Multinational student alliance scoops Accenture High Potential award

A team of students from schools in Denmark, Italy, Sweden, Portugal, Norway and Finland has won the Accenture Enterprise without Borders High Potential award. The award was announced at the 21st Junior Achievement Young Enterprise (JA-YE) Europe Company of the Year Competition, hosted by JA Italy in Cagliari.

The team won the award for their project Afreetrade J.V., in which each student company within the partnership promotes and sells the products of the other companies in the joint venture. A round of judging by an Accenture jury determined the winner, and one member of each company within the winning partnership was invited to Italy to receive the award on behalf of the group. The program reflects Accenture’s corporate citizenship focus -- Skills to Succeed -- which educates people around the world, helping them obtain jobs or build businesses.

The students have been collaborating as part of the JA-YE Europe Enterprise without Borders (EwB) program, a secondary school and/or college program that teaches the value and importance of international trade and the practical skills necessary to conduct business across borders. During the judging process, the jury reviewed each EwB company, looking for evidence of innovation, profitability, value-added from the joint venture and confirmation that the teams understood the needs of each stakeholder in the partnership.

“Learning entrepreneurial and business skills and having experience working across countries and cultures are essential capabilities for young people preparing to enter the workforce.” said Jill Huntley, senior director, Corporate Citizenship at Accenture. “The Enterprise without Borders program gives students an in-depth appreciation of the value of participating in and contributing to the economy.”

Speaking at the event, Armando Persico the link teacher for the Italian component of the ‘Afreetrade’ company commented: “I wanted my students to have the chance to meet other European students with the same entrepreneurial interests and to run one European company together. Such an experience teaches them to appreciate and explore the opportunities that only a global marketplace can offer.”

“The Enterprise without Borders program gives students the experience of collaborating and trading across borders that they can bring into their future careers. They learn to communicate with other cultures and determine how best to operate in foreign markets,” explained Caroline Jenner, JA-YE Europe CEO. “In a global market place this experience provides EwB students with vital skills for employability.”

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