As of February, a total of 260 interns – 234 college seniors and 26 graduate students – took their first steps for a 7-month internship experience at our headquarters, R&D center, and various plant locations. The Together virtual opening session allowed the student interns to become acquainted with one another while obtaining general information about Şişecam. A Together orientation took place in the first two weeks of the program. During this period, interns met with Function Officers of Information Technologies, Human Resources, and Strategy to learn about Şişecam's Digital Transformation and People and Culture Program, as well as new strategies and investments. A busy internship period awaits our Together interns, where they will participate in technical visits, inspiring gatherings with leaders, and a wide range of department-specific sessions.

The application period for the new term of our First Step Summer Internship Program started on March 20. Our First Step internship program is filled with different projects, department information sessions, inspiring gatherings with leaders, and technical visits. You can be part of this exciting experience at our headquarters, R&D center, and plant locations during the July - August - September period. The application deadline is April 16 for the program that includes 3rd- and 4th-year undergraduate students! Be sure to apply!

Winners of the CFA Research Challenge, held by the global financial institution CFA Institute, were announced. This year, Şişecam was chosen as the subject company. After a long journey with focused studies and in-depth evaluations, Bilkent, Istanbul Bilgi, Izmir Economy, Koç, and Özyeğin universities reached the final stage. The Koç University and Özyeğin University teams went on to win the Research Challenge.We congratulate our teams and thank all our colleagues who were involved in the Research Challenge.

We completed this year's 'First Step to Business Life' Internship Program, in which 39 students – including freshmen and sophomores – took part. Our interns met with our CEO Görkem Elverici in the first week of the program. Subsequently, the student interns worked on the case study, 'Borcam in the Digital World,' to develop and deliver a presentation to our teams in the last week of their internship. During the two-week program, our interns had the opportunity to get to know Şişecam better, while also taking the first steps of their business career by participating in online and face-to-face sessions, technical visits, and various trainings.

Şişecam's campus activities and university-industry collaborations are underway at full speed. We welcome young talent at our headquarters, R&D center, and plants under the 'On the Road' technical visit program. This Şişecam program was launched with the motto 'Are You Ready to Experience Your Future Today?' Young people have the opportunity to experience firsthand our production processes, workflows, and products while getting to know Şişecam closely before starting their careers. If you want to be a part of this exciting experience, be sure to contact us!

Şişecam Academy was honored to receive the 'Best Organization in Training and Development' award from the Association for Talent Development (ATD), a globally recognized institution in employee training and performance improvement. Since its establishment, Şişecam Academy has pursued a vision of sustainability of corporate knowledge, coupled with the creation and dissemination of a lea​rning culture. Today, Şişecam Academy is one of the largest corporate academies in the world.

Şişecam CEO Görkem Elverici continues to listen to the opinions and suggestions of young Şişecam members by gathering with our Gen-Z colleagues. We are continuing to build the future of Şişecam together.

We annually arrange family events across all our facilities. As part of the events, not only do our colleagues have fun with their families, but also we enjoy being together. Family events are the most fun, once again, for Little Şişecam members with music, games, and various treats. Through our annual family events, we celebrate being a large global family together.

Now! We continue to have fun with year-long events arranged by our Sports and Social Activities Club. We returned with 30 medals from the Corporate Games we participated in a wide range of branches this year. Another achievement has been contributed by our Basketball team. Şişecam won the second-place trophy in CBL 3X3 basketball tournament. Globally, our Now! teams continue to arrange employee events across all countries we operate in, without slowing down. We continue to reflect the dynamic and energetic spirit of Şişecam globally in all activities and events that we take part in.

OnAir Together, we share the words of Gaurav Singh, about his internship experience at Şişecam. “I feel that it's the best way to start my career. It was not less than magic for me to see the sand converted into a mirror for the first time. Seeing the processes, in reality, makes me curious to know more about them. The professionals in the department help me a lot to understand things. And I thank the Şişecam organisation for its value in teaching and developing interns. I also like to thank all the members involved in organising such a great opening get-together event, which allowed me to meet with my other colleagues virtually and learn about them.”

Together On Air, we share the words of Giulia Allani, about her internship experience at Şişecam. “I appreciate that Şişecam gave me the opportunity to start this internship. This period has been meaningful and full of new topics to learn. I understood that Şişecam is a big company where people can show their skills and abilities.”

As part of its partnership with Anlatsın.com, Şişecam has been sharing about its experience. Anlatsın.com is a platform that sheds light on questions in the minds of many job candidates, including young talent and professionals, via answers from employees from different sectors. Candidates get the opportunity to learn about companies as well as obtain clear answers via short video responses on what they may encounter during the recruitment process. Şişecam responded to the queries of candidates initially with our teams under Employer Brand, Integrated Resourcing, and Şişecam Academy. Our teams explained numerous processes at Şişecam, including the recruitment process, interviewing techniques, training opportunities, "Together" (our global young talent program), and "First Step" (our summer internship program). We will continue to share about ourselves with different job families under this effort. Şişecam Shares about Its Experience at Anlatsın.com!

We won a Silver Stevie in the category of "Best HR Team of the Year" with our HROne Global HR Transformation undertaken by Şişecam's Human Resources Team. We won a Bronze Stevie in the category of "Best Young Talent Employment Strategy" for our global young talent program "Together" as part of the Stevies for Great Employers competition, which focuses on HR and training/development.