NIS 54 million to 49 entities to increase the overall number of employees in high-tech industry

It is estimated that these programs will result in the training and placement of about 12,000 employees

Israel Innovation Authority grants NIS 54 million to 49 entities to increase the overall number of employees in high-tech industry
It is estimated that these programs will result in the training and placement of about 12,000 employees

Israel’s Innovation Authority is granting NIS 54 million to 49 entities to increase the overall number of employees in high-tech industry.
This Government investment in addition to the mandated matching by the companies will result in an investment of about NIS 120 million in the training and placement of personnel for the Israeli innovation industry.

The committee approved, among others, non-academic programs and training schemes, including juniors, at a total value of NIS 20 million which will train about 6,600 participants. Additionally, programs that will integrate under-represented populations in the high-tech sector for a total of about NIS 14.5 million will train about 3,200 participants: Programs that will integrate the Arab sector were awarded about NIS 7.3 million for training about 1,120 participants, specific programs to integrate women were awarded a total of NIS 4.4 million, programs to promote integration of the Ultra-Orthodox society in the high-tech sector were awarded a total of NIS 4.8 million.
Furthermore, for the first time, the Research Committee awarded funds to develop a digital platform to help connect between employers, employees and training programs.
The selected entities presented innovative and groundbreaking programs and models that will result in the training and placement of skilled human capital in the high-tech industry.

Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Orit Farkash-Hacohen: In order to ensure Israel’s continued technological leadership for years to come, the State of Israel is required to create innovative solutions to help promote human capital for the high-tech industry. We are required to work fast and in numerous ways and channels including maximizing the potential of academia alumni, integrating underrepresented populations, promoting non-academic technological training and increasing the presence of skilled foreign employees. Such activities will enable to maintain Israel’s standing as a global innovation hub and the high-tech industry as the engine that drives Israel’s economy forward.”

Dr. Ami Appelbaum, Chairman Israel Innovation Authority: “Israeli high-tech demonstrated high resilience in the face of the COVID-19 crisis thanks to its ability to quickly react to new working conditions and uncertainty. Moreover, during the last year, the high-tech sector’s capital raising broke new records thus significantly increasing the need to recruit skilled employees, which in turn only amplified the chronic shortage of employees in this industry. Furthermore, the rapid growth of a large number of companies increased dramatically the need for technological and business human capital. The shortage in human capital is one of the market-failures that challenges the continued rapid growth of the high-tech industry in Israel and the ability to maintain international leadership and competitiveness. We put great emphasis on collaborating with the industry in order to create innovative solutions that will benefit and improve its status.”

The Human Capital Fund program is designed to help solve this challenge via an innovative and groundbreaking program that will expand the offering of local employees, notably from the entire Israeli population, including underrepresented populations as well as foreign employees.

This program will provide two grant channels:

• For requested grant of up to NIS 1 million – (for ideation/seed stage programs) – Israel Innovation Authority will provide up to 70% of the approved budget.
• For requested grant of NIS 1-15 million – (for growth/scale up programs) – Israel Innovation Authority will provide up to 50% of approved budget and in special cases up to 70% of the approved budget.

This grant program is designed to support various projects (in the human capital development field they will encompass – trainings, apprenticeship, placement, upgrade, potential search and more). It is defining challenges rather than solutions, and looking into solutions received from the industry (bottom-up approach) while considering unified standards such as additional skilled human capital for a high-paid industry, offered program’s level of innovation, aspects of cost/benefit, ability to bring on partners and scale the program and more.

Approved programs include innovative and groundbreaking offers that focus on various aspects such as:

• Placement of juniors in the industry (including OJT)
• Upskilling of former high-tech employees to allow for their re-entry to the high-tech industry (for example people who are 45 + years old, women)
• Academia graduates retraining for high-tech professions
• Locating, training and placement of employees via non-academic training for high-tech professions
• Locating and placing foreign human capital: immigrants, eligible per Law of Return, returning Israelis and foreign experts
• Integration of underrepresented populations in the industry as well as employees from geographic and social periphery.
• High-tech industry employers’ association for the placement of juniors in the industry or for expanding the knowledge of existing employees in advanced technologies.
• In knowledge deficient domains, such as Bio-Convergence, Semiconductors & VLSI, Quantum, AI, Climate.

