Tailoring programmes that address multiple issues, aligning to the current and future industry needs benefit employers & employees, says Keshava Raju
A recent research titled The Voice of the Employer on the Effects and Opportunities of Professional Development pointed out that universities and colleges must now work towards giving students the very skills that are required for jobs and long term success in an industry rather than focusing only on generic aspects. Skills are more important than credentials. Even if students have the right degree but lack the right skills, then their degree is of little practical use.
How does such training benefit colleges: A university or a college that responds to industry needs appropriately will not only attract, success driven students to apply but will also attract corporate companies who are looking for professionally trained fresher to join their workforce. The same research paper brings to our notice that 95% of corporations now financially support training with their own spending that a whopping $172 billion. But this spending is done via internal training programmes or third party training partners. Universities and colleges have been missing out on this critical revenue system since employers feel that their programmes are not industry relevant. The report also pointed out that just 16% of employers feel that there is adequate availability of programmes and universities that tailor to the needs and just 9% of corporate companies are presently engaged in partnerships.
This presents a great opportunity for higher education institutions and graduates. Most employers in the IT industry believe that universities and colleges should work closely with the industry so as to train as per their needs. With the rapid change in technologies, it is crucial to ensure that the training is contemporary and relevant. But can educational institutions move at the speed of the industry perpetually?
Institutions will require close consultations with businesses prior to launching specific training programmes . Institutions will need to offer courses that are tailored to the real job world, the easiest way being by partnering with companies who offer specific skilling programmes with respect to making the job aspirants employable and as a result, billable from the first day at work.
The train-hire-deploy model is rapidly replacing the hire-train-deploy model. It is also known as the talent-on-demand model. In this model, the candidates will be put through a rigorous training programme and be recruited at the end of it based on performance in assessment. The advantage of this model also includes preparation with respect to specific job role, better alignment to company culture and importantly, an outcome-based training model.. This is why it makes all the more sense for institutions to partner with tech evangelists in order to make cashable employees out of their passing out students.
Benefits to corporate: The companies get trained workforce that have hands-on experience in the technologies that they work with, hire them right off the campus, fresh out of the training, and such a work-force displays productivity from day 1 at job that saves companies huge resources.
The bottom-line: Transitioning higher education to be more industry-oriented and skill-based can be complex. But tailoring programmes that address multiple issues, aligning to the current and future industry needs can make up a critical piece of this complex puzzle.