The MBA (dis?)Advantage

If you go for a drive from one end of Cochin to the other , at every bus stop or say, at every one Kilometer distance , you are sure to find a B-school.. (you get an MBA or a PGDM there!).The statistics is higher in other parts of the country, especially metros. With due respect to all the eminent management institutes (like my own SMS, CUSAT and a few other reputed ones), I take this opportunity to salute all those great business minds who have started up  their own B-schools in India. I salute them for the following factors…

One: For starting one of the most profitable business any man/ group can start.

Two: For churning out some of the most “useless” group of youth to the economy every year .

Three: For creating a “bubble” of management education, which is about to burst, just like the IT bubble!

Four: For creating a group of management faculty members, who doesn’t know the ABCs of teaching management and the required professional ethics.

Saying this, I can never ignore the fact that I am also  a Management faculty and once again ,with due respect to  all the eminent management faculty members, who have dedicated their life in the grooming of a present day manager. 

You may be wondering what makes me say all this. Well , thanks once again to some very interesting recent experiences and research. 

First, let me share the experience. A friend of mine who owns an IT company shared me a story of how his firm’s name was misused by some fraud teams. These unscrupulous guys approached some B-schools asking for resumes of girls with photographs and it seems they also conducted a written exam on their behalf, for which these guys charged some fees. The management institution’s faculty members were so ignorant (or rather careless) to check whether the guys who approached them were genuine. Even after one month of sending resumes and the written exams, not even a single placement happened and that’s when the faculty members  traced the real owners of the firm.( Well, we cannot blame the faculty for being so “careless”, considering their workload, emotional labour and the pressure of achieving the placement targets). Well, my friend at last traced out the real culprits and warned them for misusing his firm’s name.

Now, coming to the research I did. My doctoral research has just started and as part of it I am reading more about management education in India. Very interesting statistics coming up now.. 

Just three years back, can you guess the number of management institutions with AICTE approval? Well, it was around 1400 in number. Add another 300 or so without AICTE approvals. 

Do you know the present number of management education institutes in India? It has multiplied more than three times. Around 4766 institutes  are approved by AICTE , as on May 2012 (and growing day by day..).. yes..add another 1000 who claim to possess their own accreditation or International affiliation and consider that AICTE approval is not all required for Management education! 

Each institution is trying to grab the opportunity and provide seats for students even without the necessary qualification. Gone are the days, when you have to apply for an MBA seat, keep your fingers crossed and wait for the admission. Now a days, the moment you are reaching your final year  graduation, you can join for MBA course and get your MBA by the time you finish your arrears of the graduation!! But , hey, all this facility.. comes with a cost dear! There are B-schools who charge as high as 25 lakhs for an MBA degree(A real good looking degree certificate from UK /US university..! )

Now, what happens after admission? Poor guys… I didn’t mean the student here..I meant the faculty…especially those who are slightly ethical.. they are the ones who struggle a lot .. because, they are forced to give pass marks even for those who never deserve to! Otherwise.. their performance will be rated down!.. (see, its like a two-sided sword.. firstly, if you don’t give marks to students.. they will score low marks for faculty appraisal.. and secondly the management will fire the faculty for teaching badly, coz of which the students are failing! .. so, why take risk?..give them pass marks..u got it?)

What happens after MBA? The placement tension…  the tension..not just for the students..but also  the faculty… and the management in all sense.. This tension leads to several malpractices also, like the one I mentioned above!

Many students ask me, “Mam, will I get a job if I do an MBA from this or that institute?” .My answer is simple, “Your job is never dependent on 'why or where' you do your MBA, but on 'how' and 'what' you are”

Even when there are so many types of jobs and so many types of MBA, nowadays students are not getting placed in high flying jobs as their previous generation of MBAs. The logic is simple : MBA cannot be considered a special degree anymore dear!  MBA now has lots of “specializations”, but its no more “special”. Every Tom, dick and harry can get an MBA degree!

What’s wrong in it? Nothing wrong..just that,in future, when  you enter any organisation, you will find that the security guard also has an MBA degree!

