At SPJIMR, it is believed that there is no better way of learning than hands on experience in the field . And this is made possible with the unique empowering program called the - Assessment & Development of Managerial & Administrative Potential(ADMAP)Program- wherein each student is formally enrolled in a committee (in his/her first year) that functions just as a department in any organisation. Each committee is headed by a faculty member who is responsible for facilitating committee activities and providing overall support and guidance. This program enables students to get a hang of the entire system and be involved in the decision making and running of the institute.

Learning by Practising

The ADMAP Program is a combination of theory and practice where students get firsthand experience at working under challenges situations and real time coordinates. Through committee work, students understand the importance of administration in the context of any organisation, dynamics of team work and accountability while undertaking any task.
It is a common belief that the most successful managers are the ones who know the art of managing people, whether above or below them in the organizational hierarchy. SPJIMR too firmly believes in this principle and through ADMAP it allows students to enhance their interpersonal skills and learn the art of self management, through constant interactions with  Director, Program Head, Faculty members and fellow students in order to get their work done. What makes this program the most effective is the 360 degree feedback mechanism which assists the students in analysing and filling the gaps in other's expectations and their delivery.

Under the guidance of faculty in charge Dr Uma Narayan, the program envisions to teach the students ,what is considered the biggest tool for success,  the skill of "influencing without power".   The Committees Speak Under the ADMAP Program, run 25 committees which have each been created to serve a special purpose. As for the selection process, the students are first  asked to chose the committees they would want to work for and following rounds of interviews or group discussions, the final allotment is done.  The students are allowed to experiment with their ideas and learn the art of management and administration through the year long journey of ADMAP. We present a brief description of a few committees and their role and importance in the functioning of the institution from the point of view of the committee members themselves.

Business Consulting Projects Committee : Founded in 2013, the committee is responsible for the implementation of the BCP Course where each group of students is given a live project and are mentored by industry experts to come up with a viable solution for the problem. This course was initiated to inculcate in students the ability to design effective business research studies and test their abilities through real business challenges.

" Business Consulting Projects (BCP)  was conceptualized and kick started under the umbrella of ADMAP with a vision - 'To be the best committee in ADMAP, by maximizing the opportunities of learning and development for both, the committee members as well as the students of the batch'. Under this committee we had 57 Donors who provided live projects for teams of students to work on and Industry Experts, with wide experience in the field of business research, guided the student teams. The best reports and solutions to the cases where published in our Journal"               - Zainul Khan, Business Consulting Projects Committee Member

" Managers often look at the symptoms and construe that as a real problem and gets frustrated when their solutions do not work. The key goal of our committee was to inculcate problem defining skills to solve real business problems, using research as a tool. "

-Abhinav Gupta, Consulting Projects Committee Member

 

The Centre for Financial Service Administration Committee -  Founded in 2012 the committee aims at promoting thought leadership through increased interaction with the industry, facilitating applied research and developing finance related courses/modules.

  "The CFSA committee is now in its second year of operation. Through the period of these two years, the committee has established itself in niche area of finance by promoting integration with the industry and promotion of research activities. As a committee we organised the CFSA Research Challenge to select students that would represent SPJIMR at the CFA Research Challenge. To create a "beyond the classroom" learning context, we organised the Investment Quadrant, a three month long portfolio management simulation. This helped students, especially from the finance specialisation to enhance their stock picking and portfolio management skills.

Academic and applied research activities were initiated by selecting interested candidates to assist the faculty in their research activities. We were also successful in establishing partnership with Eurex, OSTC and Barra for several initiatives to support research "
-Aaditya Jain, CFSA Committee Member, 13-14
 
 
Business School Competition Committee- This committee is responsible for facilitating access to information and resources for various national and international competitions and managing the entire process of participation in external competitions.

"The B-School Competitions committee was inducted in the ADMAP Umbrella in the year 2008, with the aim to communicate information pertaining to national and international school and corporate competitions, and to record student participation at such events throughout the year. In the last five years, the committee has evolved from an information dissemination group to a more strategic role wherein the committee is responsible for developing the skills that are typically required to ace such competitions and contribute to the learning of the students on a whole, along with being intrinsically involved in the participation verification and approval procedure.
During the course of this one year we learnt how to manage our time, to deal with existing administrative systems and the art getting things done against all odds "
-Anubha Taneja, Business School Competition Committee Member, 13-14
 

Consulting Committee : As a part of the ADMAP Program, this committee was created with a purpose to raise awareness about and generate interest among the students in the area of Consulting.     "The flagship event of the committee was the ‘Consulting Conclave, 2014' with the theme 'Business strategy in a Digitized World – Riding the Third Wave'. The Conclave was strategized to project SPJIMR as a consulting campus and offer networking opportunities to the batch with panellists from top Consulting firms. A case study challenge was also conducted in association with the knowledge partner PwC, with the objective of igniting young minds to solve complex business problems faced by the consulting industry. The committee organized a host of other activities to engage the batch. Guest lectures and workshops exposed the batch to the nuances of the Consulting profession. A Consulting Case book was launched, which was a compilation of relevant consulting concepts. Working as a part of the Consulting Committee helped me understand the industry better. It also gave me a good platform for networking. Organizing various events and activities has helped me become more detail-oriented."

-Shreya Jha, Consulting Committee Member, 13-14

 

Learning by Observing
Apart from the committees, the students also work in groups on projects under various organisations such as the Indian Railways, Times Group , Prithvi Theatre, Disaster Management Board, Mumbai Port Trust, Mumbai Police etc to further enhance their learning by "observation". These projects require students to understand the administrative and operational set up of the organisation and suggest ways to improve the efficiency of the system using the tools taught to them in classes and workshops. This enables students to understand the complexities behind running an organisation and importance of people skills and time management.

  - Jasmine Makkar Read everything about SPJIMR here Read all stories by Jasmine here