Dr. Anwar Ali, the newly appointed director of Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Ghaziabad enjoys competition in the education sector and feels research in management is the only way to move forward for business institutions. Following is what he had to say about IMT-Ghaziabad and about IMT as a brand:

What are the unique propositions that IMT-Ghaziabad stands for? List three ways in which it is different from B-schools in the same league

IMT Ghaziabad is unique in the sense that it starts training of students as managers from day one. All committees are run and managed by the students, which gives them an early exposure to the managerial life. Secondly it offers the largest number of alliances with foreign universities. Exchange programs with these international universities help the students form relationships that enhance their career. We also have an agreement with the Harvard Business School (HBS) through which we buy their case studies on a per student basis, thus providing the students with authentic study material from HBS.

Have the admissions been affected in the light of recession? What changes have been incorporated in the curriculum to counter recession?

Although the admissions haven’t been affected due to recession, there have been few changes in the curriculum to prepare the students of IMT for recession like situations. We have strengthened the course in risk management and have got the most recent cases from Harvard Business School on how companies collapsed during recession. This is to teach the students the practices in management they should avoid in their careers. We are also teaching students the aspects of the governance of PSUs through which they successfully overcame recession.

What is the general profile of the candidate who is called for GD-PI at the IMT? What do you look for in a candidate in the GD-PI round; how much weightage is given to work experience?

At IMT, candidates are called for GD-PI solely on the basis of their CAT scores. During the GD-PI round we look for a candidate’s communication skills, confidence and also his passion for management. The weightage given to work experience has been increased from this year although there is no minimum requirement criterion. We have increased the weightage of work experience to initiate more valuable discussion in the classroom, since the students who have worked before will be in a better position to ask relevant questions. This in turn will also encourage our faculty to update itself regularly.

What is the strength of your faculty? How do you ensure that they deliver the best to your students?

We have around 420 (errata: 60) faculty members in our institute. Most of them are involved in research; there are over 150 publications on current topics by our faculty. To ensure that they deliver the best, we have an annual performance management system where we evaluate the faculty member on the basis of units earned. Any member of the faculty is required to earn a minimum of 300 and a maximum of 700 units where 300 units is equivalent to teaching 6 courses. Apart from that there are a number of faculty meetings where issues relating to teaching are discussed openly and thus resolved amongst the members.

How have the placements been affected in the light of recession? What steps have been taken to counter that?

The placements have been affected considering that we took almost five to six months to place the batch that usually took only a couple of days. To avoid such situation in the future, we are targeting more companies and also targeting companies in the sectors that are doing well. Students are also being counseled to take up different kind of jobs, like in profiles apart from marketing and finance which may place them remote areas of the country.

Throw some light on the IMT Dubai campus. How did that come into being?

IMT Dubai was started when Dubai was at its helm of growth and development and the demand for business graduates was high. The target students were both the student population of India and Dubai. We also realized the need for part time MBA for working professionals in Dubai and thus we offer part time MBA with evening classes for people who are already working in Dubai.

What relations do IMT Ghaziabad, IMT Nagpur and IMT Dubai share with each other? Do you think each one of them will become competition to each other in the coming years?

All the institutes of IMT are separate independent institutions and thus just share the brand name between each other. IMT Nagpur was started in 2004 but it has developed faster than any other institute in its league. Talking about competition, we will be happy to compete with more quality institutions in the market and thus will enjoy the competition.

What is your take on interdisciplinary studies and developing IMT as a university offering other courses such as BA, BSc etc?

Lack of funds do not allow IMT to develop into a full fledged university and provide degrees in different disciplines like History, sociology etc. However, there are a large number of clubs and committees that take care that the student gets to study different subjects, apart from their core management studies. There are foreign language courses in languages such as French and Mandarin, clubs such as yoga, music, finance, consulting etc. ensure all round development of the students. We have also planned to integrate all the electives provided by the PGPM course so that all managers are well versed with all areas that management has to offer. Exchange programs between foreign universities too make the students learn many new insights that help them when they move into the job world.