The Hindu Business Line : <I>Astronomical salaries </I>

What is one to make of students from top B-Schools in India landing jobs with astronomical pay packets? The entire media was agog the last few months with spectacular offers of around Rs 50 lakh to more than Rs one crore in campus recruitments. Of course, for the B-Schools concerned, it is an excellent advertisement. The candidates will naturally be in the seventh heaven. People in India too can take vicarious credit for producing youths who are rated so highly by head-hunters.

Other than that, are such salaries the true measure of the worth of the persons' intellect and future potential in terms of creativity, innovation and overall performance? How do the recruiters convince themselves in a brief interview of 30-40 minutes that the employer will get back full value for the money from the persons selected? Or, is it merely an index of the competitive job market in the context of projected steep rise in demand for talents of the kind B-Schools, especially those which have come to enjoy the status of global brands, are supposed to develop?

These questions began nagging me further as I watched a few of the lucky ones over popular TV channels. At the risk of being considered churlish, I must say I was not impressed. Actually, far from blinding flashes of brilliance and evidence of mental prowess, I found their articulation of even run-of-the-mill ideas left much to be desired.

However, I am prepared to concede that what I feel is neither here nor there, because I have not had the advantage of being present at the actual interview. One thing is certain: The charm of the B-Schools apparently continues undimmed, despite the scepticism sometimes voiced over their products on the ground that they are unable to cope with real life situations and have generally been a disappointment in delivering the goods as well.

It will be interesting to keep tabs on how those who have hit the jackpots shape up in the future.

B. S. RAGHAVAN

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