News Letter Volume 2

April 2012

Employability skills for underserved youth

Geese are birds of valor that never leave

behind one of their kind. Strong

communicators, they forge ahead confident

and brave, synergizing and building on

each others’ strengths.

2

EDITORIAL

Sustaining Social Initiatives

There are many thoughts around sustenance that

have been tried and continue to be innovated

upon. However, I want to highlight a few

perspectives that need to be leveraged more often

and more holistically too to build sustainable

movements in the social sector:

1. Inclusivity: Sustainability of social initiatives is

ensured when we look at inclusivity from both

ends -- for example, a model that focuses on

employability of the poor and underprivileged

youth - works better if we can include the middle

class youth and may be even the rich as

well. Earlier, I had not really thought like this -

was always mentally excluding the better off

people from the initiative. But what stops us

from offering the services to people who can

probably pay more and also value it more at

times? People are already talking about reverse

innovation where innovation for the third world

starts being valued in the developed world. It

brings a different set of challenges to the table -

but ones that are more addressable as well as

make the offering better for all. This is inclusivity

the other way round.

2. Partnerships: Partnerships should be true to the

word - sharing of both risks and gains. This

changes the mind-set from the customer-

supplier relationships that we were getting into.

For all 'partnerships' - of course the challenge is

(a) having partners sharing the gains and (b)

having the partners accept the risks from the

venture. To be able to get into a strong

partnership – addressing these two

challenges one needs to focus on

building trust by – having regular and

open lines of communication,

sharing forward plans pro-actively,

and taking the first step of sharing

the gains. Why do this but? To

leverage partner expertise:

L e v e r a g e P a r t n e r

Expertise: Partners bring some

uniqueness, something special

to the partnership. However,

these are not always tangible and

overtly stated.

So one aspect is to recognize what the

partnerships add to us – then we can look at

leveraging. For example, a partner may be just

providing for space for us to operate but if we

look closely, we find they have a unique ability

to mobilize corporates to support the

initiatives, or have demonstrated successful

placements of students at salaries higher than

most other similar organizations.

3. Balance of Technology: Typical belief today

says using technology reduces costs of

operations. My experience says slightly

different though. Almost invariably,

technology adds costs in the first few years

and by the time it starts to become efficient –

technology changes! What I call balance of

technology is to walk the middle path between

changes in technology and changes in the real

world. When the changes in real world are few

(financial profitability), changing technology is

a good thing. On the other hand if the real

world is evolving fast (how humans learn),

sticking to old technology is a good thing. I

know there would be disagreements on this

one but I am putting it out there for some

more thought and discussion.

Best wishes

Neeraj Agarwal

3

READER’S ANGLE

You too can contribute articles/ stories for spreading understanding

related to employability issues facing the country.

Total NF volunteer hours : 4440

Why Define Indian Employ-Ability ?

By Dr. Anamika Biswas,

Director, Programmes

Indira Gandhi National Centre For the Arts

Every year, India produces almost twice the number

of engineers produced by the US and has one of

the world‟s largest qualified pools of technical

manpower. Yet qualification fails to guarantee

employ-ability, in which India lags far behind. In

other words, our education system is constantly

contributing to educated un-employability.

“Employ-ability”, a global corporate challenge

became familiar in India in the last decade. Yet

there is a general misunderstanding between the

concepts of „unemployment‟ and „unemployability‟.

Un-employment is a state where individuals have

educational eligibility and skills but dearth of job

opportunities. Un-employability arises when

available educated individuals lack the „skills‟ to

execute tasks within a job. So there are vacancies

on one hand and qualified yet un-employable

individuals on the other.

Interestingly, employability-skills definition

differs from country to country. For instance,

American Society for Training and Development

(ASTD) identifies employability as personality

oriented skills like Communication-skills,

Adaptability, Motivation, Teamwork, and

Leadership. In Malaysia, these are ethic-oriented

and humanistic in nature like positive values,

leadership skills, teamwork, communicative skills,

and life-long learning. Australians keep

employability definition work-aligned. They

describe employability skills as “skills required to

gain employment or establish an enterprise, but

also to progress within an enterprise or expand

employment capability, so as to achieve one‟s

potential and contribute successfully to an

enterprise‟s strategic directions.”

It is the need of the hour that India comes up

with a definition of her own, because she suffers

more from unemployability than

unemployment. A defined employability skill set

that is India specific will put the country on a

growth trajectory not just in terms of

productivity but also social equality. Since

employability remains the privilege of the

„informed few‟, a widely broadcast, holistic

definition will be a powerful tool in the hands of

the underserved and over served alike. The

need, of course, is to step beyond the academic

domain, encircling both education and industry

while deciding the parameters.

