Experis Academy Italy leads the way in driving open innovation on human capital

Experis Academy Italy leads the way in driving open innovation on human capital

Experis Academy was launched in Italy in 2015 and initially focused on the Motorsport industry. In March 2018, Experis Academy expanded their existing training offering by launching a new initiative in Kilometro Rosso (‘The Red Kilometre’), Bergamo, Italy. The Science and Technology Park is one of Europe’s primary innovation districts and idea incubators.

In Italy, Experis Academy offers bespoke, one-off training programmes in IT and Engineering courses to provide specialised skills for the Motorsports, Robotics and Mechatronics (technology combining electronics and mechanical engineering) sectors. Content is up-to-the-minute and in line with changes in the industry.

The Academy’s unique approach is characterised by partnerships with a limited number of companies that represent excellence in their sectors. At the Kilometre Rosso facility in Bergamo, partners include: The Confederation of General Industry Bergamo, ABB, Avanade, Dallara Automobiles, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Hitachi Italy, Hitachi Rail, Microsoft and Oracle.

The advanced training and specialist courses are selected according to the needs of partnership organisations in an ecosystem or consortium. Organisations in the ecosystem contribute to the training programme by supplying subject matter experts – professionals from their organisations who act as teachers. On occasion, partners may supply equipment and training facilities. Students not only have the opportunity to be trained directly by experts with proven experience in their chosen fields, but upon graduation, they also have the prospect of being hired by partner companies (if they are a self-sponsoring student not aligned to an ecosystem partner).

Stefano Scabbio, President Northern Europe and Mediterranean & Eastern Europe, ManpowerGroup commented: “The Skills Revolution requires a new mindset for both employers, who have a duty to support the development of workers’ skills, and for people seeking to remain employable and advance their careers by nurturing their learnability and keeping up-to-date with the latest skills. Initiatives in education to strengthen talent are important, but they are not the only answer.

“The partnership between Experis Academy and Kilometro Rosso has given life to a new Training Centre for advanced specialist training in the Engineering and IT sectors – and is one of the positive examples that demonstrates it is possible to find new solutions to mutual problems and construct a stronger, shared future. For the numerous prestigious national and international partners of this project, the collective ambition was to build an ecosystem where people remain firmly at the centre.”

Salvatore Majorana, Director of Kilometro Rosso, said: “The presence of Experis Academy to address the issues of Industry 4.0 is an important piece in our development plan. We have worked to create the best possible conditions and encourage the establishment of this prestigious reality, because we believe that it can bring value, not only to the companies on our campus, but to the entire territory. Developing individuals capable of managing new technological assets is an essential step to allow the industrial system to maintain and gain competitive advantage in the market.”

Stefano Scaglia, President of The Confederation of General Industry Bergamo, added: “To sustain their growth, the companies of the region need an adequate quantity and quality of skilled talent.

“This is the first Open Innovation project on human capital created in response to the need to build talent able to support companies in meeting the challenges of Industry 4.0. This has involved the creation of new and unique training paths where each partner actively contributes with lectures and business workshops. It is a unique experiential path both from the point of view of the content and the learning methods of the students.”

Training for jobs of the future, today

A selection of training programmes currently offered by Experis Academy Italy:

This article first appeared in the ninth edition of The Human Age Newspaper.