Anurag Batra, an entrepreneur, journalist and a media observer is the Chairman & Editor-in-Chief of BW Businessworld and the Founder & Editor-in-Chief of exchange4media. Dr. Anurag Batra talks about the essential role that business schools play in driving the change in today’s economic scenario. The crisis of the last two years honed many sensibilities but the challenges that business leaders face still do not recede. The more we think of the makings of the new breed of assertive and prudent leaders and a resilient workforce, the more we understand the role that business schools play in driving change.
“We don’t just need new skill sets, where the role of technology becomes more central in its application for business growth. We also need to cultivate a generation of leaders who understand global realities and India’s place in it, the importance of ESG (environment, social, governance), possess a constant problem-solving mindset, and can lead others forward”, asserts Dr. Anurag Batra. Against this framework, the role that business and management education has to play becomes much more nuanced. It has to be the nucleus of the economy.
Business schools in India have changed more in the last two years than perhaps, in the last two decades. Anurag Batra identifies that the catalyst was the pandemic but the real change agent was the realisation of the next normal. Hybrid learning, to cite just one example, is here to stay. Its advantages and its requirements will have to be ideated at the strategy stage and cannot be a mere tactical application. Anurag Batra observes that the alumni of the top-ranked universities are making global headlines as they take on leadership roles in very tough times, for very dynamic sectors.
“The issue in your hand is a compilation of the thoughts of some leading educators who are creating leaders, along with those of industry experts, on the current day expectations from B-schools. In another special segment, discover the Great Places to Work in, in the IT & IT-BPM sectors. We hope these change agents will pave the way to a more vibrant economy”, affirms Dr. Anurag Batra.