The Higher Education Review

Dr. Thomas George is the Guinness Record holder for "Longest Business Lesson" for Non stop 72 hours. He has a B. Tech. (Electronics and Communication), M. Sc. (Applied Psychology), MBA from Calicut University and Ph.D. in Psychology. Before establishing Lead College of Management, he has been associated with ‘Turning Point’, a training program for youth since 2000. He has many awards on his name such as Palghat Management Association's, Edupreneur of the Year Award, 2016, NFED's Distinguished Entrepreneur Award, 2015 and NIPM's Best Institution Builder Award.


Leading an organization or a team is not everybody's cup of tea. An individual has to be imbibed with certain qualities and skills for earning a niche in their respective chosen fields. Incorporated in 2011 to offer a unique skill set to the upcoming leaders, LEAD College of Management since its inception has been the creator of numerous proficient business professionals who is leading their organization from the front holding important positions. LEAD College of Management (LEAD), which stands for the acronym of 'Leadership & Entrepreneurship Academy, Dhoni', does not only provides the right kind of management education but goes out of the ways to enable the learners to climb the success ladder. Approved by AICTE, affiliated to the University of Calicut and accredited by NAAC, LEAD believes in making its students learn through doing and for this purpose, the institute has taken up a one-of-its-kind initiative via LOT (Lead Operating Team), where students forms teams and themselves takes care of the varied activities going inside the campus.

A Big differentiator

Dr. Thomas George K, Founder, and Chairman, LEAD, elaborates, "We have 12 LOTs at our institute ranging from Administration LOT, Canteen LOT, Public Relations & Placement LOT, Event LOT, Outcome - Based Training LOT and many more. By indulging into such variety of operations, our students by the end of their course are ensured to gain exemplary management skills along with other vital skills." Addressing a perfect mix of theory and practice, the institute conducts a two year full-time MBA programme with specialization in Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, International business and Systems, which has been designed to meet the needs of the 21st-

century business aspirants. A fully residential campus, the institute every year witnesses the admission of a large number of students- both from across the country and abroad. LEAD has a special approval of admitting 5% of the sanctioned intake viz 27 students from foreign countries and LEAD has successfully admitting those students for the last few years. The students come from all over India besides Afghanistan, Liberia, Botswana, Kenya Ghana etc to name few.

Unique strength of faculties and teaching and learning

The students of LEAD are taught by a team of faculty members who possess balanced industry and academic experiences. There are 11 Ph.D., holders with abundance of industrial exposure besides carrying academically enviable credentials of having associated with best of the management institutes in India and abroad. The faculties at LEAD are investing their best time in Faculty Development Programs either at LEAD or outside LEAD and constantly enhance their learning to bring back such knowledge and skills to perpetually improve the students apart from the curriculum and the syllabus aim to do. "AT LEAD, the faculty members sustain a mentorship system, where students are rendered ample counseling on their professional as well as personal life. Faculty members who act more like their friends remains always available to cater to the student's doubts and prepare them to cover their weaknesses," pinpoints Dr. George. The alumni base of the institute which is scattered in different parts of the globe also contributes significantly to supporting the ongoing students of LEAD and visits the campus quite regularly for sharing their experiences and knowledge. Getting access to wonderful career paths, the past and ongoing students of LEAD has formed a tagline-LEAD is not an experience but an ‘emotion’. "In the good interval, we also invite eminent personalities and academicians from the industry and renowned institutions for enlightening our students on the multiple facets of the profession that they are getting trained for," says Dr. George.

Continuous Assistance

For making sure that the students are trained as per the industry requirement, LEAD although following the University of Calicut curriculum takes that extra mile by arranging value-added classes after the regular class hours. Students at LEAD are not confined within the four walls of the classroom; instead, they are encouraged to keep on adding demanded and quality certifications in their resume. The institute keeps no stone unturned to achieve the highest standard of academics and professionalism letting its graduates stands tall among the other business graduates. Every effort is made by the management of the institute to provide a priceless

experience to the students during their stay at LEAD by encompassing state-of-the-art facilities consisting of seminar halls, auditorium, canteen, ground, and indoor games facilities, swimming pool and so on.

Industry Connect and Placement

Further, confirming that the students have gained maximum practical experience, the institute makes it a point to send them for a 3 months internship. "Owing to our constant efforts to enhance the lives of our students at LEAD, we have associated with a range of organizations, especially with the industry giants of Palakkad, which is known as the second industrial district of Kerala," claims Dr. George. Additionally, the institute also equips the students with productive life skills training, given which it conducts three days programmes viz. Break Through and Turning Point, where 60- 100 students and professionals from other organizations stay at LEAD campus to participate in management and adventurous activities such as fire walking, river crossing, meeting etiquette, cubicle etiquette, to name a few. Dr. George shares, "Through these activities, the students are prepared for a smooth transition from the campus to corporate life. Learning and competing with students from other institutions let them earn valuable skills and experiences." As the word ‘Entrepreneurship’ itself is included in the name of the institute, LEAD puts a strong focus on enriching the entrepreneurial acumen of the students and evolves them into successful entrepreneurs. On the other side, for involving the students and faculty members in research works, LEAD has placed a Centre for Research Consultancy and Publication (CRCP) within the campus, that aims at presenting cutting-edge research from all around the world and thereby to help in enhancing and adding value to the personal learning process. Boasting of highest number of student enrollment rate in Kerala and being able to place all the students in companies like Nestle, Unilever, Deloitte, Earnest and Young and so on, much before the completion of the course and the placement record shows always near 100% since inception. LEAD envisions maintaining a heterogeneous student and faculty profile encompassing students and faculties from other states and even more foreign nationals which will greatly help in creating a diverse learning environment within the campus.

Moving Forward

Moving forward, LEAD intends to start a business incubation centre for developing entrepreneurship, obtain accreditation from NBA, AASCB, EQUIS, and AMBA, and also become a Centre of Excellence in various domains including business analytics. With a lot of accolades and awards in its kitty, LEAD school of management is on its way to become one of the top self financing institutions in south India soon.