Pedagogy used in ISB-Hyderabad

Online Preparatory Modules

The programme starts with four online preparatory courses that form the foundation for future courses in the
programme. These modules are sourced from Harvard Business School Publishing.
The participants will spend over 80 hours refreshing their knowledge of

 Quantitative skills
 Accounting skills
 Financial skills and
 Spreadsheet modelling skills.

Pre-Course Reading Material

Pre-course reading materials which are in the form of text books, cases, articles etc. will be made available to all
participants in advance.

Participants are expected to spend 8 to 10 hours per week studying these materials before they come for classes
each term.

Online assessments and pre-course projects are also incorporated in the programme to ensure academic rigour.

Industry Speakers/Visits

An integral part of the PGPMAX is the speaker series and visits that are regularly organised throughout the
course.

Talks by industry leaders and visits to various industries in India and other countries during the programme

 Complements classroom learning and

 Brings in a practical perspective to management theories.

Simulations

Simulations help maximise classroom learning as the decisions that the participants face in these simulations
replicate the kind of decisions they would face in their own organisations.

They let participants apply the management theories learnt in class to a simulated business environment and
evaluate the results of their decisions.

Action Learning

Action learning is an important pedagogical tool that is designed to give participants a chance to practice cross-
functional integrative decision making and expose them to new management theories.
The practicum which will be done in teams of four to five participants, under a mentor/guide from ISB
Practicum will:

1. Test your leadership/team/people management skills since you will work in groups where there is no
hierarchy of designations to exert authority. As a group you have to get the work done but no individual
has authority to demand work from others.
2. Allow you to use your learning to solve business problems pertaining to other industries – in general
management roles one is expected to solve problems not encountered before
3. Help you study how learning from other industries can be applied to solve business problems in your
own industry
Online Discussion Boards

Online discussion boards enable participants to initiate discussions amongst themselves and gather responses
from other participants, faculty and teaching assistants.

These discussion boards will be made available to participants to build collaborative learning and to share
materials.

Inside India Programme

 
The Inside India programme is specifically designed to impart a holistic learning through the right balance of
academic lectures, India-centric case studies, classroom exercises, field visits, cultural visits and interaction with
leaders from both corporate and government sectors. While the actual programme will be customised based on
your organisational need, a sample of topics are given below to elucidate the depth of the programme.

Understanding Indian Business Environment

 Understanding Indian political system and its impact on business

 Analysing Indian economic growth drivers and identify challenges and opportunities
 Appreciating Indian culture, attitudes, norms and social trends and how that effects business
management
 Knowing Indian legal system including tax laws, consumer laws, regulations etc.
 Appreciating how Information Technology, R&D and innovative processes are transforming the
business landscape

Appreciating Indian Market Realities

 Getting into the Indian consumer psyche by understanding what they value, how they make choices
and what are the influences
 Understanding Indian managerial practices, people processes and operational challenges
 Getting an insider’s view into the working of the Indian multinationals – how are they playing at the
global level by leveraging their local strengths
 Knowing how the global companies are localising their models for the Indian market
 Appreciating Indian SMEs as a source of disruptive innovations and business models

Incorporating India as a strategic link in the Global supply chain

Analysing successful business strategies of global corporations to understand how companies can leverage
India as part of their strategic supply chain.

India as the new frontier of Innovation

Understanding how global companies are using India as an innovation lab, what type of innovative and dynamic
business models are evolving to cater to a rapidly growing economy and how companies can learn from these
and implement the same in other emerging markets.

Action Learning Project

Throughout the duration of the programme, you will be undertaking an action learning project, wherein you will
apply the concepts learnt to a scenario that is relevant to your organisation. This will ensure that at the end of
the programme you will not only have a solid grasp over the issues, but also will be ready with an action plan to
incorporate an India-centric approach as part of your organisation’s core strategy.

GLOBAL CURRICULUM   
Specially designed for professionals with work experience, the curriculum is challenging and comprehensive.
Some of the best minds in management education and business have been involved in creating a curriculum
that is global in scope. The School constantly strives to ensure that the curriculum is contemporary and
relevant to current industry needs.

 The curriculum at the Indian School of Business is based on cutting-edge research and global best
practices.
 It is reviewed and upgraded every year for its theoretical intensity and practical relevance.
 The curriculum is based on current businesses and real-world issues.
  The students get an opportunity to have a unique holistic learning experience.
 The core courses provide you an understanding of the fundamentals of general management, while
the elective courses give you the flexibility of individual exploration in your chosen areas of interest.

The one year Post Graduate Programme at the ISB, is designed to find the leader in each one of you. Some
of our initiatives for the same are as follows:

 Leadership Development Programme

 Planning an Entrepreneurial Venture
 Experiential Learning Programme
 Independent Study Programme
 Corporate Interaction
 The International Student Exchange Programme

Mentorship Programme

‘You cannot teach a man anything. You can only help him discover it within himself’. Galileo Galilei

The mentoring programme aims to coach the winning business plans for a successful commercialisation.
The Mentoring Board consists of experts from the industry, social entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and the
ISB faculty who would engage with the winning teams during the programme in two phases.

Phase I

The top six teams will be invited to ISB Hyderabad for a one week training programme. The aim is to create
a sustainable business model out of the business idea. The training has been designed to raise the right
questions and provide the teams with the tools to address them. This training will include:

• Critical evaluation with implementation prospective of the business idea by a team of experts

• Workshops on creating the business plan covering modules on marketing, operation management, finance,
strategy, valuation, rural marketing, microfinance, negotiation and social entrepreneurship

• Interactive sessions with young entrepreneurs to understand implementation issues

• Sessions by mentoring partners for guidance on financing and technology aspects of the venture

• Revised presentations to mentoring partners and assignment of mentors for Phase II

The pedagogy consists of classroom training, case studies, presentations, meetings and informal interaction
between the mentors and the top six teams at the ISB.

Phase II

The second phase will comprise of offline mentoring along similar lines wherein the top six teams will be
constantly supported by the mentors in their business plan refinement and execution.