SYMBIOSIS SCHOOL OF BANKING AND FINANCE Building Robust Careers Through Grit

An Overview

The well-known Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance (SSBF) is a strategic answer to the growing demand for a trained workforce in the Banking and Financial Services sector. A constituent of Symbiosis International (Deemed University) (SIU), SSBF was founded in 2010 and offers a two-year full-time residential MBA programme in Banking and Finance.

Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance, was conceptualized by foreseeing the immense opportunities in the Banking, Finance, and Insurance sector.

The goal of the MBA programme that SSBF offers is to prepare students to work as industry-ready professionals in the BFSI sector. SSBF has always kept up with the latest industry developments. To meet the demands of the dynamic financial sector, SSBF fine-tunes its curriculum with input from industry veterans.

As a result, it is not surprising that SSBF has eminent and experienced industry professionals on its advisory board and alumni who provide input to keep our curriculum relevant and up to date with industry demands.

For this whole inside story, we sat down for a virtual meeting with the Director of the company, Dr. Neha Parashar. She happened to walk us through various aspects of the institutions. Let’s dive in-

Inclusive Vision

In the dynamic and complex world of banking and finance SSBF is envisioned to provide the most relevant and to the point practical knowledge with a smooth skill set that can take on the challenges arising with every sun rise. It is focused on promoting international understanding of the sector through quality education.

Robust Mission

The poised management of SSBF is ready to take on the banking and finance sector keeping the following mission statements of SIU in mind:

• To inculcate the spirit of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (the world is one family)

• To contribute towards knowledge generation and dissemination

• To promote ethical and value-based learning

• To foster the spirit of national development

• To inculcate cross cultural sensitization

• To develop global competencies amongst students

• To nurture creativity and encourage entrepreneurship

• To enhance employability and contribute to human resource development

• To promote health and wellness amongst students, staff & community

• To instill sensitivity amongst the youth towards the community and environment

• To produce thought provoking leaders for the society

HOW DOES SSBF IMPART KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS?

Banking and finance being a specialised domain, faculty members’ roles become critical for students’ academic and professional advancement. In a classroom, the role of faculty is more of a facilitator, imparting and building the theoretical foundation of the field and encouraging learners to think critically in practice.

The SSBF faculty are UGC-qualified and experienced academics. The majority of the faculty members have also worked in industry and are dedicated to excellence in teaching and research. The theoretical knowledge provided by academicians and the practical aspects disseminated by bankers/industry professionals provide the ideal combination of both.

The classroom environment is interactive, with participatory learning allowing for the free exchange of ideas between faculty and students.

Platforms such as Bloomberg and Gieom expose students to current trends and accurate data for research.

Adding on Future BFSI Leaders

As the banking, financial services, and insurance industries expand at a rapid pace, there is a high demand for skilled and employable human resources. SSBF meets this demand by supplying industry-ready professionals.

The SSBF MBA in Banking and Finance programme is designed to disseminate relevant knowledge and skills to students so that they can function effectively in the challenging environment of the BFSI sector. The curriculum was created by comparing it to similar courses offered by national and international universities/institutions.

One of the core features of the SSBF curriculum and teaching pedagogy is the integration of technology in teaching and learning. Bloomberg enables in real-time data sourcing and analysis, Python and R programming language enables statistical analysis and inferences. Data analysis tools like SPSS and Tableau facilitate data analysis, extract insights, and to draw relevant financial information. All these resources eventually unearth the latest trends in the BFSI purview expediting the decision-making skills.

THE PROMINENCE OF R&D FOR DEVELOPMENT

SSBF’s core competency is research and development. Faculty members at SSBF direct student committees such as the Equity Research Cell, the Bloomberg Cell, and the Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell). Various concepts are developed and implemented. Students benefit from primary and secondary research because it provides them with a practical perspective. Students write and publish research papers in prestigious journals under the mentorship of faculty members.

Definition Of Leadership At Symbiosis

Dr. Neha Prashar- the Director of SSBF says, “Leaders inspire others to take the steps necessary for success. To be a great leader, you must first learn and cultivate the necessary skills. Symbiosis International (Deemed University) believes in Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and considers the entire world to be our family”.

Further she adds, “Leadership is the art of persuading people to willingly achieve group goals. Every human being desires to lead, inspire, and contribute to the greater good. It can be in your dayto-day roles as a housewife, student, or manager delegating and managing tasks in an organisation. Within each of us is a leader who strives to break down barriers and set examples.”

Work Culture At Symbiosis

SSBF maintains a safe and healthy work environment and culture. The strongest pillar of Symbiosis is a high level of job satisfaction and skill advancement. Employees receive a competitive salary as well as other benefits. Employees in Symbiosis enjoy work-life balance and look forward to remaining with the organisation for decades.

ACCELERATING SSBF’S GROWTH

Banking, finance, and insurance are all-embracing technology to better and faster serve their customers. Data privacy is a major concern for businesses when providing services through technology. To meet the technological needs of the BFSI sector, SSBF intends to launch certification and executive diploma programs in FinTech, Cyber Security, MSME Finance, and Personal Finance. Companies are looking for tech-savvy candidates, so SSBF is planning a FinTech specialization for MBA students.

MILESTONES & ACHIEVEMENTS

• Collaborated with Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and BFSI sector skill council of India to develop content for National University Student’s Skill development, a project initiated by TISS to increase the employability of the university students by imparting knowledge and skills.

• Scholarship of Rs. 1 lac for a needy student based on the academic performance and family’s financial background.

• Conducted training programs for esteemed organizations such as Union Bank of India, YES Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Bank of India, Canara Bank.

• Tie up with industry for different kinds of certification and workshops for students like AIWMI, D&B, Bloomberg etc

FUTURE ASPIRATIONS

SSBF excels in corporate training in addition to grooming and developing leaders for the BFSI industry. For both public and private sector banks, SSBF has successfully delivered domainspecific and soft skills training programmes.

SSBF intends to provide more industry-relevant certifications to students, upgrade program structure in response to technological changes and industry needs, and continue to organise sessions with industry experts.

Along with that, the school will develop online resources for aspirants who seek to pursue a career in banking and finance. SSBF is in the process of signing an MOU with the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF) and other businesses to train professionals.

The Pearls Of Wisdom By The Leadership Panel

“A good entrepreneur is daring. There is no shame in starting slowly. Just start. Don’t link your success as an entrepreneur to the success of your idea. Your job as an entrepreneur is to iterate through ideas to get to the right one. Part of that process is successfully proving your ideas are no good. Failure is part of making progress. grow your network and Seize Opportunities.”

Good Quality

In a country like India, with a few primers’ colleges which get filled very quickly because of the limited seats, most students cannot get quality education. On the other hand, many surveys have happened, it shows many schools have fewer teachers than the required ones. For example, according to a recent report of the Gujarat education department, they found that in Gujarat, 12,000 schools out of 32,772 government schools are run by just one or two teachers. This isn’t just one state situation there are many out there. Due to teacher numbers declinations, one or two teachers cannot focus on the students in the classrooms, nor are they (students) able to utilize their time spent in the classrooms.