[Design Thinking @IIM-A] The story of Ants.......with lessons for managers & HR

Today, if it intends to do so, KIIT University is better positioned than IIM-A to adopt design thinking principles in a big way. Hopefully, the forthcoming IIM-Bill will enable a university-like ecosystem for the IIMs to leverage design thinking in support of Make-in-India initiatives. Please see the postscript at the end of this post.]

Till that happens IIM-A may continue to be a victim of siloed thinking in the education system. Here is one quote from Prof. Martin's paper of 2006: “If design thinking were added to the current curriculum, there is a risk that it would become another silo alongside finance and marketing” [Source: David Dunne and Roger Martin, "Design Thinking and How it will Change Management Education: An Interview and Discussion," Academy of Management Learning & Education, vol. 5, no. 4, pp. 512-523, December 2006; p. 522]

In my recent post titled "Design thinking @IIM-A for supporting Make-In-India campaign", I had mentioned that the curriculum review committee's recommendations are only partly in line with the views mentioned in my blog post titled "Design thinking necessary @IIM-A" written in January 2013. Not fully.

It is not clear to what extent IIM-A has created conditions for fostering healthy "Collaborative Networks" in the country [i.e., collaborative network of "Ants" for discovering common objectives and sharing the harvest.]

While talking of Ants and the model of following the lead Ant, I am reminded of an earlier occasion shared with the stakeholders of KSoM titled "The Ant" (click for the attachment).  This attachment from a colleague was useful in sharing my thoughts at one workshop organized by the School of Biotechnology (28 Mar 2009). It is indeed quite interesting and was useful in highlighting the negative effects of redundant supervisory control on the "karmayogi" (the Ant). Among other things it also helped me in driving home the following recommendation: De-emphasize specialization and provide greater freedom to the "ANT". The workshop was on "Research Communication for Societal Change". The above attachment is interesting and has some very good lessons for managers vis-a-vis employees. Read this supporting blog post for the interpretations: "The lion and the ant: some lessons for managers and HR" (from Joseph Noone's blog titled "One World")

Internalizing these lessons coupled with design thinking principles may help us in creating the human-centered policies and programs so much needed for fostering a learning environment. We don't necessarily have to follow IIM-A (the "lead Ant") - as we have to develop our own intelligent network model.

I recall from an earlier e-mail communication written on 5th May 2009: (More on this mail later if clarification is required.)
"The Gujarat High Court observes that even IIM-A does not satisfy the criteria of being an educational institute. Non-affiliation to a University deprives it of this status. I, therefore, reiterate my earlier views on SoM (KIIT University). Being an educational institute, it belongs to a different league altogether and hence cannot be compared with IIM or XIM-like institutes. Our performance metrics have to be formulated differently and the stakeholders apprised accordingly."

{That was 2009. I am not aware of the latest ruling regarding the legal status of IIM-A. Even if I am wrong, IIMs do not have the multidisciplinary academic ambience that is available in a University. XIM meanwhile is under XUB - a private state university.}

Note: The existing legal status of IIM-A is: Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, a Society registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (21 of 1860)

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Postscript (21 Nov 2015); 
[Source: Reflections on the Proposed IIM Bill by Dr. N.Ravichandran, 
Business Today, Edition: 22 Nov 2015]
Excerpts from the above article:
(Quote)   
....The legal structure of the society was perhaps an ad hoc arrangement 50 years ago, when IIM Calcutta and IIM Ahmedabad were created. This structure has outlived its utility. And the time has come to provide an appropriate legal status technically as well as constitutionally to these institutions.
....It would be befitting to the stature of the older IIMs to welcome the proposed act in principle, and proactively engage with the government in a meaningful dialogue to ensure the act retains the best practices of IIMs in the context of a legislative framework.
....The existing legal structure of IIMs has outlived its utility. There is a need to formulate a comprehensive and uniform act which will enable the effective functioning of IIMs on a common platform without compromising the operational autonomy (academic, financial and administrative) and bestow powers to award degrees and diplomas like other universities. We sincerely hope that the IIMs and the government will work towards this. Such an approach would ensure better management education in India. (Unquote) [The author is Faculty, IIM-A; Former Director, IIM Indore.]

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Design thinking @IIM-A for supporting Make-In-India campaign

Some of may have seen the following article. Design thinking and entrepreneurship programmes are being converted into compulsory courses at IIM Ahmedabad. The review committee's recommendations are partly in line with the views mentioned in my blogpost titled "Design thinking necessary @IIM-A" written in January 2013.

