iTlent

What iTlent does

iTlent (Instituto Vasco del Talento en la Formación Profesional / LHko Talentuaren Euskal Institutua) is a public educational institute operating under the Basque Government's Department of Education, headquartered in Errenteria, Gipuzkoa, Spain. Its mission is the applied research, deployment, and transfer of advanced learning models for Vocational Education and Training (VET) across the Basque Country, aligned with the FP Euskadi 2030 strategy. The institute serves VET centres, teaching staff, and indirectly the 30,228 VET students reached through its programmes, acting as a knowledge-transfer and methodology-licensing body rather than a commercial operator.

The core product is the ETHAZI learning model — a challenge-based collaborative learning methodology built around an 11-step dynamic (11 pausuak/erronka), intermodular challenge design, self-managed teacher teams, organisational flexibility, and evolution-oriented competency evaluation. Around ETHAZI, iTlent offers a tiered training portfolio: ETHAZI Hastapena (a 9-hour online introductory course), ELU ikastetxean (20-hour in-school first-steps training), EOP Ethazi Oinarrizko Prestakuntza (45-hour hybrid basic training), and the 70-hour Ikas Aukerak Learning Coordinator programme. Supporting products include a Teacher Professional Development framework with a proprietary competency model, the aRituak experienced-teacher mentoring programme, an Accompaniment to Implement the Model service, External Services for international organisations, and 14 thematic research lines spanning STEAM, Values 4.0, Talent Generation, entrepreneurial culture, and Advanced Learning Tools (5.0 contexts) including generative AI integration.

The business model is that of a public government institute: iTlent is funded through Basque Government education budgets and programmes are free for participants, with no commercial pricing. Distribution is community-led, delivered through in-person sessions at partner VET centres across Gipuzkoa, Bizkaia, and Araba (including MENDIZABALA LHII, IURRETA LHII, TARTANGA LHII, and IMH LHII), supplemented by online and blended formats, and supported by a Learning Coordinator network at each centre. International engagement is pursued through the EU QUEEN project (Interreg Europe) and an External Services line that exports the ETHAZI methodology to other VET systems.

Name

iTlent

Legal name

iTlent, Instituto Vasco del Talento en la Formación Profesional

Website

https://itlent.eus

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

iTlent is a public Basque Government institute that develops and deploys the ETHAZI challenge-based collaborative learning model across 89 VET centres, training 2,620 teachers and reaching 30,228 students in the Basque Country.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Vocational Education and Training (VET) Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Education, Skills & Workforce Development Aid Programs (BPADABAE)

Keywords

• Vocational education training
• Challenge-based learning
• Teacher professional development
• Collaborative learning model
• Talent development VET

Headquarters

HQ city

Errenteria

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Public institutional funding: iTlent is a public institution (Instituto Vasco del Talento en la Formación Profesional / LHko Talentuaren Euskal Institutua) under the Basque Government (Eusko Jaurlaritza), funded through public education budgets. No commercial revenue model is described.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

iTlent develops, implements, and disseminates the ETHAZI challenge-based collaborative learning model for Vocational Education and Training (VET) in the Basque Country. Its activities centre on applied research, teacher training (introductory, basic, and Learning Coordinator programmes), aRituak mentoring by experienced practitioners, and accompaniment services to help VET centres adopt and develop the model. Beyond the Basque ecosystem, External Services deliver the methodology to national and international organisations.

Product overview

iTlent (LHko Talentuaren Euskal Institutua / Basque Institute of Talent in VET) is a public educational institution in the Basque Country that operates as a research, training, and knowledge-transfer centre focused on developing advanced learning models for Vocational Education and Training (VET). Its core offering is the ETHAZI model — a challenge-based collaborative learning model — supported by a structured ecosystem of training programmes, research lines, and accompaniment services. The product portfolio includes: ETHAZI as the central learning model; ETHAZI Hastapena (online introductory course, 9 hours), ELU ikastetxean (in-school first-steps training, 20 hours), and EOP Ethazi Oinarrizko Prestakuntza (basic ETHAZI training, 45 hours) as progressive entry-level training products; the Ikas Aukerak Learning Coordinator Programme (70 hours) for centre-based change leaders; a Teacher Professional Development framework with competency frameworks and aRituak mentoring; an Accompaniment to Implement the Model service; External Services for international organisations; and 14 thematic research lines covering Advanced Learning Tools, STEAM, Values 4.0, Talent Generation, and more. All products converge on developing talent in VET students through active, collaborative, challenge-based methodologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ETHAZI: The Learning Model of VET in the Basque Country whose main objective is to train talented professionals.
• aRituak
• Ikas Aukerak

