Acer nurtures next generation of business leaders

Continuing its commitment to furthering the educational needs of people around the world, Acer has signed up as AIESEC's Youth Development Partner for the UAE. As part of this role, Acer is offering current and recent graduates from outside the country the chance to realise their potential and obtain valuable international experience while working alongside the company's Middle East management team in Dubai.

"Acer has a diverse and illustrious history of working closely with government ministries and education institutions across the Middle East," said Krishna Murthy, general manager, Acer Computer (M.E.) Ltd. "Participating in the AIESEC scheme enables Acer to play a part in shaping the region's emerging workforce, and helps the next generation of business leaders gain valuable experience by living and working in a foreign country."

The first participant in the program, which is available through 800 universities in 89 countries, was 25-year-old Zineb Alaoui, a graduate in marketing management from Morocco.

After joining the company, Zineb started work on Acer's pre-sales help desk and so impressed Acer managers that she has now been employed on a permanent basis as a customer relationship management (CRM) account executive, with responsibilities for managing government tenders from across the region.

"This program has enabled me to grow both personally and professionally," Alaoui said. "Acer's partnership with AIESEC has given me firsthand work experience in technology, one of the region's fastest-growing sectors."

Acer, which is one of the world's top five branded PC vendors, intends to take a further two trainees over the coming weeks. Trainees are offered six-month rolling contracts as part of the scheme, with full training, expenses and salary paid for by the company.

"The enthusiasm and fresh perspective brought to Acer by Zineb and her peers are of enormous benefit to Acer," added Murthy. "We are committed to the AIESEC program and hope to nurture future business leaders."

Acer has signed several major deals to supply desktop and notebook PCs to education ministries and institutions across the Middle East in recent years. In 2004 it was awarded a US$12 million contract to provide 12,500 desktop PCs to more than 700 schools across Jordan. Acer has also supplied more than 600 of its tablet notebooks to the Higher College of Technology in Abu Dhabi.