Dr. Murali Manohar, Professor & Dean, D Y Patil
Agriculture & Technical University
I am Dr. Murali Manohar,
a person with more than 3 decades of experience both in India and abroad, with
multiple academic qualifications. A major part of my professional experience
has been at Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, for over 27 years (an IoE
as accorded by the GOI and QS & THE-ranked University) and a couple of
foreign assignments. Currently, I have also been working with D Y Patil
Agriculture & Technical University, Talsande, Kolhapur, as Professor and
Dean (School of Commerce & Management) and Dean of Research since December
24, 2021.
The research experience
includes publishing papers in reputed international journals published by
Springer Nature, Emerald, Elsevier, etc. I am also a reviewer for leading
journals published by top publishing houses across the globe. As of this date,
four research scholars have secured their Ph.D. degrees under my guidance, and
one is in the reviewing stage (all at Vellore Institute of Technology,
Vellore). At my current organization, I am guiding six Ph.D. scholars.
Could you tell us about your educational and
professional journey?
I have completed an MBA.,
M. Com., M.Phil., FDPM (IIM-A), and Ph.D. from various places in India. The
most memorable one should be the Faculty Development Program in Management done
at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, in 1998 on a fellowship
secured. This program was conducted for 11 months at IIM-A on the basis of ITP
at Harvard Business School.
The professional journey
took a turn from industry to academics in 1991 when I failed to secure a visa
to the USA. I became an academician at Warangal to teach the BBA program and
later moved to Vellore Engineering College at Vellore (currently Vellore
Institute of Technology) in 1994, when they started their MBA and MCA programs
under the University of Madras.
The academic exposure at
IIM A changed me into a more professional academician, focusing on research and
teaching in a blended manner. The adoption of the case method of teaching for
an MBA was a result of my program at IIM A.
During 2003, I got an
opportunity to be a faculty member (Asst. Professor) with the Ministry of
Higher Education, Government of Ethiopia, under UNDP assignment. I worked at
the University of Hawassa and established a BBA program at the newly
established university. I worked until 2005 and returned to VIT.
Another major opportunity
came to me as a visiting professor at the University of Cologne from October
2011 to March 2012 under DAAD fellowship assistance. Note worthy aspect of my academic
career includes a credit transfer for MBA program offered by VIT Business
School with (UMD) University of Michigan, Dearborn campus. Under this program,
I could offer MS thesis guidance for more than 15 students who have done their
internships at UMD for a period starting 2013 till 2018.
Could you elaborate on your specific areas of
expertise and a few of your publications?
I have expertise in
multiple functional areas of management, to be specific: marketing, strategic
management, information systems, and analytics. I have completed a Ph.D. in
e-commerce from Sri Venkateswara University. I have more than 100 publications
in reputed national and international journals.
Most of the articles are
indexed in ABDC and Scopus journals published by leading publishing houses like
Springer Nature, Emerald, Elsevier, etc. Recognized in terms of citations,
H-index, and i10-index in Scopus, Google Scholar, Research Gate, and Vidwan
leading research platforms. I also published a couple of books and book chapters
with leading publishers not just in India but abroad.
Some of the top-notch
referred articles published by me and my scholars include:
• Critical Success Factors for Implementing Lean Practices in
IT Support Services
• Knowledge retention in the IT service industry
• Why Indian manufacturing SMEs are still reluctant in
adopting total quality management
• Critical success factors in gaining user customer
satisfaction in outsourced IT services
• A Survey on Internet of Things: Case Studies, Applications
and Future Directions
What are your primary duties as a professor and
dean at D Y Patil Agriculture & Technical University?
My responsibility as Dean
of the School of Commerce and Management includes creating various UG and PG
programs in Commerce and Management. We have started BBA (honors) and MBA as
per the new guidelines of NEP 2020 ever since 2021.
Made revisions as per the
guidelines issued by UGC from time-to-time. Both of these programs offer dual
specialization in various streams of management.
We are also planning to
start B.Com. in collaboration with professional bodies like ICAI, ICSI, etc.
from next academic year 2025-26, as we feel the increasing need for accounting
professionals in the near future to carryout not just be accountants but analysts with large corporate across the
globe.
I am also the Dean of
Research at D Y Patil Agriculture & Technical University and started
offering a Ph.D. program in January 2022 in multiple fields of Agriculture and
Engineering (Computer Science, Computer Applications), Food Technology, Food
Sciences, Management, and Agri-Business Management. We also introduced research
in inter-disciplinary fields such as Lean Management, Construction Management,
etc. at our university. We select the scholars based on the guidelines of the
UGC.
With your three decades of experience in academia
and industry, what do you consider to be your most significant achievements or
milestones?
The most significant
achievements or milestones secured during the last 35 years of professional
experience across the globe include the following:
• Securing the Paul Harris Fellowship from Rotary
International for visiting North Yorkshire under the Group Study Exchange
Program to be at Yorkshire from April to June 2000.
• Securing admission for FDP at IIM A in June 1997 and
successfully completing the same in April 1998.
• Be a part of Vellore Engineering College to transform itself
into Vellore Institute of Technology, which was declared a university in 2000,
followed by securing various achievements like an Institution of Excellence
from MHRD in 2021.
• Obtaining the UNDP assignment with the Ministry of Higher
Education in Ethiopia during October 2003 to July 2005 for establishing the
Business Program at the University of Hawassa.
• Being the Convenor of India’s leading sports and cultural
event at VIT “Riviera” for a period of 3 years starting in 2008–2010, followed
by being an advisor to their tech and management fest "GRAVITAS,” is
always a cherishing moment of my administrative roles at VIT.
• The most challenging role that I have played at VIT includes
securing the ACBSP and AACSB accreditations for all the programs offered by VIT
Business School from leading US business accreditation agencies as a member of
the Core-Committee of Accreditation for AACSB and Co-Champion for ACBSP during
2018–2021.
• The last but not least is my administrative role as Director
of Library (Learning Resources) at VIT, which includes moving from industry
standard LMS - LIBSYS to KOHA, an open-source software. Also adding the number
of e-journals and e-books for all four campuses of VIT.
Could you tell us about any prominent awards and
accolades you have been honored with throughout your distinguished career?
• The most prominent ones include securing various fellowships
from the US and Germany to enrich myself and shape future generations of
students in India.
• Delivering invited talks on various emerging themes across
India, in particular at Central University, industry bodies, leading
professional bodies, etc.
• A biographical profile appeared in the 32nd edition of
Marquis Who’s Who Publications, brought out in January 2015, USA.
What advice would you give to aspiring academics
and researchers looking to make a mark in the field of management?
We are living in a world
that is transforming quickly; hence, all academics and researchers should adapt
to the changes happening around us, in particular in terms of technology, the
impact of technology, publication trends, etc. I strongly believe that there is
no end to learning, so always keep your eyes and ears open to learn.
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