Certificate Programme in Design Thinking Innovation for Business Excellence
IIM Indore
Indore · Est. 1996
- Duration
- 11 Months
- Mode
- Hybrid (Live Online + Campus Immersion)
- Starts
- 24 Oct 2026
- Eligibility
- 3–10 years experience
Overview
About the programme
The Certificate Programme in Design Thinking Innovation for Business Excellence programme from Indian Institute of Management Indore is built for working professionals who need to move from doing the work to owning the outcome. Over 11 months, it takes you from foundations through to the judgement calls that only show up at senior level.
The curriculum is delivered by IIM Indore faculty alongside industry practitioners, and every module ends in applied work — a case, a lab or a decision you have to defend. Leadership for a knowledge economy.
Sessions run on weekends, so the programme fits around a full-time role. You finish with a portfolio of applied work, a certificate from Indian Institute of Management Indore, and a cohort you will keep calling long after the programme ends.
Programme insights
Who it is for, and what is expected
Read this before you apply. Cohort fit matters more than enthusiasm — these programmes work because everyone in the room has comparable exposure.
Eligibility criteria
- Bachelor's degree (10+2+3) or equivalent from a recognised university with a minimum of 50% aggregate
- 3–10 years of full-time professional experience post qualification
- Working knowledge of general management & leadership concepts is helpful but not mandatory
- Access to a laptop and a stable internet connection for live sessions
Who should attend
- Professionals with 3–10 years of experience moving into general management & leadership ownership
- Functional managers who need to make general management & leadership decisions without a specialist background
- Consultants and advisors building depth in general management & leadership
- Entrepreneurs and family-business leaders formalising this capability in-house
Assessment
- Assignments & case submissions40%
- Quizzes and MCQ assessments20%
- Capstone project40%
A minimum attendance of 75% across live sessions is required for certification.
Schedule & format
- Delivery format
- Hybrid (Live Online + Campus Immersion)
- Session timing
- Weekends — Saturdays & alternate Sundays, 3 hours per session
- Total sessions
- 39 live sessions of 3 hours each
- Commencement
- 24 Oct 2026
Curriculum
Programme content
6 modules, 24 topics, delivered over 11 months.
6
Core modules
24
Topics covered
- Industry structure and competitive advantage
- Resource-based view and capability building
- Corporate vs. business unit strategy
- Strategy execution and the strategy-to-plan gap
- Reading and using financial statements
- Unit economics and contribution analysis
- Budgeting, forecasting and variance
- Investment appraisal and capital allocation
- Segmentation and value proposition design
- Pricing strategy and willingness to pay
- Channel and partnership decisions
- Customer lifetime value and retention economics
- Process design and bottleneck management
- Project governance and delivery discipline
- Metrics, dashboards and operating cadence
- Cross-functional coordination mechanisms
- Influence without authority
- Team design, psychological safety and conflict
- Difficult conversations and feedback
- Organisational design and decision rights
- Design thinking and problem discovery
- Business model innovation patterns
- Digital and AI transformation roadmaps
- Managing change fatigue and resistance
Learning outcomes
What you will be able to do afterwards
Stated as capabilities rather than topics — this is the list to check against your own gaps.
Diagnose an industry and articulate where advantage actually comes from
Own a P&L with a clear line from activity to margin
Price on value rather than cost-plus habit
Set an operating cadence that surfaces problems early
Lead cross-functional change without formal authority
Build a transformation roadmap with sequencing and funding logic
Pedagogy
How it is taught
Hands-on Labs
Applied exercises with the same tools you will use back at work on Monday.
Case Method
Institute-authored cases on Indian and global organisations, discussed cohort-wide.
Simulations
Decision simulations where the consequences of a call play out over several rounds.
Peer Learning
Cohorts deliberately mixed across industry and function so the discussion has range.
The institute
About IIM Indore
Indian Institute of Management Indore was established in 1996 and is based in Indore, India. Leadership for a knowledge economy.
IIM Indore works with iAdmit to extend its executive and online offerings to working professionals across India, without requiring them to leave full-time employment.
Learners on IIM Indore programmes get faculty-led live sessions, institute-issued certification on completion, and iAdmit's programme management, financing and career support running alongside.
Indian Institute of Management Indore
Leadership for a knowledge economy.
- #7 NIRF Management 2025
- AACSB accredited
- Triple Crown institute
Investment
Programme fee & financing
All figures exclude GST. Payment plans and waivers are confirmed in writing before you pay anything.
| Application fee (non-refundable) | ₹2,000 + GST |
| Total programme feeInclusive of the application fee | ₹1,25,000 + GST |
| No-cost EMI from | ₹8,300 / month |
What the fee covers
- All live sessions and recorded access for the programme duration
- Course material, cases and lab environments
- Certification from Indian Institute of Management Indore
- Dedicated programme manager and academic support
- Career services: résumé review, interview prep, mentorship
Campus immersion travel, accommodation and any optional add-ons are billed separately where applicable.
Admissions
How to apply
Five steps, typically completed within two weeks of your first conversation.
- 1
Check Eligibility
Confirm your qualification and work experience against the programme criteria.
- 2
Submit Application
Complete the online form and upload your documents and statement of purpose.
- 3
Screening & Shortlisting
The institute's admissions committee reviews profiles for cohort fit.
- 4
Offer & Payment
Receive the offer letter and pay the first instalment to block your seat.
- 5
Onboarding
Get LMS access, meet your programme manager and join orientation.
The iAdmit advantage
What iAdmit adds on top of the institute
The institute teaches. iAdmit handles everything around it — so that the programme survives contact with a demanding job.
- 3.5 Lakh+
- Alumni network
- 1:1
- Programme manager
- 24×7
- Doubt resolution
- 15+ yrs
- Career services
Access to iAdmit's learner community across 150+ Indian cities.
A named point of contact for the entire duration of your programme.
Academic support and recorded session access whenever you need it.
Résumé review, interview preparation and profile positioning support.
Alumni of this domain work at
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FAQs
Certificate Programme in Design Thinking Innovation for Business Excellence — frequently asked
If your question is not here, a counsellor will answer it on the call. There are no scripted answers.
Professionals with 3–10 years of experience moving into general management & leadership ownership. The cohort is deliberately mixed across industries so discussion stays broad, and the 11 months format is built around a full-time job — sessions run on weekends and evenings.
Expect roughly 6–8 hours a week: live sessions plus preparation and assignments. All sessions are recorded, and IIM Indore requires a minimum of 75–80% attendance for certification.
No. Foundational concepts are covered before the programme moves into applied work. What matters more is that you have real decisions to bring into the classroom.
On successful completion you receive a certificate from Indian Institute of Management Indore. Alumni status and campus benefits are governed by the institute's own policy and are communicated at the start of the programme.
Yes. The total fee of ₹1,25,000 + GST can be paid in instalments, and no-cost EMI options start from approximately ₹8,300 per month through iAdmit's finance partners.
A dedicated programme manager, academic doubt resolution, career-services support including résumé and interview preparation, and access to iAdmit's learner community of over 3.5 lakh professionals.
Next step
Speak to a counsellor before you decide
Fifteen minutes on the phone will tell you more than an hour on this page. We will check your eligibility honestly and tell you if the programme is wrong for your profile.
Eligibility check
Confirm you meet the institute's criteria before you apply.
Fee & EMI planning
Work out the instalment plan and any waivers you qualify for.
Cohort fit
Understand who else is in the batch and whether the level matches.
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