Missing link in B-schools (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 2 : International
Prelims level : Blue chip companies
Mains level : Blue chip companies and their relevance

Context:

• Blue-chip companies going to only Tier 1 institutions could be attributed to two primary reasons.
• First, matching external branding of the blue-chip recruiting organisation with the stock pool of recruits in equally well-known and pedigreed institutions.
• And, second, rigour.
• The first level of rigour is the scores obtained by the top ranked institutions’ students in a very tough entrance examination followed by an equally demanding personal interview.
• The second level is the extremely demanding work and study schedules at such institutions. Tier 2 schools shy away from both rigours.

But are they really better?

• There are examples of students from Tier 1 B-schools not always being great leaders and there have been great business leaders from lesser known schools too.
• However, pro-rata, the incidence of CEOs from B-schools is skewed in favour of the top schools.
• Tier 1 B-schools are able to enhance the emotionally mature attitude of students better than non-Tier 1 schools through specific courses and a range of out-of-class activities.
• The responsibility of emotionally developing individuals has rarely been embraced by Tier 2 B-schools leading to long-term negative effects.
• Technical and hard skills development are their professed goals.
• But high performing, culturally developed organisations are increasingly demanding such skills.
• Long lasting soft skills can only be built on the bedrock of self-awareness. This is where aspiring B-schools need to broaden their vision.

Self aware leaders:

• After the collapse of the US economy in 2008-09, there was a serious rethink at Ivy League institutions about the social and ethical implications of their management curriculum which was churning out superbly capable business leaders but without a soul.
• The soul factor is often missing from B-schools.
• There is a growing demand for self-aware leader-managers.
• The soul factor comes from a deep sense of self-awareness. However, often in tightly scheduled business management programmes focussing on hard skills, this finds little favour.
• The consequent loss is being felt across corporations, industry, the nation and beyond.

Evaluation method:

• We posit SF = IQ x EQ x SQ where IQ is Intelligence Quotient (verbal comprehension, perceptual reasoning, working memory and processing speed), EQ is Emotional Quotient (self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills) and SQ is Societal Quotient (encompassing concern for intra- and inter-society harmony, foundational value systems, and active environmental defence).
• We propose a multiplicative equation to explain SF as it prevents a low score on one element being offset by a high score on another and helps in equally focussing on all three aspects of a student’s development.

India’s scenario

• In India, EQ and SQ are where we have fallen short. These are two factors which are critical for an individual’s long-term success.
• A growing number of businesses now realise that they are mere trustees of the earth’s resources.
• They also realise that profit-making is pointless if it is not underpinned by a sustainability-seeking world view.
• Educational institutions which build individuals in this direction would be the preferred destination for blue-chip companies and society.

Way forward

• In modern higher education, there has been a marked departure away from the integration of ethics, social sciences and self-awareness toward an overwhelming focus on the hard skills.
• Analytics, finance, marketing, operations and strategy excellence form one-half of the story.
• Future business leaders must pursue the other half comprising humility, humanity, empathy, humour and hope, all of which need a high degree of self-awareness and soul.
• B-schools are doing rather fine in one and not so well in the other.

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Prelims Questions:

Q.1) With reference to the Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Biratnagar, consider the following statements:
1. Jobgani-Biratnagar international trade point is one of the important trade points between India and Nepal.
2. Implementing agency of Integrated Check Posts is Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI).

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: C
Mains Questions:
Q.1) Why do blue-chip companies never/rarely consider Tier 2 institutions for recruitment? Are graduates from the top B-schools really much better than us (Tier 2 schools)?