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IndiaToday.in  New Delhi, April 23, 2015 | UPDATED 16:55 IST

IIM Ahmedabad to change 2015 curriculum to cater to Make in India initiative

IIM Ahmedabad is set to change the curriculum for its Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) from the coming 2015-17 session. Now, instead of elective subjects the students will have compulsory courses. This decision has been taken in sync with the government's 'Make in India' campaign, to boost Indian entrepreneurship amongst the students.

The changes have been implemented by a Review Committee at the institution. It had sought advice from all concerned parties, which included the current students, faculty, alumni, firms and faculty of other business schools. The decision has been taken to discontinue the standard elective courses and replace those with courses which will help promote the Make in India strategy.
This will help students focus on innovation and incline their thinking towards entrepreneurship. The programmes such as marketing, finance and operations will be scrapped, and in their place programmes concentrating on human resources are set to be introduced.
These modifications are being introduced because in the recent years a majority of IIM students have chosen careers abroad after graduation. And this move should enable them to learn a indigenous way of problem solving, encouraging them to explore job opportunities in India.
The institute will now offer courses in environment sustainability, managing global organisations, design thinking, entrepreneurship programme and government systems and processes. Out of these, design thinking and entrepreneurship programme, which were electives will be converted to compulsory courses. These will supposedly be most helpful in enhancing the Make in India campaign.

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While this is a positive change, some feel design thinking needs a deeper introspection.  Though we have been articulating these ideas from Odisha we have not been able to exploit the benefits of design thinking yet for larger common good.

A dispassionate look at faculty development in India

Albert Einstein had said:
(Quote) "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." (Unquote)

And therein we can find our problems related to faculty development in India. It is, therefore, worth pondering:

• How might we create the environment for encouraging thought leadership?

As shared in my earlier post about the approach needed to create a contemporary learning environment, I repeat another one of Einstein's famous quotes: “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”

All institutions have problems and if we go back in time it is also easy to identify what or who created the problems that we are both individually and collectively facing today. But identification of the problem creator is not the purpose of this post. Rather, I hope that we take a different kind of approach to come out of these problems (as mentioned in my earlier post on creating a 21^st century learning experience).

Hence, it is worth pondering over some of the following HMWs:

• How might we create an academic environment that retains faculty for participating happily in the development of our schools?
• How might we redesign our approach to curriculum development and delivery to center around the needs and desires of our teachers and students? [Earlier post: DTE Toolkit Pg4]
• How might we redesign our school to elevate student engagement and academic outcomes? [Earlier post, DTE Toolkit Pg5]
• How might we create the environment that attracts faculty to participate proactively (without any fear) to create a vibrant learning environment?
• ….and more..

Universities should be hallmarks for creating a more humane work environment so much necessary in developing great institutions. It is important, therefore, to start the academic year with empathy towards fellow colleagues and students who are facing difficulties in our work environment.

I end this note by inviting attention to these two links from te@chthought & The Teaching Professor:

• Why Good Teachers Quit?  [22 Oct 2013, by Kay Bisaillon, Teacher] 
• What Is Teaching without Learning? [17 June 2015, By: Maryellen Weimer, PhD]

 

How might we create a 21st century learning experience at our school?

The above subject header (title of this post) is as relevant now as it was in FDP-2012 - as instantiated in this blogpost [Bottom line: Organizations need to exploit the transformative power of design thinking through appreciative inquiry.] 
Here is one useful toolkit for those interested in advancing their careers in education: Design Thinking for Educators  (The title of this blog post is from Page-3 of this toolkit)

An excerpt from this toolkit:

As Einstein famously said, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” [Pg7]

There are problems (including some wicked ones) around us. Hopefully, organizations in India will open up to seeing that the problems in and around them can indeed be solved by applying the principles of design thinking (which emphasizes the importance of collective problem solving through empathy). In an educational setup this collective effort revolves around the learner (i.e., both the student and the teacher/facilitator).

Another excerpt:
Design thinking is a creative act and lets teachers understand that the act of creating a really effective learning environment is an art that is both reflective and intentional. If we want to change education and learning to make it more relevant, more effective and more enjoyable for all involved, teachers need to be the entrepreneurial designers and redesigners of the “systems” of schools and of the schools themselves. [Pg8]

So...the first step in Design Thinking: Start Empathy
(Please see the attachment/link from Ashoka)

Next steps in the Design Thinking Process: Empathize - Define - Ideate - Prototype - Test [Source: Edutopia]

Design Thinking @Infosys

In line with my earlier blog post titled: "Design Thinking @SAP – Lessons for India" (12 June 2012), it is good to see the following (The Hindu, Business Line dated 21 Sep 2014): How Infosys is switching to ‘design thinking’     [Click here]