This critical note came from Ajit Balakrishnan, chairman of the board of governors of IIM Calcutta, at the institute's 43rd annual convocation. Reflecting on the future policies of IIM-C, he said the institute will focus more on its pedagogy and make it mandatory for all students to learn foreign languages, so the doors of the world are open to them.
In the coming years, the courses in humanities will be valued more than the quantitative courses, he warned.
Chief guest Arun Maira, Chaiman of the Boston Consulting Group (India) Private Limited, said it is important to distinguish between consumers and the citizens. Corporations are good at relating to the consumers within us but have not developed skills to relate to citizens. The primary need at the bottom of pyramid is to earn and not buy. Therefore business models must make more people earners, he said.
“Then, in addition to the dignity they get, they may not just buy the shampoo sachet but the whole bottle,” he added.