SAS vows to train 10,000 out of work Brits in data skills

Global analytics giant SAS is aiming to do its bit to tackle the data skills shortage as well as aid the post-pandemic economic recovery with the launch of a free programme to train 10,000 job seekers as data professionals, across the UK and Ireland.

The SAS Step Programme is primarily being offered to unemployed workers with the aim of finding them work but it is also open to anyone looking to make themselves more employable, including graduates, the self-employed, or those already in employment.

SAS has designed tailored course content and is providing possible routes into employment for alumni, partnering with universities to help deliver the programme to local areas and other organisations to place candidates into job roles.

The company also plans to partner with the University of Bradford, to help deliver the programme in the Bradford area following a successful pilot conducted in late 2020.

The free programme comprises four learning “pathways”. This week sees the launch of the foundational data literacy pathway, along with the data analyst course. Further data engineering and the more advanced data science pathways will be released later in the year. As part of the course, candidates will receive hands-on, industry training through a tailored software portal, allowing them to practice, apply and embed data and analytical skills.

With recent research conducted by Vanson Bourne revealing that nearly three-quarters (71%) of businesses believe a sufficient level of data literacy is now ‘very important’ or ‘essential’ when it comes to hiring candidates, it is no surprise that data skills are in high demand.

More than nine out of 10 businesses (92%) believe remote working and increased reliance on technology has amplified the need for these skills.

Candidates participating in the programme will be able to choose from a wide range of resources including coding challenges, guided case studies, dedicated mentors, and live web classes, allowing them to quickly increase their attractiveness to prospective employers.

SAS UK & Ireland vice-president and country manager Roderick Crawford said: “The Step Programme represents a golden opportunity to improve your data skills or even retrain for a career at the cutting edge of innovation across industries, following a challenging year for many in terms of job security.”

The company can trace its roots back to 1966, when a consortium of eight American universities came together under a grant from the US National Institutes of Health to analyse agricultural data. The resulting programme, the Statistical Analysis System, gave SAS both the basis for its name and its corporate beginnings.

Having expanded into business intelligence, data management, marketing, fraud and security and artificial intelligence, SAS now employs over 14,000 people with revenues of $3.27bn.

The company’s software is installed at more than 83,000 business, government and university sites in 147 countries, with its customer base including HSBC, Nestle, Honda, Allianz, and Lufthansa.