Program Type: PGDM

Professor Yi Jianhong, Vice President, Kunming University of Science and Technology KUST  along with other senior faculty from the university recently visited IMI Kolkata.

Officially founded in 1954 Kunming University of Science and Technology (KUST) is one of the top 100 universities in China, and the largest university as well as the only polytechnic university across Yunnan province. KUST has 3 campuses, all located in Kunming City, the capital city of southwest China’s Yunnan Province, Kunming is known as the Spring City of China, due to its mild weather all year round.

In a meeting with faculty from IMI Kolkata, faculties from both the universities discussed the possibilities of academic and cultural exchange between the two countries. The discussions revolved around Student and Staff Exchange Program, Joint research collaborations, Educational resources exchange and sharing and various other facets which would enable both the institutes to establish stronger collaborations.

Dr. Roma Puri, Associate Professor from the OB & HRM area visited the Pori Unit of the University of Turku under the Erasmus + Mobility Grant Agreement in the month of April, 2019. Dr. Puri conducted sessions for the undergraduate students on “Understanding Cross Cultural Dimensions of International Business” and “Understanding India: In the Context of International Business”. She conducted a special session on “Blue Ocean Strategy” for the students. The sessions were interactive and the students were very keen to know about India and its uniqueness in the world of business. Dr. Puri also shared her ongoing research on the role of HRM in enhancing sustainability in manufacturing organizations in a research seminar attended by the faculty and research scholars of the University. The visit concluded with a meeting which was meant to explore avenues to strengthen the collaborative ties between IMI Kolkata and the University of Turku. The discussions covered the following areas-

1. Continuing with the teacher and student exchange programmes and also to include exchange of doctoral students in the mobility project.

2. Executive education: Offering short term and long term management development and executive education programmes for both Finnish and Indian executives.

3. Encouraging participation in conferences conducted by University of Turku and IMI Kolkata by the faculty members of both the institutions

This was the first of teacher exchanges that has happened in the year 2019. Earlier this year Dr. Harrie Virolainen had visited IMI Kolkata as a part of the same agreement.

International Management Institute (IMI) Kolkata celebrated its Seventh Annual Convocation on Saturday, May 11, 2019 at the Dr. R. P. Goenka Auditorium, Alipore campus. Shri Sanjay Mitra, IAS officer and the Union Defence Secretary of India, delivered the convocation address. Addressing the students, he mentioned that their learning at IMI Kolkata has armed them with a formidable array of tools to combat problems. Once they step out of the campus and move into the real world, their achievements will depend on how well they put this toolkit to use. Furthermore, in a large measure, the success as a professional is likely to hinge on the choices they make in their lives. He stated that his choices have effectively hinged upon 5 pillars taken from Lee Iacocca’s nine Cs of effective leadership: Character, Conviction, Creativity, Communication and Courage.

7^th Annual Convocation video

Mr. Mitra added that while focusing on being hugely successful in life, one should keep a thought somewhere in some corner of the mind of how to contribute in making the lives of poor and deprived better. Congratulating the graduating students at the event, he concluded by saying that though the world is fiercely competitive, they should not have any fear in facing it as they have been tempered by one of the most rigorous programmes in the world and are now ready to show their mettle.

This year a total of 125 students including 49 girls were conferred the National Board of Accreditation (NBA) accredited PGDM of IMI Kolkata, which is accorded equivalence with the Master of Business Administration (MBA) Degree by the Association of Indian Universities (AIU).The prestigious Dr. Rama Prasad Goenka Gold Medal was awarded to Mr. Gourav Guha, for academic excellence.

While addressing the gathering, Professor Arindam Banik, Director of IMI Kolkata, mentioned, “IMI Kolkata has carved out a trajectory which has set an example in reviving the historical leadership and management legacy of Kolkata. The Institute is currently among the top 45 management institutes in India, as per India Rankings 2019 published by National Institute Ranking Framework (NIRF) , MHRD,Government of India.

The Director also stressed on the importance of the twin facets of inclusivity in the journey of IMI Kolkata as an institute. On one hand, since its inception, IMI-Kolkata has 5 per cent of total seats reserved for economically weaker sections, as visualized by its honourable members of the Board of Governors. On the other hand, the international collaborations are of great importance for IMI Kolkata. Over the years, students from ESC Rennes School of Business (France), IDRAC Business School (France), South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences (Finland) and Sichuan University (China) and other top universities of the world have chosen IMI Kolkata as their favourite destination for academic and cultural exchange.

Mr. P.K. Khaitan, renowned lawyer and Member of IMI Kolkata’s Board of Governors presided over the Convocation Ceremony.

