Establishment of the National Community for Industry-Education Integration in Digital Information Technology Innovation and Successful Holding of Its 2024 Conference

The 2024 National Conference on Industry-Education Integration in Digital Information Technology Innovation, themed Digital Intelligence Empowers the Future, Win-Win Cooperation Drives Development, was successfully held on December 20, 2024. The conference was sponsored by Southeast University and Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., as well as organized by Nanjing Vocational College of Information Technology (NJCIT) and Jiangsu Maritime Institute. Leveraging establishment of the National Community for Industry-Education Integration in Digital Information Technology Innovation, the conference welcomed over 200 guests from various sectors, including the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Education, Industry and Information Technology Department of Jiangsu, Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Jiangsu Province, as well as universities, vocational colleges, and enterprises from across China. The conference aimed to gather collective insights, promote industry-education and science-education integration, and explore reasonable paths, effective methods, and innovative models for establishing the community. These efforts sought to achieve an organic integration of the industry chain, innovation chain, education chain, and talent chain, laying a solid foundation for the development of China's digital economy.

In his welcome speech, Sun Litao, Vice President of Southeast University, emphasized that as China prioritizes the integration and innovative development of digital technology, all sectors of society must proactively embrace the trends of digitization, networking, and intelligent development. He urged stakeholders to focus on industrial demand, build a framework for transforming industrial resources into educational resources, and promote the integrated development of educational and technological talent. These initiatives are essential to establish a robust foundation for the industrial innovation system, develop new quality productive forces in scientific, technological, and industrial innovation, and enhance the competitiveness of industrial development.

Zhao Guohui, General Manager of Huawei's Jiangsu branch, highlighted in his welcome speech that as China accelerates the development of its digital economy, it also faces several challenges. These include the fragmented R&D capabilities of leading digital enterprises, the ongoing need for universities and research institutes to deepen the integration of basic research on digital technology and industry applications, and a shortage of high-end talent in the field of digital technology. He emphasized that it is our shared mission and responsibility to enhance industry-education integration, cultivate high-quality and high-end talent, jointly advance key core technologies in the digital sector, and seize leadership in cutting-edge digital technology.

Tian Min, President of NJCIT, stated in his speech that the National Education Conference emphasized the need to establish a vocational education system that integrates vocational and general education with industry-education collaboration. This initiative aims to vigorously cultivate master craftsmen, skilled craftsmen, and highly skilled talent. With the community's establishment, vocational colleges should seize the strategic opportunity presented by digital transformation. They must focus on nurturing digital talent, enhance the mechanisms that align talent training with the needs of economic and social development, dynamically adjust the requirements of professional groups, and strengthen efforts in adaptation, support, and assurance.

Yu Lei, Level II Bureau Rank Official of Industry and Information Technology Department of Jiangsu, emphasized in his speech that talent is a core element of industrial transformation and that industry-education integration is a vital approach to cultivating high-quality digital information technology professionals. While the industry is experiencing rapid development, it has become evident that the shortage of digital information technology talent is a significant bottleneck hindering the sector's high-quality growth. There is a considerable gap in talent, accompanied by an unreasonable structure, particularly a lack of high-end innovative and skilled professionals. The establishment of the industry-education integration community offers an effective solution to this challenge.

Cao Yumei, Deputy Director-General of Jiangsu Provincial Department of Education, highlighted in her speech that this conference serves as a significant opportunity to build consensus and promote industry-education integration. She expressed her hope that the establishment of the community would further consolidate digital information technology resources in both industry and education, support the development of Jiangsu's digital information industry, and foster a group of skilled talents in digital information technology focused on independent innovation. She also emphasized the need to expand the application scenarios of digital technology + industry integration and make contributions to building a robust foundation for independent innovation in technology, thus empowering the information technology sector's development.

The establishment ceremony of the National Community for Industry-Education Integration in Digital Information Technology Innovation took place during the conference. On stage, key figures jointly initiated the establishment of the community. They are Cao Yumei, Gu Chao (Deputy Director-General of Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Jiangsu Province), Yu Lei, Sun Litao, Zhao Guohui, Wang Danzhong (Secretary of the CPC Committee of NJCIT), Huang Zhixiang (Vice President of Anhui University), Wang Mingfeng (Secretary of the CPC Committee of the Graduate School of Chinese Aeronautical Establishment), Yan Wei (Deputy General Manager of Huawei's Zhejiang branch), Zhang Qingxu (Vice President of Fuyang Normal University), Bao Yongqiang (Vice President of Nanjing Institute of Technology), and Guo Zhaobing (Vice President of Suqian University). This historic moment underscored NJCIT's pivotal role in advancing industry-education integration in national digital information technology innovation.

An awarding ceremony was also held during the conference, where Gu Chao, Sun Litao, Zhao Guohui, and Wang Danzhong presented awards to representatives of the community's deputy council members. Nineteen organizations were honored, including Anhui University, the Graduate School of Chinese Aeronautical Establishment, Fuyang Normal University, Nanjing Institute of Technology, Suqian University, Sanda University, Dezhou Vocational and Technical College, Changzhou College of Information Technology, Digital China Group Co., Ltd., and Beijing Vastdata Technology Co., Ltd. These awards were intended to further strengthen the organizational structure of the community and solidify the foundation for industry-education integration and cooperation.

After the awarding ceremony, the conference featured a sharing session themed on talent training practices in industry-education integration. NJCIT engaged in in-depth discussions with institutions such as the Graduate School of Chinese Aeronautical Establishment and Suqian University. We analyzed digital talent demand, explored methods to address challenges in industry-education integration, and shared innovative practical experience. These efforts broadened NJCIT's perspective on promoting industry-education integration.

The National Community for Industry-Education Integration in Digital Information Technology Innovation is led by Huawei, Southeast University, and NJCIT, with participation from 112 undergraduate colleges, vocational schools, scientific research institutions, and upstream and downstream enterprises. On that morning, the Expert Committee Meeting on National Community for Industry-Education Integration in Digital Information Technology Innovation was convened, where NJCIT played an active role. NJCIT's expert team engaged in discussions with leaders from various sectors, contributing valuable insights to inform scientific decision-making and ensure the steady progress of the community.

As we look to the future, NJCIT will leverage this conference as a new starting point, relying on the community to deepen strategic cooperation with Huawei, Southeast University, and other stakeholders. We are committed to intensively developing initiatives in industry-education integration and collaborative education as well as building a scientific and systematic talent training system. We aim to make new achievements in joint research on industrial technology, helping to address key challenges in digital technology. In our efforts to develop teaching staff, NJCIT will strive to create a high-quality team of double-qualified teachers, ensuring both academic excellence and practical expertise. We will prioritize the construction of practice bases and establish a robust platform that connects teachers and students with the forefront of industrial practices. Moreover, we will promote the transfer, transformation, and application of our research achievements, empowering industrial development through innovation. NJCIT is dedicated to advancing digital and intelligent empowerment while writing a remarkable chapter on industry-education integration. We aim to contribute to the growth of China's digital economy and educational development, fulfilling our mission in vocational education for the new era through practical actions.

Photo/Text by Meng Sisi, Department of Industry-Education Integrated Development

Reviewed by Li Hongchang, Department of Industry-Education Integrated Development