News
Appian Helps Mentor College and High School Students
September 2013 by Marc Jacob
Appian is helping mentor the enterprise software innovators of the future. Through participation in a variety of higher education and high school department advisory boards and program sponsorships, Appian provides guidance and counsel to the students of today who will develop and commercialize the technologies that will change the world of tomorrow.
Appian Chief Technology Officer Michael Beckley calls these programs a "win-win" for the students and for Appian. He says: "The future of innovative enterprise software is sitting in high school, undergraduate and graduate classes right now. We feel a responsibility to aid the education of these students, and to help them understand how their passion for technology can create meaningful and prosperous careers for them and a better world for all of us. At the same time, it is a chance for these students to be exposed to Appian and our unique culture of innovation. If they like what they see, it increases the chances that they will want to apply their talents within our organization post-graduation."
In addition to his duties as CTO, Mr. Beckley also leads Appian’s recruiting efforts — an unusual dual-responsibility, but one that he says makes perfect sense for a company like Appian. "We founded Appian on the premise that culture is everything. It determines a company’s ability to constantly re-invent what is possible in its market. We sell the Appian BPM Suite, but ultimately our product is the engineers and services professionals who make it possible for our platform to change how organizations work."
Appian is proud to be an active participant in:
The University of Virginia Computer Science Industrial Advisory Board
Mr. Beckley sits on the board, which is composed of commercial industry leaders who provide both financial support and industrial guidance to UVA Computer Science faculty and students.
The UVA Association for Computing Machinery High School Programming Competition (HSPC)
Appian is an HSPC sponsor. The competition aims to provide a challenging and fun opportunity for high school students to improve their creative problem solving, communication, and programming skills.
The Virginia Tech Computer Science Resources Consortium (CSRC)
Appian is a CSRC member company, working with Virginia Tech’s Department of Computer Science to bridge the gaps between industry and academia in order to identify and support the evolving needs of teachers and researchers, students and employers.
The University of Maryland Corporate Partners in Computing (CPIC)
Mr. Beckley is a member of the UMD Advisory Board in Computing, and Appian is a CPIC member. The CPIC program provides opportunities for student engagement, and also enables UMD to gain insight into industry trends, learn more about what research corporations in the computing field are pursuing, and acquire feedback from leaders in the industry on computing curriculum and research.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s MIT 6.740 Web Programming Competition
Appian is a sponsor of this student-run web programming class and competition. It teaches students of varied skill levels how to build a dynamic database-backed website from the ground up, focusing on the core essentials and pointing out where advanced technologies fit into the mix.
