Untouchable Firms

For all non-Indians, untouchability prevailing in our society is one of the distinct feature of India. Though things are still bad, I tend to think that we have made good progress in reducing the ills of untouchability - even though there are some horror pockets even now in spite of the huge political mobilisation of dalits during the last two decades. As India started becoming a 'powerful' economy, we added other sorts of untouchability also into our basket. Corporate untouchability is one for instance.

For the blue-eyed boys and girls passing out of the modern business temples called 'Indian Institute of Managements", placement season and jobs offered to them are normally front-page hogging news. Eight digit and nine digit salaries offered to them - that too in dollars - was usual. Not this year.

The ongoing recession has caught up with them too. Grudgingly, they are allowing some 'smaller' firms - who remained untouchable hitherto - also for placement. Here is a small news item on this.

"Every year by February, the sharp suits from corporate houses line up at the gates of IIM campuses hoping to recruit a bunch of bright young managers. The IIMs are snobbish about whom they let in, the blue-chip boys are cherry picked and accommodated, the rest left to wait in the rain. This year, things look rather different. Everyone — even former untouchables like start-ups — are welcome."

With the economy showing signs of distress, placement season this year has been squeezed of its juicy paychecks and headline-grabbing offers. Companies are recruiting fewer students and on more modest terms. When slot zero-day closed at IIM-Ahmedabad on Wednesday, it was clear that the recession had no exceptions. If 25 companies crammed into the IIM-A campus last year on slot zero-day, there were seven this year and 13 students landed up with offer letters as compared to dozens more last year.

‘‘When times were better, students walking out of interview were pounced upon by friends enquiring about the package. Today, all we asked was whether he made it,’’ said a graduating student. On Saturday, slot zero at IIM-Calcutta too was a somber affair. The big guns — I-banks and the foreign recruiters — were missing.

Joseph Ike, IIM-C recruitment co-ordinator, said the B-school had called companies from sectors such as media, pharma and retail which till now ‘‘have either not been associated with our campus or have been associated to a very small extent’’. Fewer foreign firms registered to participate in placement process.

Natural calamities are great levelers. Rich and poor, powerful and powerless, everyone is brought in to one level and treated with equality. I guess, the same is true for man-made calamities also. Like Economic Melt Down, Terrorism...