An undying quest for knowledge has Prof. Masood Siddiqui of Jaipuria, Lucknow complete 25 research papers, making PGDM classroom sessions way more insightful.

Whenever you ask students about Prof. Masood Siddiqui of Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow, you have them all unanimously agree “he is an academician you would never be bored of.” Indeed, once you speak to him, you would be thrilled by the kind of knowledge and insights he brings to even ordinary discussions. The man with around 25 research papers in his name and more than 230 citations (8 h-index & 7 i-10 index) under his belt, we asked him “do you remember the first research paper you ever wrote?”

It was the year 2006, right after Prof. Masood had entered Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow as a Professor in Decision Science & Operations. He had attended numerous research conferences. However, he wasn’t convinced if he was ready to formulate a paper together. With encouragement coming his way from the former director of Jaipuria, Lucknow Prof. Subrata Chakrabarty, Prof. Masood developed his first paper ever- “SODA and Cognitive Mapping-A Paradigm Shift” and it immediately got published. What a day! Since then, of course there has been no stopping this academician.

With a smile on his face, almost always, Prof. Masood is known for his amiable behavior and interpersonal skills. You would often see him engaged in insightful conversations with groups of students in the corridor post classroom sessions. His teaching technique is considered highly interactive by the PGDM natives of Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow. Especially because he draws heavily from his research work and tries to back theories with meaningful findings. For instance, at the latest Management Science/ Operations Research session, he taught the students how to incorporate qualitative parts (human feelings, conflicts, motivations, etc. in quantitative operations research models. Needless to say, where does he get to bring these dimensions in the otherwise theory-driven PGDM course sessions? Of course, from the extensive researches, he conducts whenever he manages time.

“Well, it does get difficult sometimes to balance time. Honestly, I don’t think that I get to give optimum time for the research activities with classes and academic-administrative responsibilities. But I try using all spare minutes and oftentimes, night hours whenever I feel driven,” answers Prof. Siddiqui when asked about time and day management. However, to some curious minds such as his, these things almost come naturally.

He started his teaching career in the Dept. of Statistics, the University of Lucknow after qualifying CSIR-UGC JRF-NET Exam in 1994 since it was mandatory to take classes as a Junior Research Fellow during those days. Then he joined U. P. Govt. for three years (1996-99) and returned back to academics with the joining of Lucknow Christian P. G. College in 1999 as Lecturer in Dept of Statistics. It didn’t end there. Prof. Masood says, “I also took up assignment as Visiting Faculty to a number of management courses including Dept of Business Administration, University of Lucknow. I joined Jaipuria, Lucknow in 2005 as Senior Lecturer and here I am, 12+ years in pursuit of more education.”

So in what ways did the B-school help, Prof. Masood Siddiqui of Jaipuria Institute of Management, Lucknow stay on top of his research work? “Research incentives, seed grants, infrastructure support, organizing research workshops, etc. are part of the Jaipuria functions, therefore, faculty are provided with a very conducive environment to continue their quest for knowledge,” elaborates Prof. Siddique before closing the conversation.