The objective of FOSTIIMA is to provide, in a small but substantive way, a world class Business School ambience, a model where young people can leverage the best traditions of the strong Brand India image and the solid intellectual capital that exists within India (but which faces several self-imposed constraints) in order to help them get access to a robust management education which is particularly strong not just on the theoretical side, but which leverages the actual real-life experiences of successful managers from various sectors.
FOSTIIMA is the brainchild of IIM alumni partly motivated by their desire to give back to Indian society at large (from which they have derived so many benefits) as well as to create for a wider body of students the opportunity to partake of at least some parts of the IIM experience. We have had strong and growing interest from both recent and veteran IIM alumni to participate in teaching and placement. Lastly, the primary motivation of nearly all IIM alumni is to ensure that FOSTIIMA graduates get access to the intellectual and professional network which have a distinct IIM flavor to it.
The second campus in Mumbai is in an independent new floor in a great location. In spite of shrinking numbers of CAT applicants we decided not to delay expansion and went ahead with the capital expenses by widening the pool of financial stakeholders (restricted to a select few from IIMA). With the optimism being generated by the job creation numbers in the US, the buoyancy in the employment and CAT figures shall be appreciable, rather soon, and god willing, FOSTIIMA may open its third campus within another year.