Perhaps the most apt description is by Peter

Hawkins: “To be employed is to be at risk, to be

employable is to be secure.”

4

When NIIT Foundation opened a center in Nizamuddin

with Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) and offered courses in

Personality Development, English, and IT, Massooma

was thrilled. “I spared no efforts in pleading with my

parents. I knew if they listened to Ma‟am (NF Centre

Head), they would let me (study)”. After repeated center

visits and discussions with the NF Nizamuddin team,

Massooma‟s parents allowed her to join the course.

Massooma was diligent and took full responsibility for

her learning. We were elated when Massooma was

selected by Café Coffee Day and Pantaloons, both huge

brands. Although, this was something that she couldn‟t

imagine before since her parents were not comfortable

with her working outside the basti, she couldn‟t take up

the jobs.

What was heartening though was her zeal to find a

workaround. For Massooma, a job meant more than just

a salary - it was about feeling independent, about taking

responsibility for her own life. So she continued to visit

the NF center looking for local opportunities and for

ways in which she could contribute and learn. In fact,

she happily volunteered to be a surveyor for her basti in

the sweltering June heat. As they say, Massooma's will

finally found a way. When a position for a remedial

trainer opened up at the Aga Khan Foundation,

Massooma was the first choice. She is now employed

full time and earning every one's admiration along with

a good salary.

STUDENT SPEAK

Massooma’s Dream

Above: Massooma interacting with

students

NIIT Foundation works in

partnership with Aga Khan

Foundation in Nizamuddin

Basti for youth

employability.

Millions of girls like Massooma cannot afford even the subsidized employability courses.

Sponsor a career for youth, a livelihood for a family and hope for the nation!

Get in touch with us at: Giving@niit.com

Above: Massooma on her way to

work

Above: Massooma enjoying her day at

work

5

PARTNER SPEAK—PLACEMENT

Total Placed : 4034

Number of Partner Employers : 250

Salary Range : 6000 to 15000 Per Month

The idea of inclusive society goes beyond CSR. It extends to actually making the less fortunate

feel included. Your organization too can join us in this mission towards mainstreaming

underprivileged India.

Take the step. Write to us at Partner@niitfoundation.org

Since the inception of NIIT Foundation (NF), our placement partners have played a crucial role in

providing livelihoods to our beneficiary underserved youth. One of the reasons behind this strong

connect with them has been the NF training, which looks beyond the technical aspect. Apart from

English, IT, job-oriented courses in Service Industry, Accounting, Technical Support, Data Entry,

Multimedia and Entrepreneurial courses like Hardware and Networking, students are also polished

through activities like life skills training, industry visits, surveys taking, event organization etc.

Counseling forms an essential part of this 360-degree grooming of NF students, from the time of

enrolment to the time of placements. Being underprivileged means much more than just lacking

monetary resources. Often, social difficulties in the lives of the underprivileged lead to the growth

of deep-rooted distrust in their hearts. The vulnerability is especially evident during the first three

months after placements when a youth steps out into the world for the first time. Therefore,

focused and continuous counseling becomes essential.

Ritu, an NF Center Head, shares - “A placed student from our center was furious that his friends

referred to him as a table cleaner because of his job at a fast-food restaurant. Naturally, he wanted

to resign. I had to show him that during rush hours, his manager also cleaned the tables.

Thankfully, he understood and I am happy to say that last month he completed two years on that

same job.”

NF has been blessed with partner organizations who have given these youth a chance and taken

the trouble to understand their background and rejoiced in their successes.

“It has been a good experience to have candidates educated and groomed by your organization. We

appreciate your efforts in honing the skills of underprivileged youth to make them disciplined and

industrious!” Balpreet Kaur, Deputy Manager-HR, Costa Coffee India

“I must say NIIT Yuva Star students are full of energy and enthusiasm. They work very hard and enjoy

with other fellow colleagues. This makes our store the Best place to work! “ Davesh Tomar, Asst.

Manager - HR , Devyani International Limited

“Students from NIIT Foundation placed within our organization are no different from the mainstream

candidates. They mix very well with the team and work with dedication. Their inclination towards

learning and becoming better at their job is a factor that we appreciate very much.” Dinesh Kumar Jha,

Operations Manager, Suman Computers Pvt. Ltd.

