Articles

• Multi-Media ICT Academy

  Outlearning pioneers skills development learnership with Multi-Media ICT Academy to combat skills shortage

  It is a widely accepted fact that SA has fallen victim to the steadily increasing ‘brain drain’ within the ICT sector. This skills shortage concern has been the driving force behind a powerful new initiative aimed at addressing this issue.

  Spearheaded by convergence specialist, T-Systems, a number of leading South African companies are combining resources and expertise to launch South Africa’s first multi-media ICT Academy at the Community and Individual Development Association (CIDA) City Campus.

  The academy will use the latest in multi-media and e-learning technology and global best practice methodologies to educate students from previously disadvantaged backgrounds.

  While critics might mention other similar initiatives, the immediate differentiator of this project is the combined commitment, resources and experience that will be drawn from the ISETT SETA, consortium members, and the CIDA CITY Campus to make this initiative a huge success.

  The foundation of the academy is the curriculum that aims to provide learners with a specialist ISETT SETA recognised Learnership. A three-year curriculum will be offered, with the first year consisting of a foundation in information technology and telecommunications training. Thereafter the students will have the option to choose from three streams of specialisation, such as programming, enterprise resource planning and networking. Highly skilled specialist tutors will mentor students.

  The curriculum, which was the brainchild of Outlearning, (of which Susheila Moodley was an executive director) has earned high praise and recognition from the ISETT SETA for it’s solid and ambitious skills training and development programme. The role of the ISETT SETA is to develop curriculum’s similar in nature for various industry sectors, but in this case Outlearning independently researched and compiled the curriculum based on current and future market requirements and presented it to the SETA for consideration. In acknowledgement of the high quality of the curriculum, the ISETT SETA immediately embraced the project and is putting the curriculum through the necessary registration and accreditation.

  Students will be sourced from the existing second and third year students currently doing their Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree at CIDA. The elected courses will be over and above the academic curriculum of the BBA degree and students will have the option to specialise.

  According to Oupa Mopaki, senior manager operations for the ISETT SETA the curriculum demonstrated a clear understanding of the requirements and a vision for ICT skills training in SA.

  The consortium comprises of some of SA’s most notable ICT organisations including SAP, Espial Consulting, CompTIA, Cisco, SUN Microsystems and Outlearning.

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• Opticall

  Opticall to train visually impaired contact centre agents

  South Africa’s first contact centre learnership environment for the visually impaired was launched today at a ceremony held at the Optima college in Pretoria. Opened by Constitutional Court Judge Zak Jacoob, Opticall is strategically poised to address the prevalent issue of skills development in the disabled community.

  According to Susheila Moodley, executive director at Outlearning and the driving force behind this initiative, the training and development of human capital on all levels needs to be seriously addressed. “People with disabilities can add a very real benefit to the South African economy and, as such, the training and development of this community has to result in positive employment opportunities. Training modules that specifically target this community must be uniquely formulated to tackle the challenges that they face on a daily basis, to further develop them into roles as significant contributors to the economic process,” she says.

  In line with the Government’s national policy to build skills in the broader disabled community, and to incorporate the disabled into the economic mainstream, Outlearning, an outsourced training and development provider, has worked with the SA National Council for the Blind and the Services SETA in implementing a call centre learnership for the visually impaired.

  Recognised and accredited by the Services SETA, the learnership not only addresses a very dire need in our society but has also proven to be a successful business case resulting in the launch of an outsourced call centre. “The training programme is addressing skills development at a level in our society where it is most needed, a sustainable business case will ensure the success and viability of this project,” says Moodley. “The programme will allow previously disadvantaged, impaired people the ability to participate in the broader economic environment,” she says.

  Regardless of the recent success of this project, the initiative has not been without its challenges. In December 2001, the SA National Council for the Blind was forced to reassess its current position as an NGO and due to lack of funding started researching alternative sources of income. After discussions with OutLearning, a growing international need for highly skilled call centre agents was identified. However this dream was far from realised and plagued by a lack of funding and resources.

  The lack of resources was the first challenge addressed. Syntell, specialists in call centre technology and training, was approached about its possible involvement in the project. Having traded as Plessey since 1963, this blue chip electronics corporation began its new life as South African to the core, and firmly positioned to continue to market world-class electronics innovations internationally. As such, they have provided all the technology required to make a project of this kind a success.

