Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan

Transcription

1 Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan AIIA response February Torrens St Braddon ACT 2612 Australia T E W info@aiia.com.au

2 1. About AIIA The Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) is the peak national body representing Australia s information technology and communications (ICT) industry. Since establishing 35 years ago, the AIIA has pursued activities aimed to stimulate and grow the ICT industry, to create a favourable business environment for our members and to contribute to the economic imperatives of our nation. Our goal is to create a world class information, communications and technology industry delivering productivity, innovation and leadership for Australia. We represent over 400 member organisations nationally including hardware, software, telecommunications, ICT service and professional services companies. Our membership includes global brands such as Apple, EMC, Google, HP, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, PWC, Deloitte, EY and Oracle; international companies including Telstra; national companies including Data#3, SMS Management and Technology, Technology One and Oakton Limited; and a large number of ICT SME s. We welcome the development of an ICT Workforce Development Plan for Victoria, and are pleased to provide these comments on the Draft Plan. Page 2 of 7 18 February 2014

3 2. Overview Comments The development of this plan is particularly timely, given: The current government focus on policies which support higher productivity growth, reflecting poor productivity growth in the Australian economy since 2003; and Recent decisions in the manufacturing sector to cease manufacturing in Australia, which require a refocusing of industry policy. A critical outcome of the resources boom has been the impact on productivity. Australia s productivity growth the envy of the developed world in the 1990s has slowed dramatically in the last decade. While increasing terms of trade has driven growth in income, despite slower productivity growth, this is not sustainable. In the long run, productivity growth is essential. ICT needs to be at the forefront of strategies to improve Australia s productivity growth, as we move into the post resources boom period. Digitally driven economic growth is increasingly the cornerstone for a sustainable future. Ai Group s 2013 Business Prospects Survey 1, found that the one third of businesses surveyed that invested in new technologies in 2012 reported their labour productivity improved compared to only 16 per cent of those businesses that did not invest in new technologies. Further, of those businesses that intended to invest in new technologies in 2013, 54 per cent expected their labour productivity to improve, while only 20 per cent of businesses with no plans to invest in new technologies anticipated an improvement in labour productivity. While this could be interpreted as suggesting that higher performing or more innovative companies are prepared to continue to invest, the point is that technology is positively impacting productivity outcomes. Productivity gains will not be realised without a highly skilled ICT workforce. AIIA has a number of concerns about the current availability of skilled ICT professionals in Australia, in particular: The reduction in enrolments in ICT related tertiary courses The alignment of curriculum and teaching with business needs Current perceptions of ICT careers and opportunities both graduates and mature prospective entrants to the sector. We support the three Action areas outlined in the Draft Plan, and believe that they align well with our areas of concern listed above. The following sections provide some more detailed comments on these three Action areas. We would be happy to have further discussions with the Victorian government on how we can support implementation of the Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan. 1 ENT/Publications/Reports/2013/CEO_Business_Prospects_2013_report-FINAL.pdf Page 3 of 7 18 February 2014

4 3. Specific comments on Draft Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan Actions The following sections provided specific comments on the three actions proposed in the Draft Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan. Action 1: Overcoming misconceptions and increase awareness of ICT careers and study AIIA supports actions to improve perceptions of ICT careers and study. Australia s education levels are recognised as comparatively high internationally, however, the number of students graduating from ICT, science, engineering and math degrees is, in an increasingly high value, knowledge rich world, a significant disadvantage. Despite increased industry demand for specific ICT skills, the take-up of ICT related tertiary course over the last decade has virtually halved. While females once made up 25 per cent of students commencing a technology degree, this is now closer to 10 per cent. 2 With less that 21 per cent of women currently making up the ICT workforce 3, the concern is, based on current predictions that this will decline further. The misconception that students studying ICT will not find a job and preconceived views about the limited types of careers available to students with these skills also needs to be addressed. Career advisors and parents need to be educated about the critical role of ICT across all industry sectors, with an emphasis on the need for the high level ICT skills that is underpinning and driving new business processes and models. From a women in ICT perspective the low levels of participation have the potential to have both an innovation impact as well as a social and productivity impact. There needs to be a systematic leverage of role models to inspire and motivate others, both young and experienced and from diverse backgrounds. Action 2: Optimise the contribution ICT offers to business AIIA support the need for greater uptake of ICT by Australian business, particularly SMEs. In the SME sector contributed over half of Australia s private sector economic activity, employed over 7 million people generating more than two thirds of private sector employment, and contributed some $530 billion to the Australian economy. 4 According to the 2013 Deloitte study, digitally engaged SMEs are: two times more likely to be growing revenue - earning two times more revenue per employee than those with low engagement (some $187,500 and $87,500 per employee respectively); four times more likely to be hiring than those with low digital engagement; and using the internet as a critical facilitator to achieve growth. Research conducted by the Boston Consulting Group across five countries (the US, Germany, China, India and Brazil) similarly highlights that SMEs building digital capability outperform their peers in the market. SME technology leaders across all sectors 2 AFR 3 February ABS, Labour Force Australia, detailed quarterly cat no , August Deloitte, Connected Small Business. How Australian small businesses are growing in the digital economy Page 4 of 7 18 February 2014

