GyanCentral

It takes not just attitude, but also dealing with all sorts of people to make it to that coveted corporate chair. Job skills alone are not enough anymore. As people skills assume increasing importance in the corporate world, the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies (JBIMS) is taking help from Shakespeare's play Othello to teach lessons in organisational behaviour, an important subject while pursuing MBA, to its students.

"Different human feelings commonly seen in a highly competitive corporate world are beautifully explained in the literary masterpiece, Othello. Human behaviour and traits such as ego, jealousy, competition, breach of trust, urge for power, etc, are explained in the play. These are the exact emotions that affect an organisation and interpersonal relations among co-workers. We are educating future managers as they need to be equipped with knowledge about human behaviour," said JBIMS professor Leslie Rebello.

The initiative to include Othello was taken by the professors and students of a part-time MBA course running at JBIMS.

Most of the students enrolled for the course are working professionals and it has been a unique experience for them to understand the corporate world in a different way.

The play will be performed in front of professionals, including CEOs and managing directors, from the corporate world on February 12 between 3pm and 6pm at the YB Chavan auditorium at Nariman Point. There will be a session in which the professionals will share their experiences based on the emotions shown in Othello.

"The principle behind this project is 'Othello with a corporate mantra'. There is a simple Indian flavour added to the play with certain alterations to make it shorter. It analyses human behaviour in a classic way," said Rajiv Jain, a student who has done the scripting for the play.

"There are times when despite everything being in place, human behaviour tends to affect work. Working on the play and understanding its characters gives multiple lessons about how human behaviour is an important factor in a highly competitive corporate world," Jain said.

"I used to work in an isolated manner, thinking that my skills will show my status in an organisation. But working on the play has made me realise how important 'people skills' are. If you do not keep your senior manager updated with your activities, there is a gap which gives others an opportunity to manipulate," said Sunayan Shahani, another student.

Prof Rebello said it is a practice to teach organisational behaviour through plays in many management institutes in the West and some reputed ones in India.

The following is a list of all major bachelor of business administration (BBA) also called as Bachelor of Management Studies (BMS) exams to be conducted in the calendar year 2012 in India.

Source: Flickr

Awarding authority: Odisha Bigyan Academy, Bhubaneswar

Awards:

Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence - comprises a cash prize of Rs. 2, 00, 000/- (Rupees two lakh only), a citation, a memento, a certificate, a shawl and a silver medallion
Samanta Chandra Sekhar Award - Three awards each of the value of Rs. 50,000/- (Rupees fifty thousand only), one in each of the following branches of science may be made every year with appropriate citations for notable and outstanding research contributions, provided the work has been done within the State of Orissa:
- Physical Sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Geology, etc).
- Life Sciences (Botany, Zoology, Medical Sciences, Veterinary Sciences, Agriculture Sciences,Environmental Sciences, etc.)
- Engineering & Technology
An additional award of the value Rs. 50,000/- (Rupees fifty thousand only), may be made every year with appropriate citation for notable and outstanding research contribution by Oriya Scientists, working outside the State of Orissa, in any branch of Science/Technology as stated in Clause

Odisha Young Scientists Award - consists of a prize money of Rs. 10,000/- (Rupees ten thousand only) with certificate and a citation

Pranakrushna Parija Popular Science Award - For Authors of popular science books in Odia

Felicitation of Senior Scientists of Odisha - Felicitation of Senior Scientists shall include a scroll of Honour and a memento

Eligibility:

Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence - Persons to be eligible for this award:

should be an Oriya by birth or domiciled in Orissa since birth.
should have been an Oriya with sufficient knowledge in Oriya language at least upto the standard of Middle School Certificate examination level (documentary evidence to be enclosed).
Samanta Chandra Sekhar Award - Persons to be eligible for consideration for this award:

should be Oriya by birth or domicile.
should have passed at least Higher Secondary OR Graduate degree in any branch of Science, Engineering & Technology OR Post-Graduate degree in any branch of Science, Engineering & Technology from any recognized Institution/Board/Universities in Orissa.
Odisha Young Scientists Award - The awards would be given for outstanding research work done by young scientists working inside the State of Orissa during the years preceding the year of award. Scientists who have not attained the age of 35 (thirty-five) by the 31st December of that year preceding the year of award would be eligible for consideration for that award of a particular year.

Pranakrushna Parija Popular Science Award - Click here to view

Felicitation of Senior Scientists of Odisha - A person to be nominated shall not be less than 65 (Sixty five) years of age by December 31 prior to the year of Award. He should have also devoted at least two decades of his professional career for scientific/ technological advancement in the State of Orissa. The Nominee's contributions should be outstanding, positive and visible. A person employed by institutions outside Orissa but who had devoted at least two decades of his professional career inside the state of Orissa may also be considered for felicitations

How to apply:

Click here to download form for Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence

Click here to download form for Samanta Chandra Sekhar Award

Click here to download form for Odisha Young Scientists Award

Click here to download form for Pranakrushna Parija Popular Science Award

Click here to download form for Felicitation of Senior Scientists of Odisha

Send duly filled-in nominations as per guideline along with other particulars stated therein to the Secretary, Odisha Bigyan Academy

Nomination deadline: April 30, 2012

Click here to view details

Address:
The Secretary 
Odisha Bigyan Academy
Type-4R/ 25 
Unit – IX (F) 
Bhubaneswar-751 022 
Odisha (INDIA)

Phone: 0674-2543468

Website: www.orissabigyanacademy.nic.in

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Former President APJ Abdul Kalam said education cannot be categorised as a business product or system and only great teachers can inspire quality learning.

