Mercedes-Benz Begins All Women Mechatronics Programme

Mercedes-Benz extends its contribution to the government’s ‘Skill India’ initiative. They have signed an MoU with Maharshi Karve Stree Shikshan Samstha, for conducting its highly coveted flagship CSR endeavor- Advanced Diploma in Automotive Mechatronics (ADAM) program.

This is a first for any premium car maker as Mercedes-Benz have associated with an all-women’s college to commence the one-year Advanced Diploma in Automotive Mechatronics course. Present on the occasion of signing the MoU were, Mr. Santosh Iyer, Vice-President, Customer Services & Corporate Affairs, Mercedes-Benz India,Smt. Smita Ghaisas, President, MKSSS, and Dr. P.V.S. Shastry, Secretary of MKSSS,Pune. This will be Mercedes-Benz’s second MoU signing in Pune and seventh in the country for the popular Mechatronic program. This course is currently available in Pune, Aurangabad, Delhi, Noida and Thiruvananthapuram across public and private colleges.

Santosh Iyer, Vice-President-Customer Service & Corporate Affairs, Mercedes-Benz India said, “At Mercedes-Benz we pride ourselves in the diversity of our employees and capitalise on the different experiences, skills and perspectives they have. Back in 2005, Mercedes-Benz wasone of the first companies to make diversity management a key part of the corporate strategy.In continuation of that strategy, we are extremely proud of our collaboration with an all-women’s college in India. With this association, Mercedes-Benzis extending its commitment to promote diversity and open the doors of automotive mechatronics for women aspirants. Recently we launched “She’s Mercedes” a global initiative by Mercedes-Benz to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of women in all walks of life. As the leaders in the luxury automobile industry, we want to break the stereotype associated with women in this sector and want more women to join the workforce. On the occasion of 72nd Independence Day in India, with this important initiative, we want to encourage, empower and equip aspiring women candidates to independently choose a career in automobile industry. Initiatives like these will provide appropriate platform to aspiring women to gear up for a bright career in the automotive industry. The percentage of women in this industry is low right now, but we believe it has immense potential to have more inclusion from women work force in the foreseeable future. Mercedes-Benz Mechatronic course is a significantly advanced and industry oriented course aligned with the latest technological advancement in the domain of automotive engineering. With an all-women Mechatronics course, we are now confident that more women candidates would actively seek to hone their skillsets and decide to join the automotive industry. At Mercedes-Benz, we are witnessing an increase in the number of women customers as well in our portfolio. In fact 10-12% of our annual sales comes from women and it is an increasing trend.”

Advanced Diploma in Automotive Mechatronics (ADAM) program is the Corporate Social Responsibility initiative by Mercedes-Benz India which was propagated among students with the help of educational institutions. The Mechatronics training school at Mercedes-Benz India was started in the year 2002 with the aim of providing trained service personnel and engineers. To address this requirement, the parent company Daimler AG, Germany along with Mercedes-Benz India and the Mercedes-Benz India dealership network joined hands to start the program and train students to address the requirements of Mercedes-Benz technology and innovation. Only 20 students qualify to take the course every year. Since its inception, over 540 students have successfully completed the program and have been placed within various organizations in India. The Mercedes-Benz network is the largest among all luxury automotive manufacturers in India, spread over 45 cities and 93 outlets. The Mechatronics program also provides support to Mercedes-Benz India’s state-of-the-art operations at Chakan, Pune.