There will be more collaborative projects between Tata Consultancy Services and the Johannesburg Centre for Software Engineering (JCSE) at Wits University.
According to Wits vice-chancellor, Prof Loyiso Nongxa, the organisations signed a general memorandum of agreement earlier this year signifying their intent to work together.
The agreement for Tata to sponsor specialist software lecturers from the Tata academy in India is the first project that has been engaged in, he says.
The faculty will provide expertise in the training of software developers in order to increase the pool and meet the demands of the city of Johannesburg, as well as the Gauteng province, says Nongxa.
Tata is rated among the highest achievers in terms of quality assurance in software development, Nongxa notes. Working with the Tata academy`s faculty will therefore assist the JCSE in attaining international benchmarks and increasing its rating, he says.
Although he could not provide greater detail on how the agreement would be implemented, he says the process will take place over a two-year period. Some of the key areas that will be addressed are research and development, software engineering, biotechnology, water research and pollution.
It is Tata`s practice to invest in the people whose countries they have operations in, says Tata VP and head of global operations, N Chandrasekaran.
"We develop relationships with leading universities and work with them to identify areas where we can contribute," he says.
Such an arrangement benefits both parties, says Chandrasekaran, as the investment helps build the "difficult to quantify" human capital as well as providing Tata with a pool of skilled and qualified employees.
The investment in JCSE, he says, is a first step and the two institutions will continue to work together to identify other areas of need.
Tata will continue to make significant investments in the country, such as those already made in the banking and automotive industries, he says.
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