Georgian Technical University (GTU) established the GEAR-HR Incubator to improve relationships between the university and industry. GEAR aims to connect alumni with potential employers and help alumni launch startups. It provides office space at a low cost to support startup businesses. The HR Incubator uses contemporary HR methods to help students and graduates identify in-demand careers and develop necessary skills through partnerships with employers. It assesses students' abilities and provides individual career counseling and training opportunities. GTU hopes to share its experience with the HR Incubator with other universities.

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GEAR – HR Incubator
Georgian Technical University (GTU) is one of the biggest educational and scientific
institutions in Georgia. The university’s main focus is to improve its position on the
international higher education scene providing opportunities to learn excellent
professional and academic skills maintaining internationally competitive education,
research and innovation services significant for Georgia’s sustained development.
GTU was founded in 1922 as a Polytechnical Faculty of Tbilisi State University. In 1990
Georgian Polytechnic Institute was granted the university status and was named the
Georgian Technical University. In 2001 GTU became a full member of the European
University Association (EUA).
Since 1996 GTU actively participates in various projects funded by TEMPUS and
ERASMUS+ programs as a regional coordinator/partner. One of the most interesting and
ambitious projects among them is EANET - Entrepreneur Alumni Network (544521-
TEMPUS-1-2013-1-DE-TEMPUS-SMHES). Participation in the projects like this
definitely determined establishment of various groups focused on development and
optimization of higher education through sharing and adaptation of the European
partners’ experience.
Accordingly, involvement of our university in EANET project is of high importance,
hence the aims and ambitions of the project fully responds to the challenges of GTU and
educational sphere of the country in common. Particularly:
• To create appropriate educational framework
• To enhance cooperation with industry
• To provide the labor market with competitive workforce
One of the most important initiatives within the EANET project is an establishment of
the network of professors, students, alumni, business representatives and entrepreneurs

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interested in establishment of close and healthy relationships between university and
industry and its development.
On January 6 2016, as a result of these relationships, in the frame of the EANET project
GTU Entrepreneur Alumni Reunion (GEAR) has been established with following
structure:
GEAR aims at establishment partnerships with potential employers (enterprises, public
institutions, services) through attracting them with possibilities to be fully involved in the
curricula development tailored and designed according to the specific demands of
potential employers; helping alumni and students to launch start-up businesses.
For this purposes GTU has allocated the remaining property for GEAR. Its further
development on the one hand would be beneficial for the development of the property,
on the other hand enable the Alumni start business at minimal cost. GEAR is aiming at
adopting of experience of partner universities in this sphere.

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As for HR Incubator this is an original approach which is based on application of
contemporary methods of HR management. This is quite a complex and multi-layered
process and demands involvement of the experts of this field. Therefore, HR Incubator
actively collaborates with GTU alumni organization SMART Consulting which is the
member of GEAR.
Activities of HR Incubator have been planned according to the recommendations of
abovementioned experts as follows:
 Establishment partnerships with potential employers (enterprises, public
institutions, services);
 Providing study on labour market demands;
 Defining most demanded professions and specializations and designing general
competencies for them;
 Designing/modifying curricula in line with required specific competencies in close
cooperation with potential employers;
 Selecting students and graduates, providing professional orientation;
 Matching students/graduates with vacant positions, providing competency
oriented training and their trial in different partner institutions.
 Maintain relevant database
GEAR’s associated membership gives partner institutions opportunity to fully benefit
from Business Incubator and partly - from HR Incubator providing free study to design
general competencies for most demanded positions.
Associated Members have a priority to select trained students through probation period.
In case of hiring selected candidate, organization will have to pay per candidate certain
amount to GEAR.

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GEAR’s full membership gives partner institutions opportunity of hiring any number of
candidates for free. For full membership organization has to pay the same certain amount
on annual basis.
At the same time most interesting and important processes and procedures are used for
individual assessment of students skills and abilities in various spheres of their potential
employment, for students/graduates individual professional orientation and career
planning assistance.
These tasks are fulfilled in close cooperation with experts of SMART Consulting. They
have the opportunity to use a specially designed professional tests, personality
questionnaires, IQ tests and so forth. Students have the opportunity to personally meet
HR experts and receive feedback and individual counseling for professional orientation
and career development.
We believe that HR Incubator is a really successful initiative and it would be a great
pleasure for us to share this experience with EANET partner universities and all other
interested parties.