How India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times

Rajnish Kawale was not content with how his career was shaping up. A mechanical engineer from Nagpur, he was working as operations manager at a power station in Jharkhand. He had been in the job for a few years, and things were okay. But, he felt that opportunities to meet his aspirations were limited. “I wanted to change domain,” said the 27-year-old. “So, I opted for an MBA.” He hoped specialising in marketing management would get him into the world of fast moving consumer goods or retail. “I am trying for consulting and brand management roles via campus placements,” he said. “But, companies that come to our campus do not offer high packages; I think the high packages are offered only to top institutes like the IIMs or tier-one management institutes.”

His course fee for two years was around Rs12 lakh. “I took a loan of Rs10 lakh and was looking at a package of at least Rs15 lakh,” he said. “It may prove difficult initially.”

Kawale’s story, so far, does not fit the archetypal image about b-school education in India. Despite his wait to land a job that he is happy with, his experience with campus placement makes it clear that there seems to be no lack of interest among recruiters in visiting even b-schools that are outside the top tier. The issue seems to be the gap between expected remuneration and the salaries on offer. Is it an issue in India’s best b-schools?

Said Father S. George, SJ, director, XLRI, Jamshedpur: “The job market has not been doing well in the last two years. The pay packages are down. Last year, three-four students got Rs1 crore, but after carefully going through the packages, an auditor found that about 60 per cent of that was bonus.”

XLRI’s postgraduate diploma in human resource management is regarded as the best in the Asia-Pacific region. Professor M.G. Jomon, who teaches HRM and is also a board member of XLRI, said that a few students in the programme had to compromise with their package last year. “This year, again, could be challenging,” he said. “The number of jobs has come down because of consolidation in the industry.”

He said that while students at top institutes are able to secure placements, a majority of management students in the country are under tremendous pressure to get placed. “If jobs are not created, where do they get placed?” he asked. “There are economic challenges and the jobs are coming down. And, the expectations of the students are going up because they are second generation employees whose parents have already worked. Nowadays, management students who are in their early 20s want to be next to their MD in terms of seniority. It is not practical. Their unwillingness to learn from the grassroots level affects their career moves.”

Professor Debashis Chatterjee, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode, said there were a couple of reasons for the dearth of very high packages. “There is significant decline in growth of developed economies,” he said. “This, coupled with the influx of generative AI and its offshoots, help organisations use human resources in a disciplined manner. As a result, outsourced jobs from the US are decreasing. The pay packages were higher during 2012 to 2022. However, the need of such resources is reducing. The graduates join firms which contribute towards the Indian economy or Indian economy-based firms. The packages reflect the appetite of the fifth largest economy (India), not the largest economy (the US).”

Professor A. Venkat Raman, dean, Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi, also said that recession in Europe and the US has led to either a lack of projects or stagnation in the number of hires and that was being reflected in the salary packages. “Substantial increase in packages for management graduates (the average salary for FMS graduates rose from Rs23 lakh/annum in 2019 to Rs34 lakh/annum in 2023) is not a true reflection of the economic growth,” he said. “There is some course correction in the salary packages, especially in 2023-24.”

What is the future outlook?

“India is a fast maturing market for trained managers,” said Venkat Raman. “But, the societal and human dynamics are not similar to America or Europe. So, the notion of market should not be purely economic and monetary. The b-school curriculum should be aligned to societal realities. For example, culture and values inside and outside the business organisations sometimes contradict each other. Aping the strategies from the west will not be appropriate. B-schools in India should reinvent their curriculum to be appropriate to the Indian context.”

George stressed the importance of regularly interacting with industry and veterans to learn how to update the curriculum in line with the needs of organisations. “We have increased the number of courses offered in AI and business analytics,” he said. “The main skilling of students is technology-related.”

While keeping up to date with technology is vital, developments in AI seem to have had a negative impact on learning outcomes. For instance, assignments have become obsolete as students are using AI tools to do them. “Thus, the approach in education should become more oral and experimental,” said George. “That allows the student to solve real life problems in real time. There is a general consciousness that evaluating and teaching methods should change. It is an era of experimental learning.”

A visit to the behavioural lab at XLRI would change the perception of many on what happens at b-schools. In the lab, students take turns volunteering for EEGs of their brain while they are exposed to stimuli. Other students in the group record the brain waves of volunteers. Priyanka Saggu, the lab manager, said that the device helps in market research. “It helps to understand whether there are changes in the electrical activity in the brain when an advertisement is shown,” she said. “By studying brain waves, students and marketers learn how stimuli impact attention and engagement, what the customer directly looks at and what is captivating or engaging in the product or ad.”