The 9th Orientation program of International Management Institute – Kolkata (IMI-K) was held on June 19, 2019 at the institute’s Dr. R.P. Goenka auditorium. The programme was graced by Dr. Michael Feiner, the Consul General of the German Consulate General in Kolkata as the chief guest.

9^thOrientation Programme PGDM BATCH 2019-21

Prof. Arindam Banik, Director of IMI congratulated the new batch of 180 students for being chosen from 4600 applicants and for enduring the meticulousness to withstand the rigorous selection process. This year, IMI Kolkata has students coming from 22 states of the country. Dr. Banik recited how IMI Kolkata has always nurtured intellectually diverse talent in the students and why it believes in creating an environment for knowledge dissemination through diverse backgrounds of the faculty members for intellectually capturing the innovative, creative and diversified minds of the students. IMI Kolkata weaves the integrities of knowledge making by developing a milieu of sharing and revering knowledge all around aiming to create inclusive management thinkers and makers of tomorrow.

A former Diplomatic Liaison to President (Speaker) of German Parliament, Dr. Feiner referred to IMI Kolkata as a “beautiful and innovative business school which depicts multiple shades of management teaching and manifolds promise to ensure great teaching sheathing the wealth of knowledge and skills, the institute otherwise specializes in”. He connects to the business students and business leaders as he comes from a business family background. He concluded preaching an important learning to the students – “We should try to remain true to ourselves and depict our true personality for reaping the advantage of learning and implementing the same to make a better world”. On a similar note, Smt. Swatilekha Sengupta and Smt. Sohini Sengupta, eminent national award winning theater personalities quoted the importance of being real and said “There is nothing more beautiful than being you”.

The institute hosted an exclusive workshop for the new batch of students by team “Nandikar to start out the induction week led by eminent theatre personalities Mr. Rudraprasad Sengupta, Smt. Swatilekha Sengupta and Smt. Sohini Sengupta. The workshop is aimed to harness the creative skills of the students.

The IMI-Kolkata campus in Alipore, spread over nearly 3 acres, was established in 2010 to provide significant opportunities to learn, grow and develop multiple skills across various disciplines of Management. Centrally located, the Kolkata campus is also equipped with residential facilities. The Institute’s Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) is accredited by the National Board of Accreditations (NBA). The Institute also offers an AICTE approved full-time Fellowship Programme in Management (FPM).

Orientation Workshop by Rudraprasad Sengupta and his team “Nandikar”

The institute also awarded the prestigious Dr. Rama Prasad Goenka Merit Scholarship to the present second year students. Ms. Tanishka Murarka received the highest scholarship of ₹75,000. Ms. Vedika Jalan and Mr. Sourya Sengupta are also recipients of this scholarship.

The fifteenth Annual Conference of the Asia-Pacific Economic Association was held at Fukuoka University, Japan on August 1-2, 2019. Senior faculty members of International Management Institute Kolkata were invited to present papers. Papers were presented in the conference by eminent dignitaries and academicians from all over the world in varied economic fields, with empirical studies or theoretical analysis, and with or without direct relevance to the Asia-Pacific economies.

The Key officials of Asia-Pacific Economic Association gathered for dinner with senior faculty members of IMI Kolkata.

Professor Arindam Banik, Director, IMI-Kolkata, Professor Tirthankar Nag, Dean, Research and International Relations, Professor Paramita Mukherjee, Dean, Academics, Dr. Sahana Roy Chowdhury and Dr. Chanchal Chatterjee, Associate Professors at IMI Kolkata presented papers at the conference.

The Conference comprised of various enriching sessions on varied topics such as Asset Prices in Asian Financial Markets, Econometric and Economic Theory, International Trade, The Indian Economy, Population Ageing in Japan and Korea, Monetary Policy and International Macroeconomics, Environment Economics, The Chinese Economy, Global Economy, Investment of Human and Physical Capital, Labour and Employment, Financial Integration, International Finance, Government Budget and Economic Development, Recent Economic Reforms in India: The Leap towards Global Emergence.

Faculty members of IMI Kolkata with the dignitaries and participants of APEA Conference.

Professor Arindam Banik and Dr. Chanchal Chatterjee presented a paper on “Ownership Pattern and Governance-performance Relation: Evidence from Top Indian Companies”. Professor Paramita Mukherjee presented a paper on “Forecasting Hourly Prices: The case of Spot Electricity market in India”; Professor Tirthankar Nag presented a paper on “Exploring the Water Energy Nexus and its Linkages for Social and Solidarity Economy Based Organisations in India”. Dr. Sahana Roy Chowdhury presented a paper on “Estimating Skill Mismatches in the Indian Labor Market: A Regional Dimension”. In addition, Professor Arindam Banik and Professor Paramita Mukherjee presented another paper titled, “Do the Non- Performing Assets Vary across Public and Private Sector Banks? Evidence from India”.

