Prof. Dr. Chandra Mauli Dwivedi, Director, N.L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies & Research tells Shraddha Kamdar regarding preparing students for their future careers
He is a corporate whiz, a recognized university guide for PhD with the University of Mumbai and the winner of several prestigious awards, including being honoured as one of the 50 Most Talented HR Leaders in Asia and the Greatest Corporate Leaders in India in the recent World HRD Congress.
He was working as a President & Global Head – Corp. HR and CSR of Datamatics Global Services Group of Companies. He was also on the Management Board of the organization and Director on Board of Datamatics Staffing Services Pvt. Ltd.
He is a recipient of the ‘Young Scientist Award’ from the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India; ‘Outstanding Achievement Award’, ‘Exemplary Leadership Award’, ‘Special Team Leadership Award’ and ‘Group Quality Award’ for the outstanding and valuable contribution made to the business of the company.
He holds a Master’s and Doctorate degree in industrial psychology; he has also been honoured and recognized by national and international prestigious professional forums. Having published over 25 research papers, he is a frequent contributor to magazines and publications.
He has over 30 years of experience in the areas of teaching, training, research, consulting, global HR, CSR and outsourcing functions.
And that, in a nutshell is the experience of Dr. Chandra Mauli Dwivedi who recently took over as the Director of the N.L. Dalmia Institute of Management Studies & Research. He understands the premise on which the institute was built, through its mission which is: “To provide value based quality management education with the global outlook and social conscience”. He also observes the objectives of the institute, including training young men and women to excel in professional and personal life and to be value based and ethical in all aspects of life.
Dr. Dwivedi is a person who believes in teaching by example, and he is one of those few seniors of this industry who very professionally disconnected his buzzing phone, respecting the on-going conversation. He has many ideas for the students, and he is excited to share them with our young readers.
At our institute, we have an advisory board in each discipline comprising the faculty as well as industry practitioners. The board meets periodically to deliberate on the changes in the industry as well as the current requirements, looking at the demand for personnel in every field. The syllabus and the pedagogy are then aligned accordingly. That’s how we do it at the policy level.
It is very essential that students are involved in such a process, in whichever way possible. We at the institute have a very serious feedback mechanism for the students. They can present their views and thoughts, and these are definitely considered. I must also note that some of the most innovative ideas come from the students, since they are so young and think so differently.
Almost every week, we have a seminar where students have a chance to those working in different sectors. We also host paper competitions. These are conducted upon relevant themes and topics, for instance, one we held was on ‘Make in India – the HR perspective’. About 125 institutes have been invited from across the country of which five will be selected by a jury comprising of senior-level industry professionals. In such situations, students not only have a platform to network with the professionals, but also receive some mentorship from that. In this regard, the alumni of the institute are also greatly involved in providing insights to the current students.
As far as industry interface is concerned, it is quite high at our institute. We are the only institute in the city with 12 Bloomberg terminals, with live data feeds, and which we encourage students to use to incorporate data for their projects, presentations and solutions. Plus, the students go in industrial visits to learn the processes on the floor.
We believe in ethics and values and the passion levels for what we do at the institute are very high. We not only teach the students this, we also observe it. We do not have a management quota for admission to the institute, it is based solely on national-level aptitude tests and the merits if the personal interviews and groups discussions. Apart from that, we have also inculcated values of corporate governance and CSR within the students. The students’ CSR wing at the institute is called Sparsh, where they work for the underprivileged, and in some way they touch the lives if these people.
They are very important. You see, today, only about 45% graduates are employable in the country. About 55% have a degree but they are not that employable. We need some system to develop these softer skills in them. In fact, I also feel that vocational training is the need of the hour. Every year, there is a need for a few lakh educated students, but we get only a few hundred.
At our institute, students undergo personality development and etiquette sessions for a week outside the campus, and also within. Experts come in and train students in communication skills, etiquette (all kinds – table etiquette, meeting etiquette, talking, writing and so on), as well as grooming. And we do not stop at the students. We also host multiple faculty-development sessions where the knowledge and leadership skills of the faculty are developed and updated according to the dynamic changes of industry.
We also have an incubation and innovation centre where we inculcate entrepreneurial skills in the students. Demonstrated performances are rewarded as well.
That’s an interesting question. At our institute also, we have offers from companies like Tata Consultancy Services, Hindustan Unilever Ltd., Crisil, L&T, Wipro, Capgemini and Kotak Mahindra to name a few, and sometimes, we have students refusing offers since they feel the profile does not suit them. We do not force students to accept; we try and place them where they would be satisfied. But in a situation like the one you described, I always tell my students that it is better to rule in hell rather than serve in heaven. Because then, you can transform the hell in the heaven. You can be recognised for your work and be more satisfied. In a bigger organisation, it is often easy to lose oneself since you are but a drop in the ocean… there, you might not even get to see the chairman even once. In a smaller organisation, you will have a chance to meet the management, and learn from them, and receive mentorship and feel the importance of your function. It helps greatly in developing self esteem as well.
Often, I find professionals looking to switch over from larger corporations to smaller ones to find themselves since they are looking at contributing significantly to the organisations.
This depends totally on how passionate, driven, energized and determined you are to achieve your goal. It does not matter which city you are from or which institute you study at. Your killer instinct and passion will take you to greater heights, not matter what.
