Beyond Degrees: How B-schools must evolve to Build Entrepreneurs
Prof. Himanshu Rai, Director of IIM Indore, has led the institution's achievement of the coveted "Triple Crown" accreditation of AMBA, AACSB, and EQUIS, an honor shared by just 100 global institutions. His extensive background includes leading academic positions at esteemed institutions like SDA Bocconi, Milan, IIM Lucknow, and XLRI, coupled with a distinguished corporate journey at Tata Steel, where he molded Quality Systems and Communication Policy.
Over the decades, business education has undergone a profound transformation, shifting from a traditionally structured discipline focused almost exclusively on foundational pillars such as finance, marketing, operations, and strategic management to a far more dynamic and interdisciplinary approach. Historically, the mission of business schools was to produce competent managers capable of excelling within established corporate hierarchies. Graduates were trained to integrate seamlessly into the machinery of multinational companies, banks, consultancies, and legacy industries, where the emphasis was on stability, efficiency, and incremental growth. However, the acceleration of technological advancement, the democratization of digital tools, increased access to capital, and a growing appetite for innovation have dramatically altered what the professional world demands from its business graduates.
Today, top-tier business schools realize that their responsibility extends beyond grooming corporate executives to actively cultivating visionary entrepreneurs. The global economy is increasingly being shaped by fast-growing startups that challenge incumbents, introduce breakthrough technologies, and offer novel business models. The surge in entrepreneurial activity is not merely a trend but a powerful economic force, signaling a shift in how value – and even knowledge, is created, curated, and disseminated in the 21st century.
Embracing Entrepreneurship
In India and around the globe, the role of entrepreneurship has undergone a seismic transformation. India was home to over 1.61 Lakh (1,61,150) startups as of January 31, 2025, and this number is growing consistently. Against this backdrop, the imperative for business schools is to embrace entrepreneurship and to create an ecosystem that encourages experimentation, risk-taking, and venture creation. The classroom must serve as an incubator of ideas, where students are equipped to identify unmet needs, design scalable solutions, test hypotheses in real time, and navigate ambiguity with resilience. This transformation in business education mirrors the larger transformation in global business itself, where agility, creativity, and entrepreneurial thinking are becoming the most valued assets in any professional toolkit.
While many business schools in India and abroad are redesigning their syllabi, integration needs to go deeper than elective only modules or periodic workshops. One effective strategy is embedding entrepreneurship into the core curriculum: case studies featuring startup founders alongside corporate case studies; experiential projects where students craft business plans, test ideas with real customers; mentorship from founders and angel investors; and immersion in an incubation environment where risk, failure, and iteration are normalized learning tools. Assessment also needs transformation in terms of evaluating a student’s skills based on prototype progress, investor pitch, rapid cycle feedback, and evidence of customer validation.
The urgency of this integration is apparent. We now live in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world, and are moving towards a brittle, anxious, non-linear, and incomprehensible era. Graduates who only know how to join a company and climb a ladder may find themselves ill-equipped for the reality of jobs that change every few years,or for labor markets dominated by gig work or project-based assignments. Thus, equipping students with entrepreneurial skills, problem identification, opportunity evaluation, experimentation, resourcefulness, and resilience broadens their horizons regardless of whether they launch their own venture or work within an organization, where they become innovators and intra-preneurs.
However, integrating entrepreneurship into mainstream business education is a complex yet rewarding endeavor. While the enthusiasm is high, robust education systems, mentorship, and practical support are needed to channel that interest into action, which can limit the practical depth of startup-focused pedagogy. Moreover, traditional accreditation frameworks often prioritize academic rigor over experiential learning, making it challenging to embed flexible, venture-oriented curricula. Building and sustaining incubators also requires long-term financial and human investment, and consistent engagement from industry mentors and alumni. On the student side, it's not hesitation but rather a pragmatic concern. MBA graduates express interest in entrepreneurship, yet many delay launching ventures due to concerns around financial risk and initial market access. These are not deterrents but signposts that signal where support systems such as structured incubation, early-stage funding access, and mentorship need to be strengthened.
Building Strong Industry Connections & launching Student Ventures
With the right environment, these perceived challenges become opportunities for learning, resilience-building, and long-term success. B schools need to build strong industry connections to bring in experienced start-up practitioners as adjunct faculty and mentors. Tie-ups with investors and incubators can help launch student ventures and ease market entry. Workshops on lean start-up methodology, agile decision making, legal and IP basics, and fundraising can reduce knowledge gaps. Peer-to-peer start-up clubs, co-founder matching platforms, internal seed grants, and pitch competitions create a supportive environment. Most importantly, resilience training and risk normalization help students embrace the possibility of failure and learn to iterate.This virtuous cycle of current students, alumni, and investors can help build sustainable entrepreneurial growth, supported by real-time domain guidance and capital inflows.
Beyond infrastructure, B schools must regularly revisit their offerings. Landing metrics to track include the number of active start-ups incubated, average funds raised per venture, student-driven job creation, revenue generated by alumni ventures, long-term survival rates, and student satisfaction. Feedback loops from graduates who started businesses should guide improvements in curriculum, mentorship, and infrastructure,ensuring continued relevance and effectiveness.
As India seeks to further position itself as a global startup hub, with government programmes like Startup India, greater digital penetration, and an expanding middle class, the hungry search for innovation across sectors will only intensify. In this scenario, B schools have both a duty and an opportunity. They must craft systems that nurture entrepreneurial capabilities; from teaching, mentoring, funding, and ecosystem interface,to ensure graduates are not only employment-ready but venture-ready. Students, too, must learn that failure is a mentor, not an end.The time has come for every B school to become, in effect, a launchpad; for startups, for ideas, for future leaders.