Winning entities and their programs are as follows:

Company Name	Program
CyberPro Ltd.	Practical training in the fields of cyber and information security in collaboration with employers.
Dicomano Ltd.	The company has developed a unique model for training developers – with an emphasis on the target population who have difficulty entering the high-tech world – students graduating from the worlds of information systems, computing, industrial engineering and inexperienced management graduates from colleges living in the periphery.
Spark Innovation Ltd.	The program emphasizes the integration of diverse target audiences, with an emphasis on members of the periphery, new immigrants, women, integration with non-academic training in high-tech, as well as the conversion of academics and the training of employees without previous experience. At the core of the program is a collaboration between the alumni unit of the 8200 Intelligence Unit, which is at the forefront of training and promotion for the knowledge-intensive industry, and Masterschool, one of the pioneers of success-based training in the world.
Heznek Association	The “Startup for the Future” association, in collaboration with the “Zion” company, embarked on a unique joint venture, with the aim of preparing software developers, who failed to integrate optimally in the world of work, in their field of study, in the technological labor market.The project aims to address the built-in gap between academic training and employment.
Sela	Establishment of a unique training system for the most popular professions in the high-tech industry that will enable the training of about 200 employees in the most advanced technologies during the program. Emphasis on a track that includes theoretical and practical training while integrating OJT. The graduates are expected to be absorbed for the most part into work at Sela’s software house on the job and progress over the years without a glass ceiling.
SQ Link Ltd.	Training and placement in the DevOps world.
Gav-Yam Negev Ltd.	A unique internship program, initiated by the management of the high-tech park in Be’er Sheva and in collaboration with Ben Gurion University of the Negev and Aluma, in order to create a high-quality human capital reserve for the high-tech industry and increase employment opportunities.The program allows students studying engineering and software to undergo a practical internship accompanied by a mentor at one of the technology companies operating in the park for an academic semester, gaining practical experience in the development environment of the high-tech company during their studies, thus significantly increasing their chances of absorption. The success of the pilot program will enable its implementation in all technology centers throughout the country.
Technion R&D Foundation Ltd.	A program for training and promoting employees in the high-tech industry in a variety of advanced technological positions.
Casual Speakers Ltd.	As part of the program, hundreds of trainees will be recruited for several months’ work in small programming teams, which we call flower beds. Each flower bed will work on a product of a high-tech company or start-up from the industry (the “partner-company”), using the specific programming languages and work methodologies used by that company. The partner company will have access to recruitment from the participants in the flower bed.
Emightgen Ltd.	Emightgen is a software house – a leading and professional patrol that specializes in embedded and software solutions for IoT. The company is located in the north of the country. The track consists of 8 months of training that combines professional content, practical experience, and soft content.
8200 Alumni Association (S.M. 2)	Promoting employment in the high-tech industry for young and inexperienced people (junior positions) with an emphasis on under-represented populations. The program will create an intermediate stage after completing the academic degree in order to train the participants for admission to work in the high-tech industry and will include a number of key stages: locating and sorting; re-training; practical experience; accompany for employment
Elevation Education Ltd.	As part of the efforts to increase the percentage of employees in high-tech and improve the capabilities of high-tech companies to absorb employees required for their growth, Elevation in collaboration with monday.com is building the Monday Academy – a new gateway to Israeli high-tech.A program that will redefine what the various professions consist of, through monday.com‘s certification for the high-demand of non-technological professions. One of the main goals is to enable and integrate in the Israeli high-tech industry people from diverse backgrounds who have significant obstacles in reaching the high-tech world.
Lightico	Intensive, practical training to reskill people to get into their first job in Israeli high tech. The entire program is designed to reskill minorities and underprivileged populations. This program is designed to give the core skills, trained by industry leaders in a ‘hands-on’ style. It’s very much about getting people practical experience (not just education) so they can start their first job with success.
