Partnerships have the power to not only unlock a new pool of tailored talent for South African businesses but also address the country’s unemployment crisis by bringing more people—particularly women and youth—into the IT sector.
South Africa’s business landscape has become increasingly competitive with companies looking to technology to deliver better value and experiences to customers. However, efforts to harness technology are often hindered by a critical shortage of skilled employees in these fields. Instead of competing for a small existing pool of talent, it now makes more financial and business sense for organisations to train people to match their specific skills requirements, and better fit with their company culture.
As we look to the year ahead, bridging the gap between the scarcity of technology skills and unemployment is just one of the trends that are expected to gain momentum in the local Information Technology (IT) industry. Let’s explore this further.
Partnering to bridge the skills gap
South Africa finds itself in the unenviable position of being home to the highest unemployment rate in the world – a problem that is especially severe among the youth – while also having to navigate a serious skills shortage. Business continuity and succession planning are crucial, as losing key employees without transferring their knowledge can result in significant intellectual property (IP) losses.
This jobs crisis is not just a social issue, but an inherent business risk. Taking an alternative approach to skills development will not only enable businesses to stay relevant and maintain their competitive advantage, but go a long way toward addressing the high unemployment.
While business leaders might plan for human capital in terms of productivity, more consideration needs to be given to how they will integrate these skills within their organisation. With the proliferation of technology and advent of numerous fields of specialisation, many organisations are often not aware of the skills that are available to them, and more importantly where to place them within their business in order to gain the maximum benefit. They are yet to fully understand the technology value chain.
In response to this challenge, companies are increasingly working with talent partners, such as redAcademy, in order to not only source and train candidates, but ensure better alignment between the specific skills they require, the outcomes they desire, and the budget they have – an innovative model known as Skills Integration as a Service (SIaaS). An experienced talent partner will be able to get under the hood of a business to better understand where certain specialist roles can fit within the organisation.
The rise of the specialist
The debate between generalists and specialists has been an age-old one across many industries, and the situation is no different in technology. If one considers the example of a data analyst; while a generalist might be able to carry out this function, a specialist would have a far greater understanding of their field, be aware of trends and challenges, know the workflows, that would result in a faster response time.
They will also have enhanced their knowledge and experience over a period of time in a specific skillset, rather than learning a little bit about many different areas. Adding to this, specialisation also enables continued and lifelong learning in a structured manner, as opposed to an unguided approach.
Ultimately, a specialist will understand the complexities of a task a lot quicker, ask better questions to get to the crux of a matter, and have greater knowledge around challenges, processes and previous trends. As such, South African businesses are coming to terms that they need very different types of individuals that they have to train for very specific types of skills. Having people with a variety of skills working on a problem also brings in differing viewpoints, which can help them innovate and stay ahead of the competition.
At redAcademy, a senior team comprising members with various backgrounds, assess client and business partner needs – asking the right questions from the onset, which covers all aspects of the organisation, so that the Academy can tailor and customise the curriculum to meet the client’s exact requirements and align with their processes.
A focus on diversity and inclusion
Another trend is that local IT businesses are also looking to be a lot more intentional about enhancing workforce diversity and inclusion, especially around bringing in more women and youth into the sector. If companies are serious about driving change and making a positive socio-economic impact, this must be driven by business leadership and top management.
The stark reality is that South Africa’s traditional education system does not afford many youth the opportunity to attend a school where they are exposed to technology or conversations around career options in technology, impacting their ability to enter the jobs market.
The ‘standard interview’ techniques and methodology are also likely to not yield results. The interview should be made more relatable; an environment for young people to showcase their skillset, while marketing themselves and an opportunity for the applicant to learn about, and understand the business culture and role.
Beyond being female founded and led, the talent that redAcademy has been able to source, train, and place in jobs has proven that there are youth and women who are performing at the highest level. All they need is an environment that facilitates growth and lifelong learning. Businesses in the local IT sector that fail to take the time to identify the potential in South Africa’s youth are missing out on hidden South African talent. For those businesses that do not have the time, or resources in-house to drive this change, then a partnership with a training service provider is the best way forward.
By Nashid Cassiem, Operations General Manager, redAcademy
