Captains of Indian industry invariably talk about the required 'change in the mindset' in the context of new economic realities. If change has to happen at the level of subject rather than the predicate then it can happen through transformation in consciousness of individuals. The change in the environment cannot be taken as direction for change in the individual. Hence self-change is simultaneous with organizational and social change. If managers do not change themselves while attempting to change organizations there is a likelihood that they would project their own problems and oppressive mindsets on to the other rather than change it for better.
Often change does not lead to betterment or development because examination of self has not taken place. Therefore the purpose of management education needs to be radical in a deeper and peaceful way so that it would enable the participants (including the faculty) to situate, understand and account for their own behavior. The moment we change ourselves through sensitive and critical thinking we are also changing the organizations we are part of because we exist in relation with others.
The best practices of Action Research, critical thinking and collaborative inquiry combined with action and implementation would facilitate the process of transformation of individuals and organizations |
The new course in HR (PGDHR) is an attempt to transcendent the duality between HR and business, individual and collectivity, specialist and generalist, organization and society through an experiential and holistic learning process.
The approach to teaching of the PGDHR course places the emphasis on learning within the context of the IMDR community, which consists of both students and faculty members. This Learning community constitutes a mutually constructed whole where each and every member contributes to activities through a process of collective interaction. The teaching process would shift from the dissemination of "objective, neutral and content based knowledge" where the teacher is the transmitter and students the receivers, to an active and dynamic process of reflection, questioning and critiquing theories and concepts in the collective. Teaching material would be drawn from current contexts and reality of campus and work place
The course would facilitate interaction between human beings, through activities, of co-production, collaboration and co-creation enabling members to participate in a jointly constructed social activity, which would lead to learning. Thus Learning and Knowledge creation will take place in a framework of participation and not in the individual mind. This process would be enriched by the differences in perspective of the co participants, which would encourage collaborative inquiry and critical thinking.
The approach would also aim at examining unarticulated thoughts, feelings, and subjective biases in the collectivity through Process Work. Developing an awareness of subjectivities enables the members and the collective to understand their value frameworks, which dictate action choices, and thus opens up possibilities for deciding on alternative ways of action and behaviour. |
Programmes 
