
Advance your career with IIM Indore's Advanced Programme in Corporate Strategy and Business Leadership, enroll today!
Corporate strategy and business leadership are central to growth, empowering professionals across specialised fields to make informed decisions, drive innovation, align teams and navigate complex market dynamics with confidence and vision. IIM Indore has introduced a programme that caters to these specific needs through its Advanced Programme in Corporate Strategy and Business Leadership. It will equip you to use strategy as the defining factor between business success and failure.
The post-pandemic shift from VUCA to BANI highlights today's fragile environment. Building sustainable businesses now requires strategic adaptation to trends and competition, fostering innovation, challenging the status quo, and encouraging employees to think ahead and stay industry-relevant. As per 28th Annual Global CEO survey, PwC found that 45% of CEOs expressed concern that their companies will not be viable in 10 years without significant changes. The report underscores the urgency for business model reinvention in response to transformative forces like sustainability and AI. Professionals must also adapt swiftly as business models worldwide reinvent rules amid AI and digitalisation, demanding agility, innovation, and strategic foresight to thrive in this rapidly evolving and competitive environment.
Here are the key features of this programme, highlighting its practical approach, expert faculty, and comprehensive learning experience.
1. Live online lectures every Sunday:Students will attend weekend live sessions without disrupting work schedules, ensuring consistent engagement with expert faculty and peer discussions weekly.
2. IIM-I Executive Education Alumni Status:They will gain prestigious alumni status from IIM Indore, offering access to lifelong learning, professional networks, and exclusive career advancement opportunities.
3. Certificate of completion by IIM-I:Students will earn a recognised certificate from a premier institute, validating your skills in corporate strategy and leadership for future roles.
4. 360-degree peer learning:They will collaborate with professionals from varied sectors, gaining fresh insights, solving real-world challenges, and expanding your strategic thinking horizons.
5. Interactive case and discussion methods:Professionals taking this course will learn through real business cases and active debates, sharpening decision-making and analytical skills through practical, scenario-based learning.
6. Hands-on assignments, projects and simulations:They will experience strategic challenges firsthand through applied assignments, fostering practical problem-solving skills and deepening leadership capabilities in real contexts.
7. Balance of theory and practice:They will also learn to blend foundational theory with real-world applications, gaining a comprehensive and versatile understanding of corporate strategy and leadership.
8. On-campus immersive module:Students will also participate in a 3-day in-person session at IIM Indore, promoting focused learning in a serene, intellectually stimulating environment.
Having understood the main features of this programme, lets now explore the comprehensive curriculum designed to develop strategic thinking, leadership capability, and practical business acumen across key corporate domains.
Module 1 – Set the direction of the business:Gain a strategic foundation through frameworks, growth models, M&As, and international strategies.
Module 2 – Corporate entrepreneurship:Master internal and external corporate venturing, venture selection, and innovation leadership.
Module 3 – Valuation and governance:Learn acquisition valuation, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), cross-border deals, board dynamics, and financial analysis.
Module 4 – Transformational leadership:Lead change, manage resistance, shape culture, and drive organisational transformation.
Module 5 – Leadership communication:Align goals, communicate vision, and master persuasion, negotiation, and conflict resolution.
Module 6 – Strategy implementation:Implement strategy using Balanced Scorecards and build strategy-focused organisations.
Module 7 – Capstone Project:Apply learning to real challenges through a practical, integrative business project.
The obvious answer is that IIM Indore ranks among India's top 5 IIMs and within the top 1% of global MBA schools, holding the prestigious Triple Crown accreditations (AMBA, AACSB, EQUIS). Renowned for interdisciplinary, participant-centred learning, it excels in research, innovative pedagogy, and ranks 8th nationally (NIRF) and 25th in Asia (QS).
Eligibility: 5 years+ Work Ex. 50% marks in UG/PG
Fee: INR 1,88,000 + GST
Duration: 8 months
Mode of Instruction: English
This programme equips you with strategic thinking and leadership skills to navigate disruptions, develop effective corporate strategies, and translate organisational vision into action, empowering you to lead confidently and drive sustainable growth in a dynamic business environment.
