Skill & Hire to Reimagine Youth Skills Post Pandemic

Youth is undoubtedly the pulse of any Nation. It is the youth that plays a strategic role in the economic development of the country. Skilling the young population is, therefore, integral to the growth of the country.

India is privileged to be amongst the youngest countries in the world with a sizable youth population and rightfully so, the government is playing a key role in skilling measures through its Skill India Mission. In particular, the government has been focusing on ‘Skill & Hire’; it incentivizes employers to skill the youth and absorb them, through The Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY) Plan Scheme. 

‘Skill & Hire’ has its advantages:

For the youth – Through ‘Skill & Hire’, they gain ready access to an organization. They can also take advantage of diverse job opportunities. Organisations are always on the lookout for people who understand the core requirements of a job, are technically skilled, have problem solving attitudes, are team players and can professionally handle their jobs; ‘Skill & Hire’ programs instill all these qualities in the youth. It provides career development opportunities to the youth which is not interested in studies or had financial stress.

Our mission is to transform education to employment systems to prepare, place, and support people into life-changing careers that would otherwise be inaccessible. We target  unemployed youth from various-income strata. With the help of our training partners, mobilizing teams we counsel youth, screen (like In the ‘zero-week’ prospects are taken to the work-site to give them a real-life experience of their job, interview) and recruit them for the training for specific job roles like General Duty Assistant in Healthcare, RSA in Retail Sales and many more. With Sodexo, we have been working on the profile of General Duty Assistants for their Healthcare business. It is an 8-week classroom-cum-lab training program”, remarked Vivek Pandey, Placement Officer for Western Region – Generation India Foundation.

For the organisations – Employing skilled workers is a huge advantage for organisations as they gain efficient employees who can contribute to the productivity of the organization. Through ‘Skill & Hire’, they gain a ready talent pool to dip into as and when required. It reduces training time, supports large mobilisations, generates a sizeable talent pool and introduces job-ready individuals to the industry. The organization has access to a diverse group of fresh, energetic people who are passionate about embracing new innovations and are eager to learn from their experienced seniors.

The advantage of this recruitment model is the preparedness of the candidate. Job-related training prior to date of joining makes the candidate confident at work. Usually there is an overlap when a new candidate joins; we can do away with it in the ‘Skill & Hire’ model. Its saves costs, time and the feedback from the clients and consumers on the service levels is also very encouraging, suggests Pradeep Chavda – HR Director, Sodexo India

For the ecosystem – A growing economy witnesses the growth of many industries that in turn generate employment and contribute to the GDP of the country. A skilled workforce is the pride of these industries and of the nation. Additionally, skilling leads to more employment, more dispensable income and a better lifestyle. It creates better human beings, lowers crime rates and makes the communities more prosperous and happier. 

Even during the pandemic while many organizations faced uncertainty, Sodexo continued to place students from various courses. This year, our partnership grew stronger with Sodexo contributing to setting up a lab for Quick Service Restaurant. We see many opportunities to strengthen the partnership in the coming days."  says Sweta Singh, National Placement Officer for Tata STRIVE

Role of Sodexo in ‘Skill & Hire’

Sodexo is in constant need of a sizable skilled workforce to mobilise at its on-site locations. 60% of our yearly recruitments are fresh hire”, added Pradeep Chavda. Hence, ‘Skill & Hire’ is a very important element for improving the company’s talent base and creating a job-ready pool. The company has been working meticulously with industry academia and vendor partners to implement ‘Skill & Hire’ programs since 2018. 

Sodexo works in conjunction with partners to develop the syllabus and training modules that impart education related to jobs like housekeeping services, chefs, stewards, pantry associates, etc. Upon completion of the training, the individuals receive certification and are absorbed by Sodexo or by other players in the same industry. 

Currently, Sodexo is associated with 100+ partners. It has provided employment to more than 10,000 people so far. By working with skilling partners, under the National Skill Development Council's program, Sodexo has provided financial independence and livelihood to people from the lower strata of society and helped the entire community to thrive. It is proudly leading the way towards an Atmanirbhar Bharat (Independent India). That’s our version of being a responsible corporate citizen, because when people progress, economies prosper!