The balancing act
Being a business school leader has never been harder than it is now. Although the last year was tough for B-Schools, the future seems just as challenging. There is a pressure of expectations from multiple stakeholders including boards, students and alumni and this is largely on two fronts – strong placements performance and maintaining/improving NIRF rankings.
But this is not the first time placements have been tough. The challenge of placements first arose during the Internet bubble burst of 2001 and again, during the global financial crisis. But eventually, graduating students of the time did well and placements did bounce back.
More importantly, given India’s increasingly prominent role in the new world order and a growing distrust of China, Indian higher management education can continue to perform well despite minor setbacks as long as business schools prioritise building a long-term strategy and stay focussed on the mission of the institute.
When it comes to rankings, just as quarterly profits cannot capture a company’s overall performance, a school’s multidimensional success cannot be reduced to a single metric such as a national or global rank. Attempts to improve short-term rankings can ultimately be damaging. Unfortunately, NIRF suffers from several challenges in its ranking methodology.
Examining the top 25 NIRF-ranked schools, the difference between the school placed at the 17th rank and the 25th is less than one point out of 100. Given NIRF’s lack of transparency and somewhat inaccurate measurement methods, placing too much importance on these rankings is unwise. For example, top schools like IIM Ahmedabad and Bangalore, which have strong research ecosystems, don’t rank in the top five for research – a clear sign of issues in how research performance is evaluated. A key issue is the lack of transparently audited placement reports, which creates pressure on leadership to manipulate outcomes. The self-reported nature of data makes it easy for leaders to succumb to external pressure and manipulate figures. To maintain integrity, leaders should resist this temptation and focus on transparency.
B-Schools can ensure continued success by implementing foundational changes today. They can stay relevant only by genuinely focusing on improving the quality of learning, research (with an emphasis on quality, not quantity), and the overall student experience. Being open to feedback on placements and rankings is valuable, and it should be treated as data to enhance the school’s long-term reputation, not as the ultimate goal.
Education is a journey, and with India’s favourable demographics and growth, there will be opportunities ahead. This is why it’s crucial for schools to stay focused on the big picture. They must craft future-ready, long-term strategies that build lasting reputations. For the top 50 schools in India, the challenges remain the same. Leaders who prioritize long-term goals will strengthen their school’s reputation, while those focussed on short-term gains – whether in placements or rankings – risk eventual decline.
Business school leaders must clearly convey the school’s mission by engaging students, faculty, board members, and industry. Boards, both in public and private institutions, are now more involved, but many board members from industry may not fully understand the education sector. Leaders must communicate with stakeholders, demonstrating investments in long-term priorities and progress on relevant metrics. Top schools should focus on long-term competitiveness and leaders must emphasise that short-term thinking can ultimately harm the institution’s reputation and success.
Many global business school leaders believe that, in the next 20 years, India should establish a strong presence in global management education, with an aim to have at least 10-15 globally recognised institutions – they must be influential players, actively participating in global discussions on knowledge creation through high-quality management research and the pedagogy of management education.
Given India’s favourable demographics and strong growth story, business schools’ success can be built on the foundation of their long-term mission. This includes improving the quality of learning, building lasting relationships with industry, and creating knowledge through high-quality research. This is in the ultimate interest of not just the B-School itself, but also students, Board members, industry and the overall future management education in India.