Disclaimer: This article has been written in collaboration with VC NOW

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
AI that acts, not just answers: How Agentic AI is redefining the future of work
Sarah, an HR director at a mid-size tech company, used to spend her Monday mornings drowning in resumes. Hundreds of applications for a single software engineer position would pile up over the weekend, each requiring careful review. Today, she walks into the office to find that her AI assistant has already screened, ranked, and even conducted preliminary assessments of candidates. But rather than feeling replaced, Sarah feels liberated. She can now spend her time on what she loves most: connecting with people and building the company culture. This isn't a distant future scenario. It's happening right now, as Agentic AI transforms how we work, how we hire, and how we think about the very nature of employment itself. What is Agentic AI? Understanding the technology that's changing everything Imagine having an incredibly capable colleague who never sleeps, never gets overwhelmed, and can juggle dozens of complex tasks simultaneously. That's essentially what Agentic AI brings to the workplace. Unlike the AI tools you might use to write emails or create presentations, Agentic AI systems don't wait for your instructions; they think ahead, make decisions, and take action to solve problems on their own. "Agentic AI is, at the core, the autonomous nature of agents that can perform tasks, autonomously, semi-autonomously, mimicking human-like behaviour to enhance the workflow," explains Anthony Abbatiello, partner and workforce transformation leader at PwC. But here's what makes it truly revolutionary: these systems learn from every interaction, becoming more effective partners over time. Think of it as the difference between a calculator and a skilled accountant. A calculator waits for you to input numbers, while an accountant anticipates your needs, identifies potential issues, and suggests solutions before you even realise there's a problem. Why Agentic AI isn't just 'another AI tool' Many people confuse Agentic AI with Generative AI , the technology behind ChatGPT and similar tools. It's an understandable mistake, but the difference is profound and worth understanding if you want to prepare for what's coming. Generative AI is like having a brilliant writer on your team. Ask it to create a job description, draft an email, or summarise a report, and it delivers exactly what you requested. It's reactive, responsive, and incredibly useful for content creation. Agentic AI is like having a proactive business partner. It doesn't wait for assignments. Instead, it observes patterns, identifies opportunities, and takes initiative. While Generative AI helps you create better content, Agentic AI helps you make better decisions and automate entire workflows. Picture this: Your company's turnover rate in the sales department suddenly spikes. Generative AI could help you write a survey to understand why people are leaving. Agentic AI would automatically detect the pattern, analyse exit interview data, identify the root causes, and even suggest specific interventions, all before you realise there's a problem. Agentic AI vs AI Agents: Clarifying the terminology The terms 'Agentic AI' and 'AI Agents' are often used interchangeably, but there's a subtle distinction. AI Agents are the individual software entities that perform specific tasks, while Agentic AI refers to the broader technology and approach that enables these agents to operate autonomously. Think of AI Agents as the workforce, and Agentic AI as the intelligence system that empowers them to work independently. The human stories behind HR transformation: How AI agents are helping AI agents aren't just streamlining workflows; they're reshaping the HR experience. Here are a few examples of how that shift is playing out on the ground. #Story 1: Recruitment: From resume sorting to relationship building Meet Ahmed, a talent acquisition specialist who used to spend 70% of his time on administrative tasks. Sorting resumes, scheduling interviews, sending rejection emails—it was necessary work, but it wasn't why he got into HR. He wanted to discover talent, build relationships, and help people find their dream jobs. Today, Ahmed works alongside AI agents that handle the initial screening process. But here's what's interesting: the technology doesn't just make his job easier—it makes him better at the human parts of his role. With routine tasks automated, Ahmed now spends his time on strategic conversations with hiring managers, creating compelling candidate experiences, and building the company's employer brand. The numbers tell the story: organisations using Agentic AI in recruitment report 40-60% improvements in process efficiency, but more importantly, they're seeing higher candidate satisfaction scores and better long-term retention rates. #Story 2: Skills development: Personal AI career coaches Laila, a marketing manager at a Fortune 500 company, received an unexpected message last month: her company's AI system suggested she take a course in data analytics. Not because she was failing at her job, but because the system had analysed industry trends and predicted that marketing roles would increasingly require analytical skills over the next two