Interview: Dr. Sanjay Sharma, Associate Professor at IMI, Indore|Collegedunia

Interview by Yash Panchal

IMI

Dr. Sanjay Sharma is presently serving as an Associate Professor at IMI Indore. He is a Ph.D. in Management and Ph.D. in Commerce (P) from the Devi Ahilya University, Indore. His educational qualifications also include an MBA, M.Com, PGDCA and MPSET in Commerce. Earlier, he was a faculty with various prestigious institutes like the RKDF Institute of Management, Indore Institute of Science & Technology, Indore Institute of Management and Research, Medi- Caps University, Indore for more than 12 years where he also served as administrative, counseling and admission head for the institute. He is also a research guide with the Medi-Caps University. Dr. Sharma’s areas of research include behavioral finance, marketing strategies, Financial Inclusion etc.

Dr. Sharma has participated in more than 30 seminars, FDPs, workshops,and various national and international conferences. His publications include one book and over 40 research papers and chapters. His articles are published in UGC listed refereed national and international journals. He has been the member of the Editorial Board for the International Journal of Latest Technology in Engineering, Management & Applied Science and Associated Asia Research Foundation (AARF).

An excellent and continuous learning experience

As per my journey in the education sector to date is very amazing and continuous learning one. I started my career as a lecturer in the education industry and learned the art of teaching and how to use the psychology of the students to make the classroom teaching more interactive. Through education industries, I came to learn the three important pillars of education, i.e. classroom teaching, research and consultancy to the industry. Education industry gives me the lifelong learning which is very important in acquiring new knowledge and upgrading one's skills. The most important advantage of being a part of the education industry is our continuous interaction with the young generation of the country, which forced us to be updated.

The future of the country is in teachers’ hand and being a part of this education industry, it is a huge responsibility on our shoulders.

Jobs in the education sector are often demanding, but also fulfilling. Employment opportunities in the education sector vary from teaching, counseling, research,and training. Our job is to provide the best managers in the business world around the globe in the field of finance, marketing and human resources and it increased our demand in the market. The education sector offers many opportunities for professionalization at a variety of experience levels.Today, education sector gives you the money, fame, recognition and above all the knowledge what makes it the best industry to work.

An inspiring and transformational leadership style

Being a part of Indore Management Institute, one of the best B-Schools in Indore, my philosophy of leadership is very simple, I always inspire my colleagues to reach higher and work harder and have a passion for what they do for improving learning and elevating students. Create learning environments that are collaborative and accepting of everyone. I describe my leadership style as a Transformational Leadership as education is nothing, it is only an attitude you carry and that attitude can only be developed through transformational leadership.

Challenge of designing the best teaching pedagogy

As a senior faculty at IMI, my task is to design the best teaching pedagogy which makes the class interesting and interactive. I want to link the education with the research and it is a significant challenge for me as the Associate Professor of IMI as I have to motivate both students and faculties for that.

Ensuring best practice of industry through an updated curriculum

IMI provides the students practical exposure through winter and summer training in the best of the industries

In addition to the regular curriculum, institute provides many certificate courses like digital marketing, NCFM etc. IMI makes use of the best industry experts to interact with the students where industry expert explains the demand of the industry and what quality they are looking for their future managers.

Changes noticed in the Education Industry over the past few years

Technological driven changes in teaching and learning, digitization in the education sector, globalization of higher education and changes in the economic climate, fostering entrepreneurial spirit are the various changes I noticed in the Education Industry over the past few years. Selling Himself, Being Patient, a Global Mind-Set, Effective Conflict Resolution, Good Listener and Learner, Strong Communication and convincing Skills, technology friendly are the skill sets required by a corporate student

Goals for IMI

Our goal is to make IMI a top class research and consultancy center in the next few years apart from providing a good business leader in the industry.