Dr (Lt Col) S. N. Prasad is the Director and Professor of Strategy & General Management at SDMIMD, Mysore. He has a Ph.D., ME, and PGDM, and over 20 years of experience in the Indian Army, including Kargil and Siachen operations. Since joining SDMIMD in 2009, he has taught Strategic Management, Leadership, and HR subjects, handled accreditations, and published research on leadership and strategy.
“Rendezvous with Dr S. N. Prasad”
Team MBA Rendezvous recently spoke to Dr.(Lt Col) S N Prasad, Director & Professor - Strategy & General Management Chairperson - Accreditation & Approvals, AICTE & Government Schemes SDMIMD.
Team MBA Rendezvous - You yourself come from a very different background (engineering + army + aeronautics + leadership). How does that unique experience translate into the teaching pedagogy at SDMIMD — especially in strategy, leadership, HR?
Dr (Lt Col) S. N. Prasad : I was a Senior Instructor and Course In-Charge for the Technical Staff Course(TSOC), Army/M.Sc (Military Technology) at DIAT, Girinagar, Pune for 4 years from 2005-9. My interest for teaching started during that period, and specifically after I completed the PGDM in 2006 as an Executive Student at SIBM, Pune, my interest in management domain became stronger. In the Army, during service as an Officer, we did lots of book reviews and studies relevant to Military History, Technology and while in Army Aviation, could learn the Quality & Preventive Maintenance Management as a practitioner. As an Aviation Engineer, I used to deal with multiple agencies like HAL, DRDO, foreign vendors supplying spares and assemblies and these interactions have helped me get a better picture about the working environment in the corporate sector. I joined SDMIMD in 2009 as an Assistant Professor and have moved up the chain gradually to take up the position as Director in 2023
Team MBA Rendezvous - How has your army-engineering background shaped your approach to institutional leadership and strategic decision-making at SDMIMD?
Dr (Lt Col) S. N. Prasad : I had the privilege of readily available problems to solve that were technical, engineering, interpersonal relationships, governance, process & policy as well as related to people management in the Armed Forces. While technical problem solving is related more to logic, the others are related to perception, attitude, empathy and leadership. These qualities are required in any leadership position including institutional leadership. Further, the importance for adhering to the Mission, Vision and Values in the Army is very high, I follow the same principle here at SDMIMD and that has produced results.
Team MBA Rendezvous -What kind of mindset or extra-effort should a student bring to truly benefit from SDMIMD (beyond just relying on campus placements)?
Dr (Lt Col) S. N. Prasad : To mention briefly
- Having a healthy self-esteem and good attitude is more important than professional competence.
- At the individual level, being empathetic, sensitive to the societal issues contributes positively to our growth in life and profession.
- In addition to the focus on specialization area, continuously studying, knowing and being active in all areas of management and business environment will help our growth immensely.
- Adaptability to changes in the environment related to technology, societal preferences, problems and ability to change without affecting our core values and mission will take us very high.
Team MBA Rendezvous - How is SDMIMD reshaping its MBA curriculum to ensure students learn both strategic thinking and the practical use of AI—so they’re ready to lead in tomorrow’s business world?
Dr (Lt Col) S. N. Prasad : SDMIMD, in line with the changing global environment is sensitizing the students to Global Geopolitics, Climate Change, Challenges in Corporate Governance as part of supplementary lectures. In addition, SDMIMD is a pioneer in bringing AI to the classroom for enhancing the student and faculty teaching and learning experiences. Practical use of AI is very much part of the SDMIMD learning process.
Team MBA Rendezvous - Sir According to you - In a world where ROI, placements and brand name seem to matter a lot — what aspects should a prospective MBA student weigh beyond just numbers?
Dr (Lt Col) S. N. Prasad : In addition to the above, the student must consider
- At least one focus area of study to go deep and 3-5 areas to know reasonably well
- Being sensitive to learning sustainable business processes and having an innovative mindset will go a long way in shaping professional excellence.
- Social responsibility, ethics and developing a personal value system are important in life.
- Learning doesn’t stop with placements, it is continuous and must be pursued with equal zeal all the time.