What are the skills required to do well in this career? How will a BBA institute/program help me to acquire these skills?
The management program is committed to developing business fundamentals through study of economics, finance, marketing, operations, systems, organizational behaviour etc.The b-school offers a practical, application-oriented, user-friendly environment. Willingness to learn is a major requirement and a potent driving force in such an environment.
Successful managers constantly demonstrate high initiative at the workplace. B-schools create opportunities for wilful display of this skill- classroom discussions, clubs, social projects and student self-governance bodies.
Management professionals also require high levels of task orientation for successful goal accomplishment. B-schools load students with assignments, presentations, case studies and projects; all this demands a strong task orientation.
Teams are the basic units of organizations; management professionals need to demonstrate an ability to work in teams. B-schools simulate the business world by requiring students to learn and deliver in teams.
Management professionals are expected to multi-task and manage multiple things at any point of time. B-schools require students to juggle multiple things every single day, which prepares candidates to practice multi-tasking.
What are the various professional paths in this career?
Management is a vast field and offers diverse opportunities to contribute to the organization. The key areas of specialization in this career path are:
Marketing Management: is the process of understanding the needs of target customers and delivering the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors. Marketing Managers should be persuasive and enterprising, with high levels of energy and initiative. Marketing Management offers a vast range of career paths to management professionals. Some of the most widely pursued options are as under:
Brand Management: The analysis and planning on how a brand is perceived in the market. It includes managing the tangible and intangible characteristics of brand and deals with challenges like branding strategies, brand identity, brand image, brand personality etc.
Services Marketing: The marketing of intangible products, referred to as services. It deals with the entire set of challenges related to creating value in the marketing of services. The challenges are even more as compared to goods, because of the nature of services – intangible, inseparable, heterogeneous and perishable.
Market Research: Consists of systematically gathering data about customers or companies and then analysing it to better understand what that group of customer needs. Data analysis involves the use of statistical tools.
Consumer Behaviour: The study of how individual customers, groups or organizations select, buy, use, and dispose ideas, goods, and services to satisfy their needs and wants.
International Marketing: Deals with issues and challenges in the marketing of goods and services in international markets, like difference in culture, business environment etc.
Human Resource Management: is the function of management that deals with hiring the right people and managing them efficiently and effectively so as to help the organization to accomplish its goals. Human Resource Managers should have strong interpersonal skills with high levels of emotional intelligence. Human Resource Management comprises a range of activities/functions, as mentioned below:
Recruitment: It aims at attracting applicants that match a certain Job criterion.
Selection: Aims at short listing candidates who are the nearest match in terms of qualifications, expertise and potential for a certain job.
Hiring: Deciding upon the final candidate who gets the job.
Training and Development: Those processes that work on an employee onboard for his skills and abilities upgradation.
Employee Remuneration and Benefits Administration: The process involves deciding upon salaries, incentives and other benefits.
Performance Management: It is meant to help the organization motivate and reward workers to ensure that the organizational goals are met efficiently.
Employee Relations: Includes areas like workplace safety, hygiene, conflict resolution so as to retain employees. Also deals with employee separation.
Finance Management: is responsible for the financial health of an organization. Finance Managers produce financial reports, direct investment activities, and develop strategies and plans for the long-term financial goals of their organization.Candidates for financial management positions should be creative thinkers and problem-solvers who are comfortable working with computers and technology. The key professional options in this path are:
Financial Controlling: Financial Controllers oversee the preparation of financial reports that review and preview the organization's financial position. They also prepare special reports required by regulatory authorities. Often, controllers oversee the accounting, audit, and budget departments.
Risk and Insurance Management: Risk and insurance managers work to reduce risks and losses that may arise from business operations and financial transactions undertaken by their company. They also manage the organization's insurance budget.
Treasury: Treasurers and finance officers manage the investment of funds and handle associated risks, oversee cash management activities, carry out capital-raising strategies to support a firm's expansion, and supervise mergers and acquisitions.
