Supplementing Management Skills in SSI Sector

In the last decade of the 20th century we find great change in the business environment. In contrast to the earlier period, this closing decade, popularly known as an era of ‘reforms’, can be called a period of delicensing, deregulation and decontrol for Indian industries. The process of privatisation, liberalisation and globalisation of economic activities has affected the whole economy in one way or the other. Even the small-scale sector, growing under a protective umbrella, since independence, has been left open to the invisible hands of market forces. It has increased the sphere of competition both horizontally and vertically in national as well as international markets and created an environment where only the fittest survive and inefficient get weeded out. The compulsions of the changing economic scenario have made their operations more complex and increased uncertainty in achieving goals. It has underlined the concepts of productivity, quality, effectiveness and efficiency. In sum, the successive rounds of economic reforms have changed the macro-economic scene for small enterprise development. Healthy sustenance may be ensured and the potential benefits may be realised only if SSIs are managed professionally especially when management deficiency and a low level of skill and technology have been one of the major weaknesses of the SSI sector. But, operationally, due to various factors, employing professional managers by SSIs is limited which is eroding their competitive strength and healthy survival. In this regard Small Industries Development Bank of India, the apex institution for SSIs, not only reviewed the ground realities, reinforced the demand for managerial skills to ensure longer and healthy sustenance of SSIs but also launched a Small Industries Management Programme (SIMAP) for providing cost-effective managerial cadre prepared from the vast pool of unemployed graduates. For imparting managerial knowledge and skills through specially designed courses, reputed institutes of technology and management, that have linkage with SSIs sector, have been involved. A special Task Force has been constituted to follow-up and monitor the programme.