The business environment – invited to get involved in the development of future employees

Bucharest, October 11, 2017: Over 5,400 Romanian young people have participated in the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award program in Romania (DofE) over the past six years, the personal development program that gives young people aged 14 to 24 the chance to attain performance. Since 2011, young participants have developed skills to help them find a job in an easier way, have engaged in volunteering programs, have become more proactive and have learnt to settle conflicts as a result of their getting involved in the DofE.

This year, on November 2, 2017, The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Foundation and Eucom Business Language – Centre for Excellence in Language Services will hold the Royal Gala, the fundraising event for the DofE program.

At its third edition, the Royal Gala event will take place in the presence of Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret of Romania, the patron of the Award Program in Romania. The Gala will take place in Bucharest at Stejarii Country Club.

During this event, the participants will have the opportunity to discover how the DofE program can draw development directions for young people and, as a consequence, influence the society and business environment of our country.

‘Regardless of his or her age, the need for an individual’s development is constant and should be driven by the needs of the society in which he/she operates. Over the 15 years of activity, we have chosen to see in people beyond what they could offer at that specific time, we have chosen to focus on what they could become if they benefitted from a proper training. Whether we refer to a small or a multinational company, the quality of the services provided lies in the training of the employees. As a manager but also as a citizen aspiring to a sustainable society, I want to see determined young people who have had the opportunity to try different roles within the community, who are open to everything new and challenging, aware that their involvement will always make the difference. That is why we have chosen to support The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award global development program and invite other business actors to get involved,’ said Delia Dragomir, Managing Partner at Eucom.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award came out of the need of young adults to develop personally and professionally in an organized and balanced setting, but also to provide an alternative to companies also looking at volunteer activities of future employees. Today, the program provides young people with the knowledge and skills valued by global employers, as companies want to get more than academic qualifications when they negotiate the opportunity to employ a young person.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award is globally recognized as a first class non-academic achievement for admission to universities or for employment, with program beneficiaries developing skills such as: self-confidence, emotional intelligence, determination and involvement, leadership, cognitive creativity and flexibility, planning and solving complex problems, negotiation, interpersonal communication, cultural competence, civic competence.

To date, the implementation of the DofE program in Romania has been based on the support of over 900 volunteers (teachers, psychologists, young adults) from 300 institutions providing training or volunteering activities (high schools, universities, NGOs ).

The mission of The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award is to create a sustainable society, impacting on the Romanian business environment as well. The program can be supported by a standard donation of 3,000 euros, which can support the organization of 10 training sessions in 10 high schools across the country, thus resulting an average of 150 new Award Leaders, leaders who can mentor, on average, 5 young people, with a total of 650 young people enrolled in the program.

The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award program has addressed  young people from Romania starting 2011. It is currently spread across the country, involving about 5,400 young people in both urban and rural areas. The vision of DofE is to shape young people and, implicitly, the business environment in Romania, facilitating the implementation of an internationally recognized personal development program. 

EUCOM is the Center for Excellence in Language Services with 15 years of experience in the language services segment. Annually, Eucom involves more than 200 language trainers and 10,000 employees from over 90 Romanian companies in nationally delivered programs. In 2017, Eucom decided to expand the employee development mission by supporting, alongside The Duke of Edinburgh Foundation, excellence in young people’s education.