Charting a Path for the Future of Executive Education
Authored by Mr. Vikas Gupta MD at Wiley India
The culture of materialistic education is a misguided phenomenon that is seeping erroneously in the executive sector. Below are few views on the significance of education and the transformation it needs to undergo to meet the need of the hour.
Conceptual v/s Contextual
As we move towards an era of all-pervasive technology and automation, developing countries like India are facing disconnect between the academia and the industry requirements. This is due to the gap between contextual and conceptual education.
For a long time now, conceptual learning has been the forte of education with little emphasis on the contextual aspect. While this may have served the purpose so far, the rapidly changing technological scenario demands a shift in perspective. What is needed now is a fine balance between the two to bridge the gap between industry and education.
Three Pillars of an Executive Learning Model
A successful education plan that finds utility for both the employer and the employee rests on these three pillars:
- Quantifiable outcome: As per some recent reports, only 15% professionals from an elite batch of 40 under Forty, considered the executive education they received as contributing to their success. This reflects the majority view among the youth today. The ROIs of the executive education program need to be made quantifiable in clear terms to benefit the professionals who spend their time and invest their energies in the program.
- Productivity Test: The biggest challenge lies in transforming the education program to resonate with the employee perspective. The employee perspective is extremely crucial and must be built into the education model in order to make the entire exercise more fruitful and rewarding.
- Personalized Education: One way to achieve the productivity aspect is to personalize education to serve the individual needs of the user. By doing so, the differences amongst students, such as language barriers, educational prerequisites etc, can be converted into enablers that highlight their distinct capabilities and unique talents.
Instruments of Change
Technology can play a significant role in aiding this transformation with the ‘Gamification’ of educational content. This allows anyone, anywhere to have access to quality content and build interest in the subject.
Introduction of modular courses, short-term programs etc. will also enable professionals to re-skill themselves to adapt to the changing times. They can pursue these courses alongside their jobs and continually evolve and upgrade their skills.
Placing government-controlled quality tests at the exit stage of college education would help regulate the efficiency of college education. This will ensure that the young professionals are receiving quality education that imparts the necessary practical skills and knowledge required in the actual world.
Ultimately, the ongoing crisis of the professional world can only be addressed by a shift in attitudes and evolving a learning system that is in sync with the age of innovation. A dose of dynamism needs to be injected into the educational curriculums in order to strike a balance between education and innovation.