India has been working towards providing quality education to its students so that they can compete at the global platform and make their mark. According to a strategy paper published by AIMA in 2016, the aim of the education sector in the field of management is clear: “To ensure that the Indian management education system emerges as the second best in the world, second only to that of USA”. Looking at this goal, it is very clear that the management colleges in Kolkata or any other state across India need to up their game. They need to align the future needs with their education system to ensure that the students receive the best knowledge.

Technological Advancements:
To achieve the goal of being one of the best in management education, we can not ignore the growing importance of technology. With technological advancements, there will come a time when management and technology will become inseparable. Evident in today’s work culture is the deep-rooted presence of data analytics, a fast-growing component of the technological field, in almost all management domains. With its power to simplify data and help strategize efficiently, no domain is left untouched by analytics.

Design Thinking:
With a shift in the thinking process of the consumers, organisations need to now work towards producing products and services that not just solve problems, but also provide innovative methods that the consumers will be willing to use. Here comes the importance of design-thinking wherein you consistently work towards improving what you have to provide the consumers with the best of what they want or need. The element of being able to empathise with the audience and then work towards the end product is vital in this scenario.

Leadership:
Post a management degree, you are expected to take up leadership roles at various organisations. Based on the transforming technology and the increasing need for design thinking, the leadership now has to be able to adapt to technological advancements and be high on emotional intelligence and empathy. They need to be able to foster entrepreneurial skills through these two aspects. The management institutes now have to accordingly impart knowledge so as to create a leadership that can live up to the market demands and adapt to the transforming market needs.

Keeping the above pointers in mind, many PGDM colleges in India have already started adapting their curriculum and programs to match the industry standards. With various new subjects being introduced around the use of technology in management, there are also timely guest lecture, workshops and seminars for interactive sessions with industry leaders to understand how design-thinking can be applied in the changing times. One should definitely look out for these factors while deciding on the management institute to apply to.