. Hey! Did you guys hear about some Companies offering just 2.4 to 3.0Lpa at the Campus placement this year? What a shame!!! . To me, this reflects not only poor marketing by the Institute, but also a down-market Brand-image of the Profession. We can blame the Institute for allowing such Companies on the Campus.... but what about quality of our students? I met many qualified CMAs today at the Felicitation Function who could barely speak correct or passable English.... and many looked like some Clerks or Delivery Boys. No Offence to anyone in particular, but our first impression matters. We can not start grooming ourselves AFTER passing the CMA Final. Corporates would be looking for ready-made Managerial Talent. In their first harvest, they dont care about your merit or intrinsic worth. Our looks, our grooming, our language, our diction, our grammar, our self-confidence, our GK..... everything matters. Our Students MUST VISIT esteemed Corporates right away..... to experience the type of freshers they hire at 10Lpa+.... and then see what I am talking about. Please heed to these wake-up calls. Dont wait till you pass your Final. . We as a community are responsible for the Brand image we seem to have acquired. . Friends, I write here because I see FB as a medium for mass-awakening. I think, our profession is dogged by many chronic issues and has failed to respond to the radical changes in the higher education and employment market that have occured since yr 2000. I do not intend to criticise... but critique. Please do not make it personal. . I am vocal because, I believe, that there was a better way to handle the current situation. But, it ought to start with a root-cause-analysis.... Root cause analysis.... as to how we reached this stage.... (that to me, is disappointing). I joined CMA at 50, because its an esteemed profession world-wide.... and its so complementary to my area of consulting. But, worldwide, they are Management Accountants .... contributing to the businesses and running the businesses. In India, we seemed to locked in statutory stature.... which we seem to believe will continue till eternity. . See, what CIMA is already doing in India. It has no statutory status and it is quite expensive. I reckon, their pass-out percentages are about 50-60%. Yet, every graduate of theirs is employed by the time they qualify. Their freshers already securing an avg of 6.5Lpa package. . The argument on no experience is seriously flawed. World over, no MBA admission is possible without 2 yrs of work-ex. Only Indian Institutes admit students without any work experience to MBA.... and yet, the American Merchant Bankers hire IIM Grads at par with Americans..... Starting package of a IIM fresher could be up to a Crore. So, why their lack of practical experience does not come in the way of their employment? . The fashion of Management Trainees came to India in 1980, till when.... ONLY experience reigned. A Management Trainee is hired not for his experience, but for his talent, potential... and ability to challenge the status quo. These guys are typically trained in cross-functional areas over first 2 yrs within the Company (as I was) and then given mid-management position. It is like the UPSC Cadre. They are supposed to give the Company a FLIGHT while the experienced guys (but with supervisory background) are expected to upkeep the BACK-OFFICE. Why do the Banks (even the PSUs) hire some FRESH GRADUATES as PO and many many more as CLERKS? Same graduation, same College.... but different career paths.... different destinies. For the Management Trainees, sky is the limit..... whereas the Supervisory promotes soon hit the glass ceiling and retire (typically) as Officers or Middle level Managers. . So, the CLASS SYSTEM exists in the Corporates.... even if it is not intentional or explicit. There is a PREMIUM on WINNER ATTITUDE. There is a premium on APTITUDE. There is a premium on self-assurance. There is a premium on your self-conviction. Some of us are BORN LEADERS. Most of us are ready to be FOLLOWERS. Corporates tune up their hiring systems to locate the WINNERS. This Class-system is not only in India. In my experience it is fairly universal. I lived thro this Class System and prospered within. Almost every Boss that i worked for before.... was reporting into me by the time I was 34. Many of my subordinate had work-ex more than double of mine. So, lets not over-emphasize lack of practical experience. . So my question to you guys is..... whether you were happy to be perceived as FOLLOWERS and NOT THE POTENTIAL LEADERS? . When I say, our CMA BRAND seems down-market.... I know what I am talking about. It is not any students fault. But, down-market Brand scares potentially up-market students.... making the situation even worse. Thats why, the Institute needs to be extremely watchful as to how the market perceives our Brand. Do you think the management Schools add any significant value to the students over those two years? In my experience they add very little value. They just package their students well.... and then glamorize them. . Why talk about MBA Schools? Does ThumsUp bring you any vitality? No! But, the advertisers make you believe that ThumsUp was the secret of Salman/Akshays vitality. The advertisers conceive the emotional connect with the youth (target market). ... and make them believe that .... thro ThumsUp.... they could indeed be as daring and as manly as their Bollywood heroes. Why do celebrities get paid in Crores to endorse brands? Why did IIPM hire Shahrukh to endorse their Institute? It is all about identifying your potential customer, market..... identifying their aspirations, requirements.... packaging your product right..... and making the customers believe that the product was their god-sent answer. Thats marketing. . CIMA seemed to have done their homework (marketing)... because their very existence in this country depends on