What is IMB?

A NOTE FROM THE DEAN 

Every program at SDA Bocconi is carefully designed to accomplish the learning goals set at the beginning. IMB is no exception. In these paragraphs, I will explain how the structure of the program offers a powerful learning path for each of our students.

            The program content has been designed with two fundamental benchmarks in mind. The first benchmark is SDA Bocconi’s MBA program in Milan, which consistently ranks amongst the top 30 MBA programs around the world. The second benchmark are the curricula of the Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) or MBA programs from the top business schools in India. Therefore, the IMB program mixes the practical learning approach of the SDA Bocconi programs with the familiar structure of an Indian post-graduate program, while at the same time providing an intense international experience through its faculty, its semester abroad and the specific syllabus and teaching materials of each course.

            As you know, IMB consists of two modules of 11 months each. The first module is strongly focused on the foundations of all aspects of business and management while the second module offers advanced content and a more tailor-made path to your interests. Therefore, every discipline (marketing & sales, operations, finance, strategy, human resources, etc.) has two or three courses in the first year devoted to the fundamentals and five to seven more specialized courses in the second year (some of them taken as electives during the semester in Italy). Thus, while IMB is a general program, it does offer enough depth to students who seek specialized knowledge.

            With the new structure, we have reinforced all the typical tracks. For instance, someone interested in Marketing & Sales would have Marketing, Retail & Channel Management and Digital Marketing in the first year and then, as an example, Advanced Marketing, Pricing Management, Sales Management, Web Analytics, Consumer Behavior, and a final practitioner-focused Marketing Workshop, in the second year. Similarly, a Finance-oriented student would take Investments, Accounting and Control, Corporate Finance and Financial Reporting in the first year and then Financial Markets, Mergers and Acquisitions, International Finance, Credit Risk Management and Investment Banking in the second year. This year we are also strengthening the content on Big Data and Business Analytics, adding a workshop on Python and R, and an Advanced Data Science (machine learning, artificial intelligence, etc.) course to the already existing core course in Business Analytics and the elective on Web Analytics.

            Active learning and assessment methodologies are used throughout the program. Case analysis and discussions, practical exercises, business games, simulations, first-hand business experiences, individual projects, group work, workshops, and seminars play a significant role together with traditional lessons. Assessment for each course is usually done through a combination of written exams, group and individual assignments and valuation of each student’s participation in class discussions.

            Despite enjoying a vastly international faculty who teach around the world and thus bring international experiences and cases to our classrooms, the program also has deep links to the Indian business and macroeconomic context. First, most of our international faculty has been teaching in our program since the first edition, seven years ago. This long attachment to the program has given them lots of exposure to the Indian reality. Today, all of them use Indian cases and examples in their teaching and many of them have developed relationships with Indian companies and institutions for research and consulting purposes. Second, our local faculty keeps growing, often taking care of courses in the second year that offer more connections to the Indian practitioner’s perspective. Third, our guest speaker program and the organization of vertically-focused events (like the Operations or HR Conclaves) ensure a weekly check with the Indian business world reality and trends.

            The new IMB is a program not only carefully designed using top benchmarks but also under a constant effort of improvement and adaptation to the needs of Indian students and corporates. Allow me to summarize some of the main points that differentiate our program from its previous version:

• A Masters Diploma from SDA Bocconi recognized by European laws. Students enroll in and receive the diploma from SDA Bocconi in Milan, on the basis of the European Credit and Accumulation System (ECTS). This diploma facilitates the search for job opportunities in the European continent.
• More customization opportunities across the second year, not only during the semester in Italy.
• The opportunity to acquire a stronger profile in Business Analytics on top of any other specialization.
• More hours of active learning (online, workshops, projects, events, etc) than ever.
• More emphasis (with specific workshops and throughout the program) in teaching our students how to analyze and discuss cases, both as a professional skill and as preparation for job interviews.