years. This isn't Big Brother watching, it's more like having a career coach who never sleeps and has access to every job market trend in real-time. The AI doesn't just identify skill gaps; it creates personalised learning paths, connects employees with mentors, and even suggests internal projects where they can practice new skills. The result? Jennifer now leads her company's marketing analytics initiative, a role that didn't exist six months ago but emerged from the intersection of her existing expertise and the skills the AI helped her develop. The real-world impact: Humans and Agentic AI as partners The future of work isn't about humans versus machines; it's about humans with machines. This partnership is creating new possibilities that neither could achieve alone. Consider the story of McKinsey's implementation of Agentic AI that offers a glimpse into how this technology works in practice. Rather than deploying a single AI system, they created a network of specialised agents, each with specific expertise. One agent specialises in data cleaning and candidate identification, sifting through vast databases to find potential matches. Another focuses on scoring and ranking, using sophisticated algorithms to assess candidate fit. A third handles scheduling and communication, managing the complex logistics of coordinating interviews across multiple time zones. The human recruiters? They're doing what humans do best: building relationships, assessing cultural fit, and making the final decisions that require intuition, empathy, and strategic thinking. The technology amplified their capabilities rather than replacing them. Navigating the challenges: Keeping humanity at the centre As powerful as Agentic AI is, it brings challenges that require thoughtful, human-centred solutions. The risk isn't just technological, it's deeply human. The bias challenge: AI systems can perpetuate and amplify human biases, potentially making discrimination more systematic and harder to detect. This is why companies like Unilever have invested heavily in bias detection systems and diverse training data, ensuring their AI agents promote fairness rather than undermine trust factor: Employees need to understand and trust the AI systems they work with. This requires transparency, training, and ongoing communication about how these systems make decisions and what role humans play in skills evolution: As AI handles more routine tasks, humans need to develop uniquely human skills: creativity, emotional intelligence, complex problem-solving, and ethical reasoning. The most successful organisations are investing heavily in helping their people develop these capabilities. What does this means for you Whether you're an HR professional, a manager, or someone planning your career, the rise of Agentic AI has practical implications: For HR professionals: Your role is evolving from administrator to strategist. The routine tasks that once consumed your time are becoming automated, freeing you to focus on culture building, strategic planning, and complex managers: You're gaining AI-powered insights that can help you make better decisions about team composition, skill development, and performance management. But the human skills of coaching, motivation, and relationship building become more important than individual contributors: The most valuable employees will be those who can work effectively with AI systems while bringing uniquely human capabilities to their roles. This means developing skills in creativity, critical thinking, and emotional intelligence. The data behind the transformation The numbers reveal the scope of this transformation: According to Salesforce research, 73% of HR leaders expect Agentic AI to significantly impact their function within the next two yearsEarly adopters report 30% reductions in time-to-hire for critical positionsSkills-based hiring, enabled by AI insights, is becoming the preferred approach for 65% of forward-thinking organisationsCompanies using AI-human partnerships report 25% higher employee engagement scores But perhaps the most telling statistic is this: 89% of employees working with Agentic AI systems report feeling more fulfilled in their roles, not less. They're not competing with machines, they're collaborating with them to achieve things neither could accomplish alone. Looking forward: A more human future of work As we stand at the threshold of this transformation, it's worth remembering that the goal isn't to replace human judgment, creativity, and connection; it's to amplify these uniquely human capabilities. Agentic AI handles the routine so humans can focus on the remarkable. The organisations that succeed in this new era will be those that remember a fundamental truth: technology serves people, not the other way around. They'll use Agentic AI to create more meaningful work, stronger relationships, and better outcomes for everyone involved. The future of work isn't about humans versus AI, it's about humans and AI working together to create something better than either could achieve alone. And that future is arriving faster than most people realise. Sarah, the HR director we met at the beginning, puts it best: "AI didn't replace me, it freed me to be more human in my work. I spend less time on spreadsheets and more time with people. That's exactly what I hoped technology would do."


Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Why upskilling in AI and cybersecurity is crucial for today's digital-first workforce
From banking and healthcare to retail and logistics, digital transformation has reshaped nearly every sector in the last decade. But with this surge in automation, data storage, and cloud-based services comes an urgent parallel concern: cybersecurity. Organisations today are not just looking to innovate; they're also trying to defend. And that's where professionals with hybrid expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity are increasingly stepping in. The modern professional, whether from a technical, managerial, or operations background, is no longer expected to oversee workflows. They're now required to understand algorithmic decisions, evaluate risks, and ensure system integrity, all while driving digital value for their organisations. Why AI and cybersecurity matter together Traditionally, AI and cybersecurity were treated as separate domains. But today, they are deeply interlinked. AI is increasingly used to predict and respond to cyber threats in real time, while cybersecurity teams are leveraging machine learning models to detect anomalies, prevent breaches, and secure sensitive data. According to 2023 estimates 1 , the global cybersecurity talent gap is projected to leave 3.5 million positions unfilled by 2025, with most roles requiring at least a foundational knowledge of AI-based tools. Moreover, 87% of business leaders cite skill shortages as a major hurdle in their digital transformation efforts, according to a McKinsey report 2 . The bottom line: having expertise in both AI and cybersecurity isn't just a bonus; it has become a baseline. What professionals should look for in upskilling programmes Given the high demand, there has been a surge in short-term certifications and online courses related to AI and cybersecurity. However, not all are created equal. For working professionals, especially those with at least 2 years of experience, the right programme should meet the following criteria: A curriculum that integrates AI, cybersecurity, and business applications: The course should ideally cover machine learning, big data analytics, threat mitigation, risk management, and AI-based incident response. Real-world learning through industry-led pedagogy: Exposure to live case studies, simulations, and expert-led classes ensures the learning stays relevant and applicable. Recognition from a credible institution: Executive education from reputed institutions adds lasting value to a professional's profile, especially during career transitions or promotions. C apstone projects and immersion modules: These not only test your learning but also enhance networking and peer engagement. A programme aligned to today's industry needs One standout example is the Executive Programme in Artificial Intelligence and Cyber Security for Organisations, offered by IIM Indore, a top-tier Indian B-school ranked #8 by NIRF 2024. The programme is designed for non-technical professionals, engineers, IT managers, and those seeking a domain switch into cybersecurity and AI. With live interactive sessions, a holistic curriculum, and modules that explore everything from generative AI and blockchain to digital forensics and global compliance, the programme balances technical understanding with strategic leadership. The inclusion of a capstone project and on-campus immersion further adds to its credibility and hands-on appeal. Upon completing the programme, participants become eligible to receive a Certificate of Completion from IIM Indore and become part of the Executive Education alumni community. Learn more about the programme here . Preparing for tomorrow's digital leadership In a world where business is increasingly conducted through code, credentials like these aren't just educational checkboxes; they're enablers. As companies seek professionals who can bridge AI's potential with security imperatives, those equipped with the right learning stand out not just as employees but as decision-makers. Now is the time to upskill. Not just to stay relevant, but to lead the transformation securely. Reference/s: 1. 2.


News18
2 days ago
- News18
IIM Kashipur Clarifies Viral Placement Opt-Out Email, Assures Continued Student Support
Last Updated: The email sent by the Student Placement Committee was intended to accurately categorise students and better support those who are currently unplaced, IIM Kashipur said. A recent post on microblogging site X shared by Siddharth Gopi, Co-founder of claimed that IIM Kashipur has asked unplaced students to officially opt out of the placement process. Students are being asked to exclude themselves from the placement process so that the institute can claim 100 per cent placement, the post stated. In response, IIM Kashipur has clarified that the it is part of a regular process required for placement data audits and assured support to students who are still 'unplaced". Some students either seek job opportunities outside the placement process or decide not to participate in placements for various personal or professional reasons. Hence, the email sent by the Student Placement Committee was intended to accurately categorise students and better support those who are currently unplaced, the IIM said. The institute added that it will continue to be provide support to all unplaced students. IIM Kashipur said it publishes third-party audited placement reports in accordance with the Indian Placement Reporting Standards (IPRS) for the past two years as it helps maintain transparency, the institute said. As part of this auditing process, it is required to collect signed declarations from each student— based on the classification table provided — to ensure that students who have secured jobs off-campus or are pursuing further education are not incorrectly classified as 'unplaced", the institute further clarified. 'To ensure transparency, IIM Kashipur has been publishing third-party audited placement reports in accordance with the Indian Placement Reporting Standards (IPRS) for the past two years, and we will continue to do so. As part of the auditing process, we are required to maintain signed declarations from each student—based on the classification table provided—without which students who have secured jobs off-campus or are pursuing further education would be incorrectly classified as 'unplaced", the IIM said in a statement. 'This classification not only helps in maintaining accurate records but also ensures that we provide correct data to prospective recruiters. The intent behind the email sent by the Student Placement Committee was to appropriately categorise students and to better support those who are currently unplaced. The email also clearly states that support will continue to be extended to all unplaced students," it added. IIM Kashipur has invited over 180 companies this year, it said. The audited placement report will soon be released on the official IIM Kashipur website.