The XLRI-Xavier School of Management, Jamshedpur, has been ranked at level 5 (Pioneering Business Schools), the top ranking in the second edition of Positive Impact Rating, which was released at the World Economic Forum in Lucerne-Burgenstock, Switzerland, on Thursday.

“XLRI is the only B-school in the world to have moved up from level 3 (progressing schools) to level 5 in a span of a year. Nearly 47 B-schools located in four continents and 21 countries participated in the rating,” said a communiqué issued by the XLRI on Thursday evening.

Two other B-schools from India — Goa Institute of Management and SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai — featured in level 5, along with the University of Business and Technology (Kosovo).

Positive Impact Rating (PIR) is a global student-led rating of business schools on how they contribute to solving societal challenges by energising the school and its culture. It addresses their positive impact beyond their contribution to business and the economy. It contributes as a lever of change for transformation in business schools.

“We are delighted to note that XLRI has attained the topmost level 5 in the second edition of Positive Impact Rating, 2021. Positive Impact Rating guides business schools from being the best in the world to striving to be the best for the world. For over seven decades, XLRI has steadfastly held on to its mission of offering world-class education and ethics-driven teaching while nurturing responsible global leaders for the greater common good and a sustainable future. The PIR ranking inspires us to work more diligently towards attaining our vision and mission,” said Father Paul Fernandes, director of XLRI.

He added: “The millennial B-school students across the world have got a unique opportunity to evaluate their own institutions on how they are solving societal and sustainable challenges, and how they perceive their institution’s positive impact on the community and society at large. This marks a paradigm shift towards fostering a collaborative ecosystem and making the process of management education more meaningful and serve as a tool for continually improving the business schools, especially in a world that is still suffering as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

“While traditional business school rankings in India and abroad have not shown significant engagement in integrating sustainability and social impact, the PIR has a clear focus on the social impact of business schools. The Covid-19 pandemic is an inflection point for B-schools. Business schools have to reorient and reinvent themselves to the new reality and step up their role as positive change agents in addition to their traditional role of supporting business and the economy,” said Sunil Varughese, chief brand and sustainability officer, XLRI.

In 2020, IIM Bangalore (level 4 — transforming schools) and XLRI had featured in the first edition of PIR.