New Zealand's ICT companies join forces to tackle skills shortage

Stuart Corner
Tuesday, 16 December 2008 09:59

IT Industry - Strategy

More than 30 of New Zealand's ICT companies have agreed in principle to set up a new association whose first priority will be to address an anticipated serious skills shortage.

In the longer term the new body aims to "provide the ICT industry with a single, unified voice with which to address issues facing the industry as a whole."

NZICT will initially focus on three main areas: advocacy, raising the industry's profile in terms of the industry's contribution to the economy and "the pressing issue of our looming skills shortage".

According to Microsoft NZ managing director, Kevin Ackhurst, who has been appointed interim chairman, "The lack of skilled workers isn't unique to New Zealand but in the current economic climate New Zealand business will be severely impacted by the shortage unless we do something about it. The skills shortage is the first issue that the NZICT Group will tackle head on."

The organisation plans to undertake a stocktake of all current ICT related training activities in New Zealand and to provide a form of accreditation for those courses that meet the standard and begin working on increasing the number of internships available within member organisations.

"We're going to work closely with government at all levels for greater investment in these training programmes and develop a mentoring programme to take advantage of the existing wealth of knowledge and understanding that we have in the industry today," Ackhurst said.

"I cannot stress how important this issue is. If New Zealand is to compete in the digital economy we must have trained, skilled ICT professionals.

He added that, longer term, "NZICT Group is our opportunity to raise awareness of the vital role ICT plays in New Zealand's economic growth as well as providing a voice for the industry as a whole. We will work with government, with other associations and groups to help raise the industry's profile and to get our message across: ICT is vital to New Zealand's future."