Zensar in collaboration with Old Mutual hosts graduates for a two-week training program, at its Pune campus

Pune, India, June 12, 2023: Zensar Technologies, a leading experience, engineering, and technology solutions company, hosted the IT graduates of its client, Old Mutual, a premium pan-African financial services group from South Africa. The graduates underwent a two-week immersive training that covered a range of technology solutions, products, and client-centric problem-solving tools, with a strong emphasis on cybersecurity and design-led thinking. Andrea Kühn, Consul General of South Africa in India, commemorated the training program and discussed the value of skill development initiatives and their impact across the technology industry in South Africa.

Manish Tandon, CEO and Managing Director, Zensar Technologies, said, “While we have been training graduates for decades, we recently launched the Zensar Learning Academy to enable best-in-class technology solutions to our clients, and we are happy to have our clients partake in this benefit. Leveraging Zensar’s rich learning and development culture and capabilities, the training will help the graduates in their problem-solving ability, and innovation behaviour amongst other things. Through such skill development initiatives, we are committed to the growth of local talent. We are delighted to welcome Andrea Kühn to share some of her own experiences and be a part of this successful collaboration with Old Mutual through this skill development initiative.”

Andrea Kühn, Consul-General of South Africa in India, said, “In today’s dynamic world, one needs to be armed with the right skills and talent to keep up with evolving client and market needs and, most importantly, the availability of platforms and technology that enables such growth. As the need for technical expertise increases in South Africa, companies such as Zensar reinforce the need for skill development initiatives that enable local talent to grow and make them employable and shrink the IT skills gap through sustained investments in continuous training and focus on upskilling. Skills development is a key issue for the economy and the country as a whole and I welcome such initiatives to deepen our commitment to community development as well as to meet the changing industry dynamics.”

Commenting on this initiative, May Govender, Acting Group CIO of Old Mutual, said, “We have a long-standing relationship with Zensar in South Africa and the collaboration has strengthened with our graduates arriving at Zensar’s headquarters in Pune. We are passionate about contributing to employment equity in South Africa, which involves building sustainable futures for our country’s youth through a process aligned to our corporate values. We believe that people will always be the heart of our Technology. As the technology landscape evolves and the need for driving customized digital experience increases, we are committed to working with our partners to embrace and develop future-oriented skills that are central to Old Mutual and national economic growth. We believe such skills development and training initiatives undeniably encourages a more creative and innovative workforce.”

Harish Lala, Senior Vice President and Head, Africa, Zensar Technologies, said “We are honoured to have Ms. Andrea Kühn and Old Mutual Leadership in our midst along with the new batch of graduates from Old Mutual who would be benefitting from this program. By providing these graduates with the tools and knowledge they need to succeed, we are aiming to not only help them grow personally and help our clients to achieve their business goals but also to add new talent in the South African industry. We have been a trusted partner for Old Mutual for several years, and we are glad to strengthen our ties by leveraging Zensar’s skill development initiative and learning academy, with a strong focus on community development.”

Earlier in the year, Zensar announced the launch of its Learning Academy at its Pune campus, where it offers upskilling opportunities through a diverse range of specially curated modules. In South Africa, Zensar announced a major milestone with the company enrolling its 1000th intern as part of its Skills Development Program. This achievement highlights Zensar's commitment to developing and empowering young talent in the region. Zensar was recognized as the 2023 Top Employer by the Top Employer Institute in South Africa, for the second consecutive year. This award is a testament to the company's dedication to creating a positive work environment that nurtures its employees' growth and development.