6

SPECIAL MENTION Noida Deaf Society

Synergy is infectious, an evidence that all life is connected. Synergy is also visible; one could see it on the

faces of NIIT Foundation team, when Ruma Roka, head of Noida Deaf Society (NDS), hugged and thanked

our team members for their all-out support to NDS. In no time, an informal gathering had turned into a

brainstorming session of how NF centres could give hearing-impaired youth in their communities a better

chance at life through centre-level NDS tie-ups. Reminiscing about the beginning of NDS-NF partnership,

Ruma spoke with her signature gusto," I had to do something about sustainable livelihood for the hearing

impaired youth. That is all I knew. I began training five such students in my small flat. Then a friend

connected me to NF. Our two organizations have worked with deep trust, in a win-win relationship ever

since. This is how the world will change”.

Since the beginning of this partnership, NF and NDS have together figured out their way around many

challenges. Collaboration has worked in the following ways:

Providing volunteer expert faculty to give NDS a jumpstart: Leveraging the high visual aptitudes among

hearing impaired, NF urged the NIIT multimedia experts to support NDS students over the weekends. The

graphic designing skills, involving minimal hearing

requirements, meant a feasible employment option.

Interestingly, one multimedia expert has been

continuously mentoring NDS students regularly

now for the last 5 years!

Creating formal courseware: To ensure scale and

consistency of content delivery, NF helped create,

possibly India‟s first structured multimedia course

for the hearing impaired. Multiple NDS batches

have since then graduated and been placed with

well-known organizations.

Providing employment: NIIT is one of the proud

employers of NDS students.

Leveraging connections: In the true spirit of

partnership, NF and NDS are leveraging each

other‟s connections and other resources for a win-

win situation.

The aligned NDS and NF goals of skilling and

meaningful employment have become the

common language that reaches the hearing

impaired as well as the urban slum youth. We

would encourage other organizations to explore

this connect. If your heart beats for the masses, let‟s

meet over a cup of tea and explore our directions.

As change makers join hands and extend whole-hearted support, hope swells forth for not just them, but

for the entire society, the country and finally the whole world. When building the world, synergy is, no

doubt, very reassuring.

Above: NDS team and students clapping in sign language.

Above: NDS Trainer teaching using sign language and

structured courseware.

NF - NDS Impact : 417

Current NF-NDS Batch : 120

Number of NGO Partners : 67

Total Impacted through NGO Partners : 1025

7

NIIT Foundation Booth at NGOIndia2012

Exhibition. We received an over whelming response

from corporates, NGOs and Individuals from all

sections of society.

Coke representatives‟ visit to Coke Dasna Center.

Visitors were impressed with how confident the

students looked post training.

EVENTS

Online classes for District Learning Centers students in

Chhindwara by expert faculty from Delhi.

Career fair organized by NIIT Foundation in

10 locations across Delhi. More than 2000

students attended and over 750 students

registered.

HCL HR Manager interacting with Chhindwara

Students during campus interviews Batch Graduation Ceremony at Chhindwara DLC

Some glimpses of events at NIIT Foundation

8

GET CONNECTED

Sponsor a career for youth, a livelihood for a family and hope for the nation!

Get in touch with us at: Giving@niit.com

“Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) has sponsored 100 under-served girl

students at NIIT Foundation for Service Industry Certificate Training at Delhi.

Training would empower these young girls with confidence, life skills and jobs to

pull them out of poverty. We appreciate the efforts of NIIT Foundation in

promoting the cause of under-served girl students for an equitable society.”

Sudhir Bhalla, Director (HR), IOCL

Twenty-year old Meena has six members in her family. Her life had taken a

turn for the worse 6 years ago when her mother passed away and her father‟s

right hand was crippled in an accident. Meena wanted to ease the burden on

her father and brother who work as hawkers. Her financial situation did not

allow her to afford the NF centre‟s subsidized fee. IOCL stepped forward to

sponsor her and today she is contributing to the family expenses.

There are multiple ways to connect with NIIT Foundation

More than 20 corporate s and 200 individuals have extended merit-based and need-based scholarships

ranging from partial to 100% fee concession to NIIT Foundation students over the past 4 years. More

than 1100 students have benefited from these scholarships.

100% Sponsorships for SC/ST Students : 210

100% Sponsorship for Girl Students : 100

9

ABOUT US

Meet our Indefatigable Foot Soldiers – officially known as center managers - who toil away at the

grassroots. Most have given up lucrative careers in the corporate world to serve the cause of

impacting society along with NIIT Foundation. Balancing minimum resources with maximum

creative impact in rural villages and urban slums, our NF foot soldiers march on, transforming

limitations into success stories every day.