Center for Educational Technology	Education in the professional arena, such as developing entrepreneurial, strategic and innovative thinking around new products. Based on startup acceleration methodologies, innovation management and research and development developed in Mindset. The uniqueness of the program is expressed in the placement of the content learned with an emphasis on the “big picture” of the product as a whole, encouraging creative design and productive thinking that focuses on the needs of users and customers in the relevant market. Focus on unique populations in the Negev and in the future also in Yokneam and the surrounding area.
Hod Cloud Solutions Ltd.	Salesforce system manager training program and Salesforce developer training.
Developers Institute Ltd.	A quick training, mentorship, and placement program by experts in the field of high-tech development jobs. The program includes 4 stages: the motivation stage and potential identification by testing understanding and use of programming languages (regardless of education or previous experience), intensive bootcamp stage, project stage, preparation stage for job interviews and placement through partners and employers and the mentoring phase during the job and internship.
ITWorks Empowering People	Training and placement of high-tech women with an emphasis on low-income women, the periphery, and single mothers in developmentally supportive roles. In a holistic model that will combine professional training in one of two areas: CS and Data analysis, imparting soft skills and personal guidance until placement in high-tech.
Young Business Leadership	A plan to convert academics from Arab society in the periphery to high-tech, which seeks to integrate 240 new employees in technology companies in three years, and an additional 120 employees each year thereafter.
The Fund for Reducing Gaps in Israeli Society	The project seeks to locate, guide, train and accompany young women from military service to their first high-tech job while focusing on the realizing potential in the transition between the military and academia. The program is a unique model of locating, sorting, directing training and mentoring in order to realize existing potential, increase the number of female students in the technological professions and create significant contact with the high-tech industry throughout the continuum.
Ariel University	Ariel University through the Foreign Studies Unit is pleased to present a unique curriculum for outstanding ultra-Orthodox men for their training as programmers in knowledge-intensive companies.The 18-month curriculum will include a preliminary chapter in self-study based on a dedicated textbook written for ultra-Orthodox learners required to complete knowledge in mathematics, a preparatory chapter – 6 months of intensive study in mathematics and English and 12 months of programmers’ training program. High-tech in the programming languages (Python) along with the required completions in English, mathematics, obtaining professional tools and soft skills required in the world of work and carrying out a practical final project within the high-tech companies under the guidance of industry insiders.
Alrowad Association of Science and Technology	Training, preparation, accompaniment, and placement in advanced and high-tech industries, for Arab graduates (with 1, 2 or 3 degrees), from the periphery, including Arab-Israeli residents returning from abroad.An existing database of Arab students / academics will be used to accompany and guide, development and improvement of skills, and placement (collaborations with IATI and high-tech companies, medicine and technology). Expected integration of about 300 participants in two years.
Moona – Space for Change	Locating, sorting, training and placement for the high-tech industry. The training centers are located nationwide and in the heart of Arab authorities and combine the engineers of the partner companies in the program, 8 representatives (who themselves grew up in the under-represented peripheries) and are responsible for bringing about 200 candidates a year to the companies in which they are employed. The training is practical around a project that comes from the program partner companies in the areas of design verification and systems integration and combines all the skills required for the advanced world of employment.
Tsofen High Technology Centers Ltd.	A new program for applied training for AWS Solution Architect Associate certification and preparation for further Kubernetes Administrator certification, for graduates from the Arab population from the geographical and social periphery, in preparation for integration as juniors in Cloud DevOps positions in high-tech.
Elzahrawi Association	Training academics from the Arab population for development positions in java / cloud technologies with an emphasis on academics from the fields of science, engineering, education – and especially women. The proposed program is part of a broader project that initiates the triple regional R&D for the coming years in the field of encouraging high-tech studies in Arab society and integrating young Arab men and women into employment in high-tech industries.
The Association for Education and Arts Advancement in East Jerusalem	Training students and graduates from high-tech professions such as computers, software,  electronics and more from East Jerusalem and their employment with companies in the tech sector company and other companies in the Jerusalem area and other areas in Israel.
