The Decline of B-Schools, and The Worth(lessness) of an MBA

The chairman of the All India Council for Technical Education, Mr Damodar Acharya, doesn't seem to think much of the ratings given to b-schools by private agencies. He is quoted in The Hindu as saying that the quality of an educational institution is best judged by academics and professionals in education administration. The best that can be said about such perception is that Mr Acharya is entitled to his opinion.

Those in the business of ranking institutions offering professional courses adopt parameters such as industry interface, placement records and level of satisfaction among students. When it comes b-schools their standing can be better judged, not by academics, but by the graduates of these schools, young business executives and heads of HR in companies. In the case if IT sector major companies such as TCS and Infosys send out HR teams to assess colleges to be included in their panel of institutions for campus recruitment. The college managements are often focused on complying with employer-requirements and, the better ones, turning out readily recruitable graduates.

A faculty member of a technology institute in Bangalore, Ms P Shahida, reckons students in professional colleges tend to become customers for college managements and an HR product for recruiting agencies. There is hardly any university worth the name that doesn't offer an MBA programme. With increasing number of graduates seeking admission there is growing skepticism about the worth of an MBA, that is generally perceived as the most versatile degree that opens many doors of employment.

A management professor at McGill, Montreal, Henry Mintzberg, tracked the performance of 19 academically good students of the Harvard Business School (the class of 1990) some 13 years after they graduated (in 2003).He came up with the conclusion that 10 of the 19 considered themselves "utter failures", another four rated their performance as "very questionable", and only five out of the lot did well. The yardstick of success comprised factors such as 1) personal satisfaction with one's job 2) the respect of one's peers; and 3) holding a top post - CEO, CFO - at a corporation. Oddly, salary level expectations ranked lower in order of importance; and some MBAs included in their mix of success priorities a capability to make a difference to society.

Prof. Mintzberg is cited in NYT as saying that managers can't be created in classrooms. If b-schools give people who aren't management material the impression that they can be turned into managers, they create hubris.