By Telecom Lead Team: IBM and San Jose State
University are collaborating to help students turn their social networking
savvy into business ready skills to prepare for the jobs of the future. This
new academic program provides students with the opportunity to deepen technical
and business skills in the emerging arena of social business.
As part of their coursework, the students are mentored by
IBM experts and learn about internal and external use of social business
solutions.
“Today’s students are already social savvy in their
personal lives. However it’s vital for them to be able to apply these skills to
business and differentiate themselves as they enter a tough job market. Through
the use of IBM technology and experienced mentors, our students will join the
corporate world prepared to compete,” said Professor Larry Gee, College of
Business, San Jose State University.
SJSU students will assess the social networking
capabilities of an IBM Business Partner organization as a way of learning about
the characteristics of a social business while helping to apply social
networking technologies to business operations.
By bringing together IBM’s experts with SJSU’s students,
the program seeks to educate, enlighten and advocate the key role of social
business as a driver for a Smarter Planet.
“The relationship between us, founded on our deep
commitment to preparing students with the skills needed to become successful
business leaders. With SJSU, we are taking the next step in ensuring students
are prepared to use social business technology to create business value, and
solve complex business challenges quickly and efficiently,” said Jim
Corgel, general manager, Academic Programs, IBM.
The program is part of IBM’s “The Great Mind
Challenge,” a global academic initiative. Recently,
IBM announced that it is expanding its Academic Initiative for business
analytics with new programs in India, China, Ireland and Scotland.
