Management in Common Man: Concept and the Way Forward

Management education in India is elitist - attracting the well-heeled young men and women for positive association. It is predominantly a derivative of western management thoughts
and practices. The foundations of Indian philosophy and worldview are unique and different from those of other countries. It has not evolved according to the situation on the ground in India. Or, at best, its development has been random.

This monograph, based on a larger study, attempts to answer the following five questions as a basis to determine the relevance and course correction of management education and practices in India reflecting the ground realities.

a) Is management applicable only to business situations?
b) Is the functional approach in management inevitable?
c) Is management applicable to non-organizational situations?
d) Is there any inter-dependence between management education and practices?
e) Does management in India need to focus more Indian thought?

More than a hundred articles in international and Indian contexts have been reviewed to investigate the unexplored dimensions of management education and practices in India. The
study focuses on conceptual gaps; contextual gaps; methodological gaps; identification and selection of the cases; data collection and analysis; management by individuals; and management for individuals.

The management education in India is out of sync with the ground reality. It is time to revitalise it by contextualising both course curriculum and andragogy. This monograph has made a serious attempt and offered a few suggestions to re-engineer the management education in India. It presents a case for all those people responsible for management education in India to take a fresh look at the course curriculum and andragogy.