FPT sets goal of hundreds of thousands of high-quality tech workers

Starting with very little expertise in exporting software and driven by a determination to put Vietnam on the global digital map, FPT has recently surpassed the milestone of $1 billion in IT service revenue from foreign markets for the first time in its 25 years.

Few people know that behind the current achievements of this company lies a long journey and an unwavering spirit of continuous learning to reach world-class standards. According to Chu Thi Thanh Ha, chairwoman of FPT Software, a subsidiary company specialising in IT outsourcing of FPT Group, "Top talents create a world-class company."

Driving motivation towards world-class standards

FPT Software first went global with the mindset of 'knowing nothing but moving forward' and the first few years saw the company endure many failures. To survive and thrive in foreign markets, it needed to change its mindset and enhance its capabilities to meet the stringent demands of global clients. The company immediately began training in processes and foreign languages, and preparing for international technology certifications.

Since then, FPT's leaders have consistently stoked a burning desire for learning, improved processes, updated international standards, and enhanced capabilities of every employee.

One of the key training programmes for enhancing capabilities and quality management processes at FPT Software is the CMM-4 campaign. CMM is a quality certification by the Software Engineering Institute, which was established and funded by the US Department of Defense. To achieve CMM Level 4 (out of 5 levels), a company must be capable of managing software projects using data to fully meet customer requirements and ensure the company’s business objectives regarding product quality. In 2002, FPT Software became the first company in Southeast Asia to achieve CMM-4, making it onto the list of the top 100 companies globally in quality management, which granted it entry to the global software market.

In terms of project management, FPT Software continuously enhances its standards through collaboration with leading organisations worldwide, such as the Project Management Institute, to apply the most modern international standards.

Furthermore, the company has invested in research to keep up with the latest technology trends in fields such as AI, cloud computing, automotive, and more. FPT is a founding member of the Global AI Alliance alongside IBM, Meta, and 50 other major companies and organisations. Recently, the company partnered with Aitomatic and Tokyo Electron to launch SemiKong, the world's first open-source large language model specifically designed for the semiconductor industry.

Nurturing the desire to learn

One of the factors that has helped Indian IT giant Infosys become what it is today, with a market capitalisation exceeding $70 billion, is its culture of lifelong learning. In 2002, Infosys established the Global Education Centre in Mysore, India, spanning 150 hectares, with 400 instructors and over 200 classrooms. The centre can accommodate and train up to 14,000 individuals at a time across various technology fields.

Similar to Infosys, FPT Software is actively working to become a learning organisation to achieve and go beyond the goal of becoming, in the words of Chu Thi Thanh Ha, "a billion dollar, world-class company." FPT has built various learning programmes to meet the aspirations of diverse groups of learners, from freshers and junior employees to experts and middle managers.

To enhance the company's learning culture and gain insights from the practical experiences of Infosys, at the beginning of 2024, FPT Software recruited Prajith Nair, former director of Training at Infosys, to take on the role of AVP, head of Learning and Innovation.

"A company that seeks sustainable growth needs employees who are prepared to tackle customer challenges. To achieve this, each individual must take the initiative to learn and develop themselves. Only around 20 per cent of training should be reactive based on customer demand and 80 per cent of the time we should have people trained and qualified, ready to start working. This happens when we provide a clear role-based learning path to the workforce," said Nair.

FPT Software offers self-directed programmes for employees with a diverse range of content, from technical and domain skills, marketing to foreign languages, through various methods including in-house online and offline courses, as well as financial and time support to empower employees in their learning journey.

The company continues to invest heavily in providing the best learning resources for its workforce towards creating a great learning environment. Many high-quality learning programmes and continuous certification support campaigns have emerged, such as Upskilling (a deep skills development scheme for programmers), Global SE (English language training), 20K Certificates (professional certification training provided by Udacity), and PMI-555 (project management certification training), offering self-direct learning opportunities for over 33,000 employees of FPT Software. Depending on the job requirement, each employee must complete specific proactive learning programmes.

The learning culture at FPT Software goes beyond merely applying new processes and technologies, it also fosters a spirit of innovation. Employees are encouraged to share ideas and experiences.

Preparing an IT workforce for the future

Infosys currently has around 317,000 employees, which is nearly 10 times the number of FPT Software. The growth of Infosys is closely tied to its philosophy of focusing on developing human resources, regarding people as the company’s most valuable asset.

Aiming for the scale of Infosys means FPT Software needs to prepare a substantial long-term human resources plan. The company has partnered with universities with notable IT programmes and funded scholarships for outstanding technology students. Recently, FPT announced a training investment package worth VND150 billion ($6 million), collaborating with 15 universities to promote Japanese-speaking IT workforce.

Today, India has become a global technology powerhouse, thanks to the vision of Narayana Murthy, the founder of Infosys.

"Vietnam is unique. No other country has shown the courage and ambition like it. We believe if we can achieve it, so can Vietnam," said Narayana Murthy during his visit here in May.

He also emphasised that it will be companies such as FPT that will help Vietnam tap into its potential, particularly in developing a high-quality workforce.

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