By Dominick Rodrigues
New Delhi : “Development should not come at the cost of the environment and the world needs business leaders who can look beyond short-term profit alongside working for long-term sustainability,” Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu said today while highlighting the importance of sustainable development and the fact that many B-Schools are making sustainability an integral part of their training and curriculum.
Naidu gave a clarion call for paying greater attention to global warming and the consequential increase in frequency of natural disasters, as this is impacting businesses as well.
He was speaking during the inauguration of the two-day, virtual Indian B-Schools Leadership Conclave themed “Indian B- Schools: Navigating a sustainable future by merging local & global best practices,” jointly organized by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), USA and Education Promotion Society for India (EPSI). Over 20 thought leaders, deans, directors and policymakers in management education will deliberate various issues faced by educators in B-Schools in India and the world.
Noting the vital role of B-Schools in the economy and society due to future managers, leaders and innovators being groomed and trained there, he urged for education becoming socially-relevant through young management students visiting nearby villages to study and identify rural India’s business & social problems while also coming up with viable solutions for the same.
“India has more than 3400 Business schools with an enrollment of around one million students, but the +India Skills Report 2020+ pegs employability of MBA graduates at 54 per cent in India, he said while urging the B-Schools to find solutions for bridging the gap between enrollment and employability. “Increased interaction is needed between academia and Industry so that students get exposure to real life situations and hands-on learning,” he said while emphasizing importance of enhancing soft skills of students, which form an integral part of the overall make-up of a successful manager.
Noting that in the post-Independence era, US institutions like Harvard and MIT helped Indian B-Schools, Naidu expressed happiness over the fact that currently many of top management faculty members in US B-Schools were born and educated in India. “I find this to be an excellent example of the interdependence between the two largest democracies of the world”, he said.
While COVID-19 is forcing educators and students to adapt to the virtual communication mode, this sudden shift towards online mode of interaction also posed several challenges, he said while advising the faculty of B-Schools to focus more on mentoring and guiding rather than lecturing and instructing. “Even in the virtual context, learners need to experience navigating their way in the new normal for learning critical thinking and independent decision-making skills”, he added.
Dr. G. Viswanathan, President, EPSI, Dr. Anil D Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, AICTE, Dr. Geoff Perry, Chief Officer, Asia Pacific, AACSB, Dr. H Chaturvedi, Director, Birla Institute of Management Technology, Dr. Prashant Bhalla, Sr. Vice President of Manav Rachna International University, Vice-chancellors, Deans, Principals, professors and students from various Institutions were among those who attended the virtual event.
