A Belfast-based management training company has broken into the vast Indian educational training market securing a £500,000 contract with a university in Mumbai and is currently negotiating further projects in the world’s fastest growing economy.
Global Management Academy, based at Innovation Factory in West Belfast, set up its first online training platform offering a Bachelor of Business Administration degree at the prestigious DY Patil University.
CEO James Johnston said: “India is an enormous market and we aim to secure up to £4 million in new business in the next two years. There are 600 million people under the age of 25 in India and by 2030 it will be the second biggest economy in the world. The market is very sophisticated and there is a huge demand from young people keen to progress their careers by gaining the right qualifications.”
He is currently in India holding discussions with universities and large corporations in Chennai and Hyderabad to provide online management education courses with recognised qualifications.
The company began offering City and Guilds, Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) courses six years ago and has since moved into Australia, the Middle East and Europe.
Mr Johnston said: “City and Guilds approached us to set up ILM centres across India. City and Guilds are well established there, but have not yet established the ILM leadership and management training arm of their business. Our goal is to set up 30 ILM centres across India in the next five years.”
The company, which is supported by Invest NI, has also formed an alliance with Ulster University to provide an online pathway into its MBA programmes.
“Ulster University is developing a strong presence in India, attracting candidates from across the country to study for their degrees in Northern Ireland. We offer an alternative pathway to enable busy professionals to study for the first part of the MBA online in India, then complete the programme at UU. Invest NI is also helping us to form alliances with other organisations across India. “
At the moment there are six people working in the Belfast office, but James anticipates this growing substantially over the next five years to meet demand.
The company moved to Innovation Factory two years ago and Mr Johnston says it is the perfect environment to meet the needs of Global Management Academy.
He said: “It’s a wonderful facility and we love working here. There are a lot of businesses in the building that we can spin ideas off and get support from.”
Majella Barkley, Centre Director at Innovation Factory said the Global Management Academy was a great example of a Northern Ireland company prepared to look beyond these shores to explore global opportunities.
She said: “It is fantastic to see a Northern Ireland company securing contracts in a fast-growing economy like India. It shows what can be done if you are imaginative, ambitious and confident in your ability to compete on a worldwide scale.”
Innovation Factory is owned by Belfast City Council and operated on their behalf by Oxford Innovation. The £9.1m business hub was funded by Belfast City Council and Invest NI with support from the European Regional Development Fund.
Customers include a range of start-ups and growing businesses in a variety of sectors including digital services, creative industries, business services, financial services and research and development.
For more information on the Innovation Factory visit: www.innovationfactoryni.com.
To find out about the Global Management Academy, go to: https://globalmanagementacademy.com/united-kingdom/
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