MBA'S Gold (or) Dust?

                                                  

Author: Srirupa Banerjee, Assistant Professor, SMOT School of Business, Chennai

When things are good - Dogs are Gods and when things turn bad - Gods are Dogs"- anonymously said by me.   

Interestingly MBA's and their ilk are the flavor of the season, since now they are under the scanner with accusing fingers being pointed as to their relevance to understand and run corporate enterprises. But cut a decade back and the world was at their feet for making all feel rich and good. So what has changed?

As a reality still, MBA's are perceived to sit pretty in a “General’s” role rather than the “Jawans”. And that contributes as a fountainhead of the problem. They are viewed with mistrust and envy as it is felt they feel no pain but only stand to gain. It’s a different story that with supply outstripping demand there is indeed a sad decrease of quality which today finds all in a muddled mix - desperation on the part of an MBA to be open to all for nothing and the companies who think these knights wield the magic wand to change fortunes overnight - the outcome hurts all concerned and then fingers are pointed as objectives are mismatched… It’s indeed sad as the management course was envisioned to better the culture not destroy it.

For one, today, MBA education is termed as irrelevant and out of sync with sub cultures which I agree partially. No doubt it needs to be made more topical and sensitive to Indian ethos and ethics so that the melding of fresh inductees into a system is viewed more as an accessory rather than being viewed as a class apart. 

       

But to that I would like to add my view...I will just take one aspect of our permeating culture. Whereas, we do not recognize corruption as a way of life, it is indeed an ubiquitous part of our daily existence at all levels. Now no program can teach this aspect in the classroom and impart training to students to convert this into an art, as in some forms of governance this seems to be the only way for advance in ones career.

So the early visualisers wanted management education to have a basic framework to build its structure on, since India was essentially a family driven, patriarchal system of governance and hence needed to rely on professional guidance to take on the changing globe. This meant we necessarily plagiarized successful business models and tried to replicate the same here. When we embraced globalization in a big way, overseas companies needed to identify with set methods of governance at least in the corporate world, rather than the unique but effective myriad ways that business was conducted here. So graduates inducted into the system changed things over time for the better and brought in a newer work culture which was driven by professional productivity rather than profitability alone.

But indeed over time we needed to build in Indian sensitivities into business programs because when trade and exchange happens if one doesn't understand inter personal dynamics, it would collapse as the human element in management is paramount to any theory or postulate that one propounds.... India suffers more so, as we lack people with original thought. Unless we invest big time in Research and pursue fellowship programs in management, the level of understanding to chart new territories towards policy planning in emerging areas and industries would be sorely lacking. 

Its however left much to a fresh MBA with or without prior work experience to come into an organization not flaunting his badge rather letting that badge do the talking with a contribution accepted to all, by surreptitiously implementing class room taught  into the work space experience.

 From a personal viewpoint I need to add that, yes, there has been a great amount of static in the system over the years. I passed out 25 years ago from a top B School and the only perceptible difference was the undeniable penetration of technology from then to now. But if you see around the bend, we will notice the gods of yore remain current in spite of a cathartic change that has happened in the global village. This spells good and bad for an MBA graduate...good in so far as we have an anchor as an icon and bad as that icon can sink you with the same old thoughts.   

The quicker that one endears themselves to technology and improves communication, it’s my considered opinion, that half the battle is won. For in technology is built in speed and knowledge and proper communication breaks any number of barriers.

And just to learn from India’s IT experience, even though we had not invented the computer nor the software that was associated with it, Indians evolved as masters of the game because of their cognitive and intuitive skills. The same needs to be channelized towards the next layer of business and that is management.

To change curriculum, all at one go, would be a knee jerk reaction. To go against the grain, I would like to say “Managers are not made but are born". As one can't teach old dogs new tricks, we need to really work on our youth at an impressionable age to infuse them with positivity and leadership aspirations. This can be affected if at school and graduate levels academics is reflected with the same touch and feel of an MBA program so that they are exposed to the rough and tumble of business where they are ultimately going to park their lives. What currently happens is graduation is gone through as a ritual and an MBA is viewed as an extension of the same experience. An MBA is however, to be viewed a life skill course just like medicine as it would eventually hold one responsible for many lives by their acts of good or bad management.

Summing up the debate the MBA will be a creature of the times we live in who can only be wished away but not washed away. He can draw comfort that as long as business exists he will occupy a very integral part in its existence.  For that he needs to possess the quality of a cat with nine adaptable lives rather than a dog with one wasted one!