SPREADING WINGS

SOME OF INDIA'S B-SCHOOLS HAVE OPENED CAMPUSES AT DIFFERENT LOCATIONS. HOW IS THIS PLAYING OUT?

- BY KRISHNA GOPALAN

IF BUSINESSES IN India can surpass the limits they have historically set for themselves and going global, why should B-schools be left behind? After all, with India Inc expanding into other countries at a fast pace, there is a need for managers with a global outlook and relevant skill sets.

GOING GLOBAL

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) decided to open a campus in Dubai after looking at opportunities in different parts of the world. Bharat Bhasker, its director, says world education is unifying in a sense. “India is inviting foreign universities, and being one of the top business schools, we wanted to make our presence felt globally,” he says.

IIMA zeroed in on Dubai as it is a futuristic city with the potential to become a centre for finance, tourism and artificial intelligence (AI). Bhasker’s ambition is to bring the Dubai centre on a par with the Ahmedabad campus today. “That means we will guarantee the same quality of education, which includes bringing the case pedagogy,” he says. A newly established research centre will work on case studies focused on businesses in Dubai. Besides, faculty will move from India to Dubai to ensure co-learning. The first batch comes aboard in September, and it is expected that a significant part will be from the Indian diaspora.

“In an ideal situation, we will look at a class composition with probably 30% coming from the Indian diaspora and 70% from Africa, CIS and other Gulf countries.” Bhasker adds that eventually they will attract students from Europe as well.

A DIFFERENT TRACK