Most improved B-School in the NIRF ranking

Could you please elaborate on the significance of accreditation and rankings in higher education? How do they contribute to the overall quality and reputation of an institution?

Accreditation helps B-Schools streamline their processes to provide high quality standards based on current professional practices and the industry needs. The standards broadly pertain to continuous improvement, faculty qualifications, curriculum relevance and learning outcomes. The continuous improvement and periodic review by peers ensures that B-schools are not just maintaining the standards but constantly improving. Graduates of an accredited MBA program will find it easier to enter global markets for employment and further education as these standards are an assurance of global quality. The accreditation bodies also provide B-Schools with the platforms for exchanging ideas, collaborate with the leading international B-Schools and learn & benchmark with the best practices.

On the other hand, Rankings help stakeholders compare and differentiate B-Schools in terms of degrees, programmes and recognition with respect to a predetermined set of parameters. Rankings position a B-School on the measured parameters as compared to others participating in the process. It is based on comparative data with respect to quality of the program, teaching and learning outcomes, achievements of students, qualifications of faculty, and other aspects of the B-schools. Furthermore, it encourages B-Schools to foster research culture and include the latest insights into the curriculum and delivery pedagogy. The periodic rankings provide a measure of continuous improvement and the changes that an institute brings to its processes year on year as compared to its peers.

Having spent 3 decades in the industry and being an industry veteran, do you believe that industry professionals perceive accreditation and rankings as relevant factors when evaluating potential hires from educational institutions? How does it impact their decision-making process?

In my experience, recruiters in India are not fully aware of the value of accreditations and hence it is still not a key factor. Since accreditation is a stamp of approval of quality and consistency of academic and other processes that a business school follows, recruiters will benefit from taking this into consideration. Recruiters are now well aware of rankings, as it has gained much attention in the media. Besides the NIRF’s India Rankings by the Ministry of Education, there are a number of other rankings. Since methodology followed by these ranking agencies are often very different, recruiters will be well advised to understand the methodology while using ranking as a criterion.

K J Somaiya Institute of Management recently achieved a significant jump in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) rankings, moving from the 71st to the 45th position. What factors do you attribute this improvement to, and how has it impacted the institution's reputation and standing in the academic community?

We are delighted to see the significant improvement in our ranking. It is a reflection of the 40+ year legacy of offering quality management education and dedicated efforts of our faculty, staff & students, and unstinted support of management and alumni. We are confident that we will continue to excel with our playbook focusing on Day 1 ready students excelling in hard & soft skills, values & governance, deep commitment to research excellence and integration with industry.

Bridging the industry-academia gap is often seen as a crucial aspect of preparing students for the job market. In your opinion, what measures can be taken to strengthen collaboration between educational institutions like KJSIM and industries to ensure the curriculum aligns with the needs of the corporate world?

K J Somaiya Institute of Management is fortunate to be located in Mumbai and have access to some of the leading corporations who are driving India's economic growth. We also have a vast network of Alumni who not only have a pan India presence but are global. Our Alumni help design our curriculum, mentor students and are even involved during the admissions process. In addition, we have a task force focusing on ‘Day1 ready graduates’ who are constantly evaluating both curricular and non-curricular activities that will prepare students for the industry. We regularly reach out to industry to understand the latest trends and also what they are looking for in MBA graduates. This input is factored in designing our program. We have a large cohort of visiting faculty from Industry who supplement our faculty in the class with practical applications and implications of what they learn. Our attempt is to increase classes taken by industry partners up to 20% of the hours in a subject. In addition, we are making several industry-led certifications accessible to our students. Our faculty are actively involved with industry in writing case studies and research. Last but most importantly, we have a very active executive education program where we provide a largely customized program for mid and senior level managers in the company. This also exposes our faculty in tune with real problems/issue in the industry which they bring to the regular MBA program.

Raman Ramachandran, Ph.D:

After spending 2 decades at BASF, Raman Ramachandran retired as Chairman & MD of BASF India and Head of BASF Legal entities in South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh & Sri Lanka). Subsequently, he joined PI Industries as MD & CEO and held the position till December 2022. During his career, he also led industry associations as Vice President, Crop Life Asia and Chair of Chemicals & Petrochemicals sector of Confederation of Indian Industries. He currently is the non-executive Chairman of Calibre Chemicals Ltd., and an Independent Director, on the board of Proklean Technologies Ltd. He was recently awarded 'Lifetime achievement award' by the Chemicals & Petrochemicals group of Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). After a successful 3-decade corporate career, he joined the academic world. He is currently the Director, K J Somaiya Institute of Management and Dean - Faculty of Management Studies, Somaiya Vidyavihar University.