31 social enterprises to benefit from the 10-week long training programme

 

Alibaba Group (“Alibaba”) today announced the launch of its first-ever e-commerce bootcamp (“Bootcamp”) in Singapore in collaboration with the Singapore Centre for Social Enterprise (“raiSE”) and Nanyang Polytechnic's Singapore Institute of Retail Studies (“NYP-SIRS”).

 

The Bootcamp aims to provide local social enterprises with the necessary digital commerce knowledge and skills to serve the interests of the communities they champion. The training will be conducted by Alibaba's Taobao Education training arm and is sponsored in full by Alibaba Group.

 

“Alibaba’s mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere, and we believe the vast opportunities in digital commerce should be accessible to everyone. We are proud to partner with raiSE and NYP-SIRS to support the development of local digital talent in Singapore and help local social enterprises to leverage online platforms in service of their communities,” said Huang Lei, General Manager, Taobao Education.

 

Starting today, representatives from 31 social enterprises from raiSE's network will attend the 10-week Bootcamp led by master trainers from Taobao Education.

 

“In our role as an ecosystem developer, we are always pursuing new opportunities to collaborate with partners and strengthen our support for Social Enterprises. We’re excited to be working with Alibaba and education specialist NYP-SIRS to provide timely and targeted training for our Social Enterprise members, who will benefit from new e-commerce skillsets to keep them competitive in this digital era,” said Subashini Balakrishnan, Head of Ecosystem Development, raiSE. “It has never been more important for our Social Enterprises to pivot and build a strong online presence, whether by diversifying their product offerings or reaching a wider online audience. As they deepen their business capabilities, their social impact will also be amplified in the long run.”

 

The holistic curriculum covers theoretical and practical aspects of consumer e-commerce, including emerging trends, brand development, customer journey, online store set-up, content marketing, logistics management, and financial operations. At the end of the Bootcamp, participants will be able to start their online operations to expand fundraising efforts and possibly even attract their beneficiaries to help and learn about e-commerce.

 

 “As a partner of Alibaba’s Taobao Education unit in Singapore, we have been supporting and localising their various training programmes for Small and Medium Enterprises, retailers, and C-suite executives over the past five years. The e-commerce space is constantly evolving with new technologies and trends that would help social enterprises further their cause. We are thrilled to be able to partner with Alibaba again to build capabilities and for a good cause,” said Megan Ong, Director, Singapore Institute of Retail Studies, Nanyang Polytechnic.

 

As part of the commitment to participants’ success, Taobao Education will extend the accessibility to the master trainers for all participants for at least three months after the Bootcamp to help better address any additional questions or doubts.

 

The e-commerce Bootcamp is a corporate social responsibility initiative by Alibaba Group and its Taobao Education unit to promote the power of inclusivity and positive change that e-commerce can bring to businesses and individuals, especially those in vulnerable communities. More than 6,000 individuals in Singapore have benefited from Taobao Education programmes to date.