The challenges before management graduates include staying relevant in terms of their skill sets and ability to shape their thinking, managing professional and personal lives, distress in organisations and drawing meaningful work from employees and risk taking amid uncertainty, said Chatterjee. He stressed that skills imparted in b-schools equipped students to work in competitive scenarios. “However, re-skilling is required because of the uncertainties organisations face; technological, geopolitical, economic uncertainties,” he said. “The way forward from each of these uncertainties lead to different scenarios or options.”

Chatterjee added that having options at the organisation level and the individual level was quite important in this era. “During the past century, organisations were working on products or improved products (based on same technology) and brick-and-mortar models, mostly,” he said. “[Now,] survival of organisations is at stake. Adaptability is the key skill at both the organisation and the individual level.”

So, how do b-schools ensure students are ready for this environment?

“Curriculum changes are important in this realm,” said Chatterjee. “Before 1980, most b-schools worked with lectures as a primary form of pedagogical approach. After 2000, the dominant pedagogy adopted by b-schools is case studies. Going forward, pedagogical innovations are already underway to equip the graduates and make them industry ready. For example, the usage of simulations across the classroom environment among various functional areas as well as integrative simulations are on the rise. This helps in integrating perspectives and overcoming siloed thinking.” He said that new courses on AI and big data analytics are compulsory.

Varun Nagaraj, dean and professor of information management and analytics at the S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai, pointed out that there are learning gaps in the current generation of students that are coming out, particularly with their lack of curiosity, unwillingness to work hard and take responsibility for outcomes, and lack of resilience when things do not go their way.

He said that he gets regular feedback from recruiters. “The most important is that they are not reading,” he said. “Reading makes you more curious. Management graduates should have the ability to work in an ambiguous environment when there is uncertainty all around. To prepare students, we have to toughen them up.”

Nagaraj, who has 35 years of industry experience, said that he trusted his instinct as to what the company needs. “I have hired and fired people in the industry,” he said. “One aspect of critical thinking [which is being taught to students] is that one should understand the arguments on both sides of any topic, understand the evidence on both sides, have an opinion on which evidence is credible or why it is not credible.”

Nagaraj, too, spoke about having to tackle AI from hampering education. “The only way in this world of ChatGPT is a pen and paper exam,” he said. He also said that brief case studies have become the norm. “For a 90-minute class, one has a 25-page case to read,” he said. “Now the students can ask ChatGPT for a one-page summary. So, the case study approach can go waste. Harvard came up with the idea of quick cases. So, the way one is teaching cases is changing, with small, example-oriented cases.”

Bhishm Chugani, director, career services and alumni relations, SPJIMR, said that conventional thinking was giving way to new business realities because every business was now looking at quarter-to-quarter results. “We have made our subjects tool-oriented―for instance, we teach our students ERP (enterprise resource planning) and teach them about particular ERP for sales, procurement, HR, etc,” he said. “We try to mix it with some workshop so that students have thorough knowledge about it. We inculcate current practices and tools and best practices.”

Chugani explained the continued pull of a management graduate even in the less than ideal scenario in the market. “Many top companies come to the top b-schools because they have the cream of students who joined after rigorous selection process,” he said. He also decoded the hiring logic that startups use. “Startups do not have the capacity to hire from the top schools,” he said. “Many still do to show investors that they, too, have people from the top schools. For many startups, hiring from the top b-schools is more to do to with attracting funding from potential investors.”

Professor Veena Vohra, vice dean (accreditation, ranking, industry and alumni) at the School of Business Management, NMIMS, said that b-schools not only carry out research, but also make sure that research findings make it to the curriculum and the students are able to form thoughts and opinions based on the latest research. “A lot of digital literacy is built up and we are embedding all our courses with digital content,” she said. “Managing change and resilience is another aspect―how graduates become resilient and understand how resilience can be built in organisations.” She added that crisis management was another area of focus. “We are also using simulations and are not only buying, but also developing them,” she said.

Venkat Raman said the job market for MBAs would become more nuanced wherein graduates with well-rounded competencies in technology, strategy, economics and people skills are likely to be more sought after. He also spoke about “non-traditional” opportunities. “Besides sports management, which is a multi-billion business, areas like fine arts, culture, entertainment, health and hygiene require professionally trained managers,” he said.

