There has been an employment nightmare in the South African IT industry - at least, it has been that way for employers in this most competitive of industries for some time now.
Organisations from the humblest small enterprise to the biggest of the big guns have had to suffer a sort of "turnstile" employment status, which involves hiring bright young talent, paying them top dollar... then standing back and watching them pass through the turnstiles a few months later to take up a new job offer.
Indeed, the industry is rife with tales of young people moving on to greener pastures after just a few months, for as little as an extra few hundred rand. Short-sighted - but a matter of fact.
On the flip side, we also know the country has a high unemployment rate - much to the growing frustration of many new graduates who have found that their qualifications are not opening doors to the wonder jobs they`d been led to believe were out there in huge numbers. Why? Experience - or lack of it - has been a stumbling block of note.
Both aspects of the young graduate employee issues have advanced beyond just the financial aspects, and today the industry recognises that employment tenure is not just a matter of money - there are more aspects in play when it comes to retaining staff.
It`s an issue which Lynda Odendaal, CEO of leading South African integrated service assurance management solutions supplier NSS addressed in a somewhat different way. Specifically, NSS initiated a programme wherein bright young talent submitted CVs, with the best candidates cherry-picked by the NSS executive team, and placed on a comprehensive ICT service management-related internship. On successful completion of the internships, all six interns were offered permanent employment at NSS.
That, of course, was where the possibility of interns leaving for greener pastures became the acid test. Post-internship was, for NSS, something of a hold-your-breath time - and happily for Lynda Odendaal the number of departing interns was zero.
Babongiwe Mnguni is a prime example of how NSS and she have achieved their objectives. Aged just 22, and with an A+, N+, ICDL, CCNA and Batchelor of Business Administration behind her name, Mnguni was one of the six bright young talents interviewed and accepted by NSS.
"I heard about the programme while studying at CIDA City Campus and submitted my CV," Mnguni recalls. "Now, a year later, I`m living my dream - I`m a junior technical engineer at NSS and have had my horizons broadened to take in a spread of ICT business offerings. Networks, communications - the stuff that makes IT work for their users. I`ve had a year in which I have worked and studied in a real IT environment and been involved in putting all my academic theories into practice."
The internship took Mnguni and her new colleagues through a gamut of service offerings, as well as the array of service management tools NSS provides to enterprise and the telecommunications industry. They have been exposed to environments such as Telkom and Sasol Polymers, two of the company`s many high profile customers.
"It`s one thing reading about global market-leading products such as Axios Assyst and EMC Smarts - but to actually get your hands on them, plan how to maximise their use in a customer-specific environment... that`s where the real excitement comes. We work towards integrating solutions - and when the key is turned and that solution is proven to be the best there is, we know we`ve met the challenges we were trained for."
The interns were exposed to all facets of the service management environment - from sales to consultancy services to technical services.
"The internship was done in a really relaxed environment - with senior executives being incredibly supportive. Lynda is really focused and constantly drove home the business ethic that says that when we promise to deliver a solution on time, we keep that promise.
"Perhaps the most important aspect for me - what really makes NSS special - is that I have been given a full career development plan. It means I can go anywhere in the world with what I`ve learned. Right now though, I`m an NSS person, and that`s the way it`s going to stay for a long, long time."
"The clear success of our first year has proven we`re on exactly the right track," Odendaal says. "The internship programme will open up a number of potential career paths in an industry enjoying boom-style growth.
"We`ll continue to seek out people who will grow into ICT technical and process specialists, and even ICT executives of the future - jobs which demand independent, lateral thinking professionals who will assess the current and future state of ICT. Graduates who have been looking at careers in the ICT sector, where they will also be exposed to telecoms and corporate industry - will find the mentorship programme an ideal stepping stone.
"We`re interested in the individual`s ability to rapidly learn new concepts and communicate with people across the business spectrum. In essence, we will be looking for strong personalities - people who can articulate, are well-groomed and able to see and explain the `bigger picture`."
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