Organizing,  promoting and encouraging tourism and environmental Nazareth	The program includes the opening and establishment of a training center with mentors and vocational retraining for the purpose of unique employment integration in the high-tech field – on specific issues that are experiencing shortages in terms of workers in the economy.The start will be a combination of two dedicated programs, the first is a study and training program on experience and user interface, i.e., UX / UI User-Interface / User-Experience. This is a unique program that aims to integrate and introduce young people from Arab society with different backgrounds in the field.The second program is professional training, digital marketing and e-commerce studies, which is designed to develop marketing and promotion skills and includes theoretical studies and practical studies that help enrich knowledge and work in large companies in the economy and as self-employed workers in the field.
Fast Lane Israel	Training infrastructure employees in Microsoft cloud technologies (IT) for men and women from the Arab sector
Siraj – for the Advancement of Hi-tech in the Bedouin Community	An annual training and placement program aimed at increasing the number of engineers and academics from the Bedouin community in the high-tech industry. Applicants who are found suitable (undergraduates in relevant professions) will receive professional training at Siraj Technologies. As part of the program, participants undergo paid ON THE JOB TRAINING for six months to specialize, at the end of which placement is guaranteed for those who qualify.
J.B.H Jewish Brain in HighTech (R.A.)	A professional curriculum for ultra-Orthodox men for 15 months per cycle divided into basic and programming studies, and a focused internship. The first phase includes 9 months of classroom training, and the second phase is integration into work on selected projects in high-tech companies in the market, accompanied by personal mentors and teamwork. At the end of the internship period, the employer company will absorb the interns into its ranks. The program requires no prior knowledge, and it takes into account the uniqueness of the needs of the students. 4 cycles in two years.
The academic Kinneret college in the Jordan valley (R.A.)	The essence of the plan is to create a fundamental change based on the human capital development channel, at the same time as increasing the supply of jobs in the northeastern periphery. The innovation and uniqueness of the model is in providing a holistic response to the challenges of the region, which is an integration of the worlds of training and employment. For the first time, to provide the “complete” solution through an operating model in two different channels that feed each other – human capital development and increasing the supply of jobs.
Career 21 Ltd.	The goal of the program is to increase the workforce from the ultra-Orthodox sector, specifically into quality positions in the high-tech industry. The program focuses on a target audience with a high potential for optimal integration, from an English-speaking ultra-Orthodox population living in defined concentrations in the cities of Beit Shemesh and Jerusalem. This audience is characterized by high mental and cultural maturity, and with the help of sorting, training, and supportive surroundings, we will ensure quality integration in the high-tech industry. The organization is a member of the Lev Institute for the purpose of conducting training for Full-Stack.
WeCode	OJT program for women in collaboration with Google Israel to gain practical experience towards working in high-tech in R&D positions
Legacy Seniors Solutions Ltd.	An innovative outline for the return of academic experts from the age of 45 to 85 to the work force. A platform that relies on an existing pool of over 700 experts, which bridges between specific project needs (mainly R&D) of industrial bodies and multidisciplinary teams. Maintains the talent of employees who are currently out of work and retirees continue to contribute and earn.
Takwin Management Ltd.	This program will provide participants with the tools, skills, and abilities to overcome barriers. The pilot phase will select 40 participants, who will undergo intensive theoretical and practical training in collaboration with Reichman University, during an academic year, at the end of which they will be able to integrate into the high-tech industry, lead internal organizational innovation, develop and advance. Takwin will work with a network of partners and its portfolio companies, as well as with the 50 startups in the Arab sector that are having difficulty recruiting suitable talents, to achieve this goal. We expect the salaries of the graduates of the program to average 30,000 NIS.
Elevation Education Ltd.	After many years in which the focus of women in the workforce has been on development/caregiving professions, we are proud to launch in collaboration with Google Israel, a program to promote women in high-tech and in other professions in high demand in high-tech. As part of the program, Google will professionally fund and support the training of women in the professions of analysts, sales, and customer success.
ScienceAbroad	The program will:-       Locate and differentiate scientists in the field of life sciences, who are abroad and are interested in integrating into industry in Israel-       Will find vacancies for them in the biotech, pharma and mid-tech industry-       Will place the scientists for a year of internship during which the scientists will undergo theoretical and practical training
Infinity Labs R&D	A program for returning immigrants and residents, begins abroad and ends in Israel after immigration. Part of the program includes individual training in accordance with the needs of the absorbing industry. The company has developed an online sorting and learning platform.
