vocational programmes. His advice to students was that if they can introspect and answer the question “Who am I ?” then all the jobs are theirs for the taking.
Mr. Adithya Karthik, when asked about the current trends said that recruiters appreciate a more holistic knowledge base rather than expertise in a single domain as a more diverse understanding of issues is more suited to the current market scenario and industry requirements. While concluding the session, Mr. Tarun Kumar Singh says that students must learn to differentiate between a job and a career as the two are very different things and students these days have vast options available to them.
Dr. Gopal Raghav added that “You chose to hear what you want to hear. ” and students must learn to cultivate value in all things in life in order to maintain a balanced approach to achieving their goals. It was great to see them spend their valuable time for this discussion which encouraged the students to think about their approach towards education and corporate world.
