Photo: Tree School, the ultimate impact story. Credit: Unsplash
This is our world today. One in which innovation and technology companies are dealing with a paradox: while they struggle to find qualified staff, unemployment rates in the younger population continue to soar.
“It´s a dream fulfilled. Now, more than ever, this dilemma represents an opportunity to energize the young labor market by reorienting their training towards the digital innovation sector” says Francesco Pontorno, Head of Education and Communication at Tree School “En el sur de Europa, y especialmente en el “Mezzogiorno” italiano esta paradoja es todavía mas acusada”.
Founded by Antonio Perdichizzi, Tree is an Italian firm specializing in open innovation, ecosystem building and education, which promotes the digital and cultural transformation of companies.
With the recent acquisition of Tree, at Opinno we are not only consolidating our position in Southern Europe but incorporating Tree School, an educational experience that is having a huge impact connecting to the real needs of companies.
Past experience collected form the YTiA (Young Talents in Action) program, through which more than 2.000 students were trained in the last three years, culminated in June, with the creation of Tree School. This educational hub is focused on the most sought-after digital skills and new technologies in the Italian market today.
Tree School shares its mission with a strategic partner, Experis, ManpowerGroup's business line, specializing in IT, and management of professional talents in technology and innovation sectors.
“The courses that we offer in partnership with Tree School, present a unique opportunity to thousands of young talents who want to improve their skills and to face the entire world of jobs with exclusive training. Remote learning, especially in the initial part of the courses, will accelerate the assimilation of subjects in IT and digital aspects and will allow candidates to live a stimulating and complete experience thanks to the different aspects of innovation and technologies that Experis and Tree will lead to teaching», says Riccardo Barberis, ManpowerGroup Italy Managing Director
The goal could not be more clear or ambitious: to train 1,000 young talents for free in the next three years and connect them directly with the needs of the companies which participate in the program.
The project is also supported by Unicredit, through Social Impact Bank “Since June, we have shortlisted more than 850 candidates through a rigorous process, based on the needs of the participating companies. 180 students have already completed their training and are conducting their first interviews. The last 4 courses have been dedicated to Data Science & Machine Learning, Frontend Developer, Backend Developer & Mobile App Developer,” adds Francesco.
These are Young talents between the age of 18 and 25. Most have recently graduated in STEM (Science-Technology-Engineering & Mathematics) disciplines and, thanks to the school, these students from the Catania region, now have an entire world of professional possibilities before them
Our educational project is based on four value propositions. The first one inspires the rest, and is based on the quality of the learning experience. Innovative digital tools taught through project work and practical exercises, are combined with interactive teaching and mentorships as well as Lean and project management methodologies. Intended to be a blend of in-person and remote classes, the entire curriculum has been provisionally adapted to the latest, for obvious reasons
Our school is career oriented and our main goal is placing students in the job market. Thus, lessons are entirely dedicated to career guidance and enhancing the students professional profiles.
The quality of teachers is the most important school-related factor in terms of student achievement. That is why we select highly qualified professionals in the sector, who are engaging and attentive to the needs of both companies and students.
The last of our value proposition deals with the companies involved in the project. Our main stakeholders have direct access to our network of trained and selected talents but we also encourage companies to participate in course activities with their own projects. Plus, every month we organize talent auditions for them to interact and interview potential candidates, within our virtual event platform.
At Opinno we are proud to learn and be able to write about what we believe to be a perfect example of an impact story. One that turns challenges into opportunities, by balancing the needs of students and companies in the digital sector and creating a win-win situation for both parties, and for society at large.
Extraordinary vision and creativity are needed in order to face uncertain times, and in this respect Tree School is clearly leading the way.
