Every year, we usher in the new year with lots of expectations, concerns, promises, and joy. It is also the time we look not only at ‘new’ New Year resolutions, but also take stock of the ones we undertook the previous year. Is it going to be any different this time around?
Well, that depends on what you are looking at and aiming for. This piece is about and for aspiring managers and MBAs.
The global economy has been on a roller coaster ride in the last one year, with the Russian war, the Chinese crash, ISIS, oil prices going south and the US showing signs of recovery. Amidst all these, India shone as the only beacon of hope, notwithstanding the fact that the Indian government could hardly function in terms of economic reform agenda.
The year of growth
While big businesses are finding it increasingly difficult to create and keep customers, Indian start-ups are hogging the limelight internationally. The year 2016 is certainly going to be a year of growth. No matter what happens elsewhere, we, as a country, are likely to grow between 7 and 8 per cent. While this is far below what we hoped and forecasted earlier, given what the world is going through, it is very robust.
Globally, with the Internet of Things (IOT) and Social, Mobile, Analytics and Cloud (SMAC) seeking to redefine the world socially and economically, the way people live and work will undergo such transformation that won’t be linear.
Google cars, reusable space vehicles, breakthrough in energy management, and automation and artificial intelligence are not necessarily new — what may be different is that they might manifest in social and economic space soon. And 2016 may be the start.
A defining year?
Is it not true that every year, something new happens? Economic ups and downs take place, and with the connected world, in some form or other, people are affected. I believe we are on the threshold of something new, globally and locally.
This year could end up being the defining year for the country, if the trend of IITians preferring start-ups to McKinseys is any indication. The new India is displaying an appetite for risk and is jumping headlong into uncharted waters.
What it means
So for an Indian MBA, what does it all mean?
We, in India, are well poised to take advantage of these changes in 2016. The placement in top 25 B-schools has been good this year and the number of candidates who took CAT has increased — 2015 was the best in the last five years, with 2.18 lakh attempting the competitive exam.
All these indicate a positive outlook on the part of industry, as well as prospective students. A lot of Fortune 500 CEOs have been visiting India in the recent past, looking to boost growth.
Other than traditional suspects such as consulting, FMCG, IT and technology-based businesses, and BFSI, other industries like e-commerce health care, manufacturing, energy and environmental businesses, pharmaceuticals/biosciences, e-tail, and education are also recruiting. And some of these are not traditional recruiters of MBAs.
Some leading hirers are talking about not participating in campus programmes, and are instead, asking students to apply directly.
Redefined work
With middle-level management becoming increasingly redundant in a technology-driven world; with fast-paced organisations and customers demanding enhanced experience across channels, managerial work is getting redefined as we speak. That is the world that everyone will step into, in the next couple of years.
Companies are becoming increasingly demanding, when it comes to performance. It is going to be a ‘perform or perish’ world. Organisations want people who are fast on the learning curve and can be productive at the earliest — if possible, from day one. Probations or trainings, and slow and gradual on-boardings, are a thing of the past. Leaders are contemplating quarterly performance reviews against the traditional one year appraisals, since it is seen as too long a time.
Intrapreneurship will be a valuable attitude to possess. Can you, as a professional manager, manage your job/function/company as if you own it?
Generic skills
Here are a few skills that will be in demand from fresh MBAs.
Being enterprising
Ability to add value from day one
Being quick on learning curve
Ability to cope with uncertainties and changes
Ability to work with people
Being tech savvy
Having a big-picture perspective
Owning-up and self-driven
Salaries are likely to start settling down towards rational levels which is south. It has been long overdue.
This may be the year to invest in building your career from a long-term perspective and not just worry about landing a job with a big brand, no matter what the job profile is.
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