From knocking on every slum door to networking with NGOs and corporates to coming up with

innovations for greater impact and sustainability, no work is too big or too small for them. You can

join our heroes by sponsoring the communities they hold responsibility for. You can start with

sharing this newsletter with all your friends, as any new connection may have the possibility of

bringing hope for an at-risk youth. You could also visit our centers and capture stories of personal

victories accomplished, through words, photography or videography on NF initiatives, or spread

the word through your media connections.

From left: Pallavi, Alpana, Nilabh, Ayesha, Sucheta, Pooja, Smita, Vandana, Deepak, Ritu, Saquib, Intekhab

NIIT Foundation (NF) is a not-for-profit education society that makes critical interventions towards

upgrading the skill base and employability of the marginalized youth in urban slums and rural

areas. In addition, it works with other NGOs to offer NF certification to the NGO beneficiaries.

10

CENTERS

Noida-51: Lavkush Market, near Post Office, main road Hoshiyarpur, Sector 51, Noida -201301, Tel:

9811597208; Begumpur : Basti Vikas Kendra, Behind Begumpur Bus-stop, Malviya Nagar, Begumpur -

110017, Ph. 40580305; Paharganj: 9329/1, Gali No.7, Multani Dhandha, Paharganj- 110055, Ph. 47506874,

47506873; Prem Nagar : I-180, Prem Nagar II, 70Ft Road, Kirari, New Delhi -110086, Ph. 25185560;

Gurgaon : Vishwas Vidyalaya, Sector 46, near Unitech Cyber Park, Gurgaon -122001, Ph. 7838177728;

Mangolpuri: L-625, DDA Flats, (near Mother Dairy) Mangolpuri, Delhi Ph. 011-27918987; Sangam Vihar :

Green Aravali School, I-4/35, Ratiya Marg, Sangam Vihar, New Delhi -110062, Ph. 26043709; Sunder Nagri:

N-25/26, Sunder Nagri, New Delhi -110093, Ph. 22597745; Madanpur Khadar: H. No. 272, Chauhan

Muhallah, Madanpur Khadar -110076, Ph. 29947891; Civil Lines: No. 2 Raj Niwas Marg, near Shah

Auditorium, Civil Lines, New Delhi, Ph: 23982620; Ghaziabad: Gram Niyojan Kendra, Adhyatmik Nagar,

Opp. IMS Engg. College. Dasna, Ghaziabad, Ph: 7838177728; Nizamuddin: MCP School, Hazrat

Nizamuddin Basti, Delhi -110013. Ph: 9818942279; Gharoli: C-548, Harijan Basti, Gharoli Extension -

110096, Ph. 22628857; Brahmpuri : C-185/36, 1st Floor, Above MTS Office, Main Brahmpuri Road Delhi -

110053, Ph. 22560344; Shastri Nagar: DD-82, Vishvakarma Colony, Nahari ka Naka, Shastri Nagar, Jaipur,

Ph: 0141-2309699; Jajpur: JSL Institute of Industrial Training, Trijanga rehabilitation colony, P.O. Danagadi

Jajpur 755026, Ph: 07735565556; Mumbai:FSC-1,1st floor shopping complex, opposite Airport high school,

New Airport Colony, (opposite Hanuman road) Airport Authority of India, Vila Parle East Mumbai- 400099,

Ph: 09619619074; Hisar: JINDAL INSTITUTE OF INDUSTRIAL TRAINING, (Formerly Stainless Skill Training

Institute - Prerana), 126 Green Square Market, Hisar - 125 005, Ph: 07206790140;

Chhindwara DLC: NIIT District Learning Center, near FCI warehouse Seoni road, Chhindwara Madhya

Pradesh- 480002, Ph: 0716 2232228, 0716 2232229; Barkuhi DLC: Barkuhi old VTC building, near SBI

Barkuhi, Madhya Pradesh- 480447, Ph: 0716 1263334

Project Director

NIIT Foundation

8, Balaji Estate, Kalkaji, New Delhi - 110019, India

Email: niitaffirmativeaction@niit.com, Giving@niit.com,

Partner@niitfoundation.org

Facebook :http://www.facebook.com/NIITAffirmativeAction

Office: +91-11-4167-5000, FAX: +91-11-4167-5178