It would be an understatement to say that the Marketing Management course at BITSoM was a myth-buster. It was an eye-opener from the outset, challenging our traditional perceptions of marketing and making us see the subject in a whole new light. Whether it was the concept of marketing itself or Professor’s new addition to the 4 business orientations — the ‘income statement orientation’ — the course gave us a novel take on the management of innovation, brands and customers by marketers.

And what better way to complement the novel content of the course than a unique pedagogical style? The Professor adopted a punch-counterpunch approach, wherein he openly encouraged students to debate with him. He would then explain, if needed, why some traditional nuggets of wisdom don’t hold true in today’s business context; for this, he used examples from his own life and extensive work experience in marketing wherein he had held a variety of portfolios. His work as a part-time stand-up comic also clearly reflected in his fun and engaging teaching style.

Of course, the course would not be complete without the Holy Grail of B-school: Harvard Business School case studies, which touched upon areas as varied as customer segmentation and targeting, positioning and value proposition, brand management, market research, product development and distribution management.

A typical session began with a conceptual explanation of the topic covered in the case study, and the final hour was reserved for a thorough case discussion. Students would present their views and the Professor would create case presentation slides in real time, helping us see the burgeoning connections between different ideas and drawing links with key concepts. Our final exam was also case-based rather than theoretical, testing our ability to apply our learnings to a case study that we received 24 hours in advance.

For us, however, one of the most unique and innovative aspects of the course was the use of a virtual marketing simulation: a gamified online exercise that replicated real-world marketing scenarios and tested our knowledge as well as the quality of our decision-making. As owners of our own virtual burger joints, we went on a journey starting from ideation to metamorphosing our ideas into a globally diversified company – an experience that brought us as close to entrepreneurship as you can get in an academic setting. Moreover, the simulations were self-paced and feedback-intensive, enabling independent learning.

Students at BITSoM have surely emerged as more enriched marketers after this course.