He added that there was a responsibility on management schools and graduates to get the best out of India’s demographic dividend. “A large proportion of this young, well-educated and ambitious age group does not have opportunities to show its talent,” he said. “Management graduates and schools should be adept at creating new ventures through greater emphasis on mentoring great business ideas to generate employment opportunities more widely.”

GURBINDER SINGH

Director, LM Thapar School of Management

B-school graduates are facing challenges like fewer job opportunities because of economic uncertainty and more competition from both new graduates and experienced workers. Many employers now want specific skills like data and tech knowledge, which some b-school graduates may lack. Additionally, adjusting to remote work and managing stress about finding stable jobs add to their difficulties.

VIKRAM SINGH TOMAR

Director (admissions and outreach), O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU)

The competitive landscape of the job market has intensified, with a decline in non-marketing positions across various business functions and a critical need for sales roles in nearly all job categories, posing significant challenges for recent graduates from business schools. The evolving skill requirements, which were not foreseen in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, have now become the standard. Additionally, the demand for new hires has significantly decreased, coinciding with a reduction in the cost-to-company figures offered.

NANDITA MISHRA

Director, Chetana’s Institute of Management and Research

The placement scenario worldwide has been slow and is always shaped by several global factors. The average package offered had not been so different from what was offered last year, the process is in progress but definitely the skills required have been changing. The traditional roles offered are declining and more emerging fields, interdisciplinary in nature, are evolving.

SWADESH KUMAR SINGH

CEO, GNIOT Institute of Management Studies

Digital transformation is at the centrE of every organisation in the current world. Whether it is a startup, a not-for-profit, or a large corporate, leaders and their workforce need to be digitally competent. Managers have to be conversant with the latest IT trends and promote a mindset that embraces technology and innovation. Hence, b-schools must revamp their curriculums with emphasis on digital marketing, data analytics, digital strategy, and digital transformation to ensure their students are technology literate. The responsibility lies in bridging the skills gap and empowering graduates to succeed.

C. JOE ARUN, SJ

Director, Loyola Institute of Business Administration, Chennai

Learning discerning skills help our students become purpose-driven individuals who are capable of making a difference in the lives of people, not just improving their lives. We try not to teach them, but accompany them in the processes of personal growth more than accumulation of  knowledge. Not to become merely corporate leaders but become responsible  citizens.

ATANU KUMAR DAS

Director, Institute of Insurance and Risk Management, Hyderabad

Going by the ambitious mission of a developed India by 2047, there is a need for significantly reorienting the b-school curriculum that conforms to the disaggregated goal posts that corporates have started envisioning. All-round upgrading is the key success factor in realising the 21st century as India’s century. This is not limited to the students. It commences with institutional change and management, resources management and skills enhancement and it should be enabled by the integration of the latest technology on an overall basis.

PROF S. SREENIVASA MURTHY

Director, Institute of Public Enterprise, Hyderabad

Many b-school graduates are seeing reductions in pay packages compared to a few years ago, largely because of economic uncertainty and changing industry dynamics. While some sectors may still offer competitive salaries, others are tightening budgets, impacting overall compensation. Adaptability and continuous skill development will be key for graduates to navigate these changes.

B-schools in India should prepare students for the diverse economy, cultural nuances, and entrepreneurial spirit prevalent in the country. Emphasising practical skills and navigating complex regulations are crucial, along with fostering digital literacy.

SARDAR TARANJIT SINGH

Managing Director, JIS Group

India’s job market spans traditional industries like manufacturing, agriculture and textiles, alongside modern sectors like IT, fintech, and e-commerce. B-schools must equip students with versatile skills that apply across these diverse industries, blending traditional business principles with digital innovation. B-school graduates need to understand how to manage business operations both digitally and in resource-limited settings, preparing them for work in underserved markets, too.

PROF K.M. SHARATH KUMAR

Dean, Faculty of Management and Commerce, M.S. Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences

To cherish the vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047, there is a need for disruptive innovation with transparent regulations. In order to match the GDP of developed nations, there is a need for b-school graduates to think out of the box to contribute to the economy, leading to increase in the per capita income of every individual. This challenge can be addressed by enabling b-school graduates to look at tapping rural market for increasing
their gross income and spend.

USHA MANJUNATH

Director, IIHMR, Bengaluru

While health care remains a critical industry, especially post-pandemic, job market volatility persists. Hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and health care organisations are cautious about hiring for management roles, focusing more on cost optimisation and efficiency. However, at the same time, the demand for skills in health care data analytics, health informatics, and digital health solutions such as telemedicine and AI-driven health care is rapidly increasing.