DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES--(Marketwire - August 19, 2008) - Furthering its goal to develop
ongoing homegrown technical skills through education initiatives, Cisco
(
NASDAQ:
CSCO) marked the investiture of its first graduates of its Middle
East and North Africa Levant (MENAL) Global Talent Acceleration Program in
Dubai in early August 2008.
Part of an ongoing investment in the region, the Global Talent Acceleration
Program (GTAP) is a long-term Cisco initiative aimed at developing
next-generation local network consulting engineers (NCEs) for the company.
The 15 graduating students hailed from the inaugural Jordan facility of
GTAP, launched in November 2007. The Jordan facility based in Amman acts as
a hub and caters to trainees across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the
Levant and North Africa. The first cohort of graduating students comes from
Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan.
Entry- or associate-level candidates for the program were all recent
college graduates and mid- or professional-level students who had
significant prior experience with Cisco networking. All but one of the
graduating students will make the transition to full-time employment with
Cisco Advanced Services as NCEs, working out of Cisco's regional
service-delivery hub.
"The graduation of the first cohort of GTAP students is a milestone for
Cisco in our efforts to create skilled local staff and provide our
customers and partners with improved direct support," commented John
Livingston, director, business development, Cisco. "By increasing the pool
of skilled and certified local associate or professional engineers, the
program will enable Cisco to better serve customers in MENAL. Our
investment will help foster a climate of confidence in which business and
government leaders commit to major new projects."
GTAP currently has two facilities in emerging markets, the Jordan
initiative (launched in November 2007) and a Johannesburg facility which
will eventually act as a 'hub' for programs in emerging Africa. The program
represents a core part of Cisco's strategy to be a truly global company
through the creation of new business models and the acceleration of local
talent networks. GTAP has particular relevance in MENAL, where there is a
need to train staff in services delivery. The program has been designed and
structured to be sustainable. The students already receive a salary and go
through the training in relatively small groups of 16 people. This enables
GTAP to put a strong emphasis on technical and professional training,
mentorship and
on-the-job training.
Cisco Learning Solutions Partners, Synergy and Fast Lane were the providers
of Cisco learning courses for the program in Amman. Estarta Solutions, a
strategic Cisco partner in the Middle East hosted and managed the program
training facility at its premises in Amman.
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