Placements 2006: Of Laterals, Media Hype & Collateral Damage

It was boom time again at campuses and parties were on everywhere. From IIMs to TISS, the mood was of celebration and celebration. In all terms, Placements 2006 took off to new heights and created a sort of history where the top salary went up to USD 193,000 from USD 152,000 last year on foreign postings, while on domestic front, it was a Rs. 30 Lakhs p.a. offer that hogged the lime light (last year highest salary was Rs. 16 Lakhs grabbed by an IIMC student).

However, amidst all this hype and hoopla, one thing, which even the most seasoned placements scenario watcher could not have bargained for, was unprecedented media coverage and hype. Placement coverage, which was pioneered by BT-CoolAvenues in year 2000, suddenly got discovered by news channels, and the result was a run-of-the-mill coverage, and more often than not, backed by more myths, hype and drama than actual story, facts & figures and researched analysis.

The hint of extraordinary media coverage and hype came early when one of the leading news channels chose to flash a story of USD 65,000 as the highest salary ever made at any IIMs without getting its facts right. To put the records straight, highest salary at IIMA in year 2005 was USD 152,000 and in year 2004 it was USD 120,000. But all news channels got carried away. Dollars were converted fast into INR using exchange ratio and discarding purchasing power parity, they further forgot about the laterals and the relevance of these hyped salary figures to experienced professionals for whom this salary is anyway industry norm. So welcome to Placements 2006 - of fiction, hype and myth - an event blown out of proportion by media, for the benefit of naive parents / salivating CAT aspirants, and against truth and all MBA alumni, since its expected to create more heartburn to class of 1990, if nothing else!

In a country where average unemployment rate is 9% (Source: CIA Handbook on India) and 25% of the population is still below poverty line, and barely managing one square meal, a salary of Rs. 80 Lakhs per annum to a youngster just out of college is bound to make the headlines. But what makes the whole process nothing but hype is when in reporting Rs. 80 Lakhs salary, facts become fiction and some checks and balances move out of the window.

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