There are ample jobs available in the corporate sector, but only a few can make up for the management level jobs. Anyone can be an MBA but it needs a lot of skills, knowledge and the right perspective other than what books can provide to be on the top. With this vision, Dr. Manasa Nagabhushanam, Director (Academics, Research and Administration) of Ramaiah Institute of Management is dedicatedly working to provide quality and experiential education to the students who are aspiring to be the leaders of the future.

The rich experience in the education sector enables Dr. Manasa to work progressivelyin building a culture for students where they can enhance their leadership skills with a holistic approach and achieve academic excellence.

Dr. Manasa Nagabhushanam engaged in a one-on-one interaction with Women Entrepreneur Magazine. Read the excerpt of the interview from the magazine given below.

Give Us A Brief About The Ramaiah Institute Of Management. What Are The Important Features Of Your Expertise You Would Like To Highlight Through This Article?

Ramaiah Institute of Management was the vision of Late Dr. M. S. Ramaiah to provide quality management education for future leaders. The institute’s flagship program PGDM offers contemporary management education with more than 10 specializations to enable a wider choice to students to shape their careers. RIM also offers a PGDM IEV program with a unique blend ofpractical and conceptual knowledge coupled with experiential learning to promote innovation, entrepreneurship and venture development. The institute has an incubation centre and an innovation cell with required mentoring to launch aspiring entrepreneurs and start-ups to grow on the campus.

The highlighted feature of my leadership is to build an academic culture that can deliver lasting results. I don’t believe in a top-down approach, instead, I prefer to build a culture of volunteering and mastery where each individual realizes their potential and voluntarily contributes to the achievement of goals.

Tell Us About Your Educational Journey And Prior Industry Experience That Motivated You To Foray Into Field Education? How To Create A Differentiation In The Market And How To Do Sustainable Branding?

I started my career as a faculty in a UG College and later moved to business schools, I got a good break in my academic career with an opportunity to teach a semester in the US. Working further, I started undertaking industry consulting assignments, that pushed me to set up a private limited company that was into research and consulting.

Only sustainable practices can create differentiation and Ramaiah Institute of Management believes in long term impact rather than any jugaad (makeshift arrangement). Ramaiah is known for strong governance practices, focusing on employee growth and providing the best to the students. Today the marketplace is fuzzy and brand differentiation is a big challenge However, we work on our core competencies and the values we live for, this acts as a big differentiator.

What Is Your Role As The Director Of Ramaiah Institute? What Are The Critical Leadership Philosophies That You Follow To Succeed And What Strategies Do You Leverage The Quality Education Imparted At Ramaiah Institute?

As per designation, I am the Director of Academics, Research and Administration, but I mainly play a strategic role in building the organization and less in the day to day operations. My primary role is to build the organization and develop benchmarking methods that are unique to the organization. and from a rigid structure to a flexible goal-oriented approach.

“Living with passion and living with inspiration is what is required to overcome the barriers to success”

The quality of education depends on several factors however, the first tool we tried was to give students more choice in choosing the courses they study and the second is a more relevant and promising curriculum. We have a very optimal student-teacher ratio, allowing faculty more time to respond to student needs, developing a very effective micro-plan for course delivery, and at the same time also focusing on research and consulting.

In Your Opinion, How Has The Higher Education Landscape Evolved In The Indian Context And What Are The Developments You Foresee In This Field? Tell Us About The Milestones You Have Achieved So Far And What Has Been The Driving Force Behind Your Success?

Access to education has expanded but, the quality and equity in education have become greater challenges. The National Education Policy 2020 is now going to transform the HEI landscape further, students will have greater choice and flexibility to choose their careers with ease. Outcome-based education will encourage students to grasp knowledge for real-time applications. Online education is becoming a new normal during the pandemic, we need to wait to see the impact of digital education on the regular courses offered by HEIs.

I had a great experience working as a member of Bangalore University as a nominee for Chief Minister and an executive council member of the Central University of Karnataka as a President’s nominee. Apart from this, I got an opportunity to be a member of the curriculum drafting committee under the task force to implement the National Education Policy in Karnataka. My driving force is the people around me like my teacher and my family members who supported me in my efforts to achieve success.

What Would Be Your Advice To The Young Girls And Women Who Aspire To Become Business Leaders In Future?

As per my take, we women create boundaries for ourselves in which we operate, we start recognizing these unconscious and invisible barriers as the first step in moving towards our goals. We should live with passion and inspiration to overcome these barriers to success.

Dr Manasa Nagabhushanam, Director, Ramaiah Institute Of Management

Dr Manasa as the Director of Ramaiah Institute of Management is imparting her expertise and skills to young minds and enabling them to be professionally competent and socially responsible leaders of the future