Featured Interviews - Dr. Matin A. Khan
The apartment block was much like any other in Karachi. A narrow street with cars parked on either led us to a compound with some children playing in the open space. One of them waved at me, a friendly gesture but one lost on me so engrossed I was in my thoughts. I was about to meet a doyen of the IBA and was preparing myself for what was to be a portentous meeting.
"I have setup an interview with Dr. Matin", Prof. Mirza Sardar had told me over the telephone. I wanted to record his thoughts for the IBA history project and Dr. Matin A. Khan, who had joined the faculty in IBA's earliest days and served as Dean & Director of the institution from 1972 to 1977 to contribute greatly to the development of academic standards of IBA, was among the first people I wanted to speak to. He had received his MBA from the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce, University of Pennsylvania and DBA from the University of Southern California, USA and was a member of IBA's academic board.
I had been interviewing graduates of the IBA, especially
those from the 80s and 70s and they spoke about the
people who had had impacted them in their formative
years. Invariably the talk led to Dr. Matin Khan. His
name was taken with respect, bordering on awe. The words
"brilliant", "fair", and "difficult to get an A" came up
frequently. Regarding the last one Dr. Matin himself
told me the same, that he had very high standards for
his students as that was the only way they would learn
the value of hard work and he wanted them to truly excel
in life. And excel they did. His students graduated to
join world-class organizations and succeeded in the
areas of industry, government, academia and
entrepreneurship. Today they are CEOs and Directors,
professors and researchers, high ranking government
officials and familiar names in the world of commerce.
One of them is an office bearer in a major political
party and even after more than two decades he could
recall the lessons given by Dr. Matin.
Dr. Matin's grandson led Prof Mirza Sardar and me to his
room where he was lying on the bed. I had been told that
he has suffered from poor health but even in a
horizontal position he exuded authority. He was
bedridden but his voice was strong and his voice filled
the space with the same sonority it possessed when he
was a young faculty member more than five decades back.
His dark eyes were slightly dulled but still twinkled
with humor and the handshake was firm.
As Prof Sardar did the introductions I was setting up
the camera equipment and thinking about the changes he
must have witnessed. It was winter and the room was
completely silent the way it gets in the cold months
when suddenly his voice cut across the hushed
atmosphere, "Barha umda suit pehna hai aap nay" ('That's
a very nice suit you are wearing". I glanced up to see
who he was addressing and he was looking straight at me
with a benevolent smile on his face. 'Nazar hai aap ki
Matin Sahab" (It is only how you are appraising it Matin
Sahab) was my response. That remark broke the ice and we
started the interview. "Please tell about the IBA of
your day", I requested. The question was deliberately
open ended so ask to elicit a holistic response. He was
silent and his eyes got a faraway look in them. Perhaps
he was thinking back to the days when he had joined IBA
after getting his MBA from the world's oldest and
arguably finest business school in the world, the
Wharton Business School at University of Pennsylvania.
"I did as well as any foreign student" he said with a
broad smile. IBA had been setup a short while back and
was collaborating with Wharton Business School on
several aspects including curriculum and faculty
development. Dr. Matin brought with him a firm and
profound understanding of business education and his
teaching methodology and pedagogy was aligned to mould
students into not just industry captains, but also
critical thinkers and visionaries who would go on to
shape the economic and social landscape of the country.
Dr. Matin was a firm believer in the case study method
and field research and would take his students around
the commercial district of Saddar for first hand
research. Along the way he would discuss areas of
management, strategy, marketing and much more, all which
made for informative lessons and an immersive learning
experience. Students who were unprepared for the case
discussion could be asked to leave but according to him,
"Such was the rigor of the students that it only
happened a couple of times". He also said, "Admission in
IBA was very competitive and students who did not do
well were soon out of the institution. Of course this
meant that the graduates were supremely trained and got
picked for jobs by the leading organizations of the
country". Dr. Matin's developmental impact was not
limited to the students. As Dean he was also responsible
for faculty training and played a major role in sending
IBA faculty for doctorates and certifications to leading
international institutions. These faculty members then
returned to IBA to serve the institution with
distinction and nurture the next generation of students.
His impact was not just limited to IBA and he was
associated as Project Director for almost a decade with
JRP-IV, a research project on improvement of slums while
he was a visiting Professor at Ahmad Bello University,
Nigeria. Besides all this he was a prolific writer and
between all his academic responsibilities he took out
time to author a large number of books and articles on
marketing and research methodology.
We spoke about these matters and much more. On some
questions he would pause and but the silent spells
wouldn't last and he would plunge on to bring out more
memories from his treasure trove. "IBA has seen many
changes but good ones. It simply cannot be compared with
any other institution, they are completely different
entities", he asserted on more than one occasion.
However, he was wracked with coughing spells and we
could see that he was having difficulty speaking for
long periods. It was also getting late but I felt we had
barely touched the tip of what would be an iceberg of
rare knowledge. We said our goodbyes and he asked us to
come again for another long walk down the memory lane.
As we were stepping out of the room he said, "Really,
that's a very nice suit you have on". I told him that I
will gift him a similar one and he can wear it at the
launch of the IBA history book. He laughed and said he
will definitely be there. I am sure of it too for those
who teach are immortal and this ephemeral life but a
passing phase. He passed away from the corporeal world
on June 23rd, 2014 but Dr. Matin will live on through
his students and through the institution he loved and
nurtured. Dr. Matin will always be a part of the IBA.
Interview conducted
by:
Sibtain Naqvi - Alumnus 2007
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Featured Interviews
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