Products and services

• ETHAZI Learning Model The reference challenge-based collaborative learning model of Vocational Education and Training in the Basque Country, designed to train talented professionals. Students work in teams on structured challenges (erronkak) integrating technical, personal, and social competencies through an 11-step resolution dynamic.
• ETHAZI Hastapena (Iniciación ETHAZI) Online and autonomous introductory training programme (9 hours, 100% online) for any VET teacher who wants to learn about the ETHAZI model. Covers what ETHAZI is, challenge-based collaborative learning, the 11 steps of challenge dynamization, and competency-based evaluation approaches.
• ELU ikastetxean (Primeros Pasos ETHAZI) In-school training resource (20 hours, adaptable by centre) that offers a scenario to understand ETHAZI and begin implementing the model with the help of a Learning Coordinator, adapted to the reality of each VET centre.
• EOP Ethazi Oinarrizko Prestakuntza (Formación Básica ETHAZI) 45-hour basic training course in semi-presential format (21 hours synchronous + 24 hours asynchronous) for VET teachers with no prior knowledge or experience with ETHAZI. Six groups are offered across Gipuzkoa, Bizkaia, and Araba, covering the Basque Country VET model, collaborative learning, the 11 steps, and evolution-oriented evaluation.
• Ikas Aukerak (Learning Coordinator Programme) 70-hour programme to train Learning Coordinators (Koordinatzaileak) who lead the change process of implementing the ETHAZI model at their centres. They serve as a hub between directive teams, educator teams, and iTlent, coordinating implementation of the learning model.
• Teacher Professional Development (Irakasleen Garapen Profesionala) Integrated set of strategies, tools, and support processes for teacher professional development, based on a proprietary competency framework structured around three areas: Teaching–Learning, Holistic Socio-Educational Area, and Leadership and Commitment. Includes training, mentoring (aRituak), networks, and communities of practice.
• Accompaniment to Implement the Model Structured support service providing accompaniment for VET centres and educator teams to implement, improve, and enrich the ETHAZI model. Uses a collaborative network structure involving iTlent team, experienced teachers (aRituak), Learning Coordinators, and educator teams to guide centres through development of the model.
• aRituak Mentoring Programme Experienced teacher mentoring programme where teachers who have successfully implemented the ETHAZI model accompany and guide other VET centres in implementing and developing the learning model. They combine teaching practice with collaboration with iTlent and act as the closest hubs to training centres.
• External Services Personalised services for national and international organisations outside the Basque Country VET system, accompanying them in diagnosing, designing, developing, and disseminating advanced learning models based on the ETHAZI methodology. Includes context diagnosis, collaborative design, practical testing, and assessment of transformation processes.

Quantifiable outcome

• 30,228 students benefiting from the ETHAZI model across 745 cycles in 89 centres
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Eusko Jaurlaritza - Hezkuntza Saila (Basque Government - Department of Education)coreStrategic or Co-development PartneriTlent operates under the Basque Government's education authority. The institute's mission, the ETHAZI model, and its programmes align with the FP Euskadi 2030 strategy and are supported by the Department of Education as the governing body responsible for VET policy.
• European Union (via Interreg Europe)coreStrategic or Co-development PartneriTlent participates in the European QUEEN project (Quality in European Apprenticeships — Network), co-financed by the European Union under the Interreg Europe programme. The project aims to improve apprenticeship policies across Europe, adapting them to changing labour markets and fostering inclusive career pathways. For FP Euskadi, the Basque Education System Professional Guidance Plan 2023-2026 serves as the regional policy instrument.
• Euskadi VET Network (Public and Concerted Centres)coreStrategic or Co-development PartneriTlent's core operational partners are the 89 VET centres across the Basque Country (public and concerted) that are implementing or in the process of implementing the ETHAZI model. These centres, along with their 2,620 teaching staff, form the collaborative network that drives the talent development mission.
• MENDIZABALA LHII (Araba)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner VET school in Araba (Álava) that serves as a delivery location for EOP (Ethazi Oinarrizko Prestakuntza) training groups.
• IURRETA LHII (Bizkaia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner VET school in Bizkaia that serves as a delivery location for EOP training groups.
• TARTANGA LHII (Bizkaia)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner VET school in Bizkaia that serves as a delivery location for EOP training groups.
• IMH LHII (Gipuzkoa)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner VET school in Gipuzkoa that serves as a delivery location for EOP training groups (morning session EOP5).

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Pearson: Pearson is a global education and assessment company with significant VET credentials, curriculum and teacher-training offerings. It is a broader incumbent whose corporate VET and professional development portfolio overlaps with iTlent's teacher training role.
• European Training Foundation (ETF): ETF helps transition and developing countries reform their VET systems. Like iTlent, it operates as a publicly-funded applied research and capacity-building body focused on VET transformation methodologies.
• Cedefop (European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training): Cedefop is the EU agency supporting VET policy development, research and practitioner networks across member states. It functions as a supranational equivalent to iTlent's research and policy-influencing role in the Basque VET system.
• BIBB (Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training): Germany's federal VET research and policy institute conducts applied research, curriculum development and teacher training for the German dual system. It is a comparable public-mandate VET research body operating at a larger national scale.

Direct peers

• Tknika: Tknika is the Basque Country's centre for applied research and innovation in VET, sharing institutional DNA with iTlent and previously overlapping with the ETHAZI ecosystem at tknika.eus. Both operate as public R&D arms of the Basque VET system focused on advanced learning models.
• EfVET (European Forum of Technical and Vocational Education and Training): EfVET is a pan-European network of VET providers promoting innovation and quality in vocational education. iTlent participates in overlapping EU VET networks and shares a similar mission of advancing VET pedagogy.
• Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg (DHBW): DHBW is Germany's leading dual-study VET institution, integrating workplace and academic learning through structured, challenge-based programmes. It is the most direct European analogue to a state-mandated VET innovation institute with embedded employer partnerships.

Regional players

• TAFE Queensland: TAFE Queensland is a publicly-funded VET provider operating challenge-based and apprenticeship programmes. It is a comparable public-sector VET innovation operator outside Europe with similar teacher-training and curriculum-development scopes.
• European University Foundation (EUF): EUF supports higher education innovation and learning mobility across Europe with a public-interest mandate. It is comparable to iTlent as a publicly-supported education research and capacity-building body operating in an EU context.

Others

• Beuth University of Applied Sciences (BHT) — Career Service: BHT's career and continuing education services operate applied learning and challenge-based curricula in a German technical education context. It is a thematically comparable adjacent institution in applied, competency-based higher VET learning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/results?search_query=itlent
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/itlent
• Xx.com/itlent

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about iTlent