CASE ANALYSIS ON: A quality education: Ramaiah Institute of Management Studies

1. Introduction
2. Problematic Issue/Scenario
3. SWOT Analysis
4. Alternative Courses of Action
5. Conclusion and Recommendation

The global financial crisis hit higher education harder than many might have expected, and nowhere have the odds stacked higher than in India. The nation plays home to one of the worlds fastest-growing markets for business education. Yet over recent years, the relevance of business education in India has come into question. A report by one recruiter recently asserted just one in four Indian MBAs were adequately prepared for the business world.

At the Ramaiah Institute of Management Studies (RIMS) in Bangalore, recruiters and accreditation bodies specifically called into question the quality of students educations. Although the relatively small school has always struggled to compete with Indias renowned Xavier Labour Research Institute, the faculty finally began to notice clear hindrances in the success of graduates. The RIMS board decided it was time for a serious reassessment of quality management.

The school nominated Chief Academic Advisor Dr Krishnamurthy to head a volunteer team that would audit, analyse and implement process changes that would improve quality throughout (all in a particularly academic fashion). The team was tasked with looking at three key dimensions: assurance of learning, research and productivity, and quality of placements. Each member underwent extensive training to learn about action plans, quality auditing skills and continuous improvement tools such as the plan-do-study-act cycle.

The deficits were disappointing. A RIMS students knowledge base was rated at just 36 percent, while students at Harvard rated 95 percent. Likewise, students critical thinking abilities rated nine percent, versus 93 percent at MIT. Worse yet, the mean salaries of graduating students averaged $36,000, versus $150,000 for students from Kellogg.

No matter the business, total quality management can and will work. Yet this philosophical take on quality control will only impact firms that are in it for the long haul. Every employee must be in tune with the companys ideologies and desires to improve, and customer satisfaction must reign supreme.