IMI Centers of Excellence

IMI is known for its excellent faculty and high quality intellectual capital. Many of the faculty members are actively involved in training, research and consultancy in areas that are of interest to them. Keeping the above in mind it was felt that developing a few focused centers of excellence will go a long way in harnessing this competency and dove tail it into a meaningful intellectual output. The output of each center will be as follows:

• Training programs for industry executives
• Research output in terms of working papers, industry papers, refereed journal rticles, books, conference presentations, etc. Consultancy projects funded by corporate and multilateral funding agencies
• Case writing around the key decision making issues relevant to the focus area of the center
• Development of specialized electives for equipping our students to perform well in the industry sector the center caters to

Centers
The following Centers of Excellence are thus being setup at IMI.

• Center for Advanced Banking and Financial Markets
• Center for Family Business and Entrepreneurship
• Center for Infrastructure Sector Financing
• Center for Excellence in Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management
• Center for Corporate Citizenship and Social Responsibility
• Center for Sustainable Development
• Center for Human Values & Leadership
• Centre for Management of Innovation and Technology
• Center for Social Sector Governance

Center Structure
Each center will have as its patron a very senior industry executive along with a high powered advisory council of industry experts. The patron and the advisory council will decide on the thrust areas of each center spanning across training programs, research, consultancy, and development of specialized electives. An IMI faculty member will be the head of each center and he/she will work very closely with the patron and the advisory council. A team of other IMI faculty members will work with the center head in the activities of the center.

 Center Descriptions

1. Center for Advanced Banking and Financial Markets
The banking and financial services industry in India has witnessed a fundamental transformation in the years since liberalization and the sector has grown in tandem with the growth of the rest of the economy. The impressive growth of this sector has been contributed by reforms and the building of appropriate institutions resulting in it engaging the attention of the policy makers. With this in mind the
objectives of this Center would be:

• To build competency of the executives of banks and other institutions operating in the financial services industry
• To carry out action research and disseminate this by organizing national level seminars for industry executives
• To benchmark with international best practices and identify focus areas of improvement in the Indian banking and financial services industry
• To suggest reforms policy for consideration by the government for implementation
• To develop models and frameworks for integrating risk management within day to day operations
• To propose security market structures keeping in mind the needs of the banking and financial services industry for being globally competitive

2. Center for Family Business and Entrepreneurship
Family Business contributes to 60-70 percent of GDP of most developed and developing countries and India is no exception. Much of the retail trade, the small- scale industry and the service sector in India are family run businesses. Similarly, entrepreneurship has played and will continue to play a central role in the growth and development of our country. Among other things, India is poised to generate new business startups in the high technology area that can help it become a major competitor in the world economy. Appropriately following are the objectives of this Center.

• To assist in the process of developing and sustaining family business and entrepreneurship programs
• To assist in the development of family business and entrepreneurship curriculum
• To cultivate awareness and development of outreach education for family businesses and entrepreneurial firms
• To act as a clearinghouse for information and foster the proliferation and dissemination of applied research in these areas
• To provide networking opportunities among potential entrepreneurs and their experienced counterparts
• To collaborate with governmental and non-governmental organizations, industry associations and others engaged in similar activities
• To develop a vibrant ecosystem for promoting family- owned and entrepreneurial ventures

3. Center for Infrastructure Sector Financing
Historically governments across countries have created infrastructural facilities to initiate and sustain growth and development requiring large investments for creation of roads, power, ports, airports, telecommunication facilities, oil exploration, oil pipelines and gas distribution systems. These infrastructure projects are largely characterized by large investments, long gestation periods, requiring specific skills. In addition to physical infrastructure, of late it has become accepted wisdom that a country cannot improve and exploit its full potential if it does not invest in its social infrastructure i.e education and health care. Considering the importance of this sector, our Center will focus on the following objectives:

• To conduct specialized training programs for the executives of the infrastructure sector companies in the areas of project appraisal and evaluation, project execution, risk management, and project management
• To carry out studies and produce sellers side research reports for the investors and bankers
• To publish industry papers and working papers
• To organize conclaves and seminars for policy makers and administrators
• To develop models for evaluating alternative financing structures for infrastructure projects

4. Centre for Excellence in Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management
Manufacturing forms the backbone of any economy. Currently, the share of manufacturing in our GDP is about 15 %. The draft 'National Manufacturing Policy' seeks to increase the share of manufacturing in the GDP to 25 per cent by 2022. The manufacturing sector, which accounts for a I most 80 per cent of the index, saw its annual growth at 8.1 per cent in 2010-11. India is now being looked upon as one of the most appropriate manufacturing destinations by foreign companies, thanks to the sub continent's vast pool of resources, cost-efficient environment and skilled workforce. Supply
chain Management is closely related to manufacturing as it ensures that products are delivered to customers at the desired cost and at the right time and of the correct specifications. Managing the supply chain has become so important these days that the war between business organizations today has turned into a war between their supply chains. Recognizing the importance of manufacturing and supply chain management IMI has set up a Center for Excellence in this field. The center envisages the following activities.

