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Brand Manager- a lucrative career today - 26-Dec-2013
As a result today, Brand management is itself a course that provides lucrative packages with its specialized function extending to create and nurture a brand to enhance market image, improve customer reach, and sustainability in a competitive environment
As the dynamic Indian market is becoming increasingly competitive, developing a brand for any sort of product has become a prerequisite of effective marketing.
As result, the demand for professional managers to promote the identity of the product in the market is increasing. This profession offers good salary packages to innovative, daring and successful candidates.
Brand managers focus their action on market research and development, packaging, manufacturing, sales and distribution, communications, and forecasting.
In the recent days, brand management jobs are aplenty, particularly in FMCG companies that market food products, soaps, soft drinks, tobacco, drugs, cosmetics, and liquor. Moreover, business enterprises like banks, insurance companies, advertising agencies, television channels, and newspaper organizations too employ brand managers.
Although, there are no set entry routes for brand managers, but majority of the companies prefer an MBA from a premier institutions.
Entry towards base level positions is a Masters degree or postgraduate diploma in business administration (MBA), from a premier mangement institution of the country. Fresh graduates are also preferred, depending on their aptitude and flair. Other means to become a brand manger is to acquire good communications/advertising experience with skill sets like creativity, communication, and marketing savvy.
Brand managers monitor market trends and oversee advertising and marketing activities to ensure the right message is delivered about their product or service.
They work closely with many teams, including product developers, researchers, marketing personnel and creative agencies to make sure their company brand values and image are followed.
Skills required to be a brand manager are
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Instinctive feeling about future product concepts
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Good analytical skills
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Good listener and able to respond to results and consumer research
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Excellent communicator, both verbally and in writing
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Ability to work well with a wide range of people from different parts of the business
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Lead a team with motivation
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Manage different projects at the same time
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Energetic and passionate about their product specialty
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Organized and methodical
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Able to work well under pressure
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Good presentation skills.
Apart from that a brand manager must be keen to know what competitors are up to; enjoy working in a busy, deadline-driven, creative environment; and enjoy working in product management.
Across the country, over 50 educational institutions offer study programmes with specialisation in brand marketing.
Indian Institutes of Management (at Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore, and Kozhikode)
Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai
Faculty of Management Studies, New Delhi
Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneshwar
Xavier Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship, Bangalore
BHU Faculty of Management Studies, Varanasi
Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune
S.P. Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai
Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai
M.P. Birla Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai
Samsika Academy of Brand Management, Mumbai
Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management, Kolkata
Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar
Indian Institute of Science and Management, Ranchi
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Kolkata.
