'Immersion programme helped me understand international business environment'

NEW DELHI: Maitreyi Gupta, a Post Graduate Programme for Executives (PGPEX) of Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, recently visited Strathclyde Business School (SBS) at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, as part of an Immersion Programme, which provides an opportunity to students to work in a group in a cross-cultural environment and learn how to address business issues.

Gupta told Education Times, "Visiting SBS was one the most enriching experiences I have had on my journey to gain knowledge. The lectures, professors and various activities helped me understand the international business environment, including buying and selling of the goods and services around the world even if management is located in a single country, impact and implications of politics and policies of one country on the trade policies of other countries."

She added, "During the immersion, a mix of lecture series, projects and field visits helped me understand the intricacies of business and experience business operations first hand. For example, if a foreign company sets up a plant in India, they have to understand the socio-economic conditions and understand consumer psychology. Also, the cultural reality is very different. Getting government clearances here is difficult as compare to the UK."

Brexit and Indian economy

The programme gave her a broader view of Brexit and its impact on Scottish, UK and Indian economy. "India today is the third largest investor in UK and after Brexit, UK is looking at India as its biggest investor. This could help our economy to boost and create more employment opportunities." The programme also made her understand how political and economic policies of a country reflect upon the business relations between two countries. She cited the example of William Grant & Sons, a distillery, which has set up a manufacturing unit in India to avoid the import cost.

Field visits

Field visits and real-time cases during the programme were eye-opener for her. "Field visits to Royal Bank of Scotland, Scottish Power, Wier Group Engineering research centre, Glengoyne Distillery, William Grant and Sons' bottling unit and Drygate brewery were engaging as it introduced her to ground realities. In India, we usually study cases that are old or hypothetical but talking to British workers during field visits helped me understand the real problems and their problem solving abilities." added Gupta.