Huawei Goes For Top Talent As Revenue Surges

Huawei Technologies has set its eyes on high-grade global talent in a bid to support its strategy for innovation and building a greener intelligent world.

In a statement sent from the Kenya Office, the company quoted it is Rotating Chairman Ken Hu saying that the firm’s focus on innovation was tied inextricably to the quality of people in its workforce as it rolled out its Top Minds Recruitment program.

“For us to effectively tackle the prevailing and future global challenges, we need to attract world-class talent and work together to push the limits of science and technology, ” said Hu.

This talent mix, he added, is expected to be from all over the world. “We don’t mind where you’re from, where you graduated, or what you studied. As long as you have a dream for the future and believe you can make it happen, we want you to come and join us. We provide world-class challenges, a powerful platform, and all the resources you need to explore the unknown,” he noted.

Kenya, said the firm, is one of the countries on the radar as its rolls out the Top Minds Recruitment program from which the finalists will be selected. It is one of the participating nations in a series of digital skills development programs aimed at enhancing ICT talent, skills training, and transfer and creating more jobs in the ICT sector through collaboration with various stakeholders.

The program is supported by local universities which commend it for complementing their computer science courses. Kenyatta University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Wainaina explained that it will contribute to the country’s desire to build an innovation-driven economy. “By supporting university students with these practical sessions, we are not only supporting the government achieve its Vision 2030 but also building the capacity among youth to complement academia in to steer the country’s talent in the right direction”

The announcement comes at a time when Huawei achieved USD99.8 billion in revenue in 2021, with increased cash flows and decreased liability ratio, and remains among the top telecom brands in the Global 500 top brands list released recently by Brand Finance, a well-known British independent research firm.

“Innovation has become a core part of Huawei’s DNA,” concluded Ken Hu, adding that for nearly a decade, the firm’s strategy has been to re-invest at least 10% of its annual revenue back into R&D. Last year, Huawei invested 22%, making Huawei the world’s second-highest investor in R&D according to the EU’s 2021 EU Industrial R&D investment scoreboard.

Africa is expected to be a major player in the talent program, following the rollout of the LEAP in Sub-Saharan Africa which is designed to help advance the ICT skills of more than 100,000 people across the region within three years.

Over the past two decades, Huawei has helped advance the ICT skills of more than 80 000 people across the region. Huawei itself is an employer of choice in the region. Its subsidiaries in 9 Sub-Saharan African countries earned the Top Employer seal in 2021.

Huawei Southern Africa President, Leo Chen said, “Through the program, we strive to cultivate more youth leaders in ICT, who can explore more possibilities for themselves, their families, community, and ultimately their nations.”