Demand-driven skill development is the need of the hour! Industry-academia collaboration is a crucial step towards building a skilled workforce by understanding the demand for relevant knowledge, skills and abilities. Institutes, together with the industry, need to provide experience-based learning for fresh trainees, reskilling and upskilling of experienced workers so that industry can get the right candidate with the right skills for various jobs.
Mr. Anand B
In this guest article, Mr Anand B, Senior General Manager, Business Development, Nettur Technical Training Foundation (NTTF) talks about the pivotal role of indusrty-academia parternship in the growth of the technical training institution.
As a pioneer in the industry-integrated technical education and training in India, Nettur Technical Training Foundation – NTTF has acknowledged the importance of industry-academia collaborations right from its inception. So far, NTTF has partnered with many industries with various purposes like developing an excellent learning-friendly infrastructure, providing skilled champions, upgrading the skill levels of employees, and delivering vocational programs by leveraging their expertise to nurture our students to make them industry-ready. The ultimate aim is to ensure two crucial outcomes – employment and employability. These strategic partnerships have helped the institution to redesign the curriculum to make it industry-aligned and also to make ready the trainees to meet the changing technologies.
NTTF’s partnership with different industries
Catering to the needs of various industries, NTTF’s partnership is spread across all the major industry sectors like Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical, Electronics, Automation, Computer and Information Technology. NTTF has also diversified its training services in the recently popular sectors like Healthcare, Medical Electronics, Construction Engineering, Industry 4.0 and also currently working on the EV technologies.
Today, as the time is changing and technology is disrupting the entire skilling ecosystem, it’s essential for students to be trained in the new-age technologies. To ensure this, NTTF is actively partnering with many industries in the technology space.
NTTF offers joint certification courses and hosts the Centre of Excellence in many emerging technologies. NTTF has collaborated with Intel for IoT, AI and ML, to provide joint certification from Intel and NTTF. Similarly, it partnered with Cisco for Cyber Security, AWS for Big Data and Cloud Computing, Siemens for PLC and Automation, UIPath for RPA, FANUC for Robotics, and more trending technology of Industry 4.0 with Bosch to support MSME and any medium or large-scale industries.
Our most popular skill development model “Learn and Earn” is also implemented through collaborative partnerships. This is a blended model of On-the-Job training coupled with related instruction classes, rolled out within the plant, for two- or three-years period for a batch of 40 students. Currently over 5000 trainees are undergoing this Learn and Earn program at 60+ partner industries across India.
Apart from industries, NTTF have also associated closely with government bodies with an aim to contribute to the Skill India mission. NTTF is working with many States’ Skill Development Missions to roll out various short term vocational programs for the benefit of local youth, which includes the tribal people within the State. This endeavour of NTTF is helping the needy youth to acquire the required skills for them to sustain on their own either through employment or entrepreneurship.
Essential features of a sustainable industry partnership
In India, it takes time and effort to create a partnership, sustain it and grow. For any academic institute, it is beneficial to partner with industries. The institution should be able to communicate what value it can create for the industry.
For any collaboration to last long, the vision should match mutually. When industries approach the institute, it should be able to reciprocate the industry’s expectations. The basic need of industries is to get a skilled workforce. So, it is crucial for the institution to respond to industry needs in terms of infrastructure, commitment and matching to the business goals.
At NTTF, there is a strong faculty development program, wherein the fresh Graduate Engineer joining as an aspiring future faculty, will undergo 18-month rigorous Faculty Development training, leading to Postgraduate Diploma Program in Technical Vocational Education & Training. This is a self-sustenance model for NTTF, which also adds value to the industry readiness. NTTF’s pan- India presence also helps industries reach more people which help them make an impact and at the same time build a brand in the market.
NTTF takes inputs from the industry leaders and integrates them into our syllabus and curriculum which ensures the institution to be always abreast of the changing demands of the industry and also helps in training the students accordingly.
These innovative industry-institute collaborations not only help students to learn the most appropriate latest technology but also support Industries to create skill ecosystems and brand building, besides taking NTTF growth in 360 degrees in the skills arena.
Our most popular skill development model “Learn and Earn” is also implemented through collaborative partnerships. This is a blended model of On-the-Job training coupled with related instruction classes, rolled out within the plant, for two- or three-years period for a batch of 40 students. Currently over 5000 trainees are undergoing this Learn and Earn program at 60+ partner industries across India.
