Aptitudes that help

Management professionals function in almost all work sectors viz. Industrial, Healthcare, Tourism and Hospitality, Corporate, Governmental and Non-Governmental Organisations to International Trade and Commerce.Their profession require them to interact with a variety of people. Some fundamental aptitudes like good communication skills, quick grasping, an ability to analyse and adapt to a situation, good emotional balance, ability to work in a team could be key to a rewarding career in Management. Many of these skills are, usually, learnt in the process of study of the course in an institution. That accounts for the high level of competition and cost involved in getting into a reputed B-school.

Career avenues

Study of Management has emerged as the most popular option, today, for its sheer value in winning prestigious and paying jobs both in India and abroad. Thanks to a globalised and consumer driven market, further monitored by shares and securities establishments and social and economic infrastructural developments through international collaborations. In the sectors such as Rural Development, Healthcare, Banking and Insurance, Hospitality etc. the transitions have made room for professionally trained manpower to manage and implement challenging work profiles. Students from premier B-schools in India get themselves recruited by MNCs and large corporate and industrial houses.

Second MBA: Many students/professionals opt for a second MBA degree from foreign B-schools (especially in US) and that is inspite of having MBA degrees from reputed Indian B-schools and work experiences in MNCs/large corporates. For, such a second MBA enables their mobility in the international job market and helps them switch their areas of specialisation such as from marketing to finance, or human resource to international trade.

How to get through

Students from any study stream can opt for a course in business management. Many Universities/Institutions offer 3-year under graduate courses such as Bachelor in Business Management (BBM)/Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA)/Business Studies(BBS), for school leavers (+2 /equivalent level of education) and select them through entrance examinations.

Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani provides a 5-year integrated management course (Masters in Management Studies, MMS) to +2 Science (PCM) students.

Nearly, 500 AICTE approved B-Schools in India conduct varieties of Master’s and Fellow Programmes in Management for graduate students as well as working executives.

These institutes (Private, Autonomous & Govt.) conduct certain national/regional level common admission tests to select students for their management programmes.

Several All India level Common Entrance Tests are conducted by leading management associations in an attempt to systematise and standardise these entrance examinations.
The IIM, Ahmedabad, conducts the Common Admission Test (CAT) through which all IIMs and other leading B-Schools of India select students. Students with graduation/equivalent education can take up the CAT examination, which consists of a written test, GD and interview, in sequence.

The IITs and Indian Institute of Science IISC, Bangalore, conduct the JMET to select students for their 2-year full time & 3-year part time (for working executives) MOM/MBA/MBM programmes. The examination is basically for BE/B Tech/B Pharma./ Agri-Engg./ B. Arch/M Sc or MA (with Mathematic or Statistics at Bachelor’s level) students. Details can be obtained from their respective website. (See institution list at the end of the chapter) or from the advertisements in leading dailies published during the month of August (both for CAT & JMET). The tests are held during December.

All India Management Association, Centre for Management Education, New Delhi, conducts Management Aptitude Test (MAT) at national level for most of the leading private and government management institutes in India.

Institutions such as Symbiosis Institution of Management Studies, Indira Gandhi National Open University, ICFAI, Bharathi Vidyapeeth, All India Management Association and many other universities offer management courses through correspondence for students as well as executives.

AICTE approved institutes in most states of India select students through CET, Common Admission Tests or state level Management Aptitude (MAT) Tests. (OMAT & OMCA-MAT entrance tests in Orissa are conducted by Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT) and Orissa Management College Association (OMCA) respectively.
Some of the special study areas in business management are discussed, here.

Finance Management

This is one specialisation, which finds application in every professional sector, whether it is banking and insurance, healthcare, hospitality, IT, stock markets, export houses, industrial houses or any other establishment. Accounting and Finance management is pivotal to each and every organisation. Students with a back ground in subjects such as economics, commerce, CA, CS, mathematics or engineering may opt for an MBA in finance, which has promising professional openings as Finance Managers/officers in government, non-government or private organisations, corporate and industrial houses.

Production/Industrial Management

Production of goods — from food to appliances, or anything manufactured is a complex process involving men and machines. Responsibilities like product research, setting up the production process, recquisioning equipments, controlling product quality and coordinating with various departments of a manufacturing units are carried out by the industrial manager. Though engineering graduates with MBA (Product Management) are generally preferred in the profession, an MBA with a graduation or post graduation background in various industry specific subjects are more sought after by respective industries. For example, a textile engineer with an MBA in product/industrial management stands a better chance in a textile manufacturing house than an MBA with a non-technical or any other technical study background.

Human Resource Development

Building upon employee potential and performance is what Human Resource Development aims at. A good HRD professional is one who is capable of working in and leading a team and solving problem. One must have an interest in people and a flair for interacting with them. An aspirant for this specialisation must learn to develop such skills.

HRD specialists are required in various organiations, big or medium to provide training and non-training solutions resulting in the companies’ improved performance. In the present management parlance a high degree of importance is given to HRD. The market is always in need of good HRD personnel.

Hospital & Healthcare Management

The concept of managed healthcare and the emergence of corporate hospitals have changed the way healthcare services used to be provided to people 10 years back. Customised medical services, better infrastructures, provision of healthcare insurances, arrangement of expert counselling, management of hospital personnel and implementation of healthcare schemes in urban and rural areas— everything today is increasingly managed by medical or non-medical professionals with a training in hospital/health management.

All India Institute of Medical Sciences, AIIMS, Delhi and Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, Ranchi provide hospital/health management courses exclusively for MBBS students. ASCI-Hinduja Institute of Healthcare Management, Hyderabad and Apollo Institute of Hospital Administration, also in Hyderabad, offer courses in hospital/healthcare administration/ management to graduate students. One of the country’s most reputed educational and research organisations, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai provides professional training on the subject to the MBBS/nursing graduates/graduates from any other discipline.

Professionals trained in AIIMs or TISS command

a better pay packet in the job market among others. (Refer the Medical Sciences chapter for the detail institution list.)

Hotel Management

Apart from candidates having degrees/diplomas in Hotel Management/Hotel Administration/ related courses, qualified engineers (Electrical/Mechanical), Horticulturists, Dietetics and Nutritionists, CAs, CSs, MBAs (Human Resource, Finance, Marketing, Materials) have great openings in the hotel industry. Many hotels recruit graduates and impart in-house training in various service areas such as guest relation, house keeping, front office jobs, kitchen and materials management etc. Oberoi and Taj group of hotels are leading names among them. (For various courses in Hotel Management and relevant institutions, refer to the institution list under the Hospitality & Tourism chapter).

The candidates interested in taking up a career in this industry should have a flair for interpersonal skills and the capability to maintain a pleasant demeanour even after long and erratic hours of duty.

Rural Management

The economic and social development at the macro level warrant similar changes at the micro level, too. Integrated development in the rural economic and social infrastructure has become the crying need of the hour. Hence, the demand for trained professionals to manage developmental projects has been consistently rising. They are required to carry out field studies, manage and implement developmental projects in agriculture, rural based industries, healthcare and environment sectors and also manage the marketing of village industries and forest produces. IIM-Ahmmedabad, Institute of Rural Management, Anand, Gandhigram Rural Institute, Gandhigram, Indian Institute of Rural Management are some of the leading institutes providing training in Rural and Agricultural Management. In Orissa, Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar is also one leading name who offers PG Diploma courses in Rural Management.