Hyundai Motor India recently concluded its 10th Hyundai Technician National Skill Olympics. The inter-dealership competition identifies skill and honours the best talent amongst dealer technicians from across the country. This year over 1,300 service workshops and more than 5,500 technicians participated. Out of total participants, 18 zonal champions qualified for the finale of the 10th National Skill Olympics held at Chennai.

The Chennai-based carmaker says it conducts a series of training programmes to systematically upgrade and refresh the skills of technicians and familiarise them with the latest technological developments. The participants were tested for their ability to spot technical-simulated problems in cars and components to resolve them and meet international standards. The contest also consisted of multiple rounds of practical and written tests. 

The skill Olympics also evaluated the technician’s adaptability to the concept of digital service – Workshop Automation. This year’s edition of the National Technician Skill Olympics saw Hyundai introduce its first ever digital edition – it was paperless from written assessment to practical evaluation through various Hyundai mobile apps.

Harnessing people potential
Commenting on the skills contest, Y K Koo, MD and CEO, Hyundai Motor India, said, “Hyundai’s technicians form an integral part in making the brand Hyundai. Hyundai’s constant endeavour is to upgrade and enhance the skill sets of our technicians and provide them the right dexterity that can harness their capabilities. Our Technician National Skill Olympics is a platform that aims to capture their true potential.”

From the 18 finalists, six made it to the winning position with their skills. Pradip Kumar Saha from Mukesh Hyundai (Kolkata), who won the competition, received a cash prize of Rs 100,000. He was followed by M Shadhesh Kumar from Kun Hyundai (Chennai) who got Rs 50,000, while third-placed and Tarak Das from Mukesh Hyundai (Kolkata) won Rs 30,000.

The three runner-ups were Ram Padarth from Samara Hyundai (New Delhi), Munnawar Baig, Kun United Hyundai (Hyderabad) and Sanchith Kumar G S from Trident Hyundai (Bangalore); they won Rs10,000 each. 

Hyundai Motor India says it will further refine the skills of these top six winners over a year; the top two technicians will represent the company at Hyundai Motor Corp’s World Skill Olympics to be held in 2019 in South Korea.

Enhancing people skills
At present, Hyundai says it is developing and nurturing the skills of around 7,619 technicians, 3,265 service advisors and 13,912 sales consultants across India on a continuous basis.

Recently, Hyundai Motor India  expanded its CSR initiative to collaborate with the Automotive Skills Development Council (ASDC), the joint industry and government initiatives aimed at developing skilled manpower for the Indian automotive industry.  

ASDC, which is a joint initiative of industry bodies SIAM, ACMA, FADA and the government of India, has a mandate of creating 25 million manpower by 2020, covering the skills requirement across the entire automotive value chain and related domains. These include manufacturing, sales and service of vehicles, components and aggregates, and also driving per se.

As per the MoU, Hyundai Motor India will be introducing a 50-day training course at six of its new training centres created at its dealerships to train students who are keen to enter the automotive industry and work in the aftersales and service divisions.