It is a known fact that a career in management has established itself as a stalwart among professions. A large number of aspirants are making a beeline to get into the most prestigious business schools of the country. But it is neither a straight line and nor is it the same for every aspirant. Many get into the field lured by the limelight of executive job profiles and lucrative pay scales. But the field of management is much more than just the fame and pecuniary gratification.
Management is about optimising each constituent of the process that satisfies the customers' need. Every area of management-be it marketing, finance, human resources or operations has a significant value creation opportunity. While the popularity keeps fluctuating with time, the significance of each one of them remains equal and high. The variables attributed to such growth could be globalisation and personal customisation on offer.
"To be able to manage in this global turbulence, most of the people need support either through insights or through experiences. These insights and experiences are conceptualised and encapsulated in form of management education," says Dhananjay Bansod, chief people officer, Deloitte, India.
An MBA degree is considered to be a coveted piece of article and paves way for a lucrative job offer. More often than not corporate organisations prefer MBA professionals over conventional graduates. Although the preference or the absence of an MBA is in context of the job requirement, the skills required for the job are precipitated jointly by the domain experts as well as human resource professionals.
The selection of the institutes too is a joint responsibility. The probability that a management graduate will create higher value than a graduate is high-taking a long term perspective, hiring MBAs often is a smart decision. "Today industry wants human resource management professionals who are also business managers and have an understanding of the overall business perspective," says V. K. Gupta, director, Management Development Institute (MDI).
Gone are the days when a management professional was confined to managing expenses and swore by deliverables to achieve. Today, it is a most sought after discipline that offers a range of opportunities helping aspirants to climb up the corporate ladder.
Aspirants can choose to specialise in the field of finance, marketing, executive, international business, human resource and entrepreneurship to name a few. "In terms of number of jobs being offered to management graduates in functional areas such as finance, marketing and human resources will witness the maximum growth in the near future," says Samir K. Barua, director, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
Industry experts agree, Ashok Suyal, vice president, Talent Acquisition and Deployment, GlobalLogic, says, "Sales or marketing continues to remain as top draw among management aspirants followed by finance and human resource. Traditionally management is seen as a fast-track career to achieve higher professional objectives and within ranks. I believe that today a degree from any premium B-school is pre-requisite for a successful career launch. In days to come this will only increase as the businesses are becoming more competitive and global in nature."
Another option could be an executive management programme for working professionals. These are workable for both seasoned professionals as well as aspiring management students. This programme is an excellent opportunity for non MBAs who have moved or are about to move to the management cadres. The concurrent work experience becomes a good base to interpret the management concepts and internalise the same in day to day working. The enhanced perspective does guide better problem analysis and decision making.
"Although a part-time MBA programme cannot be as rigorous and comprehensive as a regular MBA programme, it is certainly an option for those who cannot give up their jobs and become full time students," points Barua. The top business schools such as the Indian Institutes of Management, Faculty of Management, Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI), offer management programmes that include specialisations in various areas of management.
"Management is probably the best paying career around these days. Invariably, those with management qualifications are paid far more than their peers without such qualifications. They also rise much faster in the corporate hierarchy, and much higher, too," says Rekha Sethi, Director General, All India Management Association (AIMA).
After completion of their management specialisations, a graduate can be recruited as a wealth manager, financial analyst, consultant, planner or an human resources executive for instance and command a hefty pay package of `8-`20 lakh per annum which increases with industry experience over the years. It is no longer about what to sell, who to sell and how to sell, it is no longer about marking the deliverables. The job of a management executive has evolved into being transformational and strategic. Management graduates are sought after in every business.
Also, they are most valued in the fields that involve high-stake, high risk plays. Traditionally, financial services, fast moving consumer goods and consultancy companies pay exorbitant remunerations to corner the best management students from the most prestigious business schools. But now, the new mega businesses, such as information technology, retail, telecom, aviation and real estate are also popular destinations for the ambitious management graduates.
Today's top talent need to be competitive and ready to work in uncertain and unchartered terrains. In this age of information, the global markets are increasingly drawing closer and are becoming competitive than ever and it is advisable to have people equipped within the team to stay ahead of the game. "A career in management is not only about pecuniary gratification but also about pursuing aspirations like leading teams, managing change and overall become a global citizen," says Suyal.
Courtesy: India Today Institutes
- Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata
- Xavier Labour Relations Institute Jamshedpur
- Indian Institute of Financial Planning Delhi
- Faculty of Management Studies Delhi
Starting salary
- Ranges from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 12 lakh per annum
- A financial analyst can earn between Rs 25,000 and Rs 30,000 p.m.
- A marketing executive can earn between Rs 60,000 and Rs 1 lakh p.m.
- A human resource manager can earn between Rs 35,000 and Rs 40,000 p.m.
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