CISCO NETWORKING ACADEMY, one of oldest IT skills-to-jobs programmes in the world, has set a target to train five lakh people in India in cyber security by the end of FY25. It’s part of Daisy Chittilapilly’s plan to build a talent pipeline for digital India. “We have technology, talent and, most importantly, customer trust to play a pivotal role in India’s digitisation journey,” says Chittilapilly who has been leading Cisco India and SAARC as its president since 2021. Since its inception in late 90s, the academy has trained nearly 1.7 million in India in IT skills. In May 2023, the company also announced the setting up of a manufacturing facility in Chennai for cost-effective delivery. The aim is $1 billion-plus domestic production and exports.
Chittilapilly has completed 120 investments in areas such as 5G, transportation, manufacturing, agriculture and logistics under its Country Digital Acceleration Program. In June 2024, Cisco Investments, the global venture investment arm of the company, announced the launch of a $1 billion AI Investment fund. It has already committed nearly $200 million. Daisy sees potential in AI. “We recognise we have a responsibility to mitigate potential harm. That is why we have developed a Responsible AI Framework,” she says. — Rukmini Rao