IBM chief, ambassador for ICT careers week

Gordon Peters
Friday, 02 July 2010 01:25

IT Industry - Market

IBM Australia managing director, Glen Boreham, has been appointed Ambassador of the National ICT Careers Week for 2010.

Now in its third year, the Careers Week is aimed at raising the profile of the Information & Communications Technology (ICT) industry and the benefits of pursuing a career in the field of technology-enabled business innovation.

Chairperson of the National ICT Careers Week Organising Committee, Penny Coulter, said Glen Boreham has been a 'committed, high profile advocate of Careers Week and encouraging young people into careers in the ICT industry, and his appointment as Ambassador will give further weight to his involvement in securing the future of our industry.'

Glen Boreham said that a career in ICT is about 'making a difference in the world,' adding that it was also about 'working with people, helping people, finding new and better ways of working. It's about innovation. Helping the brightest and best coming into the workforce to realise that potential for possibility - that endless horizon - is why I'm delighted to be Ambassador of the National ICT Careers Week for 2010.'

ICT Careers Week, which will be held in all states and territories from 26 July to 1 August, is an initiative of the ICT Industry Leadership Group, co-hosted by the Australian Computer Society (ACS) and the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA). All activities are a collaboration between prominent business executives, representatives from the government and education sectors, the ACS Foundation, ACS, AIIA and ACDICT in response to Australia's acute shortage of qualified ICT professionals.

Coulter said she was 'confident the activities of ICT Careers Week have contributed to the growth in course enrolments of around 20 percent over the last 2 to 3 years.'

Coulter said that while the national ICT Careers Week events are focused in the last week of July, the organising committee, its ambassadors and participating organisations work to capture all promotional activities run by private and public sector interests throughout the year. From the dedicated website, interested school leavers can see the limitless opportunities available to them, Coulter added.