Footnote 1: My advice to all MBA freshers. Don’t have too much glossy dreams-that you will get an Air conditioned cabin to sit and work in your first job. Be realistic and be ready to sweat out in jobs, which used to go to mere graduates some years back.. especially, if you have done your MBA from second and third tier institutes…

Footnote 2: My advice to all those who are planning to take an MBA degree. - Don't believe what the marketing brochure of the institute says. Believe in the degree certificate  that will be given by a valid University at the end of the course. 

Footnote 3 : If you replace the word “MBA” to “Engineering” in this article, I think its equally applicable!

Adieu..
CeeVee...

To my mother..

Mother ,You always were there for me, when I needed your support.

Today, I wanted support at many times, but You are no more here to support me.

Mother, You always scolded me for being careless.

I am careless even now, but You are no more here to scold me.

Mother, you always made good food, but I always used to find faults with it

Today, however I try, I can’t make food like you made. 

Mother, even after your tough job outside, you always smiled and listened to my stories when I came home from school.

Today, I understand how difficult it is to listen to kid’s stories when you are extremely tired.

Mother , You cared for me when I am sick.

I fall sick even now, but You are no more here to take care. 

Mother, every time I became happy, you were double happy

Today, my happiness is there with me and no one shares the same excitement with me.

Mother, You always told, “Be bold, don’t be afraid of anything”

Today, I repeat it in my mind, when I am afraid of something. 

Mother, You always told me that, “I love you and You are precious”

Today, I wish I had someone who tells me that and hugs me the way you do.

Mother, You always told me that “You will realize what I did for you, when you become a mother” .

I realized it, but You are no more to see me realize that. 

Mother, I know that what I am today is because of your lost happiness and struggles

I owe it to you, for instilling in me the confidence to face any challenges in the world. 

Mother, I don’t want to thank you for all these and more

I just would like to tell you that “Be with me” , though you are invisible to others.

Are you MAD?

I have read somewhere that Swamy Vivekananda after visiting Kerala, said that Kerala is a madhouse.( Keralam oru bhraandhaalayam) 

I would say the whole world is a mad house. Well, madness exists in all people., it’s just that the intensity and the way of expression varies from person to person. Madness can be in the form of mild mania or phobia to severe neurotic and psychotic illness.

When I see some people in the following instances I feel that they are having some madness and I actually feel pity for them, rather than getting angry.   

• People who sit and watch TV serials/shows to that extent that they forget what’s happening next to them.
• People who ride bikes as though they are some super hero and they have the right to do anything they like!
• Private bus drivers who never stop at red signals.
• People who wear too much of Gold jewellery.
• People who do not speak where necessary and People who speak unnecessarily.
• People who never smile.
• People who tells gossips about others.
• Men who stare at women and keep on staring..
• People who watch cricket for hours together postponing their other important works.
• People who play computer games or are online  for hours together.
• People who waste electricity.
• People who waste water.
• People who are unwilling to change.
• Men who USE women for sex or rape.
• People who consume alcohol and create problems.
• People who switch on the AC even during rainy season.
• People who spread negative energy.
• Women who know how to dress properly, but do not do so, because they want to attract someone.
• People who waste food because they don’t “like” that particular food.
• People who sit idle.
• Parents who force their children  to do something which the children don’t like.
• People who speak on mobile phone while crossing roads.
• And yes.. People who fall in LOVE…. 

Hey… the list goes on….. 

There is no wrong in having any madness, but the moment it crosses the limits and hurts someone else, it needs treatment. 

I  think, such people need counseling and there is no point getting angry at them or shouting at them. Well, these are just some instances of madness, as I told every person has some kind of madness in them. My madness is that I keep thinking about all these and keep writing.. haaha.. 

:-) Keep smiling.. 

P.S:  During my school days, we used to write in autograph books as “You are MAD”. …. I remember it became a hit coz of an old hindi song .. which goes like “My Adorable Darling”….

P.S: With due respect to mentally challenged persons, I have used the word “madness” as something which is some particular manner in which people behave and not to insult anyone.

P.S: I wrote this article in a light mood ...i guess u will also take it lightly...