Sentech on major skills development drive

In the past two years, Sentech has taken on 60 candidates for its learnership, certificate and internship programmes with an 87% employment success rate.

Sentech offers three learnerships that are integral to the telecommunication industry and equip candidates for the realities of the employment market. The learnerships, Systems Support Desk Top and Telecommunications Technician are at NQF 5, while IT Technical Support is an NQF 4 programme. The learnerships comprise a three-month theoretical portion and a nine-month practical where learners are stationed around the country at transmission control centres where their skills can be most effectively utilised.

The certificate courses, which include Customer Management, Sales and Marketing and Business Accounting both at NQF 5, provide an 11-month practical portion with one month of theory. During the learnership and certificate programmes, learners are exposed to all areas of the business including marketing sales and finance.

Applicants who apply, usually in response to advertisements in science and technology publications must have an N6 or S4 in telecommunications and are interviewed to ensure they meet with the selection criteria. Disabled candidates are actively sourced from relevant organisations to ensure the disabled component for skills development is met.

In the previous intake for the programmes there was a female majority, with 82% PDI and 4% disabled. For the current Telecommunications Technician Learnership programme, there is an equal proportion of male and female learners; 10% of them are white.

"There is a perception that learnerships are for blacks only. This is not so and we urge white candidates to apply for learnerships as Sentech is determined to maintain properly balanced equity profiles with a 15% component of white employees," says Patricia Roper, Human Resources Manager, Sentech.

Internally Sentech offers employees the Accelerated Skills Transfer Programme. Skills transfer specialists, drawn from senior and more experienced employees, provide one-on-one training to candidates. The focus is on rapid progress, knowledge and skills acquisition to fast-track these individuals to become team leaders within a year or two, depending on the individual. The programme concentrates on technicians and has been available for three years. We have had 73% success rate, with employees promoted to team leader level and 9% promoted to transmitter control centre manager. Another aspect of Sentech`s internal training is the promotion of self-development where 46 bursaries have been granted in 2006 for studies that are within the scope of the individual`s career.

"Our programmes are part of Sentech`s strategic focus for skills development and training, addressing technical support as a major function for the telecommunication deliverables required for the 2010 Soccer World Cup," Roper adds.