Automobile management courses are finally getting their due respect. Enrollment is increasing every day and the numbers are rising on the good side. There is a long detailed history that can narrate why and how this happened. India’s automobile industry is old.
But in attaining this age automobile management courses evolved along with the industry. We’ve come a long way since the early 1950s when automobiles were capped at 40 thousand productions a year. There are many companies that are manufacturing in India and 40 thousand isn’t even close to the number being pulled now.
Sales statistics set at about 3.5 million vehicles being sold every year and 29 million produced. About 235 million vehicles are owned and operated by Indians on the daily. If these figures don’t speak for themselves then it should also be noted that exports grew by about 155 in 2019.
The industry is expected to reach 135 billion dollars by 2020 and 300 billion dollars by 2026 at a CAGR of 15%. The gargantuan size of this industry demands efficient management without which it is sure to fall short of its deadlines. There are hundreds of thousands of jobs at stake here.
There are a few pre-requisites to entering the degree and certain skills that are required to truly make the best use of the course- let’s take a look at them
Education, Qualifications and Skills
Having a comfort level with numbers, paying close attention to the detail and an understanding of the nuances of the automobile industry are important skills. As our great communication skills, a curious and learning mind along with strong foundational skills in commerce. To an extent a comfortable relationship with a workplace amongst heavy machinery too.
Along with these skills, the ability to work in heavy-stress work environments and efficient load management ability are required as a part of the job in the industry. Proper knowledge of corporate laws, rules, and regulations along with automobile safety laws and regulations is an added bonus. They should at least be known on a foundational level.
Automobile management courses are postgraduate level and require a 60% aggregate score in 12th standard and a bachelor’s degree to qualify. The bachelor’s should preferably be from a business management stream or financial/commerce stream.
Both direct and entrance test-based enrollment is possible in these degrees and the course lasts about two years. If a good B-school is to be pursued a national entrance exam such as CAT, XAT, MAT, etc. needs to be cleared with a good result first.
It follows a general semester system and the course fees range between one lakh rupees per year to as high as fifteen lakhs depending on the B-school of choice. There are distance learning and post-graduate diplomas in management as alternative options to an MBA available. But MBA certainly is preferred by the industry as it meets all the standards.
Future Prospects, Job Profiles and Salaries offered
This is a diverse industry to work in and intersects with a lot of other industries and thus the scale and scope of employment are also high. People with experience in fuel management, automobile design, manufacturing and production management and such, can work in it. The jobs are plenty and the higher levels of experience pay generously.
The most common job profiles available are Automobile manager, Automobile Production Manager, Assembly Line Manager, Benchmarking Manager, Sales Manager, Marketing Manager, Automobile Market Analyst, Automobile Audit Manager, etc. The most common recruiters are Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Honda, Hero, Bajaj, General Motors, Hyundai, Ford, Renault, etc. Govt. sector hires in this industry as well.
Manufacturing, Marketing, Sales, Logistics and Supply-Chain management are all active sub-domains of the automobile industry. There are plenty of diverse job profiles available other than the above-mentioned ones. Thus people looking for a career switch to the automobile industry should gauge the risks and make the transition to it.
The average salaries offered at entry level are 3-4LPA. With about 5 years of experience, or what can be considered mid-career level, the salary scales up to 6-8LPA. The late-career salaries go as high as 8-10LPA. There is obvious job security and the career progression is somewhat smooth.
