Thursday, June 23, 2011

Opportunities in MFM for Software Professionals




Sometimes I receive mails like this:

" I am a software engineer by profession and in the industry for 6 years. I have been slogging in a field I had little interest and just because of our social structure which pushes you to deliver your best in anything you do; I have been doing well all these years. A while ago I was wondering if I am in a field where I have interest in; I would be a happier person and could deliver even better results. That is how I came across fashion management and the MFM course offered at NIFT....."

Such students sometimes wonder how MFM program can integrate their career with the software degrees they carry. In fact it provides them with many opportunities. 

Broadly we can divide the opportunities into three categories. The first I call as the direct benefits. These are the ones where the knowledge of software helps into getting a specialist jobs. This category include ERP designing and implementing in an apparel industry. It also includes jobs in retail consultancy companies. I have also seen students getting placed in Visual Merchandising Software companies and even data base management companies working for retail projects. 

The second category is the broadest. These are indirect benefits that you get from the knowledge of software skills. The benefits range from shortcuts in excel to actually be in the team responsible for ERP implementation in the organisation. Increasingly software professionals are becoming the first among equals when applying for jobs. As more and more companies are getting IT as the central part of the strategy, they find a fashion professional with software skills very helpful. 

With the advent of online retailing, there is a third category of opportunities that is increasingly becoming available for software professionals. Developing and maintaining B2B platform for Textile Value chain. Increasingly these sites are taking advantage of social networking capability of Web-2  and more where software professionals with Fashion management degree are hired.

In a nutshell, opportunities abound for software professionals in Fashion Management Field. If you are a software engineer and have an interest in Fashion, MFM can provide you with opportunities to take your career to new highs. 



1 comment:

devyani said...

hi i worked in software industry for 3+ years and now am perusing MFM.from NIFT. can please you guide me how to prepare resume which covers both my s/w experience and Merchandising knowledge