Huawei announces the opening of the call for applications for the 10th edition of Seeds for the Future. The annual training program is entirely organized and financed by the company to provide young people in the ICT sector with the opportunity to consolidate and enrich their technical training. Above all it will help to acquire those personal skills that can only be matured through “training on the job”. The program focuses on training aspects of the most innovative digital technologies and their concrete application in the industrial world through Tech4Good group project work. To participate in the course, which will take place online from Oct. 9 to 16. One can apply through the dedicated website by Sept. 15.
Starting from an awareness of the growing pervasiveness of technology in every field and industry and observing how the digital transformation taking place within organizations of all types and sizes requires an increasingly wide range of skills, technical and non-technical. The program is aimed at students with the most varied study paths. Also indirectly is related to the world of technology and innovation, with a particular focus on sustainability aspects, to prepare them to fill all those new roles, the so-called “professions of the future,” created precisely by the wide spread of technology in every sector.
Seeds for the Future: It all starts with training
Fifty students enrolled in the 2nd or 3rd year of a bachelor’s or master’s degree from an engineering faculty (among the main ones, Telecommunications, Electronics, Computer Science, but also Management or Energy). Other university faculties offering study paths in the ICT field, with an average of university exams of no less than 26, an excellent certified knowledge of English (minimum level B2) and in possession of Italian citizenship will be admitted to the program.
Those selected will have access to a vast catalogue of courses related to the latest technologies (5G, AI, machine learning and deep learning, Cloud Computing, quantum, and semiconductor technologies) and their application in different vertical sectors. The main topics and trends are in the ICT sector (Digital Transformation, Cybersecurity, green ICT), the main Huawei products, solutions and services for Smart Home, Intelligent City and the consumer world.
These are complemented by modules dedicated to “soft skills” such as strategic leadership, cultural awareness, and effective communication, as well as a series of virtual tours of Huawei’s centres of excellence in China. All in order to learn more about the company and the context in which it was born and developed.
‘ Seeds for the Future ‘ schedule and more
During the week-long training, part of each day will be devoted to Tech4Good, a group project work designed so that students can better understand the role technology plays in solving complex global issues (social, environmental, or otherwise), develop problem-solving and leadership skills through teamwork, deepen their sense of mission and social responsibility, and learn to act as true “change-makers.” Starting with the identification of a problem and ending with the proposal of a technological solution and the development of a plan for its implementation, students divided into groups will be guided by dedicated mentors. They will help them acquire the skills necessary to develop their idea and present it effectively, assess the feasibility of their project and follow its execution step by step.
A global competition
Each group will be eligible to participate in the global competition, open to Seeds for the Future students from 137 countries, between December 2023 and January 2024. The three finalist groups globally (in the 2022 edition, Ireland, Algeria, and Italy) will have access to advanced online coaching sessions with industry experts aimed at developing a real business plan and the opportunity to participate in a training trip to China that includes a week of in-person mentoring, visits to Huawei’s centres of excellence and the headquarters of the country’s most innovative tech companies with opportunities to meet and engage with startups and deep-tech companies. The winning project will receive funding from Huawei for $100,000 to launch their startup and additional support and mentoring from the company during the first year of business startup.
Proof of future
“The so-called’ professions of the future’ are much closer than we think, and acquiring the hard and soft skills needed to perform them has become increasingly urgent. The world of work is changing and requires increasingly advanced and transversal technical skills, autonomy, adaptability, and lateral thinking to meet the new challenges of businesses’ ecological and digital transition,” said Wilson Wang, CEO of Huawei Italy. “As Huawei, we share the objectives of the European Commission’s European Year of Skills 2023, and through Seeds for the Future, we intend to contribute to closing the digital skills gap by helping people develop the right skills and companies find the right workforce to ensure sustainable growth and long-term competitiveness”.
Seeds for the Future represents Huawei’s main global CSR program and is part of the wide range of initiatives the company has put in place to foster talent, including scholarships, hackathons, upskilling and reskilling programs, and academies dedicated to women who wish to pursue leadership roles, whether in the tech world or through technology. Huawei has invested more than €130 million since 2008, benefiting more than 1.54 million people from over 150 countries, with an additional investment of €35 million announced in 2021 to support European ICT talent development over the next five years.
