DEVELOPING COMPETITIVE MINDSET: PERCEPTION OF ACADEMIA

Knowledge based economy recognizes human capital as the intellectual capital and knowledge as a critical tool for enhancing competitiveness of a country.With an annual average GDP growth has been 6% to 7% since the start of the 21st century, India has made impressive progress in economic growth. The Global Competitiveness Report, 2019 of World Economic Forum (WEF) suggests the role of competitiveness to sustain future growth and income. The report demonstrates a strong correlation between competitiveness and per capita income and that without improving competitiveness; less competitive Economies may find it difficult to sustain even their present levels of income. Improving the fundamentals of competitiveness improves resilience to shocks. Available literature also suggests that if India becomes globally more competitive, it can raises its per capita export substantially and could create over 30 million well-paying jobs. Though factors like policy environment and infrastructure strengthening are important in providing a competitive edge to the nation, a competitive mindset is equally important. A question which eludes a convincing answer since long is that despite being a nation of capable people, why does India lag behind in global competitiveness? There is an apparent need to skill nation's workforce with attributes that lead to a competitive mindset and this study is aimed at understanding the perception of academia about such attributes. Suggestions have also been made as how to amalgamate the imparting of such attributes with formal programmes at the level of higher education.