The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) signed a memorandum of understanding with Generation India Foundation, a non-profit founded by McKinsey & Co, USA, on January 11, to provide world-class skill training to Indian youth.

The objective of the collaboration agreement is to reach out to unemployed youth, aged between 18-29 years, and skill them through short-term training programmes. The project targets job roles such as home nursing aides, general duty assistants and F&B stewards. NSDC will ensure a successful rollout of the National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF)-compliant skills training.  

“With McKinsey’s expertise in research, we believe that the project will help in mapping the skill gaps and deliver impactful solutions. We aim to harness the huge potential of youth in the country and add momentum to our consistent endeavours to strengthen the skilling value chain,” said Jayant Krishna, executive director and chief operating officer of NSDC, speaking on the occasion. 

 

Infosys Prize 2017 awardees

The Infosys Science Foundation (ISF) honoured the winners of the Infosys Prize 2017 at an impressive awards ceremony in Bangalore on January 10, and celebrated their inspiring journeys and contributions to science and research. The chief guest Prof. Kip Thorne, Feynman professor  emeritus of theoretical physics at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and Nobel Prize 2017 laureate, felicitated winners across the six categories and awarded each laureate with a purse of Rs.65 lakh, a 22-karat gold medallion and a citation certificate.

The winners of the Infosys Prize 2017 are: Engineering and computer science: Prof. Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay, director, Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Kolkata. Humanities: Prof. Ananya Jahanara Kabir, department of English literature, King’s College London. Life sciences: Prof. Upinder Singh Bhalla,  National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore. Mathematical sciences: Prof. Ritabrata Munshi, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai and ISI, Kolkata. Physical sciences: Prof. Yamuna Krishnan of the department of chemistry, University of Chicago. Social sciences: Prof. Lawrence Liang,  School of Law, Governance and Citizenship, Ambedkar University, Delhi. 

 

Manipal-FGILI insurance training

The Italy-based Future Generali India Life Insurance Co. Ltd (FGILI, estb. 2006) has partnered with Manipal Global Education Services (MaGE) for customised life insurance training programmes of its future employees. The programme will be delivered at the Manipal Global Academy BFSI campus in Bangalore.    

Manipal Global’s life insurance training programme is a client-customised one-year full-time course comprising four months on-campus residential training and two-months internship followed by six months of on-the-job training at an FGILI branch. The training programme is designed to equip learners with the necessary domain knowledge of life insurance and enhance their business development skills. 

“We are delighted to partner with FGILI. Providing learners with high-quality training is our prime focus. This partnership reflects our commitment towards capability building in the BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance) industry where we have been helping organisations build and manage a future-ready talent pool. We are confident that the FGILI training programme will establish new benchmarks in talent management for the insurance industry,” said Ravi Panchanadan, chief operating officer, MaGE.  

On successful completion of the programme, students will be awarded a postgraduate diploma in life insurance and offered employment by FGILI. The objective of the training programme is to mould officers of high calibre in the field of life insurance and create a productive workforce. The first part of the life insurance training programme will commence in February 2018.  

Added Munish Sharda, CEO of FGILI: “As the insurance sector is picking up pace in India, there is increased demand for talent at all levels. Our partnership with MaGE will enable us to induct talent at an early stage and provide them necessary skills and knowledge to be able to deliver a unique experience for our customers.” 

 

YSB’s double certification

The YES School of Banking (YSB), the learning and development (L&D) subsidiary of YES Bank — India’s fifth largest private sector bank — has been awarded the dual international certification in ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 29990:2010 for its L&D practices. With this achievement, YSB becomes India’s sole bank offering L&D services certified by ISO.

The dual ISO certification from Bureau Veritas, a global leader in testing, inspection and certification, endorses YSB’s robust L&D processes and validates the school’s risk-based banking philosophy. Commenting on this achievement, Deodutta Kurane, group president, human capital management at YES Bank, said: “It is a proud moment for YSB and YES Bank. The dual certification awarded to YSB validates our core objective of building an entrepreneurial organisation by embracing innovative learning methods to achieve our vision of becoming the finest quality large bank in India by 2020.”