The world is full of uncertainty. Monumental challenges—including climate change, poverty, and inequality-are at the forefront of daily life and seemingly becoming ever more urgent, as we progress every day towards becoming a superpower. One thing that isn’t uncertain is the Sustainable Business Strategies, which are clearly the main in-demand commodities of today, considering the current times of the pandemic. With a primary goal of leaving a positive impact on society with ingenious strategies which benefit both private and public organizations, the managers of today are a literal helping guide to all of us. In pursuit of creating individuals who excel as professional generalists, and not just good at their respective niches – ICFAI Business School has come a long way since its inception, defining sustainability in education.
Grooming all the students in the aspects of being world ready, the vision of ICFAI B-School has always been to become – “a leader in management education through industry focused curriculum, case based learning and applied research”. Born out of the city of pearls – Hyderabad, the b-school has redefined the meaning of flexibility, be it inside or outside the classrooms. Also, IBS Hyderabad has received its required recognition by becoming the first b-school to launch elective courses in many modern-day fields such as Healthcare Analytics, Finance Analytics, Digital Marketing and so on. The excellence shown in management education is achieved by strategic interventions through inclusive approach for assurance of learning.
Engaging thoroughly with the industry, in turn, becoming a hotspot of industry-academia relationships, IBS Hyderabad gives enough chances to learn about the corporate world, well before they enter it. Via unique summer internship programs, management development programs, consultancy, panel discussions from time to time, IBS is accredited by American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), USA – a distinction achieved by only a few business schools in India.
A vital part of the ICFAI Group, IBS Hyderabad boasts of a faculty pool which is highly qualified with high research potential, and rich industry experience. Addressing the pressing real-world cases, and finding modern day solutions to them, the b-school houses a IBS Case Research Center, which is counted among the world’s top case publishing centers along with Harward, INSEAD and so on. The cases produced at IBS not only cater to the needs of our own students, but are also used in thousands of schools globally. “The fact that IBS cases are used in the top business schools in the world also means that our students are taught with the same cases that are taught in these top global schools”, stated Dr C S Shylajan, the Dean of the b-school.
A world of opportunities
To understand how IBS Hyderabad excels as an exemplary place for management learning, we at The Academic Insights got to interview Dr C S Shyalajan, the Dean of the esteemed b-school. We posed questions from topics related to academics to research and innovation, and the Dean made sure he addressed all the important issues and points. Talking in detail about how IBS has inspired teachers, quality researchers, institution builders and collaborators on the campus, Dr Shyalajan spoke about the importance of teamwork and social belonging to grow manifold.
Always at the forefront of preparing its students for the future in a holistic way, both academics and outside the classroom activities – assume an equal position at the b-school. Pushing students and teachers to take part in different social and community-based activities, an inert self-confidence and leadership skills develop in them, converting them from timid individuals to competitive business leaders. The onboard faculty members play a vital and expansive role in churning young talent, and have heavy expectation overhead, due to the brand value IBS Hyderabad holds.
Working simultaneously on their respective research work, the renowned faculty members at IBS Hyderabad competitively submit quality journals. Disseminating knowledge on to fellow colleagues about topics of research through faculty seminars, conferences and knowledge sharing workshops, the learning process for teachers & students at the b-school is endless. Furthermore, endeavoring towards providing one of the best student-oriented educational experiences, right from the first semester, an activity called Syndicated Learning Program (SLP) has been introduced in the curriculum, which preaches the seriousness of advanced preparation for final placements. Trained faculty members provide feedback to students on a one to one basis, giving a detailed analysis of their personality and inspiring/guiding them to propel forward effortlessly.
All thanks to the impressive state-of-the-art infrastructure and already existing ICT-enabled learning apparatus, IBS Hyderabad progressed smoothly without any intervention or a hurdle in their path, overcoming the current situation with ease. Curating the best in-house curriculum, the pedagogy and the learning procedure are altered keeping in mind the importance of multi-speciality learning, needed in today’s time. Catering to the right minds with the most curated and focused learning-infrastructure, simulations, games become a part of everyday life at IBS.
Empowering managerial competencies
During a two-year MBA program at IBS, each student would participate in around 500 case discussions which would hone his/her comprehension of business situations, analytical abilities, persuasive skills, decision-making skills and application of theoretical knowledge to business contexts. They also acquire domain specific competencies in analytics, learning and adapting skills in application software for decision making and many other purposes.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I & E) are integral constituents of academics at the b-school. Also, being a constituent of IFHE, student clubs related to I & E are promoted on a large scale on the campus. Clubs such as – Macon’ club which conduct regular events like business plan competition, Entrepreneurship week etc, IBS lets its students savour from every opportunity they are provided with. In addition, the Business School offers courses on Entrepreneurship Development to post graduate and undergraduate courses.
All in all, with a highly ambitious management and ICFAI group being a major backbone to the b-school, the plans of ICFAI Business School – Hyderabad, going forward look happening and bright. Lastly, with the pandemic having created a unique challenge for business schools and students pursuing business management education, technological advancements are easily being adapted by everyone in the IBS campus. Aiming at introducing new contemporary courses as electives, or value addition credit/non-credit courses in the field of block chain, cyber security and machine learning, IBS Hyderabad has indeed progressive plans of imbibing managerial competencies brewing in the current as well as future incoming students. Be it interpersonal communication or stress management, graduates of IBS are turned into skilled personalities, in turn, guiding successful futures, towards a better society, one step at a time.
Dr C S Shylajan, Dean
A man of 26 years of academic and research experience, Dr Shylajan did his Ph.D. in Economics at Madras School of Economics and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta. He has been working at IBS Hyderabad since 2005. Recently he published an edited book titled ‘Current Issues in Economics and Finance’ published by Springer. He also co-authored a book titled ‘Farmers’ Indebtedness and Agrarian crisis in India’. He has more than 30 research papers to his credit, many national and international conference paper presentations, book chapters, and Cases uploaded in the Case Centre at UK.
