The Business of B-Schools – 5 Trends That Will Change the Way B-Schools Work

Demonstrating cues of a rebound, the Indian economy has begun treading the floors of recovery. The mast that was bent during the storm of slowdown shows signs of standing upright, bringing back the focus on reaching the $5 trillion Gross Domestic Product goal by 2024-25.

If the future of a country relies on its youth, the future of the youth depends on the education they receive. To reach the ambitious target, India would require skilled business administration professionals armed with domain-specific knowledge. Business Schools, thus, will continue to remain an important aspect of the education and the economic ecosystem.

Current offerings and future trends

The field of consulting and e-commerce are among the most popular professions to work in for B-school graduates. Currently, Schools of Business offer various programs including: Oil and Gas Marketing, Logistics Management, Auto Marketing, Aviation Management, Digital Marketing, Financial Analysis and Services, Foreign Trade, Tourism and Hospitality Management, Analytics and Big Data, Entrepreneurship and Family Business, Human Resource Management, Marketing Management, Operations Management, Digital Business, International Business and Power Management.

However, with the growing concern over climate change, poverty and the destruction of natural resources, conversations around inclusivity, sustainable development and ‘green growth’ are gaining momentum. 

Business schools are thus training their students to become more agile and adaptable to face the issues that concern the world at large. We bring to you the 5 trends that will affect the way Schools of Business will work in the future.

1. Focus on domain knowledge: Domain knowledge forms a good part of the weightage and provides an edge to the students at the time of hiring. To facilitate the transition from a set pattern of study at the campus to the challenging and unpredictable pattern in an organization, B-Schools will focus on functional training.  
2. Online and experiential learning: Non-classroom teaching and online courses will gain popularity, making the pedagogy more interactive and multi-dimensional. This will allow students to develop knowledge by engaging in direct experiences in real-word settings.   
3. Inclination towards sustainable development: Going over and above CSR stipulations, emphasis will be upon better management of the environment and natural resources.
4. Bringing equity in the world: Global issues that transcend boundaries and cannot be tackled by one country alone will find their solutions in the Schools of Business, with curriculum leaning towards emancipation and social causes to overcome inequalities that infringe on human rights norms.
5. Creating job creators: B-Schools will churn out not just jobseekers but job creators by providing industry-aligned holistic experience to the students.