There were summed up the results of the academic year for students taking the professional re-training course in IT-support of financial and economic affairs at the enterprise. The project is implemented by Norilsk Sputnik in partnership with Saratov State University. The professional re-training diplomas were given by the Institute Continuing Professional Education, SSU.

This year, the cooperation between Norilsk Nickel Sputnik LLC and Saratov State University has reached a new level. SSU graduates who have passed the career path from interns to the main and leading specialists of the company have themselves started training a new cohort of students.

This is the fourth cohort of students who are already taking courses at the Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technologies, the Faculty of Economics, the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics, and the Institute of Physics. 50 people have mastered the professional re-training course. Its goal is to find solutions to the current business problems of Norilsk Sputnik and train young specialists with skills in economics, financing, and computer science.

‘We have successfully cooperated with Saratov State University. The partnership experience is very positive, all my colleagues are extremely satisfied with the level of training of new personnel. The students come with a positive working attitude and good skills, which they receive at university,’ Head of the Department for Accounting of Fixed Assets and Capital Investments, Norilsk Sputnik, Natalia Shagalova said.

The course lasts for three semesters. As a result, its students receive diplomas of professional re-training. The training includes several modules: IT-support for key SAP modules, accounting, and tax accounting using SAP ERP, conducting HR-operations in SAP HCM. Mastering the course takes 4-6 hours a week. There are also production internships in the regional branch of the company.

‘As part of the cooperation with SSU, last year, the students were trained to work in a test system. Within a month, they came to the classroom of the Saratov office of Sputnik, studied personnel administration in SAP NSM, performed practical tasks. That is why specialists with a basic level of training came to our department. In general, I would like to note that progressive young specialists with an active lifestyle and excellent knowledge come to our company. They learn and develop very quickly at Sputnik: many of them have already grown from interns to specialists and leading specialists in the field of personnel administration. Cooperation with SSU allows us to form a personnel reserve. This year, interns were accepted as a priority for many open vacancies, and external candidates were considered in the second place. We hope that our cooperation with SSU will remain as fruitful,’ Head of the Enterprises Personnel Administration, Norilsk Sputnik Norilsk industrial district Anna Nasledskova explained.

 Norilsk Nickel Sputnik takes students of Saratov State University for an internship, after which many of them are hired by the company. According to the results of this academic year, twelve people have already been employed, eleven more SSU students are undergoing an internship. The course is designed in such a way as to prepare students as much as possible to perform tasks at a particular enterprise.

Irina Bayeva, Head of the IT-Management Office at  Norilsk Nickel Sputnik, noted that SSU students, participating in the internship, got a unique experience of participating in real production business affairs. ‘Our experience of interacting with the interns shows how successfully the students improve their professional skills. In 2021, Nikita Pronin, an SSU 4th-year student, joined our team as an intern, who in two years has changed posts from an intern to a manager and currently provides operational management of an independent unit. This year, three SSU graduates have entered our department for an internship, who are actively involved in the operational tasks of developing the company corporate IT, and the team, in turn, shares their knowledge and experience. Of all the interns, I would like to mention Anna Storozhenko, who is actively involved in solving business cases and, despite her little experience, shows excellent results.’

The academic year has become very busy for the students. Due to the cooperation, many events were held to improve the career guidance. So, in October, there was organised a training seminar on the fundamentals of IT-processes. The team of the IT-Process Management Office, Norilsk Sputnik, presented to the audience the basics of corporate IT-processes of the Norilsk Nickel Group of Companies. SSU students learned about the differences between an IT-incident and an IT-problem, the importance of competent IT-capacity planning, features of IT-change management, approaches to ensuring continuity and availability of IT-systems based on real cases. Following the results of the seminar,  Norilsk Nickel Sputnik awarded SSU students Alexander Yefimov (Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technologies) and Danil Nenashev (the Institute of Physics) for Best Solution of a Business Case on IT-Processes.

‘During the training, we have gained a lot of knowledge and developed our skills. There was a lot of practice, which helped me in my work. Since October, I have become an intern in the IT-Process Management Office, Norilsk Nickel Sputnik,’ Anna Storozhenko, a student of the Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technologies, said.

To remind, the professional re-training course in IT-support of financial and economic affairs at the enterprise has been implemented by SSU together with Norilsk Nickel Sputnik since 2019. Its goal is to form a personnel pool for a key office in Saratov. In last four years, more than 120 graduates of the course have completed an internship and got a job at Norilsk Nickel Sputnik.

Ordered by the enterprise, the course was developed by specialists of the university. The development group included the teaching staff of the Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technologies and the Faculty of Economics. Every year, the course is transformed at the request of the company. 2nd- and 3rd-year students who are taking bachelor's degree courses, 1st-year students taking master's degree courses, and 1st- and 2nd-year postgraduates can do the training for free.

The cooperation agreement between SSU and PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel was signed in 2019. Due to the agreement the personnel potential of Saratov Region is developed, young specialists apply for jobs in promising business areas, new workings places appear, and young people have the opportunity to work for the benefit of their region.

Norilsk Nickel Sputnik is a high-tech division that provides expert support to enterprises of the Norilsk Nickel Group of Companies. The key areas of Norilsk Nickel Sputnik are: process services (accounting and tax accounting, Exchequer Chamber, personnel operations, and electronic office), information technology (service support and user support) and production services (production engineering, industrial automation, energy management, and communication systems support).