The IFIM Business School, which is among India’s top six AACSB-accredited Business Schools, based in Bengaluru hosted an International Conclave on Learning Ecosystems with European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD), the leading international network in the field of management development.

The event took place on February 18 and 19, 2020 at the Taj, West End, Bangalore was inaugurated by Dr Eric Cornuel, CEO and Director General of EFMD and Dr DebashisChatterji, Director, IIM Kozhikode.

Dr Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, AICTE delivered the valedictory address at the two-day international conclave. He said that the government is seized of the challenges faced by management education in industry 4.0 and therefore, has initiated several reforms to bring in both effectiveness and efficiency in management education. He further remarked that “the initiative of IFIM Business School in embracing liberal approach is a Major Step Forward.”

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Atish Chattopadhyay, Director, IFIM Business School, said “a large number of Indian students each year go to Europe and USA for their college education to pursue their overseas dream. IFIM Business School and Vijaybhoomi University will provide a unique opportunity to combine Western efficiency with the Indian ethos. Vijaybhoomi University under the leadership of globally renowned academician, Prof. A Parasuraman is the first university in India which provides a foundation of Liberal education for a professional career.”

Elaborating on the unique approach of education, he said that such a liberal approach has resonated well with the schools both in Europe and the USA. ESCP Europe is the oldest management institute in the world with a legacy of over 200 years. “We at IFIM Business School and Vijaybhoomi University wanted to start our international collaboration with ESCP Europe, which also is an endorsement of the value of our unique proposition.”

He further remarked that “it is our privilege to have Dean Simon Mercado to come over personally and grace this occasion. This marks the beginning of a new chapter in Indian Higher Education in terms of increasing the value of education with global exposure, at a cost, which is affordable to Indian parents.”

On this occasion, pro-chancellor of Vijaybhoomi, Dr. A Parasuraman, noted services excellence guru, said that “Vijaybhoomi University, with ESCP is breaking new ground in terms of operationalising, both effectively and efficiently, the goal of delivering a truly unique liberal-professional degree, with a nice blend of global perspective and Indian values. I am truly very excited and honoured to be a part of this journey.”

Addressing the press, Mr. Sanjay Padode, President, Vijaybhoomi University explained that “this event marks the beginning of a new journey with ESCP Europe where IFIM Business School and Vijaybhoomi University has partnered ESCP to provide its students with a dual degree BBA program. This will help students pursuing BBA at IFIM Business School @ Vijaybhoomi University by having the option of completing one year in India at our campus and pursuing the remaining two years at ESCPto obtain a Bachelor In Management from ESCP and a BBA from IFIM Business School and Vijaybhoomi University. The ESCP BBA program is a three-country program where the students will need to complete their second year at one of the ESCP campuses located in Paris/Frankfurt/London after their one year in India and the third year in one of these campuses other than the campus selected by them in the second year. The students will pay the standard fee of Rs 320,000 per year for the first year at IFIM Business School at Karjat Campus and will be paying the ESCP fees for the remaining two years.”

Outlining the pedagogical approach, Dr Navneet Sharma said that “in order to produce future-proof graduates, a liberal framework of education is needed in professional education. Such a framework will allow fuller alignment of individual intelligence with market trends.”

He opined that “to reap the benefits of market disruption on account of artificial intelligence and machine learning, a complete relook at the curriculum architecture and pedagogy is need of the hour.”

The event was focused on novel approaches to learning in this new economy and the traditional education systems need to be revamped to be more flexible, adaptive, inclusive and oriented on individual needs. It encompassed the meaning of an ecosystem approach in terms of the existing elements and initiatives as well as the steps that can be taken to help it evolve to meet the current challenges. The event was attended by the member institutions of EPSI, AIMS, and EFMD in addition to Ed-Tech companies and Venture Capitalist/PE Funds aiming to infuse innovation in the learning ecosystem.