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Top Management Thought-leaders offer advice on MBAUniverse.com
MBAUniverse.com Exclusive Interviews on Management Development & Career Planning
MBAUniverse.com, India's leading management portal, has been at the forefront of reporting trends and view-points on management education and career development. Our recent interview series includes thinker like management guru Prof CK Prahalad, Dr Pankaj Chandra, Director, IIM Bangalore; Mr Subroto Bagchi, Co-founder, Mindtree Consulting; Mr Sailesh Rao, MD, Google India and many more.
Here are highlights from these thought provoking interview. Click on the links to visit MBAUniverse.com for full interview.
Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for insights and news on Indian management domain.
Management education should be personalized and global: CK Prahalad
C.K. Prahalad, professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, is widely recognized as a leading business guru. From the classic 'Competing for the Future' in mid-90s, to the groundbreaking 'Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid' in 2004, to the 'New Age of Innovation' this year, Prof Prahalad has impacted the way business leaders think and act. In his latest book with co-author M.S. Krishnan, also from the Ross School of Business, Prof Prahalad argues that the two key areas of value creation are: focus on individual customers, and garnering resources from a global network.
In Bangalore for a seminar, Prof Prahalad spoke to MBAUniverse.com, on his view on innovation, how companies can excel and what the new age of innovation means for management education. Excerpts:
What is the central premise of your book 'New Age of Innovation'?
We need a new model of customer value creation. In the new approach to business innovation, growth of every business depends on accessing global network resources to co-create unique experience to individual customer, symbolically N=1. Companies should resource goods and services required to develop new offerings anywhere from the world R=G, to import competitiveness. It is about identifying each customer's needs & preferences, problems & working towards providing optimal services, facilities or solutions. Looking at the needs of future customer, The New Age of Innovation will act as a strategic planner which helps in transforming the same.
Two pillars (N=1) & (R=G) of the organization on which would rest the future of it. N=1 states that value is based on unique, personalized experiences of customers. It is about identifying each customer's needs & preferences, problems & working towards providing optimal services, facilities or solutions. Then & only then would the organization reach the ideal target N=1.
Google is a good example of a firm that is built on this framework.
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"Indian management institutes need to remodel and evolve", says Dr Pankaj Chandra, Director, IIM Bangalore
In December 2007, Ministry of HRD took management sector watchers by surprise when they announced Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) faculty Professor Pankaj Chandra as the Director of Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.
Having completed his doctoral studies from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1989, Professor Chandra was the youngest Indian to be appointed as the Director of prestigious IIMs.
Prof Chandra has a distinguished track record. He started his career at McGill University in Montreal in 1988 and received his tenure in 1994. He worked at IIM-A for more than 14 years from 1994 to 2007. During his stay at IIMA, he was the Chairperson of the Doctoral Programme, and the Chairperson of the Centre for Innovation, Incubation & Entrepreneurship. He has also been associated with University of Geneva, Johnson Graduate School of Management, Cornell University, USA; International University of Japan, Japan and Renmin University in Beijing, China. His courses & teaching was consistently rated among the top 5 per cent both at IIM-A and McGill.
MBAUniverse.com travelled to the Silicon Valley of India - Bangalore, to interview Dr Chandra on a host of issues related to management sector. Here are the excerpts from a candid and thought-provoking interview with Dr Chandra.
Q- You have been associated with IIM A for a decade. Now you have spent six months as the Director of IIM-B. What is unique about IIM-B?
A- The most crucial aspect of IIM-B is that it has excellent and world class faculty with interests in contemporary issues.
Another fact which makes IIM B very special is that it is very nimble in its execution. The institute is able to conceptualize and execute its programmes and initiatives far more quickly and effectively. As a result it is able to undertake many contemporary initiatives.
The third thing is that it is located in a fantastic city- Bangalore, Silicon Valley of India where there are lots of opportunities in every area. Bangalore today is the best location for a B-school in India. The access to industry is great. Telecom, IT, Avionics, Manufacturing, SME…they are all here. It's a fantastic environment! There is a lot of entrepreneurial energy in the city. Even the Bangalore weather is great! We can function around the year, which helps us link up globally.
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"MBAs and young professionals should plan their careers like musicians, or sportsmen", says Subroto Bagchi, co-founder, MindTree
Born in Patnagarh in Orissa in a place which had no electricity and no school, and then starting his work-life as a lower divisional clerk in Bhubaneshwar in1976, the life of Subroto Bagchi has many a lesson for all of us.
From humble small town background, Bagchi rose to the top echelons of Wipro and then in 1999 co-founded MindTree. Since then MindTree has emerged as one of India's most admired companies, employing close to 8000 people with its recent acquisition of Aztec. Interestingly, in 2008, Bagchi took on a new role of 'Gardener' at MindTree.
In last few years, Bagchi has done what only few successful entrepreneurs have done in India - sharing their journey and learning with students and young professionals.
His first book, 'The High Performance Entrepreneur' was released in 2006 and has perhaps become one of the most important books on modern entrepreneurship in India. His newly released second book, 'Go Kiss the World' takes his message forward.
MBAUniverse.com spent an hour with Subroto Bagchi, who was in Delhi recently. We asked his views on a range of questions - from advice on entrepreneurship and self-management, to his views on management education and MBAs. Excerpts:
Q: Mr Bagchi, you started your work life as a lowly clerk in a government office. And then you went on to excel at Wipro, only to turn into a very successful entrepreneur. How do you look at your journey...
A: It has been a very interesting ride! If I am born again, I would like to do exactly the same things. I am very satisfied with how things have evolved. I was lucky to play a part in the making of the IT industry in India. At Wipro, I set up operations in Silicon Valley way back in 1990. In 1999, ten of us from 3 different companies joined hands and co-founded MindTree.
Indian IT industry, and companies like MindTree have proven that in the new India you don't need to know someone be someone, you need to know something to be someone. It's the age of meritocracy, and I am happy to have played a part in establishing this proof of concept.
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"Understanding your skills and motivation is key to right career planning," says Shailesh Rao, MD, Google India
Young executives and MBA students must introspect about their skill-sets and likes, and choose career accordingly. In a hyper competitive world, success in work life comes only when you are best-in-class and motivated to learn everyday.
In a hyper competitive world, success in work life comes only when you are best-in-class and motivated to learn everyday. That's the message from Sailesh Rao, MD, Google India when he was delivering a lecture organized by The Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) in New Delhi on August 6, 2008. MBAUniverse.com was the Official Management Portal of this initiative.
On his career path:
"I took over as the MD of Google in India in March 2007. Earlier, I was with Google based at the company's headquarters in Mountain View, California. I did my BA from the University of Pennsylvania with Honors, a BS from the Wharton School with a concentration in finance, and an MBA from The Kellogg School of Management."
"I worked with companies like Goldman Sachs, Boston Consulting Group (BCG), AOL, and a start-up Yoodle. In my career I have made many switches, but was always focussed on learning new areas that were of interest to me. After working in the financial sector, I realized that my heart wasn't into it, and then I moved into technology. I love the technology space, because it brings change. Change leads to decision-making, and then I can judge myself."
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