It’s a Match! Abdullahi Selected for Ada Fellowship

Abdullahi (Nigerian, 29) - ReDI alumnus and volunteer, is now doing the ada Fellowship (training) (Handelsblatt Group) in digital education supported by Allianz. How did this connection materialize? Read on for more.

ReDI SCHOOL: Wolfgang Raab, why is Allianz supporting ada fellowship?

Wolfgang Raab, Allianz: With the ada Fellowship programme, we support our transformation towards an agile company. Programme modules such as self-awareness, agility, personal leadership, and diversity support, the content of our internal leadership program and thus the promotion of new leadership culture in Allianz. Upskilling our employees towards digital skills support our internal learning goals at Allianz.

ReDI SCHOOL: Thank you for supporting one of our alumni! Why did you choose Abdullahi for the fellowship?

Wolfgang: We had already carried out a number of projects with ReDI School in the area of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). We, therefore, asked Sophie Jonke (ReDI Munich Local Head), who she could recommend to us as a fellow for the ada fellowship program. After a short conversation with Abdullahi, we quickly realized that he would be the right person. He won us over with his curiosity and consistency he showed towards his personal development in Germany.

Wolfgang Raab, Talent Manager at Allianz im Munich

ReDI SCHOOL: How did Allianz get connected to Abdullahi?

Wolfgang: It was pretty straightforward: we spoke to Khaled (Student Community Manager) and made an appointment for the three of us. We invited them to our office (before the pandemic) and had a fascinating conversation in which we were able to explain the course content of our fellowship program.

ReDI SCHOOL: Abdullahi, great to hear about your success. Can you tell us more about your start at ReDI School?

Abdullahi: I intended to enhance my knowledge and skills in Big data Engineering and Analysis, as there are lots of big data in my field of specialization, which is transportation and mobility. Thereafter, my friends informed me about ReDI School, and I decided to apply for one of their courses on Data Science using Python programming language, which I found matching my interests.

ReDI SCHOOL: What brought you to the fellowship at ada?

Abdullahi: ReDI School presented me as a candidate to join over 40 employees of Allianz to partake in the ada fellowship. Allianz is a corporate partner of ada fellowship and one of ReDI School partners. Like Allianz, several corporate partners of ada fellowship presented their employees to participate in the fellowship program, and Allianz requested a candidate from ReDI School. That was how I became a fellow of ada.

I also believe one of the reasons ReDI School selected me as a suitable candidate for the fellowship could be my curiosity to acquire more knowledge and skills on future technologies and my willingness to transfer these skills to tech enthusiasts for societal development. Just as I did as a student and also as a teacher at ReDI School Munich.

ReDI SCHOOL: What is the ada fellowship about?

Abdullahi: Ada fellowship is a digital education platform in Germany, where employees and experts from interdisciplinary fields of specialization in business, science, media, politics, and administration learn more about the future technologies, their applications, and later on transfer these skills for digital change in their own organizations. It is a one-year part-time and interdisciplinary program, which takes averagely between 4–6 learning hours monthly.

We started the fellowship in June 2020, and there are 12 modules that serve as learning guides throughout the program duration, coupled with events, coaching sessions, and projects.

ReDI SCHOOL: How was the start of your fellowship?

Abdullahi: I would describe the start of the fellowship as insightful, innovative, playful, and a medium for networking with about 450 co-fellows across over 20 organizations in Germany. The fellowship was opened with a virtual Kick-off event where professionals, experts, and great personalities shared their experiences and enlightened us. A famous Nigerian writer, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, was among the great personalities who gave a welcoming speech during the kick-off.

It was a playful and innovative kick-off event, where all fellows used the Lego received in ada starter kits to build an Illustration of how we intend to overcome our greatest hurdle for change. There were also several interactive sessions, which include the Ada Bar for networking with other fellows during evening time.

ReDI SCHOOL: Do you think the fellowship is the right choice for you, and how is it in line with your career?

Abdullahi: Absolutely yes. Like I mentioned earlier, I have always wanted to acquire more knowledge about the future of technology and digitalization, as well as develop a smart product to enhance digitalization and solve pressing issues within the society. Ada has provided me with the knowledge and skill to achieve these set goals through the monthly modules covering interesting topics, such as ethics, big data, artificial intelligence, etc. These learnings are all in line with my career.

Lego in the Ada starter Kit: A playful way to illustrate innovative ideas

ReDI SCHOOL: What are the most insightful experiences you have gained in the programme?

Abdullahi: I have experienced so far several skill acquisition through 3 ada learning dimensions described as BE, KNOW and DO. The BE is for developing curiosity or critical mindset towards the learning goals of each ada learning module, the KNOW is understanding the content and real-life application of the modules, and the DO dimension is the implementation and transfer of these acquired digital skills from the modules to our own organizations.

Another insightful experience is community building, which involves several diverse teams developing implementable projects to solve identified challenges in individual organizations. I took part in an innovation project, where we worked in groups to develop solutions to solve problems within our organizations, Allianz in my own case. After that, we presented the project prototypes to ada fellowship after several coaching sessions to provide guidance.

ReDI SCHOOL: What do you recall as a special moments in the fellowship?

Abdullahi: There are lots of special moments during the fellowship, but the most exciting one was the Ada Lovelace Festival held for 3 days. The Festival was named after the famous British Mathematician and Late Ada Lovelace’s first programmer. The Festival encompassed interactive sessions like cooking class, yoga session, photo sessions, and many others, which made the session very playful with creativity and critical thinking.

Abdullahi at ReDI DemoDay — Co-Creation to connect with his new classmates

ReDI SCHOOL: How did ReDI support you?

Abdullahi: The support I got from ReDI School had always been immense. They saw my curiosity to learn, acquire skills and transfer these skills to impact society. My journey with ReDI had been insightful, and it all began as a student during Spring Semester 2019. Thereafter, my curiosity fetched me the privilege to participate in Hackathons international conference in Germany and a tech training in London, United Kingdom, all organized by corporate partners of ReDI School. These enormous supports from ReDI motivated me to give back to the community by volunteering as a teacher in the Digital Career Programme of ReDI School Munich in Autumn Semester 2019. I also volunteered for IT support during the Miagehnonline initiative organized by the City of Munich, ReDI School, and UnternehmerTUM in April 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic began. The greatest of these supports was presenting me as a candidate for the ada fellowship, which had been a platform to develop and prepare me for the rapid digital change.

ReDI SCHOOL: What are your career goals for the following years?

Abdullahi: My career goals for subsequent years are to acquire more skills and expertise in Artificial Intelligence and big data engineering, and to develop smart solutions to solve problems associated with transportation, logistics, and mobility.

ReDI SCHOOL: Dream big: What do you want to achieve in your career life?

Abdullahi: I look forward to developing a sustainable, innovative, user- and environmentally-friendly solution or product that stays in the lead and ahead of all tech giants like Google, Apple, Microsoft, etc.

Thank you Abdullahi and Wolfgang! Best of luck in the future.

Written By Chioma Glory Ogu

Chioma is a ReDI School alumni