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Time of India
03-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
They paid Rs 50 lakh for MBA, tech degrees but only 'polished skill' is PPT: Entrepreneur after hiring 3 students
When Sanket S, founder of Scandolous Foods, decided to hire fresh graduates from some of India's most prestigious private colleges, he expected talent that could keep up with the demands of his growing startup. Instead, what he found was disheartening. In a viral LinkedIn post, Sanket shared how hiring three students—an MBA graduate, a hotel management student, and a tech degree holder—left him more concerned than optimistic. 'These kids paid ₹40–50 lakh for degrees from India's top private MBA, food, and hospitality colleges,' Sanket wrote. 'But they walked out knowing… nothing that actually matters.' What was meant to be an onboarding of future industry shapers quickly turned into a revelation about the stark mismatch between academic credentials and workplace readiness . The Only 'Polished Skill'? Making PowerPoint Slides Sanket explained that the MBA graduate couldn't grasp basic financial concepts like profit and loss or cash flow. The hotel management student had never been inside a food processing facility. Even basic knowledge about precision fermentation—vital in a food-tech startup—was missing. 'All of them are brilliant at making PPTs. That too, stuff Gemini or ChatGPT can do in seconds now,' he added, expressing how automation had surpassed the one skill they came equipped with. You Might Also Like: Hotmail cofounder Sabeer Bhatia blasts Indian education system: 'We are producing an army of useless kids' A Broken Pipeline, Not a Broken Batch The reaction to Sanket's post underscored a wider problem—India's education system, not its students, may be failing the job market . Netizens argued that graduates aren't inherently lacking, but are products of outdated curricula that prioritise rote learning over real-world application. One user called the system 'a bottleneck,' especially in emerging sectors like food tech and biotech, where theory-heavy teaching leaves students unprepared for practical challenges. Another pointed out the mismatch in expectations, noting, 'Most of these graduates are fit for Fortune 1000 companies, not startups that demand flexibility and critical thinking.' Several commenters also criticised how both schools and colleges suppress creativity and curiosity in favour of memorisation. 'There's little focus on inventions, discoveries or deep research,' one said, while another called for a bottom-up overhaul through a robust STEAM education strategy. The consensus is clear: India may be producing degrees, not doers. Unless systemic reforms take place, young professionals will continue entering the workforce ill-equipped—not because they lack talent, but because they were never trained to apply it where it matters. You Might Also Like: Choosing Computer Science in college? Nobel Laureate Geoffrey Hinton has a stark warning for aspiring coders Startups Want Builders, Not Bookworms For startups, the gap between a glowing résumé and on-ground ability comes at a cost. Founders who are trying to build cutting-edge ventures in medtech, biotech, and climate tech need team members who can hit the ground running—not those who need to be trained from scratch. 'Train them from scratch, then I'm not running a company, I'm running a classroom,' Sanket wrote, highlighting the dilemma founders face—whether to invest time in training underprepared local talent or look abroad, betraying their 'Make in India' dreams. A Call for Urgent Reform The post has also reignited the conversation around STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) education and the need to shift from outdated curricula to skills that matter in the modern world. One commenter emphasized that unless India builds a bottom-up education strategy rooted in innovation, 'we will lose the global innovation competition.' Sanket ended his post with a strong cautionary note: 'At this rate, we're not just 10 years behind—we're raising a generation that doesn't even know what the world looks like today.' You Might Also Like: Schools and universities to go obsolete? Godfather of AI, Greoffrey Hinton says 'we won't need them' As the debate rages on, one thing is clear—India's talent pipeline might need more than a polish. It needs a full-scale reboot.
Time of India
03-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
‘Running a classroom, not a company': Startup founder reveals the harsh realities of building a business in India
A pointed LinkedIn post by Sanket S, founder of Scandolous Foods, has sent ripples through India's startup ecosystem, sparking a flurry of reactions from entrepreneurs and professionals who say it highlights deep flaws in the country's talent pipeline. Check full text of the post here I hired 3 people from one of India's best tech colleges and honestly…it scared me. I'm not talking about some no-name college. These kids paid ₹40–50L for degrees from India's top private MBA, food, and hospitality colleges. But they walked out knowing… nothing that actually matters. No idea what precision fermentation is. MBA grad didn't understand P&L or cash flow. Hotel management kid had never seen a food processing line. And all of them are brilliant at making PPTs. That too stuff Gemini or ChatGPT can do in seconds now. What are we training kids for?? Because it's clearly not for work. It's to memorise outdated textbooks and polish case studies from 2012. And I'm sitting here, trying to build a 'globally competitive company' and this is the talent I get access to? What am I supposed to do? Train them from scratch, then I'm not running a company, I'm running a classroom. Or hire from abroad and feel like a traitor to my own 'Make in India' dreams? Honestly, I've spoken to so many founders, and this is not just MY problem. This is India's problem. And it pisses me off because founders can hustle, investors can bet big but if the talent pipeline is broken, the whole system crumbles. You want India to lead in food tech, biotech, climate tech, medtech? Then stop producing talent that's outdated before it even hits the job market. Because at this rate, we're not just 10 years behind, we're raising a generation that doesn't even know what the world looks like today. What did people say? "Yes it's every founder's problem. Need to train them from scratch and no guarantee that they stay with the company and can quit at any time. There's a huge gap in the education system which needs to be addressed immediately," said one user. "The situation is alarming. Sanket S you have raised a very valid point. In fact, many of us as an academician also find it in the same way. Institutes compete against peers in showcasing their highest placement packages; Similarly, students also want to be assured of getting a good placement and hence evaluates the institute on this one and only criterion. In this kind of transactional approach, intellectual resource, skill building, and many more things of utmost importance takes the back and many a times it results into something that disappoints practitioners like you at the end," said another user.