Gvahim Association	The purpose of the program is to locate and connect around 500 new immigrants to the Israeli technology industry’s labor market: specifically, software engineers from around the world.This goal is in line with the overarching goal of the Gevahim Association, which is to connect new immigrants to the labor market, thus ensuring their stay in Israel and their contribution to the country’s economy.
HackerU Ltd.	The proposed program would provide comprehensive training for students studying the field of cyber in the Diaspora so that those Jews who have the ‘right of return’ can help solve the shortage of skilled manpower in the Israeli high-tech industry. Moreover, the goal is to encourage the immigration of Jews to Eretz Israel. The program will emphasize the potential for placement of the candidates, and accordingly will operate a pre-selection program that is not based purely on knowledge, but on an affinity for Israel, learning and implementation potential. The program will be circulated by the Jewish Agency in the Diaspora and will appeal to Jewish populations in order to locate Jews with an academic degree.
Experis Software Ltd.	Full Stack training for young Jews from around the world, graduates of Taglit and / or new immigrants for absorption in Israeli high-tech.
Extra Tech Ltd.	VLSI training program. Dedicated training in the fields of hardware (verification), in collaboration with the chip giants in Israel (Qualcomm, Intel and more). In order to train and promote students and science graduates for quality jobs in the field of hardware.A program designed to promote and increase the number of employees in the field in light of the growing need and demand for such jobs in the industry.
Qualitest Ltd.	The V&V field refers to the world of biomedical companies and combines domains of software and hardware. There is a lot of innovation in this area and extremely complex testing processes are required. The purpose of the program is to train professional V&V software testers, as the profession does not currently exist in the training market in Israel. V&V software testers will enjoy a high salary compared to their counterparts in other fields because the supply of workers in the field is very small.
BIRAD – Research and Development Company Ltd.	A program aiming to specialize and integrate engineers / academics into the hardware industry.(Chips / Microelectronics / VLSI / Semiconductors)
DSP – IP. AI Ltd.	Professional training in the field of Deep learning-AI-Quantum.
Technion R&D Foundation Ltd.	VLSI training, digitization and 3D printing.
University of Haifa	The aim of the program is to train an experienced workforce that will address the growing need for innovative technological solutions for climate change/issues.The program offers an innovative training model in the areas of climate crisis, climate-tech, measurement and reporting tools in the field of ESG and climate accounting. The model is based on a unique collaboration between the University of Haifa, experts in the field of ESG and climate accounting, as well as leaders from the climate-tech industry. The program is intended for several target audiences, coming from a variety of fields who want to deepen their understanding of the climate crisis and gain significant training and experience to integrate and / or upgrade their role in the knowledge-intensive industry. The program will also seek to promote diversity and inclusion through the provision of scholarships to diverse target audiences: those aged 45 and over, women, representatives of Arab, ultra-Orthodox and Ethiopian society. In addition, to reach target audiences located in the geographical and social periphery, two dedicated activity cycles will be opened in the north of the country.
Afeka Applications Ltd.	Exposing high-tech developers and entrepreneurs from various fields to climate and environmental issues, as well as integrating new populations in high-tech for the purpose of dealing with this issue. At the same time, building a training track for developing solutions to real-world problems. The program includes: 1)    A marketing system with a focus on climate issues for high-tech workers and Israeli entrepreneurs wishing to enter the high-tech world.2)    Mapping out the needs in the fields of climate / environment – seeking out a technological solution.3)    Comprehensive training program in the field of environment for high-tech workers and entrepreneurs.4)    Establishment of a platform and community for connecting entrepreneurs and high-tech workers to map the needs and accompany them in building the solutions.
Jump In Impact Ltd.	Development of advanced training programs to train highly skilled and experienced people. Opening an academy in the workplace focused on specialized training of the various employees for specific positions and for research and development. Development of a continuation plan and expansion of an existing recruitment plan.
Retrain.AI Ltd.	The program seeks to connect the information needed for the target audiences with high potential. This audience being one that does not integrate on a large scale into the high-tech scene in Israel.For example, diaspora Jewry; groups in Israel with lower representation in industry than their share in the population; professionals with a high degree of adaptation to the skills needed for high-tech. Along with customizing the details of updated high-tech tracks, the program will also allow recruiters in the industry to enter skills and employment opportunities and receive direct matches from relevant candidates.