Digital Team Academy: innovative curriculum for the HES Bachelor's degree in Business Informatics

The new Digital Team Academy training program at the HES-SO Valais-Wallis in Sierre focuses on theacquisition ofsoft-skills and solid technical and personal skills, in order to best meet current and future technological challenges. It leads to an HES Bachelor's degree in Business Informatics.

The digital transformation of our society is accelerating day by day. These societal and technological changes mean that IT professionals need to be able to develop new skills throughout their working lives. That's why the HES-SO Valais-Wallis in Sierre is offering from September 2021 a curriculum that puts the student at the center of learning. Professors are transformed into coaches, and exams into 360-degree assessments.

A unique and innovative training program for tomorrow's IT specialists

The Digital Team Academy curriculum is designed to develop the autonomy, creativity (design thinking), interaction and communication skills of future IT professionals. These qualities are reinforced, and students develop a strong capacity for autonomy and self-leadership.

" A plus for their careers, which will ultimately benefit companies," says Nicolas Debons, head of the business computing program at HES-SO Valais-Wallis.

Thanks to a participative teaching approach, this new curriculum not only provides all the knowledge and skills required for the job, but also enhances the individual's capacity for entrepreneurship and self-training throughout his or her career(long-life-learning).

" The Digital Team Academy puts the emphasis on learning through experimentation, because throughout their training, future professionals carry out concrete projects in collaboration with a complete ecosystem made up of professors/coaches, companies and local partners, as well as research institutes," explains Jean-Pierre Rey, Digital Team Academy project manager at HES-SO Valais-Wallis.

A combination of technological, interpersonal and managerial skills, a plus in the IT sector

Generally speaking, the topics covered deal with the acquisition, processing and enhancement of data, while respecting the principles of security and protection that are essential today. In addition, and depending on the project, concepts such as blockchain, machine learning, artificial intelligence and green IT are explored in greater depth.

Competency assessment is an ongoing process, based on a 360-degree approach that takes into account multiple feedbacks, including those from teachers/coaches, fellow students, as well as experts and experienced practitioners in the field.

The new professionals will be able to put their technical, economic and managerial skills to work for companies and meet the needs of digital transformation.

From September 2021, training will take place in Sierre, Valais, on the premises of the Maison de l'Entrepreneuriat, part of the Swiss Digital Center.