C. Gopinath is dean of the Jindal Global Business School, Sonipat (Delhi NCR) and is on the faculty of the Sawyer Business School, Suffolk University (Boston, USA). His Ph.D. is from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst; he completed graduate studies at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, and the Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, and a Bachelors degree from Vivekananda College, Chennai. Prior to his academic career, he held executive positions at leading companies. His research in the areas of strategic management, international business, and pedagogy has been published in several leading journals. His books include Globalisation: A Multidimensional System (2014, McGrawHill Create); Strategize! Experiential exercises in strategic management (2014, Cengage/ South-Western, with J. Siciliano); and Managing in a Globalized World  (2003, ICFAI University Press). He is a columnist for Business Line, a business daily.

What motivated you to take up the position of Dean at the O.P Jindal Global University?

Jindal Global University (JGU) invited me in 2013 to be the Dean of the Jindal Global Business School (JGBS) to provide it leadership and position it for the future. I loved the challenge of helping design new programs, new systems and procedures, and grow the institution in terms of students and faculty with a focus on excellence. US universities provide a model that is emulated in many parts of the world. Having spent close to 30 years in three universities here, I was able and willing to make a contribution!  Suffolk University in Boston is willing to give me the time-off and so I will continue to be actively involved with JGBS.

Could you tell us about the University and its focus on Public Service?

JGU (www.jgu.edu.in) began in 2008 with a philanthropic contribution by Mr. Naveen Jindal of about $100 million, and is the Chancellor. The founding Vice Chancellor, Prof. C. Raj Kumar, built it up from a scratch on about 100 acres land in Sonipat, which is about 45 kms from Delhi and is part of the Delhi Capital Region. It is fully residential with about 2000 students.

JGU is a private secular university created by an act of the Haryana legislature and is recognized by the University Grants Commission. The university enjoys  academic and functional autonomy and has five schools: a law school, business school, school of government and public policy, school of international affairs, and a school of liberal arts and humanities.

It is a part of the mission of the school to be global in orientation through international collaborations for student and faculty exchange, joint research projects, and so on. JGU already has over 100 collaborations with leading universities around the world. Another theme is to be multidisciplinary - there are no separate wings, and faculty offices and classrooms are all mixed up in the same building, and the university encourages students to take courses in schools other than their own.

A motto of the university is that it is ‘a private university promoting public service.’ This can be attributed to the founding philosophy, for the Jindal family have philanthropic activities in various sectors including education, health, and community development. Moreover, the Chancellor, Mr. Naveen Jindal, was an MP, and his mother was a minister in the state.

What is your vision for the business school at this University?

JGBS (www.jgbs.edu.in) currently offers two programs: a two-year full-time MBA program, and a five-year Integrated BBA-MBA program (post-high school). We plan to introduce a PhD program this year and an Executive MBA (part time) next year.

While JGBS offers all the usual concentrations (namely, Finance, Marketing, Operations, and Human Capital Management) we are trying to distinguish ourselves in the area of Entrepreneurship. About 20% of our alumni have already set up their own businesses and we will soon be setting up an incubator. Since many of our students come from families that have traditionally been in farming, or small-medium enterprises, they already have it in their genes and we are working as catalysts to spark it in a professional manner.

JGBS aims to be counted amongst the highly rated business programs in the world. The advantage we have is to be situated as part of a university with a global focus and research orientation, and with an attention to pedagogy that allows our graduates to not just be good at theory but also be application oriented.

How is the student population in India different from the US?

One difference that is apparent is that the average student in the US has had some work experience when they enter college. They have worked part-time while in high school, or done internships. Many continue to work part-time while in college to help pay for their education. On the other hand, the average Indian student has had almost no work experience; even those who come from business or entrepreneurial families have not spent time in their family business. Apart from the age (US students are older in comparable grade levels), this makes a difference in their maturity. There is also the cultural difference, for Indian families tend to be very protective and do not easily allow their children to make decisions of the kind US families do.

What is the area where this University hopes to make a significant contribution?

JGU gives research a high priority and aims to make it to global rankings. The university works hard to create an intellectually vibrant environment with guest speakers and conferences almost every week in one school or the other. We encourage student participation and also strive to teach students to take responsibility for their learning so the spirit of inquiry remains with them through life.

Traditionally Indian universities (and institutes like the IITs and IIMs) have focused on teaching which does not get you into global rankings. The research focus in educational institutions in India is fairly recent.

What is the perception of Public Service amongst the students?

This is an area that is slowly being recognized as important by the students. In the business school, we require our students to do a ‘social internship’ between the second and third years, and arrange for them to work with NGOs or with the corporate social responsibility divisions of companies. We also have a Center for Social Enterprise on campus and increasingly students are coming up with entrepreneurial ideas in the area of ‘social business.’
 

What do you see as the greatest challenge?

One challenge is to find well-trained faculty, which is in short supply. The other is to operate ethically in an environment where the practice of ethics (not just the belief in it) is taking time to take root. 

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