Gathering sheen

CAREER OPTION

The gems and jewellery industry is attracting management graduates, stockbrokers and Chartered Accountants too.

From an industry which largely banked upon skilled labour and trained manpower, the gems and jewellery industry is now hunting for trained management professionals also. Jewellery companies have been approaching institutes to recruit professionals with a background in chartered accountancy (CA) and management. What else? Management professionals are also looking at the industry as a viable option.

The gems and jewellery industry is estimated to be a $120-plus billion business worldwide and accounts for 18 per cent of total Indian exports. Says Renu Kapoor, director and strategic consultant, Indian Institute of Jewellery, "Like an IIT graduate understands the nitty gritty of engineering, we train our students to understand the minute details of the business. We have had students from the London School of Economics who has now set up his own jewellery business in London. A management student from the US has also set up his own consultancy abroad. More and more management professionals are joining this growing and lucrative industry."

Experts feel in the field of technology itself, around 5,000 jewellery technologists will be required every year to cater to the demand and to make the industry more professional, there is a need to introduce more professional courses. So far a majority of the institutes in India either provide a degree or a diploma course in gems and jewellery designing and management. There are short-duration courses in subjects like jewellery casting, pearl identification, diamond grading and valuation at the IIJ, International Gemology Institute of India, Mumbai and St Xavier's College, Mumbai.

The Manipal Insitute of Jewellery Design and Management, MAHE, however, is planning to start a PG course in the same to meet the industry needs. Says Col. Madhav Shanbagh, coordinator of the course at Manipal, "The industry is expanding and it certainly needs professional players. Many business houses have approached us for qualified management professionals."

Jewellery companies like Adora, InterGold, UNI Design and Super Gems flock to these institutes for trained professionals. Of the courses offered, retail in jewellery lifestyle management is a course which has seen a great response from the students. Says Kapoor," With the FMCG sector growing tremendously, people from the FMGC sector are also joining the courses. The jewellery industry is growing by leaps and bounds. By the end of 2007, the industry was expected to do a profit of $16 billion, but we have already touched the $20 billion mark This growth has made the industry very hungry for qualified professionals, required to manage and audit its businesses."

Concurs Tehmasp Printer, managing director, International Gemological Institute India, "With a lot of branded players entering the jewellery market, the requirement for qualified professionals has gone up. They have become the need of the hour. While the CAs help in the auditing of the businesses, the MBAs take over the branding exercise happening in the industry. For knowledge on the technical part, these professionals are given training in the technical aspects of the business."

To enroll for the certified advanced professional course in jewellery technology, prospective candidates need to undergo a personal interview. At IIJ, there are fast track courses also to suit the needs of the professionals. The training can be completed either over a period of 8 months (Fast Track - 6 hours a day), 24 months (Part Time - 3 hours a day) or 14 months (Weekend Batch - Saturday & Sunday).

For a management professional the pay packet starts from Rs 30,000 and sky is the limit when it comes to increment. In fact, from last year's industry average of Rs 75,000 jewellery technologists are now commanding Rs 2,40,000 per annum which is a sharp rise of 133 per cent. As Kapoor puts it, "It is just the beginning."