‘Manager’s role won’t disappear; it will evolve’: Ramanujam Sridhar

ALMA MATER, IIM Bangalore (1982)

Ramanujam Sridhar, Founder CEO, BrandcomPR

WHEN I JOINED IIM Bangalore in 1980, management education in India was still fairly new. Resources were limited compared to what’s available now, but our desire to learn was limitless.

We learned the most outside of class, staying up late debating case studies, talking to classmates who came from different intellectual and social backgrounds, and learning to think critically and debate eloquently. Those encounters changed the way I saw the world and my work. Today’s students have access to the latest technology, top-notch infrastructure and opportunities to travel the world. But, the core of management education—learning how to think, analyse, and make decisions—hasn’t changed.

Working in advertising, brand consultancy and public relations, I regularly dealt with periods of rapid change in India’s business world. One significant transition was the economic liberalisation of the 1990s. Overnight, the rules of the game changed, and Indian firms had to compete with brands from all over the world. IIMB taught me a great deal about strategy and marketing, which gave me the confidence to help clients with repositioning, differentiation and storytelling in this new environment.

The dot-com boom and bust in the early 2000s is another example. Many of our clients were online startups. Some succeeded, but most didn’t. IIMB taught us early on how to distinguish between hype and fundamentals, which helped tremendously. During the 2008 financial crisis and again during Covid-19, I went back to basics—cash flow, sustainability and stakeholder communication. My management education gave me the tools and framework to stay calm and guide teams and clients through difficult times.

Today, AI, machine learning, blockchain and the Metaverse are transforming how we operate. Management education must adapt, not merely by incorporating electives in these areas, but by fundamentally re-evaluating pedagogical approaches. Students need to learn how to use these tools, and they also need to learn how to ask the right questions, deal with ethical issues and balance human judgment with machine efficiency.

What excites me is that the manager’s role won’t disappear—it will evolve. While machines can do calculations faster, managers will still need to motivate, build trust and navigate uncertainty. B-schools must continue teaching technical skills combined with communication, critical thinking and leadership.

I have some advice for tomorrow’s managers. First, invest in learning how to learn. What you learn today might not be relevant in five years, but your capacity to adapt will always be valuable. Second, don’t forget the importance of ethics and empathy. In the corporate world, growth and profit are important, but the leaders who last are those who are trusted and respected. Third, be brave. Many people thought I was crazy to quit a safe, high-level job to start Brandcom in 1998. But entrepreneurship has been the most rewarding part of my journey. Remember that managing yourself is just as important as managing others. Be curious, be humble and be human.

—As told to Abhinav Singh