it. ICMAI does not care.... because they believe that their statutory stature was the pole position that no-one can ever challenge..... so they dont need the market nor the customers (industry) nor the students (products). . In the new economy, our Brand is already in the downward spiral. Aiming to earn international standard, the Institute seems to have lost sight of the quality of students it attracts. For sounding International, they have upgraded (?) the curriculum, changed the paper pattern. Result is the pass-outs dropping from 10% to 2%. If compounded for Inter and Final, it means pass-outs dropping from 0.10 x 0.10 to 0.02 x 0.02. So, why would smart young guys risk entering CMA trap.... when MBAs offered 98% pass-out rate or CIMA offered 50-60% success rate? And then 11% Campus placement???? I am sure, every SMART GUY ought to run away! . As the smart guys run away from this stream.... we will look even more down-market. Then how can we find fault with Corporates, if they were not as interested in our students? . Remember, in 2008... they first announced 3 yrs work-ex mandatory before passing? That took away the ONLY incentive that CMA offered the smart guys over CA Course. So, our registrations dropped. So, they said.... just 6 months experience BEFORE the exam will be mandatory (and rest can come later). They had said, the employer Company MUST have minimum 5 Cr turnover. When there were no takers.... they diluted it to 50 Lacs turnover. Still, no takers..... so, they invented ICMAT! I first thought, it was ONLY for the first term of new requirement.... but ICMAT continues unabated. Why/ Why? Why? And, then you say...... dont compare CMA with CA..... because CA already did their article-ship (and we did not)!!! . Lets not fool ourselves. If ICMAI demands 3 yr mandatory work-ex.... the enrollments would drop to one tenth of the current numbers. We must admit that we are in the BUYERs market. Institute can not be choosy.... because we have no takers. No takers in the Corporates (because our avg students dont look bright and employable). No takers in the smart and able Students (because its too risky and does not guarantee bright future). We have no serious takers.... because we are a poorly bred brand. Our management thinks that the statutory stature was the end-all situation. That does not work in any market economy, my dear! . As a result of poor branding.... we seem to attract students who are either ill-informed, or ones who do not have any comparable options. We have students who use CMA as a back-up for their CA (just in case if they did not pass CA). We have students those opted for CMA over CA because CMA looked less tough and had no articleship. We have students that can not afford to pay for good MBA Schools (or could not qualify their entrances). We have working students who aspire to break the Glass-ceiling at their work-place with this qualification. We seem to have BCom, MCom.... who do not want to live as second-rung accountants for all their life. We have some engineers/ accountant who with CMA hope to become functional consultants in ERP (or get out of their drab jobs). We have many talented students with non-metro upbringing, poor at language, grooming and finances. We have many, just because their friends were doing either CA or CMA. We have many.... just because they did not know what else they could do (after BCom).... and anyway did not have jobs. I have met girls... who are hanging around in CMA till their parents fix their matrimony. There are also many smart n talented guys.... who are still casual about their career.... or busy with FB and WhatsApp..... and are hoping to qualify.... with some last minute cut-n-paste. . Having said that, I dont see any attempt by the Institute to reach out to our students. To help them take stock. Our students need help. They need guidance. They need grooming. Some hand-holding. Frankly, I see many guys with half their wit... and quarter of their merit..... one tenth of studies..... earning 4-5 times the CMAs..... just because they could enroll in a smartly marketed Institute. I feel sad for my fellow students.... who been working so hard simply to pass out! Attempt ke bad attempt!!! . On the other hand, I cant fault employers. They are here for business. They want ready-made material. At least they want to believe that they were hiring a WINNER (when hiring a fresher). Most of our guys are not up to it. Even AFTER 3-5 years of exam-centric grind within the Institute. We need to admit it!! So, most of us are pushed into the working class of the Corporates. Some of us.... on personal merit.... do make to the Board-room.... and will continue to. But, that is NOT BY DESIGN. So, lets not gloat over one Chanda Koccher. It is likely, that most of us will keep pushing files, doing some audits, filing compliance, making reports and Excel worksheets... most of their youth. . I am critical of the Institute is because, they are cashing in on unsuspecting, ill-informed youth. Once we enroll, and pay our fees..... Institute barely reaches out to us. . Lets play a What if? scenario. What if, only 10% of the current students ENROLL..... we make 3 yr practical training mandatory....... our pass-out percentages rise to 35% and most pass-outs fetch a 10Lpa+ package (as freshers). Should it not be a blessing to the students? Now imagine what it would do the Institutes balance-sheet. You know, about 90%+ of the Institutes revenue comes from the fees students pay. Thats the crucial motivator, here! They dont want us to know.... intentionally....that most of us will never make it (qualifying CMA). They dont want you to abandon the Institute or else who will finance their upkeep? Thats why, I suspect, they dont declare pass-out percentages..... or campus placement stats. . I am not just talking. I am continuously pestering my Chapters Management Committee for last 2 years. I am seeking a free hand