Source Name: Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.

TCS Unveils Teaching Resources to Help Reduce UK Digital Skills Gap

Mar 16, 2015 12:29 IST

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India; London, England, United Kingdom

First of its kind resource pack, developed with The Tech Partnership and MyKindaCrowd
Helping teachers inspire young people to choose digital careers

Tata Consultancy Services (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS), a leading IT services, consulting and business solutions organisation, has unveiled a new initiative designed to help encourage more young people into digital careers. The company, in conjunction with The Tech Partnership and MyKindaCrowd, has created a resource pack to help teachers educate young people about possible roles in the IT industry, and the steps they need to take to achieve that ambition. Currently, there are no teaching resource packs of this kind available for this topic.

The TechFutures Teachers: Careers Resources Pack has been developed based on the findings of a research project conducted by MyKindaCrowd. The research, which assessed the challenges and issues that schools currently face when teaching pupils about careers in IT, found that although young people are well-versed in using technology, there is a lack of knowledge of how that technology is created and little understanding of the breadth of technology career opportunities available.

Bringing together industry insights, practical lesson guides and activities, The TechFutures materials are designed to address this deficit. Teachers are provided with lesson plans, example job descriptions and group exercises to help educate students about the variety of industries that require digital skills, the different types of career paths available within IT and the steps that can be taken to pursue them.

TechFutures Teachers: Careers Resources Pack launched at the Big Bang Fair, which is the largest event of its kind in the UK, and promoted through organisations directly involved in schools like Teach First, STEMNET and Tech Partnership. The pack is available to download at: http://www.thetechpartnership.com/techfuture/techfuture-teachers/it-industry-careers-pack/.

TCS volunteers will also be hosting a number of sessions in schools in partnership with MyKindaCrowd based around the resources. TCS and MyKindaCrowd have already run over 50 similar sessions and will be doing 60 more in the next 12 months.

Nupur Singh Mallick, HR Director, Tata Consultancy Services UK & Ireland: “Digital technologies are playing a defining role in all aspects of our lives and this trend will continue to grow. As a result, there will be an increase in demand for employees with digital skills, and hence more young people need to choose the right education, to give them the required future skills.”

“At TCS, we believe that businesses must take action to help educate and inspire young people about the potential advantages of a digital-skills-based career,” continued Nupur. “The TechFutures Careers Resource Pack is a key part of our IT Futures programme, a series of TCS-led initiatives designed to foster enthusiasm and engagement among young people and address the long-term challenges limiting the growth of the UK’s digital talent pool.”

Sue Nieland, Director of Education for The Tech Partnership, commented: “It is vital that we have a secure talent pipeline to ensure the future success of the digital economy. These employer created resources will help to inspire the future tech workforce about the fascinating careers that are available to them in the tech industry.”

William Akerman, MD, MyKindaCrowd, said: “It is encouraging that businesses are proactively looking to help shrink the skills gap and in particular the digital skills gap. Forging links with schools and teachers, and providing them with dedicated resources to inspire them and provide them with new skills is excellent in helping students explore what careers will suit them. It is crucial that we support students to make the best choice about their future and career.”

About Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS):

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that delivers real results to global business, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT, BPS, infrastructure, engineering and assurance services. This is delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model™, recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata group, India’s largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has over 310,000 of the world’s best-trained consultants in 46 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $13.4 billion for year ended March 31, 2014 and is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in India. For more information, visit us at www.tcs.com.