Better IT career opportunities, win cash prizes while learning enterprise computing

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Forrester research found that careers in enterprise computing offer better salaries and more rewarding than other careers in information technology. Large enterprises are looking to hire students who can bring their own innovative ideas and passion while leveraging the company’s existing technological investments.

"71% of Fortune 500 companies use IBM Z mainframes, 90% of credit card transactions globally are processed through mainframes, and 92 of the top 100 banks use mainframe technology," according to Pat Toole, System Z General Manager at IBM.

Master the Mainframe is a virtual coding competition designed for students ages 13 years old and above at any experience level to learn the foundations of mainframe programming. Powered by IBM, it is one of the world's largest student competitions where participants can practice their new set of coding skills, implement it in a real-world challenge, connect with employers, earn recognized digital badges, scholarships, t-shirts, travel, and mentorship from mainframe professionals at industry events.
 
The program let students win amazing prizes, while developing critical skills which are in hot demand by the world’s largest and most respected companies. There is no experience required and it can help them land a career in Fortune 500 companies, and just requires a desire to expand skillset! This is the easiest way to provide students hands-on experience with this industry critical technology and earn open badges along the way which they can add to their resume and differentiate themselves among the rest.

Through three interactive levels, students will have access to a mainframe and get skilled up on the foundations of mainframe, including JCL, Ansible, Python, Unix, COBOL, and REXX, all through Visual Studio Code. Round it all out with a grand challenge where students can craft their own fully-equipped mainframe creation.

"This is a fantastic opportunity for technology students to try something different, and explore a potential career path," Julie Gauthier, Director of Technology Business Development at AngelHack said.

IBM shall feed two children in the Share the Meal program of the United Nations World Food Programme for every student finishing level one.

Get started today at bit.ly/MastertheMainframeAPAC and open doors to new opportunities with Fortune 500 companies. Contest deadline is on Sunday, January 17, 2021. Non-students are also eligible to earn digital badges.

Unifinity: The most sophisticated remote learning platform powered by Blockchain Technology

We are currently experiencing an unprecedented shift toward the virtualization of education. Catalyzed by the ongoing pandemic, educational institutions, teachers, students, and parents are forced to adapt to a new norm. Unfortunately, this change poses a big challenge for everyone. Many schools simply do not have the existing systems, infrastructure, expertise, time, and budget to transition towards online learning. The same can be said with parents and students who are already struggling financially.

Unifinity seeks to ease this transition by offering a fully functional and integrated “Virtual Academy” for schools, universities, training centers, and any other learning institutions. It is the first education management system powered by blockchain and smart contracts, making it one of the most advanced educational apps out in the market today. The Unifinity system is entirely web-based without the need to buy expensive software or run costly application servers, enabling schools to deploy their customized Virtual Academy within minutes.

With its minimalistic cost-saving approach, Parents and students will be happy to know that no additional equipment is required to use Unifinity’s Virtual Academy. It is 100% mobile device friendly, allowing them to use their existing smartphone to participate in the virtual classes. Virtual classrooms were carefully designed to give the students a simple yet useful user interface, minimizing the time required to learn the platform. To help defray the cost of online learning of students and provide an alternative source of funding Unifinity integrated a blockchain-enhanced performance rewards mechanism.

Ms. Veronica Andrino, the founder, and CEO at Unifinity calls this mechanism EdTech 2.0— Tokenization and Gamification of the Education System©. It is one of the many features of the platform that utilizes blockchain technology and smart contracts making them secure, irreversible, and immutable. This provides teachers a more accurate and efficient way to monitor students’ performance and subsequently reward them, keeping them interested and engaged. The smart contract automates the recording of scores and activities and distributes rewards based on the criteria set by the teacher. 

Additionally, Unifinity offers blockchain-based identity verification and certificate issuance. It also offers a direct payment gateway that supports fiat and virtual currency conversions. With all these powerful features, combined with ease of use and superb after-sales support, it is strongly positioned to take the lion’s share of the remote learning market. Without a doubt, it is one of the most sophisticated online learning systems that has graced our pages for a very long time. 

OWTO Signs Exclusive Partnership With Advance To Give Drivers Their Earnings On-Demand

OWTO drivers no longer have to wait to receive their earnings, thanks to a partnership between OWTO and Advance.

The deal comes after a successful four-month pilot with Advance, who issued on-demand earnings services to OWTO’s shuttle drivers while servicing a BPO company.

OWTO and Advance Signing Ceremony: Joel Gayod, the CEO of Owto App at the left side and and the one in the right is Addi Guevara,Co-Founder of Advance

OWTO drivers typically have to wait up to 45 days for their compensation to be released by the partner BPO, but many of them need to get paid on the day of service. This is what makes the partnership with Advance so ideal.

Each time a driver completes a trip for OWTO’s partners, their earnings will be registered in OWTO’s app and made available to withdraw anytime. This flexible payment scheme aims to help cover the drivers’ needs between paychecks, which typically come every 30th of the month.

“OWTO’s partnership with Advance is a formidable alliance that positions both companies to dominate their respective markets. We are very excited to work with Advance in creating opportunities, surpassing key targets & achieving common goals in service of a wider consumer base,” said OWTO CEO Joel Gayod. “With OWTO’s proven market resilience and Advance’s core capabilities, there is no way but up.”

On-demand earnings services will be extended to even more drivers under OWTO’s shuttle service operations as they expand their footprint to other companies. This is a huge win for the OWTO drivers who now have the flexibility to access their earnings as needed.

“These drivers are part of our front liners in today’s reality,” said Addi Guevara, Advance Co-founder. “They make it possible for others to continue making a living during these uncertain times. Through Advance’s salary on-demand service, we hope to make life a little easier for them as well.”

About OWTO

OWTO is owned and operated by iPARA Technologies and Solutions, Inc., a Philippine-based company specializing in transport innovations. It promises a fairer and safer experience for both drivers and riders.

About Advance

Advance believes that life shouldn’t revolve around payday. As the first and only on-demand wage access provider in the Philippines, they provide flexible financial services to Filipino workers through their employers and partners.

Advance aims to simplify finance to elevate lives, empowering Filipino workers to take control of their finances and establishing partner companies as advocates of worker wellbeing.