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Anjali Prayag

BANGALORE, July 3

AT the ICFAI Business School, an affiliate of the ICFAI University, a concerted effort is on for faculty development.

According to Prof T.R. Venkatesh, Dean, ICFAI Business School, Bangalore, "We are very clear that we are not a teaching shop or tutorials giving out lessons in management."

ICFAI teachers are as much involved in knowledge creation as in knowledge dissemination, he adds. This would mean writing research articles and case studies, pursuing doctorates, developing and conducting management development programmes for the industry and providing consultancy services for corporates.

Prof Venkatesh rues that most business schools are very keen on setting up infrastructure and the hardware rather than look at the software or the intellectual value of the school.

In pursuit of this endeavour, ICFAI Business School started the Institute of Management Teachers last year. This institute has been set up to hone the skills of fresh post-graduates who have a flair for teaching and research. "Currently the first batch has completed the first year of the three-year course and these 20 teachers will be absorbed by us," says Prof Venkatesh. Talking about the distinct features of its MBA programme, the Dean elaborates on the way it is structured. This programme follows a term structure and each term lasts for 13 weeks.

In the last term of the first year, the students are expected to spend four months in the industry. "Each student is assigned a faculty guide and an employer guide and his performance is assessed by both of them."

In the last term of the second year, the student goes through a similar, though more rigorous exercise. He or she has to spend five days a week for four months in an organisation like an employee. "This gives our students a complete picture of how it's going to be like when they actually get on to a job," asserts the Dean.

An indirect benefit of this exercise is that the faculty is in touch with the industry continuously mentoring his ward. "The teachers know exactly what's happening in the industry at that point in time."

The employers get a better perspective of the students and can decide whether they want to take them on as permanent employees. "It is a well-informed choice for the student and the employer alike and hence the anxiety is reduced," he says.

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