• Research in the area of manufacturing! supply chain management through paper presentations in conferences and publications in journals and through sponsored research. Research will be further strengthened by offering doctoral! fellow program in the field.
• Developing of case studies by focusing on manufacturing and supply chain management in real life companies
• Enhancing competitiveness of managers in the corporate sector by providing corporate training through management development programs.
• Organizing conferences/ seminars to provide a platform for knowledge exchange to researchers in this field
• Organizing certificate programs in this area to enhance knowledge of working executives
• Organizing guest lectures by industry professionals to disseminate real life experiences to students in the area of manufacturing and supply chain management

5. Center for Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility
The need to redefine the role of business in society is now an imperative. The original dictum that firms exist to make profits needs to be restated that firms need to focus on the triple bottom line of profits, people and planet. Focusing on the triple bottom line becomes easier if the firm in question is regarded as a good corporate citizen. The recent directive by the Government that 2% of net profit be spent on CSR raises the issue of corporates to understand the critical difference between philanthropy and CSR. This center will assists corporates to understand this difference and ensure that in a strategic context the effort yields benefits to the organization. The Centres' objective thus will be:

• To carry out research and consultancy activities, especially in the CPSEs with a view to re-introduce the strategic com ponent of th is activity
• To document and develop case studies that can be identified as best practices which can serve as a beacon for other enterprises
• To conduct capacity building programs in Executive Education so that corporates can glean the maximum benefit out of this activity
• To look into the development of value based curriculum for business schools and other educational institutions

6. Center for Sustainable Development
'The business of business is business" is the oft quoted reason why business managers try to steer away from discussions on sustainability. This argument is not tenable anymore since climate change, threat to biodiversity and rapid depletion of natural resources are inescapable facts. Given the unbridled consumption and rapidly depleting resources, continuing the status quo is not acceptable and thus there is an urgent need to seriously address issues of sustainable development. The focus of the Center would be, as follows:

• To collaborate with governmental and non-governmental agencies to provide a policy framework and an actionable agenda for sustainable development.
• To conduct research on sustainable social and environmental issues at community and national level and disseminate the findings to relevant stakeholders.
• To actively promote and enhance public awareness of the benefits of sustainable developments.
• To create discussion forums, conduct conferences/ seminars, etc. to provide a better understanding of the environmental and social issues and their impact on future generations
• To partner with academic and research institutions as well as trade and industry associations to develop curriculum for sustainable development programs

7. Centre for Human Values and Leadership
The human values signify ideas, actions and standards that individuals, organizations and societies find important, worthwhile, desirable or good. They include concerns with human happiness, well-being and nurturance. Value-driven leadership upholds and strengthens the a bove concerns in thei r respective spheres of influence. In times of major shifts in socio-economic order, the existence of human values is threatened and their relevance questioned. However, values being the only enduring force in maintaining unity in diversity, need to be preserved and strengthened with new vigor. The mission of the Centre of Human Values and Leadership thus is to promote reflectiveness about human values and value- driven leadership through research, public discourse, education and training focused on value-conflict and leadership in the contemporary times. The objectives of
the centre will be:

• To undertake applied and action research in the area of human values and value-driven leadership in Indian and cross-cultural contexts.
• To document and disseminate research findings though seminars, conferences, publications etc.
• To design and conduct training programs and workshop for executives, academicians, trade union leaders, and civil society members to assist them in developing competency in providing value-based leadership.
• To provide assistance in the development of curriculum in human values and value-driven leadership for business schools and other educational institutions

8. Centre for Management of Innovation and Technology
CMIT is an institutionalized effort designed, on the one hand, to support and fosters innovative solutions to challenges within client organizations and helping them to resolve issues arising out of management of technology, and on the other, to promote improvements in productivity of the unorganized sector. Apart from addressing the needs of enterprises in the formal and informal sectors, the Centre also looks at the concerns of the central and state government departments, R&D institutions and development agencies with regard to innovation and technology management. The prime focus of the Centre is to make Indian economy, industry, and business more competitive, nationally and internationally.

• To work as a think-tank on the issues of innovation and creativity. Inter - alia, to study innovation as a phenomenon, and identify and suggest strategies for promotion of innovation and creativity within organizations.
• To facilitate the development of entrepreneurial and innovative business culture in India.
• To study the role and scope of technology management in fostering competitiveness in the organized sector and suggest strategies for building organizational capabilities in the area of technology management.
• To identify strategies for stepping up productivity of the unorganized sector through interventions in the area of technology and innovation management.
• To develop management strategies which help build creativity among R&D organizations and bring out the full potential of R&D personnel.
• To develop and position IMI as a key partner to new business startups and other organizations interested in building their business strategies around innovation and provide them the needed consultancy inputs.
• To study best practices in the field of entrepreneurship, innovation and technology transfer and assist their adoption/adaption in the Indian context.
• To develop and undertake research programs aimed at addressing the challenges facing enterprises in the areas of innovation, creativity and technology.
• To develop and conduct a series of education and training programs aimed at management students, business managers and owners of enterprises in the field of entrepreneurship, innovation and technology management.

9. Centre for Social Sector Governance
While business schools usually deploy their expertise in research and consultancy for the benefit of the corporate world for ensuring and enhancing private profitability, IMI feels that social developmental needs cannot be ignored. The agenda of a B-school needs to go beyond corporate profits or even increasing GDP to raising living standards and ensuring equitable, democratic and sustainable development. Development is not merely increase in employment, incomes and GOP; it implies the overall quality of life, expansion of individual choices and the ability to access them. To achieve these ends, social sector institutions, programs and activities have to increase their contribution. Formulation of appropriate policies and programs and their effective implementation should be the objectives of good governance. IMI intends to play a catalytic role and help in achieving these objectives.

• Assist in analyzing and evaluating policies and programs of government and other agencies in this sector.
• Identify issues, study trends, develop policy options and suggest strategies for addressing problems in the social sector.
• Study the functioning of institutions engaged in the social sector and contribute to better management and governance of the institutions and organizations engaged in delivering services in the sector.
• Collaborate and develop linkages with relevant national and international institutions and agencies for the attainment of the above objectives.