‘Dotitude’, the university outreach initiative by leading technology company 99x,
completed 2022 empowering more than 2,000 IT undergraduates across Sri Lanka. Dotitude has
been in operation for more than a decade and has reached out to over 50,000 undergraduates
during this time through multiple activities. In 2022, the volunteer-based initiative conducted 20
technical sessions through collaborations with universities and higher education institutes and
supported many research projects.
Dotitude is a program driven by 99x in collaboration with universities, higher education institutes
and the local ICT industry to empower university students. This initiative aims to build bridges
between universities and Sri Lanka’s ICT sector. It provides university students with an unmatched
experience by revealing available opportunities and creating platforms to learn as much as possible
about new technologies and trends, and the soft skills necessary to be a successful IT professional.
“Empowerment fosters engagement and enables individuals in unprecedented ways. Not only do
they become more confident and work-ready, but they also become more committed, strategic,
intuitive, creative, and analytically competent. When it comes to local undergraduates, it is
important to empower them with the required skills to face global market demands. Through
Dotitude, we believe in empowering undergrads with knowledge on cutting-edge tech, new trends
in the global ICT space and the soft skills required to not only be industry-ready upon graduation but
be global-ready as well,” said University Relations Manager, Anura Adhikari.
The attitude of connecting dots is what matters for a fresher to achieve success in the industry.
Dotitude by 99x helps with precisely this, guiding undergraduates to connect the dots that will shape
their future. Understanding this, the Dotitude team along with other volunteers from 99x members
conducted several workshops last year on a diverse range of technical topics to keep building up
their IT knowledge. During 2022 alone, Dotitude conducted more than 25 sessions for undergrads.
Apart from these sessions, the Dotitude team conducted mock interviews with undergraduates.
They were given feedback on improving their interview-facing and resume-writing skills. Some of the
prominent workshops were LinkedIn and CV writing, Test Automation with Selenium, QA industry
and breaking the myths, DevOps practices and How to be a hero in the industry.
Furthermore, the ‘Internship 4.0’ program of 99x is an integral part of the Dotitude University
Outreach Initiative. The program is focused on ensuring that an intern’s technical and soft skills
exceed industry expectations. In addition to industry experience, the Dotitude team conducted
mentoring sessions and assigned a dedicated mentor for each intern. Last year, the team received
more than 1,000 applications and conducted 300 internship interviews.
Commenting on plans for Dotitude in 2023, Adhikari said, “The realignment of our existing initiative
to help undergraduates is expected to continue well into 2023, which focuses on a more rounded
internship method. Right now, we are focusing on global hiring and global mentoring. Previously, we
had a few Project Leads and mentors on the project, but in this revamped version, we will have a
buddy and a mentor. It will also be divided into shorter review phases to identify any issues from the
student’s side earlier.”
99x, headquartered in Norway collaborates in developing, well-engineered digital products for the
Scandinavian market. It welcomes the opportunity to contribute towards the broader business
community, colleges and universities, working to build a great workplace for all.
