Fortude, a global technology solutions provider, recently held a felicitation ceremony to congratulate associates from the Informatics Institute of Technology (IIT) upon the completion of their degree and four-year corporate internship with the company. The associates were identified and recruited to Fortude under the ‘InfoSchol’ scholarship program, a collaboration between the Informatics Group, the Ministry of Education Sri Lanka, and Information Technology corporates in Sri Lanka.
The InfoSchol program aims to provide undergraduates with an opportunity to be academically equipped in areas of Software Engineering, Computer Science, Business Information Systems or Business Management, whilst receiving the relevant work experience. The program has also been endorsed by the local ICT industry as a platform which launches quality candidates upon the completion of their degree.
At Fortude, the InfoSchol undergraduates were employed full-time, with exposure to working closely with global markets. Fortude currently operates across the Americas, UK, India, Sri Lanka, Australia and New Zealand, with customers located in more than 20 global economies. Across the four-year stint, the associates were given experience in fields such as Project Management, Application Support, Enterprise Software Development and Enterprise Consulting.
Speaking at the felicitation ceremony, Dr. Gamini Wickramasinghe, Chairman, Informatics Group and brainchild of the InfoSchol program said, “We launched InfoSchol with the hope of grooming local talent to drive the ICT industry forward and position Sri Lanka as an emerging knowledge-based economy amongst the global business community. ‘InfoSchol,’ through its scholarship program, is aimed at supporting the Sri Lankan economy to meet and exceed local goals and challenges of over US$5 Billion IT exports in 2022.” He added, “I want to thank Fortude for partnering with us to provide our undergraduates a truly global experience which has prepared them to be highly employable talent, both locally and internationally.”
Also sharing his thoughts at the felicitation ceremony, Arjuna Sirinanda, Managing Director, Fortude said, “We’re grateful to have partnered with IIT in providing young talent an opportunity to experience ‘work culture’, ahead of completing their degree. The associates received more than four years of experience whilst completing their degree – a significant advantage over their peers who graduate at the same time. The quality and capability seen across the board has been no short of excellent – and it’s certainly a partnership opportunity we would like to continue, as Fortude grows.”
Andrea Devananda, Trainee Consultant, Application Support, Fortude and recent graduate, sharing her experience said, “I joined Fortude in 2016 as part of the first InfoSchol batch. At Fortude we learned to balance our academics, whilst playing key roles in delivering solutions to customers. The experience and exposure to global markets and customers, has prepared us for the future of work. It has also helped me build great relationships within the organization and the wider world.”