Milan Bjelica, CEO of NIT Institute: 2023 was a year of important lessons and strategic positioning in the automotive industry
There were many changes during this year in NIT Academy as well as in the industry that we operate in, but as we are proud to say, we’ve all learned and grown from this year's experience. Our Director Milan Bjelica shared his point of view regarding everything that 2023 has brought to the table. This interesting and inspiring journey gave us a more comprehensive understanding of our future goals, and it broadened our horizons to look closely at the needs of our key clients - to be more flexible and to recognise opportunities for improvement.
Therefore, we asked Milan what words he would use to describe 2023?
The previous year was very interesting both for the industry and for NIT. We have grown our client base and also our training and consultancy offerings. So, for us, this was the year of growth in the region and further profiling on the international scene, especially in the USA. However, it was a sobering year for the tech industry as a whole - a year of important lessons. The infamous "fake it until we make it" principle was again proven not to stand for safety-critical industries, such as automotive and robotaxis. We are witnessing a big impact recent failures of several robo-taxi companies have on the adoption of self-driving tech. Also, some other areas suffered revelations, such as Metaverse and Cloud Services, which experienced contraction - you simply cannot put too little regard to end users, their habits, the usefulness of the delivered solutions and the overall user experience. As if humanity would never learn that the "if we build it they will come" motto is also problematic nowadays. So, in short - 2023 taught us that tech should respect people (users) profoundly.
What events in terms of business were the most important in the past year?
For NIT, we had a prominent joint promotion with the University of California San Diego Department for Extended Studies in our move to proliferate formal education and hands-on training in automotive safety. Our offering under the banner "Learn how to design a safe self-driving car" is not at all hollow - we have a substantial, well-designed curriculum in automotive engineering, system safety and functional safety engineering with software at its core. So, there are no more excuses - there is a place where you can get all the relevant upskilling - and do the designs right (and safe!) this time. We had great new endorsements and enrollments by TUV Rheinland, Cariad, Mercedes Benz, VW Group, Rivian and others, proving that our approach is indeed viable. One of my favourite backings was by Prof. Philip Koopman from Carnegie Mellon, one of the key voices in self-driving safety - it really meant a lot.
Looking through numbers, NIT Academy held 67 courses this year with more than 800 participants, who spent more than 804.000 hours on hands-on work during their training. We are also proud to say that our associates spent 50.400 hours on projects for the industry. It tells a lot about their commitment and expertise in their field.
In your opinion, which trends from the industry you work in will continue in the coming year, and which ones do you predict will not last long?
In 2024, we expect more realistic and achievable goals in the tech industry, especially around automotive designs and new electric and self-driving vehicles. I think hype is behind us, and now everyone can focus on processes, frameworks, correct designs, verification and validation of their automotive product. NIT offers support at any point of the way, starting from gap analysis, preparation for audits (e.g. for ISO20001 TISAX, ASPICE, ISO 26262), upskills in quality, safety and software engineering (e.g. programming in the newest C++ dialects, Adaptive AUTOSAR, in-vehicle communication, etc), but also some pearls in architectural aspects (functional safety concepts design, programming for safety, security analyses and more). We also offer consultancy services in all these areas.
What NIT projects from this year would you single out?
Among the most significant achievements, it is the third round of full FSFA upskill together with UCSDX, and the growth of the program in the USA. Additionally, we have conducted three prominent automotive upskill programs for complete engineering teams in major automotive Tier 2 and Tier 1 companies. We continue to be a preferred upskilling partner for many clients that start working with us, which proves the quality and partnership potential of NIT. We also provide support for clients wanting to raise capital and shape up their ideas in the form of innovative projects and the formation of startup companies in all areas we work in - including project management and tracking, as well as protecting their IP.
What are NIT Academy’s plans for 2024.?
Based on our experience from 2023 to 2024, NIT plans to become a key partner for our existing and future clients. We want to be of assistance at any point of our client's journey and provide a turn-key feeling for them. Among the specifics, we are expanding our consultancy business around automotive engineering and functional safety while providing the best hands-on programs in areas that matter to the tech industry, with a stronger focus on embedded computing and Industry 4.0.
To sum it up, this was a very interesting year full of new experiences and projects, a year of growth, lessons, and strategic positioning for NIT. As Milan shared, we’re focusing our approach on client support, continued excellence in upskilling, and proactive engagement with emerging trends - we are very excited to go into another year determined to achieve much more. As NIT looks ahead to 2024, the commitment to being a valued partner and fostering a dynamic and enjoyable industry presence signals an exciting trajectory for the company and its stakeholders. Also, guided by this year's experience, we will base our activities on the development of partnership relations on the foreign market and cooperation with institutions that enable more practical undertakings and projects. NIT Academy also plans to have fun with our insightful lectures, conference participation and get-togethers, so stay tuned for our invitations!
