Mexico. In order to present the results of the Talent Commission during the last year and its strategies to continue promoting the generation and specialization of professionals in Data Centers, the Mexican Association of Data Centers, MEXDC, held the 2024 Talent Forum "Building the Digital Future in Mexico".
This event, held for the second consecutive year, was attended by the Human Capital areas of its affiliates, as well as representatives of universities and professional associations.
"We have witnessed a formidable growth for Data Centers in Mexico at an average rate of 14 percent per year in recent years, consolidating the country as a central axis in the region and this trend is expected to be increasing," said José Luis Friebel, secretary general of MEXDC and head of the Talent Commission.
"The panorama of opportunities is enhanced by the generation of direct and indirect employment for the sector, where it is estimated that, for the next five years, more than 68 thousand jobs will be created, including those generated during 2023[1]. In this sense, it is imperative to redouble efforts so that this growth is specialized, inclusive and sustainable over the years," he said.
Outstanding results 2024
Three MasterClasses were held at key universities: the FES Aragón of the UNAM, the Polytechnic University of Querétaro (UPQ), and the Autonomous University of Querétaro (UAQ), where the link with leading experts was achieved through a series of specialized conferences. With this, 363 students were impacted and guided tours were made to Data Centers of associated companies.
Regarding the collaboration agreements, punctual follow-up was provided to the strategic alliance between SEDESU – UPQ – MEXDC for the development of highly qualified talent in IT in the state of Querétaro and the agreement with DCD Academy that provides scholarships and discounts for affiliates.
Likewise, the management of a couple of agreements soon to be formalized was carried out; the first with the Universal Educational Center: CNPE (Online Technical Specialization in Data Centers) to offer discounts for associates, as well as a proposal with the Ministry of Public Education of the state of Querétaro to be a spokesperson for educational institutions.
20 specialization scholarships were awarded during 2024, of which 18 have already been awarded. Likewise, 64 hours of e-learning training have been provided; the courses "The Business of Data Center" and "Data Center Technician" were taught and paid internships are being carried out in the Data Centers of MEXDC affiliates for students in the last year or recent graduates in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing or Electromechanics. In the same way, an important link between talent and associates is maintained, through the creation of the job bank.
Finally, the MEXDC carries out a Job Profiles Report in collaboration with key companies in the sector, with the aim of identifying precisely the most in-demand professional profiles, the skills and competencies required, as well as the existing gaps between the educational offer and the needs of the industry to facilitate the alignment between academia and the real demands of the labor market. This analysis is planned to be presented in the first quarter of 2025.
During the event, the Talent Scholarship Panel was held where two graduates of Mechatronics Engineering from Tecnológico de Monterrey, Denisse López and Ernesto Tovar, who work at the company Axis, and the Electrical Engineering student from the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Diana Tovar, who is doing her professional internship at Vertiv, shared their experiences, opinions and proposals having been awarded the MEXDC Talent Scholarship, agreeing that this opportunity expanded the panorama of possibilities for their professional development, calling on the industry to continue with these actions of linking with students.
In the same way, the Panel What happened after the MasterClass? where Cristian Ramírez, professor of the IT Division of the UPQ; Hugo Rodríguez, coordinator of Collaborative Education of the UAQ, and Lilia Trejo, head of the Department of the Job Bank of the FES Aragón of the UNAM, agreeing that the strategy of transmission of knowledge is generating that the same students also go to self-learning, generating great interest also in the teachers and qualify the experience of the visits to the Data Centers as very successful.
In 2025, the MEXDC will continue to teach the MasterClass format at the national level with the participation of affiliates; it will award a new batch of 20 Talent Scholarships with their respective availability of internships in the sector and will continue with the supervision of current agreements and management of futures for the benefit of new generations and therefore the specialization of the sector.
"At MEXDC we are sure that, through collaboration between industry, academia and the public sector, we will form accurate initiatives and strategies that allow the generation and specialization of the talent necessary to accelerate the growth of the Data Center sector in Mexico," concluded José Luis Friebel.