Addressing the students of Maharaja Sayajirao University and Prince Ashokraje Gaekwad School at two separate functions on Wednesday night, Dr. Kalam said, “It is not the great building or a great facility or great advertisements which give quality, but loveable education and great teachers do.”

“Education at the primary level has to be delivered in an integrated way by great teachers through great syllabus and by promoting affinity between parents, students and teachers. It cannot be business product or system,” he said.

He suggested educational institutions to introduce cutting edge technologies for enabling the students to make faster progress in their learning process.

Capacity building through education will enable students to deal with the real world, particularly to grow in their professional career and participate in the national development, he said.

Research creativity, innovation, ability to use high technology, entrepreneurial leadership, and moral leadership capacities are to be built up among students in their formative years by educational institutions for their participation in nation building tasks, Dr. Kalam said.

“If we develop in all our students these five capacities, we will produce ‘Autonomous Learner’ a self—directed, self controlled, lifelong learner who will have the capacity to both respect authority and at the same time is capable of questioning authority, in an appropriate manner,” he said.

Dr. Kalam also emphasised the need on students planting at least five trees and nurturing them for clean environment.

The challenges of corruption and moral turpitude in the nation, environmental degradation and need of building a compassionate society have to be overcome for making the country economically developed nation by 2020, he said.

Dr. Kalam also opened a scheme of Ramkrishna Mission Memorial which was launched at the youth convention at the C C Mehta auditorium of MS University as part of the 150th birth anniversary celebration of Swami Vivekananda.

Source : The Hindu 

With the premise that higher education institutions are not gender neutral in their structure and functioning, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has been focusing on capacity-building programmes to promote gender equality in higher education.

It has constantly been a matter of concern that though women are very much in the system as faculty members, they remain in those positions. The capacity-building is to enable women understand issues of power, governance and academic leadership, and enable them look afresh at themselves and the institutions in which they work. Capacity-building is done through workshops, conducted under the aegis of the UGC National Consultative Committee, throughout the country.

The focus of these workshops, which began in 2003, is two-fold — on the self and the institution. Speaking to The Hindu Education Plus on the sidelines of a workshop on ‘Capacity-Building for Women Managers in Higher Education' held at Avinashilingam University for Women, Susheela Kaushik, Co-Chair of the Committee, said it aimed at including more women in power and decision-making capacities.

“We have many women in higher education, but unfortunately not in administrative positions. In most cases it is the women who are to blame because for whatever reasons, they are not prepared to take up responsibilities. They should be trained to be empowered enough to take up, rather than, shirk positions. It is not right to merely blame the authorities or the system,” she said.

The Committee follows this methodology: There are a set of five manuals based on which the training is done.

There are three levels: SAM (Gender Sensitisation and Motivation) workshops, ToT (Train the Trainer) workshops, and MSEM (Management Skills' Enhancement Modules) which are spread over five to six days each.

Teachers with a certain level of experience — five to 10 years — are identified for the workshops.

Karuna Chanana, Core Group Resource Person of the scheme, South, said the response in Tamil Nadu for the programme was very good.

“The scheme is functioning in 10 regions covering all parts of the country. We started with the metros. Now we are moving towards the rural and interior parts of the country. Those who have completed the training have become managers or are on the way to becoming managers,” Ms. Chanana said.

K. Hemalatha, Regional Co-ordinator of the scheme, South, said the workshops serve as soul-searching forums where the participants not only share their professional insecurities, but also their personal problems based on gender bias. After discussing possibilities, solutions were offered.

“In the case of rotational leaderships as heads of departments, women are overlooked when their chance comes. Also, most of them are employed as temporary or on an ad-hoc basis. Even a Ph.D. holder earns a meagre Rs. 3,000 a month. These instances are more pronounced in the cases of women. During the workshops, such issues are brought out and the participants are made aware of the realities and how they should be dealt with in their institutions,” she said.

All three agree that the women who had completed the training and gone back to their institutions saw noticeable changes in themselves and in the way they functioned.

They had become better teachers — mentoring and being participative/interactive in classrooms, starting committees in colleges, taking active role in administrative work and so on.

The participants were active through networking on an exclusive website. Information, problems, and any matter that needed opinion or suggestion were shared.

Happy about the feedback and results of the scheme, the women behind the scheme are eager to take it forward with renewed vigour into the next Plan. With “total support from the UGC” they expect to introduce add-ons for addressing the problem of invisibility of women in higher education administration and management.

Source : The Hindu