MBA/ CEO SPECIAL........ Eyeing the Corner Room? Get an MBA from a Foreign University

Eyeing the Corner Room? Get an MBA from a Foreign University 
 

Increasing number of top execs are backing their Indian credentials with foreign B-school degrees

    When 41-year-old A Krishnakumar takes charge as the new CEO and MD of Philips India in December, he will become the latest in an elite club of top bosses who have one or more MBAs from leading Bschools abroad. Krishna Kumar, who has two MBAs, one from IIM Ahmedabad and the other from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, will join the likes of Vivek Gambhir, MD at Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL); Nishant Rao, country manager, LinkedIn; Sanjay Kaul, head (telecom business) at Apple India and Mittu Chandilya, CEO, AirAsia India.
Other bosses in the ‘foreign MBA’ club include Kirthiga Reddy, director of online operations and head of office, India, at Facebook; Faisal Siddiqui, India country head at HTC and Rajiv Mehta, MD, Puma, South Asia. Chandilya, 33, has two overseas MBAs — one from Insead and the other from Tsinghua University in Beijing. Gambhir, 44, who joined GCPL as chief strategy officer in 2009, has an MBA from Harvard Business School. Nishant Rao, 34, holds an MBA in strategy, entrepreneurship, marketing and international business from Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan Schoolof Management. Facebook’s Reddy is from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business while Rajiv Mehta, 35, Puma, South Asia MD has an MBA from Insead. And Kaul, who has helped transformed the way iPhones are sold in India, is an MBA from the Gustavson School of Business in Canada. HTC’s Siddiqui completed his MBA in finance and marketing from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. All of them are on the right side of 45. “The career progression of such people moves at double the speed since there is a big demandfor suchcandidates in the job market,” says Ajit Isaac, CMD at headhunting firm Ikya Human Capital.
“The quality of Indian education has been diminishing in the past 4-5 years when it comes to crossborder economic issues or handling global businesses. The recent global university rankings where none of the premier Indian institutes were present in the top 200 are testimony to that. No wonder executives with an international exposure are becoming much sought after,” says Isaac. He estimates almost 50-60% of the CXO hiring mandates require such qualifications now. For Krishnakumar, a global management course helped provide a view of business in mature markets, which he feels is not possible to acquire in an Indian school.
“Such insights are becoming more important now in the Indian perspective,” says Kumar. “While data may still show us as an emerging economy, certain sectors are showing maturity much like developed economies which is why such learning is now in demand,” he says.
GCPL’s Gambhir feels this global overview iswhatsets apartsomeof thetop US businessschools.
“There’s a larger diversity in its student base, a greater practical orientation towards learning to lead as opposed to just studying leadership and a higher thrust on innovation and entrepreneurial thinking,” he says. Other headhunters say that an MBA from a top Bschool or foreign experience scores extra points attheCXOlevel.
Arun Das Mahapatra, chairman and partner-in-charge,India atexecutive search firm Heidrick & Struggles, says that for leadership roles, most clients prefer a qualification in business studies. “Global qualification combined with a successfultrack recordwillhave a preference. MNCs believe that such profiles are a better cultural fit for them,” says Mahapatra.
“People who are trying to play, larger networked roles use the networks atthese globalB-schools to build relationships,” says Mitali Bose, director and regional practice leader at management consulting firm Hay Group India. Employers,searchfirms aswell as people with MBAs from global Bschools say that ultimately, the individual's track record, leadership skills and past experiences play a decisive role.
Says Nishant Rao: “The brand certainly matters. But a person with an international MBA may be pitted againstsomeonewithexposure to different geographies and finally, the decision will be made by viewing both people holistically.” Nonetheless, several other top bosses have backed up their existing degrees with further qualifications from abroad. This tribe includes the likes of Devendra Chawla, president, Food Bazaar, at Future Group and Murali Sivaraman, global CEO of Philips’ domestic appliance business. Both have undergone advanced management programmes from Harvard.

SREERADHA D BASU & WRITANKAR MUKHERJEE
ET131021