It is said that ‘knowledge will give you power, but character respect.’ But in today’s world seldom does a person pay attention to character building. Have we forgotten all the virtues which our families have taught us or is it that the way to success means we start focusing on character rather than power? Can both go hand-in-hand? What is the importance of ethics when the world slumbers in corruption?

These are some of the questions a growing mind comes across and MBA aspirants are no different. In fact, it becomes all the more crucial for budding managers to know the importance of knowledge and character, for they are the ones who aspire to change the world through their ideology. One such institute which can proudly bank on its intellectual and moral capital is IFMR.

The former reflects in the form of a strong, well experienced faculty, strong industry interface, one of its kind trading floor which gives access to virtual trading practices for future investors and an array of innovative practices followed in different areas of management. Placements at IFMR are totally a function of the sheer hard work of students and the wisdom of faculty which is mirrored by companies like JPMC, Vedanta, Accenture, Infosys etc.

The IFMR PGDM programs – PGDM-Regular, PGDM-FE and PGDM-DSF develop a unique perspective in the students by delivering a product of forty years of learning through consultancy, industry interaction and applied research. The program aims at developing a holistic manager for the future by orienting the program on the following principles known as the FIVE Is: Internationalisation, Interpersonal skills, Integrated Perspective, IT Integration and Integrity.

INTERNATIONALISATION: With businesses becoming global, it is essential that the international perspective gets built into the curriculum. This is achieved by giving an international orientation in every course both by using the latest teaching materials and through exposure to visiting faculty from leading business schools abroad like Harvard, Yale and MIT.

INTERPERSONAL SKILLS: Interpersonal skills continue to occupy the center stage in management education. It includes soft skills of communication, presentation, body language management, social sensitivity and life skills like goal setting, brain state management for effective performance

INTEGRATED PERSPECTIVE: Business schools continue to teach finance, marketing, HR and production as separate functions. These functional differences are becoming history with information technology, with emphasis on process-centric approach, taking over. The need of the hour is an integrated business perspective which is the underlying emphasis of the PGDM program at IFMR.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION: Information technology, besides being studied as a separate subject, is built into every subject and is an essential pre-requisite for the PGDM program, preparing the students for functioning in the emerging knowledge-based economy. More emphasis is given on how IT can be leveraged not only for improving business performance but also for development.

INTEGRITY: Corporate governance and ethical business practices are basic principles, which need to be integrated in to the core processes of every business. IFMR lays great emphasis on these principles through continuous interaction with practicing managers and industry captains who share their experiences and insights on matters of ethics and governance regularly through colloquia which forms part of regular IFMR activities.

Then comes the question of moral capital, how do we build on that? An array of events, ranging from special functions for kids and elders, mess workers, celebration of festivals, charity shows to management fests, holds us all together as a team. Mutual respect, discipline, responsibility and humane bonding with the society are virtues we learn as a team. The student body is well divided into committees which take care of everything under the roof; be it building corporate relations, placements, social work or even dance parties because all work and no play will surely make the innovative minds monotonous.

Also, a mentor mentee system is followed wherein each faculty is made responsible for the guidance of 6-7 students, nurturing them in both corporate mannerism and personal etiquette. Overall ,an IFMR experience is meant to enrich you on all levels of brilliance, be it as a person or as a corporate executive.

Note: This is a sponsored article and has NOT been written by the PaGaLGuY Editorial Team. It is intended from an informational perspective only and it is upto the readers to research and verify the claims and judgements in the article before reaching a conclusion.