The Indian Institute of Management - Kozhikode (IIM-K) welcomed its third batch of the one-year MBA programme [Post Graduate Programme in Business Leadership (PGP-BL)] to the campus here on Thursday.
Vishal Sharma, consulting leader, Deloitte Consulting India Private Limited, was the chief guest at the event which was presided over by Prof. Shubhasis Dey, Dean (Programmes and International Relations), IIMK- Kozhikode. Faculty members, staff, and students of the incoming cohort of PGP-BL were present.
In his inaugural address, Mr. Sharma emphasised the importance of learning, unlearning, and relearning in the current scenario. He said that change was a given and would happen in all spheres of life, and that students, regardless of their nature of work, should be willing to embrace change. He also exhorted students to develop a holistic leadership mindset to integrate sustainability, social, behavioural and other aspects in decision making which as personality traits were increasingly becoming the need of the hour.
Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Dey encouraged students to go outside their comfort zones, as it would help them grow personally, academically, and professionally. He also explained the fine nuances of the PGP-BL programme that equips students to explore possibilities and give them a solid academic and industrial footing.
The new batch comprises 65 students from different industry backgrounds with an average work experience of 4.9 years. Twenty-nine per cent of the batch comprises female candidates in line with the IIM-K’s commitment to gender diversity.
Services and IT/ITES account for 23% each of the incoming cohort’s industry background, followed by manufacturing and automotive sectors (18% each). Forty-two per cent students are in the 26-27 age group in the unique offering of one-year full-time residential MBA, which is emerging as one of the most sought-after programmes in the country.