Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, in association with the National Defence College, launched a new Executive MBA programme in ‘Strategic Leadership and Public Policy’. This new program will help senior professionals in Indian Armed Forces and civilian government services improve their strategic capability and leadership.

The Executive MBA will be a one-year program, 48 weeks, and will be based on both lecture-based courses and practical modules, including a thesis. The Programme shall be conducted at the National Defence College, utilizing faculty from IIT Madras’s Department of Management Studies, Aerospace, and other allied departments, as well as other subject matter experts and faculty from the NDC.

The program will take on board 120 participants: senior officers from the Indian Armed Forces, Indian Civil Services, and Indian Police Services, besides officers from allied foreign countries. Admission will be based on rigorous screening with eligibility normally set at the Brigadier rank or equivalent for service officers and at the Director/ Joint Secretary level for civil and diplomatic service officers.

The main objective of the program is to develop intellectual and strategic acumen among senior officials and groom them for high-profile leadership positions in military and civilian leadership. This MoU will help meet the demand for leaders who can understand at a profound level the modern technologies and strategic issues, said Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras.

The partnership has been formalized through an MoU signed by Prof. M. Thenmozhi, Head of Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras, and Brigadier Rajesh Raman, Secretary, National Defence College, in the presence of Prof. V. Kamakoti, and Dipti Mohil Chawla, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Defence.

Prof. Kamakoti said the revised MBA was designed to meet the emerging global needs so as to position leaders to manage the current realities and lead strategic interventions in earnest.