The faculty members while presenting their research papers

The APEA conference was attended by a hundred and twenty participants from across forty countries. Multiple engaging papers in the areas of exchange rate, volatility, macro- economic stability, development model of East Asian countries were presented. Professor Alan V. Deardorff from Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan, Professor Joshua Aizenman, University of Southern California, USA and Professor Kar-yiu Wong from University of Washington, USA are some of the renowned academicians who attended the conference.

The campus of Fukuoka University, Japan where the Fifteenth Annual APEA Conference was held

The annual APEA 2020 conference will be held in Beijing and Shandong, China.

Internationally acclaimed Dance Bridges festival was recently held the city of Kolkata. IMI Kolkata was a proud partner of the festival and hosted workshops, performance and jam sessions. The theme for this year’s festival was ‘The Sense of Intimacy’ bringing together curated choreographic works which share personal stories with a sense of vulnerability and honesty.

Gabrielle Revlock performing “Love Is Like A Butterfly” at IMI Kolkata. Photograph clicked by Mandala.

This was the third edition of Dance Bridges Festival 2019, held in Kolkata from 1 – 5 August 2019. The festival also explored the possibilities accompanying dance performed in unconventional performance settings. The proximity of the performer with the audience in such spaces, allow for the dance to be an intimate personal encounter. There were multiple performances, films and showcases from over 20 cities and 15 countries showcased across multiple venues in the city.

On 3rd August, 2019, the Alipore campus of IMI Kolkata witnessed mesmerizing performances from internationally celebrated artists.

Musicians enhancing the mood of Dance Bridges Festival at IMI Kolkata. Photograph clicked by Mandala.

Asomates Dynameis Dance Company from Cyprus performed a dance work about stamina, compassion and spiritual quest. It reflected the intimate voyage of personal elevation that signifies both the quest for meaning and the human desire to encounter oneself and the other. Performers narrated their stories, leaving traces of their personal paths.

Gabrielle Revlock from USA performed “Love Is Like A Butterfly”, a solo performance which builds on ‘Halo’, exploring the body’s relationship to a hoop in continuous motion. Using a hoop as a prop, she wanted to subvert the assumptions that first, a hula hoop must ‘perform’ as a hula hoop, and second, the excellence of a piece with a hoop is dependent on the hoop not touching the ground.

Various performances during the evening at IMI Kolkata campus. Photograph clicked by Mandala.

Similarly, the performance of Stefano Fardelli from Italy, was a personal tale of a morning contemplation scene experienced in Varanasi.

Martin Piliponsky Braier’s performance reflecting his view of the world was equally intriguing. The performance was choreographed in Kolkata during a 15 day residency programme with dance artists from different parts of India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Lastly, “Urban Chaos” spoke about modern lifestyles, struggles and the vulnerabilities of existence in an urban digital world. This piece found its expression in the microcosm of fear & psychology of people, thus representing the macrocosm of our booming urban centres. The very talented Parth Bhardwaj and his team delivered a thought invoking performance.

The audience at IMI Kolkata was delighted to be a witness to such beautiful and heart rendering performances. The chosen venues at the campus was packed to capacity with youngsters, millennials and others enjoying the show.

IMI Kolkata organized its second Annual Management Conclave, Converse 2019, on the theme “Driving Sustainable Growth and Competitive Advantage through Design Thinking” on August 30 & 31, in IMI Kolkata campus.

2^nd Annual Management Conclave | Inaugral Session

The two-day event ignited insightful discussions among illustrious speakers. The inaugural ceremony began by lighting the lamp of erudition by the dignitaries, marking the start of the Conclave. In his welcome address, Professor Arindam Banik, Director, spoke about the inception of the idea of Converse for IMI Kolkata.Mr. Apurva Chamaria, Chief Revenue Officer, RateGain, in his keynote address elucidated that most companies are structured around silos that is a cause of concern as most organizational problems are cross-disciplinary. Design thinking helps shatter these silos, creates a virtual wall around them and makes companies more humane. Professor Mohua Banerjee drew the session to a close with a vote of thanks.

