SINGAPORE - Institute of Technical Education (ITE) students will be able to learn key customer relationship management (CRM) digital skills in a revised curriculum introduced as part of an $8.7 million tie-up with a United States-based software firm.
The partnership with the firm, called Salesforce, will span five years and benefit about 7,500 ITE students.
Students will pick up key CRM skills such as understanding customers and helping businesses improve customer relationships with the use of data.
The beefed up curriculum, which will start in April 2023, will feature content provided by the Salesforce learning arm, Trailhead Academy. It will be taught by ITE lecturers, who will be trained by Salesforce.
On Monday, at the ceremony to mark the tie-up, ITE College West principal Alice Seow said: “This collaboration will allow ITE to infuse CRM content and technology into our new three-year Higher Nitec curriculum.”
She added that the curriculum will include CRM features such as UX or user experience design and system security.
On top of the enhanced curriculum, students will be selected every year to be mentored by Salesforce employees.
Ms Seow said: “This mentorship programme targets to develop essential soft skills as well as deepen CRM knowledge among student participants, and will benefit some 60 students annually across the three ITE campuses.”
During the mentorship programme, students will take exams to earn certifications such as Salesforce administrator or developer. They will also apply their skills in tackling case studies and take part in case competitions simulating real-world environments.
The programme, which will start in October 2023, aims to open up job opportunities for students and, in time, land them a full-time role with Salesforce or the clients it serves.
Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information Tan Kiat How, who was at the event, said demand for tech skills and the know-how to use digital tools and systems is here to stay.
He added that employers should look beyond academic qualifications when hiring and developing their tech manpower, and focus on the person’s skills and desire to continually pick up new skills and new technologies.
Ms Seow said this tie-up will help ITE tap the Salesforce network of industry partners to provide students with internship and employment opportunities in the CRM industry.
She said: “Our mission at ITE is to create opportunities for our students to acquire the skills, knowledge and values they need to contribute and make a meaningful impact as part of tomorrow’s workforce.
“The extension of our partnership with Salesforce reaffirms this mission, and allows our students to hone their CRM expertise at a pivotal moment where digital transformation and customer experience are so deeply interconnected.”
