How India's B-Schools are adapting to the changing times

In a world of increasing uncertainty, where business strategy will need to navigate sudden changes in supply chains, market preferences and digital disruptions, how can the business school student—tomorrow’s business leader or entrepreneur—be groomed to take on these challenges? That’s the key question India’s top business schools are grappling with in a VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) world. It is against this background that the BT-MDRA India’s Best B-schools Survey 2022 assumes even greater significance. This year’s rankings—where the top 11 ranks are unchanged from last year’s—show the ability of India’s top B-schools to adapt to these changing times and remain institutes of choice.

These rankings are the much-awaited, definitive list of management institutes that not only offer the most comprehensive courses, but also help students adapt to the rapidly changing environment. This year too, the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta tops the ranking with an impressive overall score of 902.8 out of 1,000, followed closely by the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad at No.2 (900.2). The Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (889.3), the Indian Institute of Management Lucknow (864.1) and S.P. Jain Institute of Management & Research (863.7) occupy third, fourth and fifth place, respectively. The rankings are the result of months of intensive data-crunching, based on five key parameters—learning experience (with a weightage of 250), living experience (150), placement performance (250), selection process, governance & establishment (150) and future orientation (200). As Vidya S. writes in the opening essay, despite the proliferation of B-schools in India, there are huge differences in the quality of those at the top and the others. This is also reflected in the scores in the BT-MDRA rankings, where the gap between the score of the top-most institute and the one finishing at the bottom of the ranking is considerable. Consequently, despite the number of management institutes these days, only a small percentage of students may be employable. Can online courses, which came as a boon for students during the pandemic and cost less, be the alternative to a relatively unknown B-school whose degree has little value? As Binu Paul and Sohini Mitter find out, higher edtech companies seem to feel so, and these online courses are fast turning into a serious option for those who don’t wish to go through a two-year campus MBA. And as B-schools course-correct to also groom students for the new age of entrepreneurship and start-ups, we speak to some of their star alumni to find out what they learnt from their B-schools as they scaled new successes in their chosen ventures. You can also find the Best B-schools 2022 list and other details on www.btbestbschools.in.

Talking of entrepreneurs, I would also urge you to read Ashish Rukhaiyar’s fascinating story on how a bunch of youngsters are forging ahead with their start-ups in the troubled Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir. Despite serious challenges of funding and mentorship, these young entrepreneurs are taking their ventures forward, undaunted. It’s the story of a new beginning in a new Kashmir.