5 created jobs almost twice as fast as other small businesses and increased their revenue 15 per cent faster than companies with lower levels of technology adoption. 5 Despite the potential gains, digital engagement among SMEs remains under leveraged. While use of and using the internet internally is relatively widespread, having a highly functional website that reaches out to customers, online ordering and B2B online transactions, shopping cart facilities, online marketing of products and services and technologies such as search engine optimisation and search engine marketing are under-represented across the SME sector. Reasons for this include: privacy and security concerns, for example security related to hacking of business or customer information; lack of awareness of the importance of the internet and the tangible benefits of high speed broadband and uncertainty of the relevance of digital engagement to their business. This includes unfamiliarity with technical terminology which fails to capture the functionality, and hence communicate the relevance and benefit of applications to business; lack of access to ICT skills (SMEs have less capacity in terms of available skills and capabilities to take advantage of new opportunities from broadband); time and/or resource constraints, uncertainty of risk and the potential imbalance between investment costs and returns; perceived decrease in productivity due to distractions and interruptions through personal and junk s; concerns regarding lack of personal contact with customers or fear that that customers will not engage in an online transaction; and uncertainty regarding what needs to be done to transition the business to digital. In order to be effective, actions need to address these barriers. Action 3: Improve the alignment between business and ICT teaching The AIIA supports actions which seek to improve alignment between business and ICT teaching. While the former Government s funding of the Digital Careers program provides a much needed focus on growing Australia s ICT skill base through the primary and secondary school systems, more work is needed to ensure our tertiary and in particular university ICT courses are contemporary and content relevant, attract quality talent, represent teaching excellence and relative to peer organisations, globally competitive. As university enrolments decline, universities downsize courses, thereby also reducing capacity to meet industry demand for skilled graduates. Declining enrolments results in lowering of university entrance requirements, making these course less attractive for the best and brightest, and compromising the ability of the sector to attract and produce graduates with the high level, sophisticated skills demanded by a competitive global ICT market. 6 As a further consequence, universities are not, by and large, undertaking the curriculum renovation and pedagogical development necessary to meet the needs of a new generation of students as well as industry. In short, there is an increasing deficit in terms of the ICT course materials relevant and required to support a vibrant digital economy. Further, we need to skill up the next generation of PhD students to become ICT leaders and 5 BCG, Ahead of the Curve. Lessons on technology and growth from small-business leaders. October The Crisis in ICT Education: An Academic Perspective Page 5 of 7 18 February 2014

6 inventors, and embed them in our industry, our best and brightest graduates will choose to go abroad a further dent to our intellectual capital and opportunity cost and loss as we export the critical skills we should be using. The quality of outcomes achieved through the curriculum will only be as good as the quality of teachers its teachers. It is imperative that the respective streams Design and Technologies and Digital Technologies are resourced by knowledgeable, trained and enthusiastic teachers. This is critical to ensuring relevant core competencies and capabilities are engendered in young people and that the subjects are appropriately appealing, interesting, challenging and relevant to engage them. If this is not the case, students are at equal risk of not developing skills or the interest to develop a career in these areas. Page 6 of 7 18 February 2014

7 4. How AIIA can support the implementation of the Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan We support the focus and proposed actions of the Draft Plan, and are confident that we are in a strong position to work in partnership with the Victorian government on implementing those aspects of the Plan relevant for the AIIA. Many of the proposed actions are consistent with the objectives of the Group X initiative. The AIIA has a key role in the implementation of Group X, through our support of NCITA. The initiative is focused on promoting ICT careers, removing barriers to ICT enrolments, and securing stronger linkages between the education sector and the ICT industry. The objective of this work is to improve the relevance of ICT curriculum and teaching in schools and universities, and to promote the value of a career in the ICT industry. We believe there are potentially strong synergies between the Group X initiative and the proposed action within the Draft Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan. AIIA s role in supporting Group X is specifically focussed on industry engagement. Working with our industry members our aim is to ensure, over time, Group X becomes a self-sustaining program which has strong links with industry to better align skills development with real industry demand. AIIA is currently in the process of recruiting to appoint a dedicated resource to this task. Once the position of Group X Project Officer is filled (expected to be by early April), we would be happy to facilitate further discussions on collaboration opportunities. Outside of Group X, the AIIA regularly engages with our members on issues relating to skills, education and careers within the sector. We would be happy to have further discussions with the Victorian government on how we can support implementation of the Victorian ICT Workforce Development Plan. Page 7 of 7 18 February 2014