Area of Study/Specialisation: Business Strategy

1.What brings you to S P Jain?
I am teaching at S P Jain because of the diverse curriculum and students. I enjoy their engagement and the courses S P Jain allows me to teach: international business, global strategy, entrepreneurship. It is fun to work in an environment that respects the breadth of disciplines and practical teaching skills one might have.

2.How many years have you been teaching this subject in Dubai?
This is my first year teaching with S P Jain in Dubai, however I have taught at its Singapore too.

3.What can you tell us about your experience of working with the Dubai students?
The Dubai students are excellent. They are diverse and experienced and they come to class ready to learn and share their experiences. It is really fun to work with them.

4.How do you find the new EMBA program architecture?
The timing and structure work well for the students and the professors. It’s intense with longer classes and fewer days. That seems to work for all since we want to dive in without interruptions.

5.Does it prepare the students for tomorrow’s changing dynamic business requirements?
By learning to learn. I always try to introduce case and theory in the context of this question: if you see something different then ask why it’s different. And what I mean is that the world is changing but it’s important to understand the frameworks in which it is working to understand if shifts or changes are new or if they are within what we predict. Always ask what is really happening. It’s all about mind set and learning to learn in this dynamic environment.

6.How do you compare S P Jain’s EMBA students with other B School students’ that you teach?
S P Jain’s EMBA students have significant experience and practical knowledge. They are diverse, smart and great team players. They have already succeeded and I think after their EMBA work, will succeed even more.

7.What role do simulations play in the program and how is this effective in Marketing?
I use simulations in nearly every class I teach. The primary reason is that theory stays theoretical in the mind of the practitioner up to and until they are able to practice with their own decisions and input. When we are able to input our own decisions and understand the sensitivity of those inputs, that’s when we have a better understanding. Case studies are great, but we are always in the position to judge the struggling executive in hindsight. Simulations make the students the executives and they can only look in the mirror to judge their results. And, even when it doesn’t work out, we learn something.

8.Why should I join S P Jain’s EMBA program?
The students are what makes it special. And S P Jain has recruited outstanding students. For me, an EMBA program is more about the cohort and colleagues than about the teachers. In fact I have earned my own EMBA and while I am still grateful for the lessons imparted by my talented professors, I remember even more fondly the views and discussions of my colleagues—even when I disagreed with them. Or I might say, especially when I disagreed with them. It was through the discourse and differences that I learned other views from other experiences and disciplines that truly helped me grow into a business leader.