Flipkart launches digital academy to accelerate skill building for e-commerce logistics sector

Walmart-owned Flipkart on Thursday said it is setting up a digital learning academy to upskill thousands of students every year to help create a pool of skilled supply chain operations talent in the country. The Supply Chain Operations Academy (SCOA) is Flipkart’s ambitious project and commitment to providing relevant industry training and knowledge to help create a pool of skilled supply chain operations talent in the country, a statement said.

This will further help bridge the skill gap and create employment opportunities in the expanding supply chain industry in the country, it added. The specialised and robust training programme under SCOA has been designed and created by the Flipkart team to provide a holistic experience and training to candidates, which will involve 15 days of digital classroom training and 45 days of on-the-job apprenticeship at Flipkart supply chain facilities, it said.

Also read: Centre”s Rs 2,000-3,000 cr scheme to digitalise PACs on anvil

“The programme has been designed to impart knowledge on various facets of the e-commerce supply chain, the roles within the supply chain, soft skills, safety, and compliance know-how. It involves a 60-day skilling programme that will empower the youth to build careers in various aspects of supply chain management and certify them to increase their employability,” it added.

For the first phase of the programme that begins on October 22, Flipkart has onboarded students from Haryana, Bihar, Delhi, Jharkhand, Punjab, Rajasthan, and West Bengal, who will undergo the training followed by the on-the-job training. During this programme, shortlisted students will get an opportunity to work along with full-time supply chain employees at facilities across the country, the statement said.

The students will be imparted skills through Flipkart’s Learning Management System, an online platform for learning programs, where students can learn a diverse set of skills through courses developed by industry experts, it added. As one of the fastest-growing nations in the world with a significant proportion of the working population, India can unlock its potential through large-scale skilling and upskilling initiatives to reap the benefits of its demographic dividend,” Flipkart Senior-Vice-President and Head of Supply Chain Hemant Badri said.

He added that Flipkart is at the forefront of developing the necessary skill sets in candidates to enhance their employability and complement the nation’s growth. “Having created one of the most tech-enabled modern supply chains in the country, there is an urgent need to bridge the skill gaps in the industry and Flipkart aims to solve this challenge through the Supply Chain Operations Academy. This academy will offer a judicious mix of online and on-the-job training for the wholesome development of the workforce, he said.

As per a recent BCG and Dell Foundation study, the gig economy has the estimated potential to service up to 90 million jobs in India’s non-farm sector and contribute an incremental 1.25 per cent to the country’s GDP over the long term. This would require large-scale skilling and upskilling initiatives, particularly in the e-commerce logistics space, to build a pipeline of talented individuals skilled in various aspects of supply chain management, and Flipkart’s Supply Chain Operations Academy is aimed at achieving the same.

Over the years, Flipkart has trained thousands of its supply chain employees across the country in partnership with various government bodies, which has helped them upskill themselves and grow in their careers.