Tsofen High Technology Centers Ltd is an Israeli-registered public benefit company based in Nazareth, northern Israel, established as a joint Arab and Jewish nonprofit organization promoting hi-tech in Israeli Arab society, as a lever for economic development and the creation of a shared society in Israel, based on equal participation in a sustainable economy. Tsofen's mission is to integrate Arabs into Israel’s hi-tech sector and bring hi-tech centers to Arab cities.
History & leadership
Tsofen was formed in Nazareth in 2008 by Smadar Nehab, a hi-tech entrepreneur, Sami Saadi, an independent CPA, and Yossi Coten, a former Amdocs executive. Currently operating from offices in Nazareth and Kafr Qasim, Saadi remains one of its two CEOs, along with Revital Duek, who replaced Paz Hirschmann in 2019. Tsofen's board, which is half Jewish and half Arab, and whose members include professionals with backgrounds in hi-tech, academia, and business, is chaired by Dr Ramzi Halabi, a former mayor of Daliyat al-Carmel and currently a lecturer at Tel Aviv University. Tsofen established the Public Council for Promoting Hi-Tech in the Arab Society in Israel, to support and facilitate its mission; it is co-chaired chaired by Professor Ziyad Hanna, VP of R&D at Cadence and Visiting Professor at Oxford University, and David Perlmutter, former Executive Vice President, Intel Corporation. When Tsofen was established, Arab engineers accounted for 0.5% of employees in Israeli hi-tech. Today, they represent 3.7%, and Tsofen's stated goal is to increase that percentage to at least 10% by 2025. At a time when there is a shortage of over 15,000 hi-tech engineers in Israel, the Arab community is a key demographic group with the potential to help meet the shortage, with thousands of suitably qualified Arabs who, for various reasons, either do not seek employment in hi-tech or cannot find a way in. In addition, increasing numbers of Arabs are studying hi-tech related subjects at tertiary level: whereas there were only 1,600 Arab graduates in high-tech academic studies between 1985 and 2014, over 2,200 Arab students enrolled in high-tech academic studies in 2016 alone. Tsofen is a member of , the partnership for a Breakthrough in Arab Employment, which is a partner in President Reuven Rivlin’s initiative focusing on four aspects of Israeli society: Academia, Education, Sports and Employment.
By supporting the integration of Arab engineers in Israel’s hi-tech industry—especially at a time when it is in great need of qualified personnel—Tsofen aims to influence a deep institutional effect on the industry’s make-up and culture, towards a wider impact: As the Arab community contributes a greater share to Israel’s economic growth it will also enjoy its benefits more equally, improving the socio-economic status of the Arab community and reducing disparities, and Arabs and Jews live will develop a shared society, beginning in the technological work-space, where daily work interactions and relationships are developed that change prejudice, stereotypes and biases.
Tsofen's model
Nurturing human talent in Arab society by exposing high school students to hi-tech, providing applied technological training to academic students and graduates, and building networks for Arab hi-tech professionals, in cooperation with leading hi-tech firms.
Changing the hi-tech industry landscape by placing thousands of Arab engineers in jobs, by working with hi-tech firms to make recruitment and hiring policies more inclusive, and by bringing hi-tech businesses to Arab cities.
Changing national policies and priorities by ‘mainstreaming’ its programs within the government, academia, and business sectors.
Key Tsofen Accomplishments and Impact 2008-2018
Exposing 4,000 Arab high school students to the hi-tech industry and opening to them the option of a hi-tech career.
800 Arab undergraduate students and recent graduates completed 37 applied technological courses.
Some 2,000 Arab engineers were placed in hi-tech jobs.
1,200 Arab engineers working in 80 hi-tech firms that opened in Nazareth since 2008, including: Microsoft, Amdocs, Broadcom, Alpha Omega, Galil Software, SalesForce.
In 2018, the Israeli government resolved to allocate 25 million New Israel Shekels to developing hi-tech parks in two Arab cities.
Awards
2012: Sami Saadi named in The Marker 100 Most Influential List
