The growing need for managers with expertise in niche areas seems to be pushing a large number of working professionals towards management programmes in data analytics, risk management and healthcare management, among other specialisations.
While B-schools offering such programmes have seen an increase in batch sizes, those not running such courses are considering introducing such specialised MBA courses.
According to Uttam Kumar Sarkar, Dean (New Initiatives and External Relations), IIM Calcutta, there is a lack of a skilled talent pool in these areas. IIM-C offers a Post-Graduate Diploma in Business Analytics (PGDBA), jointly with ISI Kolkata and IIT Kharagpur.
“We have been surveying this area for over three years. We realised there is a shortage of skilled manpower, so we created this avenue to bridge the gap,” Sarkar told BusinessLine . IIM-C also runs a one-year, full-time post-graduate certificate programme in healthcare management.
Specialised MBAs
Such specialised MBA programmes are either being offered as regular two-year post-graduate programmes (PGP) or as executive courses of shorter duration. Some B-schools are also offering these as short-term certificate programmes, spanning one-to-three months.
IIM Lucknow offers PGP in Agribusiness Management and Sustainable Management as a two-year full-time residential programme at its Noida campus.
IIM-Shillong runs a 14-month executive management programme on Managing Business in India and China (PGPEx-MBIC) in collaboration with the Ocean University of China.
“Under this course, we get an opportunity to spend four months in China attending lectures at Ocean University, as well as interning with firms; this helps us understand the technicalities of international business management, apart from developing our network,” said Kannan Manoharan, a student of PGPex-MBIC.
Founder of Chennai-based start-up Apricot Logistics Solution, Kannan enrolled into the fifth batch of the programme to give his entrepreneurial venture the much needed push. He is currently interning with the Confederation of Indian Industry — Shanghai. “It exposes me and my business to MNCs and businesses that could turn out to be my potential clients,” he pointed out.
IIM Rohtak has 50-hour certificate programmes on project management and data analytics spread over three-to-four months.
Career prospects
IIM-C’s first batch (2015-2017) of PGDBA, comprising 51 students, received a total of 52 offers, of which 49 were domestic and three were for international roles.
The average annual domestic compensation was ₹17.14 lakh. The highest package offered was ₹33.67 lakh.
According to Rohit Dwivedi, chairman of PGPEx, IIM Shillong’s programme has witnessed a steady rise in demand, thanks to the good placement record. “Initially, there was lack of understanding among students and recruiters alike but now, things have changed,” he said.