Nestlé initiative helps more than 6,000 young Sri Lankans become more employable

More than 6,000 young Sri Lankans have received support to build skills and enhance their employability through the ‘Nestlé Needs YOUth’ initiative. Nestlé, which has a long tradition of recruiting young people directly from universities, launched the programme in 2016 to help address the issue of youth unemployment.

Since the initiative’s launch, Nestlé has strengthened its focus on offering young people employment opportunities. Currently close to 35 per cent of Nestlé’s workforce is under 30 and more than 60 per cent are millennials. It is also facilitating dual education (i.e. combining on-the-job training with university-based learning), which is a key success factor in bridging the gap between school and the workplace. Nestlé is also actively conducting work readiness activities, which prepares young people to seek or obtain employment and be successful in the workplace, placing a special focus on women and the differently abled, the company said in a media release.

Speaking on International Youth Day, Shivani Hegde, Nestlé Managing Director said: “Young women and men are the future of our societies and economies, and it is clear that traditional education is no longer enough. Nestlé is committed to investing in the next generation of talented young people, to help them build skills and be better prepared to enter the professional world, so they improve their chances in a challenging job market. Making a significant and sustainable impact on the community, by supporting youth employment, is a very real way of living our purpose of enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future.”

As a part of its ‘Nestlé Needs YOUth’ initiative, Nestlé has several programmes which have helped 6,000 youth become more employable over the last two years. It is facilitating dual education via internships, and a professional marketing programme taught by Nestlé Managers to students from the University of Kelaniya. The programme offers an additional professional marketing qualification on top of students’ degrees, where they learn 15 subjects covering Collaboration, Leadership, Innovation and Personal Development. The sessions are held at Nestlé’s Training Centre at its head office, where Nestlé employees share theoretical and practical applications using various training interventions. Students also participate in field visits across the island for insights and experience of the market. The top 10 students receive sales training stints with the company for six months on completion of the programme.

Nestlé’s Trainee Engineering Programme in its factory in Kurunegala also provides engineering graduates an all-round comprehensive training and work familiarisation, to give them solid work experience that will serve them well in their engineering careers. Good performers are offered employment within the company.