College of the North Atlantic - Qatar (CNA-Q) hosted Cisco Systems Inc’s vice president, Public Policy and Government Affairs, Pastora Valero at its campus. Valero gave a presentation to the College’s School of Information Technology and School of Engineering Technology faculty, and IT Operations staff. 
 Her talk focused on the advancement of digitalisation, and preparing for workforce needs in a rapidly-advancing technology environment, especially in Qatar. Valero pointed out that there is already a shortage of 3mn security technology workers to meet current demands across the globe.
Such a topic is extremely important to CNA-Q as Qatar’s national technical and vocational college, which aims to meet the needs of Qatar’s growing and diversifying economy. With advanced diplomas in four IT programmes and telecommunications engineering, CNA-Q graduates are poised to lead as the next generation of digital knowledge workers. As the college is a major player in the field of Information Technology, having Valero and senior Cisco representatives on campus increases the college’s industry outreach and enhances linkages between CNA-Q and Qatar’s IT sector.
“We are constantly bringing high-profile and high-quality speakers from industry to speak with our faculty and staff to share vital information that ensures our delivery of curriculum meets the expectations of employers. Staying in touch with industry allows us to stay current, build relationships, and remain relevant in the economy. Through industry partnerships, we are ensuring our students graduate technically-competent and employment-ready,” said Dr Salem al-Naemi, vice president, Finance and Administration.
“Partnering with CNA-Q, is helping us build strong relationships with local education institutions. This will help us give back to Qatar, where we have been established for over 10 years,” Shane Hearty, managing director, Cisco Qatar. The meeting culminated with a mutual understanding that CNA-Q and Cisco will to continue partnering on various activities to ensure that both parties prosper.