Insead comes for 'participants'

The international dimension of the Indian information technology, pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors is attracting the interests of academia worldwide.

This is testified by the interest being shown by Insead, a leading business school, with campuses in Fontainebleau, France and Singapore.

In its efforts to contribute to the internationalisation of business, Insead is in India to attract more Indians into its fold. To make it a truly global business school, it has been looking beyond the regional and national interests and trying to attract participants (they do not call them students) from as many countries as possible.

The business school, founded in 1957 in France, has advisory councils across the world made of experts from diverse fields.

What has brought its dean Gabriel Hawawini, dean, H Grunfeld Chaired Professor of Investment Banking, Insead, France to Bangalore is "to establish a research centre and also to meet businesspersons from the city who do business globally, successfully," said Hawawini.

Insead has advisory councils in 25 countries and there is no council in India. "This, despite Indians making up about 10 per cent of the total strength of the participants," said Hawawini.

As of now, two case studies are being written and another two or three case studies are being worked upon. These pertain to firms that have been successful in doing business globally.

These studies will be part of the 1-year MBA offered by Insead. The objective of Insead is to create a network, connect them and share the knowledge. Insead's main way of imparting management training is through conferences and workshops.

Insead will eventually have four research centres "" Silicon Valley in USA, Israel, India and China. It also plans to recruit research associates.

The Indian centre will focus on Indian firms that have successfully entered foreign markets. Of particular interest is startups which have internationalised early on and entered the foreign market successfully, said Hawawini.

Insead also plans to have a campus in India and thereafter China though there are no concrete plans for this yet.

With Insead's course being very intensive, the institute ensures that the participants admitted are of the right calibre.

To ensure this it has a very rigorous screening process that includes very high GMAT scores, high academic scores and a rigorous interview. With a faculty of 144 business experts, from 31 countries Insead is experienced in connecting its professors with global media.

All these do not come cheap. The 1-year MBA will set a person back by ¤43,500, approximately Rs 24 lakh. The institution also provides partial scholarships.