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Coursework OR Network?

XLRI, Jamshedpur V/S IIM - Indore

"A B-School is an agency; it is a place to meet friends and network and build social contacts. The coursework is really secondary."

Argument for…

When I was first asked to write on this topic, I was a bit sceptical. Taking a stance on such a topic can sometimes be difficult. But what I see and perceive at XLRI and the Corporate World, is that you cannot climb the corporate ladder with mere knowledge as a weapon. If one cannot forge relationships and maintain them, then it is most likely that the person will be left out of the rat race to the top.

Taking a very objective view of the topic, I personally feel that B-Schools should emphasise relationship building and networking more than the curricular coursework because that not only helps you evolve as a better manager but also helps you learn more about businesses and their functioning, which is, after all, the ultimate purpose of B-School Education. My interpretation of social networking goes beyond the fact that one builds relationships only to have fun and party. It helps a person grow not only personally but also professionally. This interpretation of social networking is the basis for my proposing such a policy in B-Schools.

One cannot underestimate the importance of learning in a B-School , no company wants a person who can only network but not perform. But the key argument is that while it is a fact that networking can help a person perform well, can it be said that performance helps a person network better? The answer is a simple no! The common overemphasis on coursework can be attributed to recruiters who demand high grades as a prerequisite to interviewing students. This compels students to forget other aspects of a B-School and focus on academics totally. However, if discussions in industry and academia are anything to go by, this issue needs a deeper look. One should take a look at the articles in the Harvard Business Review, which are closely followed by many consultants to forecast the future of management. CEOs of many top multinationals keep emphasizing the need for building relationships and of visionary leadership which shows just how important it is to build relationships starting right from the Junior Management level up to that of Top Management. All students who come to B-Schools aspire to be leaders. Is it not justified, then, that a B-school should further nurture these aspirations by providing appropriate fora for networking rather than bog a student down with more coursework and assignments? No specialist in Training will disagree with me that the best learning happens informally and in casual environments. So, when there is so much research on the best methods of learning that promote building life-long relationships with peers, faculty, alumni, it would be unfortunate if B-schools were caught in a time-warp with a unilateral focus on curriculum.

There have been efforts in academia to merge the two contrasting ideas. Activities such as the Wharton Leadership Programme or the XLRI Leadership Expedition focus on outdoor learning which totally depend on networking. The survival of organisations depends more on the relationships they have with their stakeholders than on their products. If forming relationships and networking can be institutionalised by organisations, I see no reason why the same shouldn't be done by B-schools.

It will be inappropriate for me to end this debate sitting on the fence and making safe statements. Like the famous X-Files tag line says, 'The truth is out there', it is just a matter of time before there is a universal realization that the difference between a good manager and an excellent manager lies in the way he manages his relationships. A B-school therefore best fulfils its mission by facilitating the same, rather than doling out loads of theory.

Argument against…
This incidentally reminds me of another famous quote by Tryon Edwards -- "The great end of education is to discipline rather than to furnish the mind; to train it to the use of its own powers, rather than fill it with the accumulation of others."

Although students do make friends and develop networking skills in a B-School, one can hardly say that this is the primary function of a B-School. B-School curricula themselves are designed to be application-based and highly practical in nature, imparting knowledge in a form from which it may easily be put into practice.

A good half of B-School coursework requires a student to work in teams or groups, which helps develop strong interpersonal and team-building skills. Most of these groups are selected by professors or the administration. This will almost certainly be the case when a student goes on to work in an organization. This teaches students to get along with people from diverse backgrounds and get the best out of everyone's particular skill sets. Interacting with people from diverse backgrounds and seeing how they function also helps in developing an all-round orientation, which is essential when working in managerial positions in large organisations.

Meeting deadlines, some of which seem unrealistic at first, are a common experience in most organisations. Any B-School graduate can recollect burning the midnight oil in order to meet deadlines pertaining to academic courses. After these experiences, B- School graduates are willing and able to meet deadlines without blinking an eyelid, which gives them a real competitive advantage.

The curriculum itself is essential for any student, as most subjects can be directly related to the work a student will be doing in the organisation. Even if one has to study subjects that are not directly related to the vertical that he wishes to take up as a career, an all-round grounding in the basics is well worth the time spent on it. For example, a student who wishes to specialise in Marketing will be able to perform a marketing role in an IT organisation only if he has taken the necessary grounding courses in IT. Similarly, the basics of Finance, such as Net Present Value, help while evaluating costs and benefits, and are essential while preparing a project proposal in any organisation.

Smooth talking can get you a lot of places and, in today's context, knowing how to express yourself effectively is as important as knowing what to say. That, however, does not imply that the B-School curriculum is irrelevant; on the contrary, that itself contains courses that teach a student how to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing. Much more than this, however, are the everyday presentations, in every subject, through which students learn how to present highly technical subjects in a manner that is comprehensible to a layman. These skills help to polish a student, and are essential for those students who come from highly technical backgrounds, and are not used to interacting with people from other verticals. Such skills are extremely important for a manager.

To plan for the future and work in the present, it is essential that one does not repeat the mistakes of the past. Case based learning, which is practised in most leading B-Schools, enables students to analyse the successes and failures of organizations in the past, thus making them better managers for the future. These cases also acquaint students with techniques that they can later implement and the environmental conditions in which each of these may be used. Thus, we see that academics is not only an essential element of the entire B-school experience but it, in fact, is designed to impart even the soft skills that an effective manager would need to possess.