The first panel had an enlightening session on “Design thinking (Innovation)”.Mr. Dhaval Thanki, Director, Business Development (Solutions and Consulting), Cartesian Consulting, started the discussion by talking about how the combination of vertical and lateral thinking can lead to innovation. Mr. Arijit Roy, Senior Director, TCG Business Solutions, mentioned that the opportunities which we cannot avail are the biggest risks. Mr. Prabhakar Tiwari, Chief of Marketing, Angel Broking, urged the businesses to solve the problem with the customer and emphasized on the importance of subject rather than the object. Mr. Vikesh Walia, Board Member, Times Group, spoke about the various challenges companies face trying to integrate the fundamentals of both design thinking and innovation.

The keynote address was given by Dr. Anbu Rathinavel, Chief Design Office & Head-School of Design Thinking, Intellect Design Arena. He spoke about the elements of a great design, which are simplicity, experience, frictionless, efficiency, complexity reduction, and above all questioning assumptions.

The second panel shared their insights on “Design Thinking – Empathy Mapping”. The moderator for the panel was Professor Mohua Banerjee, Dean – Corporate Relations, IMIK. Mr. Dhritiman Sengupta, National Head – Strategic Accounts, Randstad India, spoke about the importance of understanding the ecosystem one is going to be a part of so that they can understand what kind of value they will bring to that organization. Ms. Namrita Mahindro, Senior General Manager – Digital Transformation and Innovation, Mahindra Group, expatiated about ‘Reverse Mentoring’ i.e. an initiative where older executives ask young employees for advice and inputs on current trending matters such as technology. Mr. Devank Mishra , COO and Founding Member, Autogram, highlighted the importance of creating relevant technology as per the needs of the target audience.

The first day of the conclave came to an eventful end with the final panel discussion on the topic “Design Thinking (Leadership and Culture)”. The session was moderated by Dr. Gobinda Roy, Assistant Professor, IMIK. Mr. Madhu Sudan Kankani, Partner – Assurance, Deloitte, explained that leadership is a skill that can be acquired and practiced. Mr. Judhajit Das, Chief – Human Resource, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company, illustrated through the iceberg model that understanding the values of people is a prerequisite for accepting their cultures. Mr. Gautam Khanna, Vice President – Global head, Modernization practice, highlighted that leadership is about learning from failures as much as it is learning from successes.

The final day of the conclave began with the penultimate panel discussion on the topic “Design Thinking (Our Digital Future)”. The session was moderated by Dr. Rituparna Basu, Associate Professor, IMIK. Mr. Christopher Victor, Director-Consumer, GlobalData, threw light on the fact that the future is going to be data centric as strategic decisions are taken on the basis of data, facts and figures. Mr. Naveen Kejriwal, General Manager, Lenovo, talked about how data drives marketing and how with the help of data, businesses are able to push consumer specific advertisements promoting their brands and influencing them to buy their product. Mr. Vipin Gandhi, India Innovation Lead, SAP, said that in order to create a long-term vision, there is a need to bring the head and the heart together for design thinking. Mr. Vivek Shah, AVP, Hotstar, talked about the benefits of using applied design thinking in the field of digital marketing. Mr. Winston A De Rosario, Head-People and Culture, Quintype, motivated the students to be become great listeners as it is the best way to be empathetic towards one another.

This was followed by a Concept Note Address on the topic – Building Extraordinary Leadership with Positive Mindset – Design Thinking. Mr. Amit Pandey, Chief Operating Officer, Exicom Telecom mentioned that according to a study, out of the skillsets required to become successful – hard skills and soft skills, about 88.5% is attributed to the latter.

The two-day came on an end with the final panel discussion on the topic – Design Thinking (Value Insights)”. The session was moderated by Dr. Boudhayan Ganguly, Associate Professor, IMIK. Mr. Chandrasekhar Mukherjee, Chief People Officer, South Indian Bank, discussed that design thinking has a significant role to play in human resources as the concepts in it are also human-centric. Mr. Jigar Avlani, DVP – HR, Edelweiss Financial Services, addressed the issue of making the three phases of an employee’s journey in an organization, from onboarding to employee life cycle to deboarding, memorable and seamless. Mr. Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya, Country Group Head- HR, Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Ltd., spoke about the habituation syndrome and said that it can restrict innovation from a design perspective. Mr. Nitin Rungta, Manager of E-Commerce, Rupa & Company Limited, spoke about the company Beyond Meat, which released the first plant-based burger to be sold in the meat section of grocery stores internationally. It was a testament to the successful implementation of design thinking which helped it to get into a monopolistic market and acquire a considerable market share.

Mementos were presented to the guests as a parting token of gratitude and appreciation. Converse 2019 came to an impressive and successful end, leaving the IMI Kolkata fraternity eager for an equally magnificent event next year.