Let’s manage IIMs sensibly

As the member of a committee of IIM directors that was involved in the first few drafts of the IIM Bill 2015, one had every reason to feel optimistic. It is not easy for the proponent of the Bill to be an opponent of it as the draft Bill has surfaced in a modified avatar in the human resource development ministry’s site.

No enlightened government would risk its reputation in trying to destroy a golden goose that has helped India shine brighter in the global arena. Nor it is easy to imagine that a segment of our bureaucracy can be so intrusive as to take it upon itself to decide on such functional aspects as (a) the manner of formation of departments of teaching in the IIMs; and (b) the qualifications, classification, terms of office and method of appointment of the academic, administrative, technical and other staff of the institute (Section 36).

I do not think this is the current government’s final position on the Bill. I hope the Bill can be salvaged through ongoing conversations between right thinking people in the government as well as stalwarts in the academic world.

What autonomy means Ideally, institutional autonomy should enable the IIMs to do several things. They should be able to recruit and employ academic and administrative staff at their own discretion. They should be able to recruit and appropriately remunerate faculty of global standards. They should determine their own academic programmes and content, and open extension campuses wherever feasible and desirable.

In accordance with their institutional mission, they should frame their unique criterion for admission. It should be possible for them to raise funds from the market and non-governmental sources without compromising their independence. They should manage their own finances and budgets within the framework of the law.

Apart from this, they should have a board of directors to help IIMs negotiate the paradox of being globally impactful, while being mindful of local geo-political interests and sensitivities. They should institutionalise succession planning for directors and academic leaders so that a leadership pipeline is created and transition traumas prevented. Thus, the quest for excellence within the IIMs would go on unhindered by political interests.

When politics intercedes The political priorities of the incumbent government and compulsions of bureaucracy have often determined the location, governance and administration of the IIMs. Many IIMs have been forced to locate themselves in remote geographies with the avowed aim of “developing the region”. Based on market logic, locating a business school where the market is should be a pragmatic decision unclouded by constituency politics. Yet, there is a non-market view that makes it possible to see IIMs as engines of social aspiration and societal change.

Very often one has seen that a small town with poor air connectivity gets a new identity because of the presence of an IIM. The IIMs in Kozhikode, Indore and Udaipur are cases in point. Not all political decisions are partisan or unjustified. In fact the creation of six new IIMs taking the tally to 19 navaratnas may actually turn out to be beneficial.

The flip side of autonomy is the question of accountability. To make IIMs accountable on the same parameters of world class Ivy League schools is as impractical as measuring the heart rate with a thermometer. For over 50 years, the IIM mandate was not to compete for talent globally but to produce quality managers for the nation. That is what we were accountable for.

Autonomy and accountability are integral to each other. Accountability is not only to external stakeholders but also to integrity and excellence, the hallmark of IIMs’ institutional culture. The key role of an IIM is the conceptualisation and creation of managers, and to create exceptional value for new generations. The primary purpose of the IIMs’ quest for autonomy are academic freedom and the power to direct resources in a way that support and sustain our vision for India's future.

The writer was director of IIM-Kozhikode, and now teaches at IIM-Lucknow. The views are personal

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