for 1-2 years.... with due mandate, resources and funds. I intend to demonstrate what all could be done.... within, and in spite of existing constraints. We may not be able to touch all the students. But we can hand-pick, say, about 25 students (of my Chapter).... and make a show-case out of this experiment. Work on them, hold hands... get the pass-out percentages to say, at least 25%.... and them place all the pass-outs locally at competitive salaries. A small island of excellence. I have steered many change initiatives for my Clients.... so this is nothing new to me. But, usually the Client pays for my services.... so they first ought to be interested in the success of the change initiative. I am worried, that the Institutes power centres have very little reason for letting me succeed with such an experiment. But, lets see. I hope, good sense will prevail. . So, while I am playing with this possibility, the situation continues... as it is. I dont think, the onus is entirely on the Institute. Our alumni is also responsible for our market standing. Our current crop of students as well is responsible for our brand image. The least they can do, is to help themselves...... simply for their personal selfish interests. Knowing what the market wants, and that, how they were being perceived as a lot..... they ought to wake up..... and start preparing. . Simple things like, reading Times everyday.... reading Economic Times, watching CNBC, speaking in English, improving their word-power, getting tech-savvy, mastering MS-Office. Nothing as challenging as passing their CMA exams. Next level of preparation could be taking some lessons in soft-skills, familarising oneself with ERP packages, buying some Stocks and tracking market performance, part-time work in good MNCs, participating in GDs, public speaking..... etc. Just imagine.... these simple things can help you get a 6Lpa package on your Day1. Your CMA qualification is just an entry-pass..... it will get you invited for an interview.... but will not be enough to get you an enviable package. . Someone suggested an alternative... that may suite many. That is.... not to worry, and keep plodding. He said, even a package of 20kpm was fine after passing.... because (as he believed) on first day, anyway CMA were not worthy of anything more. As he said, after 5 yrs package will grow to 1Lpm. But, in this approach be wary of the Glass ceiling. By this route..... barely anyone can aspire to be on the Board by 40-45! . Guys, there is nothing wrong with our Course. The depth, the rigour and the width of the curriculum is as good as CA. The focus (and hence the intended core expertise) is different. Both the courses are as challenging and as deep. The industry considers the two as inter-changeable and hence there is no design fault. . There is a difference in the statutory mandate.... but that should bother only those who intend to practice. . The core difference (and the one I am talking about) is only in the perception. The perception that is created by.... the type of the students this course attracts.... which then receive no further grooming.... and eventually go out as the Brand Ambassadors of our profession. That is the start of this downward spiral. . Our leaders have to turn this spiral upside-down. Identify a few smart students with necessary polish and winner attitude. Groom them to pass in the first attempt.... get them competitive placements, say at 10Lpa.... 100%. Dont dilute the passing rigour. Dont bring the bar down. But help Students to grow to meet up with our high passing standards. Arrange for hands-on experiences. Arrange for their grooming. Provide them professional mentors. No charity here. Charge them for it. In any case, the Institute has reserves in Crores. Lets invest them in the future of our BRAND rather than buying lands and building Offices and redecorating your cabins.... and Council members visiting over seas. Lets get our priorities right. Make our pass-outs our Brand Ambassadors. Have the jobs and employers ready to jump at them.... as soon as the results were announced. That will change the market perception. Go out, and offer the Corporates our Inter-passed as interns..... and let our interns impress them so much..... that they get job offers..... even before passing CMA. Draw in smarter students..... help them qualify in 2 yrs.... place them well. Lets turn the tide. . But, this will require a plan and resources. It will require networking. It will require tuning in to the job-market. First, it needs empathy and concern for the 6.5L students that are hopelessly scrambling to qualify. All-by-themselves. Attempt-after-attempt. Wondering what was wrong with them. It first needs the acknowledgement that CMAs have been left out by the job market in the recent times, and hence we are on lower preference levels of the employment pyramid. The current leadership has to take responsibility for the state of affairs..... and make way for fresh thinking. . Just debating on FB is not going to change anything! . At your age and exposure, many of you can not see the leadership perspective I am talking about. But, you guys are just watching a film.... whereas I have DIRECTED few films myself. So, the difference is natural. . Some of my FB friends are worried.... that some Council Members may read my post, and feel offended. My apologies. I have no intention to offend anyone. This is a third-party perspective... that they NEED NOT TAKE SERIOUSLY. They are free to ignore it. They are free to disagree with me. They are also welcome to deliberate it with me. Nothing personal here, and no offense is meant. I am just sharing my reflections with my fellow community. . Just remember, that our students deserve better.... and market will PAY them better. Only key is to tune into the market requirements.
Posted on: Fri, 17 Oct 2014 06:14:24 +0000
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