Credit Management: Credit Managers are in charge of their firm's issuance of credit, and all policies and procedures surrounding it.
International Finance Management: International Finance Managers develop financial and accounting systems for the banking transactions of multinational organizations.
Investment Banking: deals with facilitating the issuance of corporate securities and making these securities available for investors to purchase, all while trading securities and providing financial advice to both corporations and wealthy individual investors.
Public Accounting: Public accountants help businesses and individuals keep track of their finances according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Public accountants record business transactions, help prepare financial statements, audit financial records, prepare income tax returns, and provide related consulting services.
Operations Management: is the administration of business practices to create the highest level of efficiency possible within an organization.The major aim of an operations manager is to ensure timely delivery of the products and to successfully turn the raw materials into the finished products (input to output). Operations Managers should be process oriented, with a strong ability to plan, organize, evaluate and control. The following are the top career paths for individuals interested in Operations Management:
Business Operations Management: This is perhaps the most well-known and obvious track for those interested in operations management. This position oversees activities such as planning, budgeting, and scheduling in order to support the production of high-quality products at an acceptable cost and within time constraints.
Purchasing Management:is similar to operations management. However, this career path is more strictly focused on the actual logistics of purchasing raw materials and any other supplies that a company needs. A major part of the job responsibilities is in negotiating and comparing offers in order to ensure that the company procures the best quality material at the best possible price. Purchasing managers are also responsible for ensuring that goods and services are delivered on schedule.
Materials Management: The primary responsibilities of the Materials Management career path lie in the production and storage of finished goods, as well as the logistical considerations involved in transporting those goods between departments or to distribution centres, warehouses, and customers. Materials managers are also responsible for ensuring that the proper goods are being purchased or produced. Some of the common jobs in this career track include traffic managers, warehouse managers, materials managers, and logistics managers.
Operations Research: For those who wish to focus on operations management from a more theoretical perspective, the Operations Research Analyst career path can be an attractive one. Individuals in this career path are primarily responsible for determining the best allocation of a company’s assets and resources. These resources can include hard assets, but also typically include human resources, time, capital, and a number of other industry-specific resources. Individuals in this job are also responsible for assessing the current and future costs associated with those resources.
Which are the top institutes to study management in India? Also highlight the corresponding entrance tests.
What are the eligibility criteria for enrolling in a graduation program in management education?
For admission into BBA courses, students are needed to clear the 10+2 or equivalent examination from any recognized board or school. Some colleges consider the criteria of securing 50% marks in the qualifying exam. The age should be between 17 to 25 years.
What is the syllabus for BBA entrance examination?
The entrance exam is an objective type test carrying multiple choice questions divided into various sections:
Quantitative Ability – Arithmetic, Algebra, Geometry, Modern Maths
Reasoning and Analytical Ability – Word Sequence, Venn Diagram, Number Series, Coding & Decoding, Visual Reasoning, Blood Relations, Strong/ Weak Arguments etc.
General English – Usage & Grammar (jumbled paragraphs, syllogisms, fill in the Blanks, Idioms and Analogies, one-word substitution etc.), Critical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension etc.
Business & General Awareness – Current Affairs, Static Awareness (History, Economics, Geography, Science, etc.)
This is the syllabus in general; for institute/test specific insights, you need to refer to the respective institute/test website.
What are the prospects in this career?
A qualification in management has become one of the most sought-after qualifications in today's corporate world as a prerequisite to most of the top management positions as well as for successful career progression. Worldwide, the bestbusiness leaders consider a management qualification as key to the continual success of careers in sectors like manufacturing, engineering, business, education, health care and other service sectors. To meet the needs of a dynamic and turbulent business environment, the management qualification is itself evolving and adapting. Besides arming management graduates with skills/knowledge that would pave the way to top managerial positions within business organizations, this qualification is also relevant to entrepreneurs wanting to run their own businesses.
Can you give some useful links to explore this career in greater detail?