  However, even with Syntell’s support, a lack of funding continued to haunt the project and an initial proposal was put together and presented to the Services SETA for possible funding. The task team was sent back to the drawing board with one goal in mind: develop a sound, sustainable business element to the project. Weeks of high level consulting and negotiations soon realised this objective and the Services SETA put their full support behind the project. The combined expertise between the various participating parties resulted in a three year, fully accredited call centre learnership for the visually impaired.

  “We are remarkably impressed with the successful outcome of this initiative. If not for the dedicated combination and support of both the private sector, in the form of OutLearning and Syntell, and the public sector, in the form of the Services SETA, a pioneering initiative such as this would never have gotten off the ground. The disabled community can look forward to tailor-made learnership programmes that can increase their contribution to the mainstream economy,” concludes Moodley.

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• T-Systems

  T-Systems gets the GRANT side of Skills Levies right

  T-Systems coins R1.2 and R5.6m in recovery of its Skills Levy contribution. How did they do it? They balanced internal HR and training strategies with external innovation, closely matching IT industry and national imperative to increase skills levels… and get the maximum from available grants. The 1% of payroll companies are required to pay in terms of the Skills Development Levies Act can tot up to a hefty sum. Recovering a percentage of that money is entirely possible but few companies have managed to do so. T-Systems has… and its two-pronged strategy is instructive.

  “T-Systems, an IT outsourcer, operates in possibly one of the most competitive service spheres — one where the quality of available skills directly impacts the quality of service delivery,” says Mardia van der Walt-Korsten, HR director at the company: “HR at T-Systems is thus recognised as a strategic partner to business, as well as a change agent. The fact that we have outsourced our training to specialist training consultants Outlearning is a measure of the growth in complexity of effectively managing human capital, as well as an indication of the importance of training to T-Systems.”

  There are two over-riding priorities that Skills Development Levies Act seeks to address. The first is the ever-present reality of the global economy and the imperative to increase skills within the country to improve productivity and the competitiveness of its industry, business, commerce and services. The second is to address the challenges of an unequal society, to make this more inclusive and to encourage greater cohesion. T-Systems faced three challenges: its growth in under two years from a 100- to 1000- employee company, a dearth of ICT skills to match its demands, and a need to balance its staff complement in accordance with the equity and empowerment standards stipulated by government. The bottom line: not having the right skills and empowerment credentials was constraining its ability to win business. “We needed a comprehensive, inclusive strategy that would allow us to identify and develop our top tech and leadership skills in addition to fulfilling the criteria for future business requirements. We decided to let the experts do it for us and assigned the task to Outlearning,” says Korsten.

  Grant stipulations:

  According to the Act, in order to qualify for a grant (or recovery of a percentage of the levy paid), employers have to appoint a Skills Development Facilitator who is approved by the relevant Sector Education Training Authority. The Skills Development Facilitator is responsible for the development and planning of a firm’s or a group of firms’ skills development strategy. Outlearning took on this role for T-Systems.

  The grants are referred to as grants A, B, C and D. For the appointment and registration of a Skills Development Facilitator (Grant A) a company will be able to recover 15% of the levy paid. By preparing, submitting and obtaining approval from the SETA for a workplace skills plan (Grant B) a further 10% of the total levy payment can be recovered. Grant C, a further 20% of the total levy payment, can be recovered by preparing and submitting an annual training report based on the approved workplace skills plan. Finally, Grant D is a grant to the equivalent of 5% of the total levy payment made available by the relevant SETA to the employer for specific sector skills initiatives. “Outlearning put together a skills development strategy that was aligned with our business requirements, then implemented the strategy,” explains Korsten. “This allowed us to centralise all training requirements and set standards for approval of courses that matched the requirements of the National Qualifications Framework and the Sector Education Authorities.

  “In addition, they took over the measurement and monitoring of all training, as well as the vetting, negotiation with-, appointment and management of training service- and content providers. For their role in this — starting in 2002 — we have had a return of R1.2m in grants.” The criteria for grants A, B and C satisfied, Outlearning and T-Systems got to work on grant D, with T-Systems spearheading the development of an ICT Academy at Cida City Campus. Outlearning again played a large role here, creating and registering the learnership. “A learnership is a formal qualification registered by the country’s 25 Sector Education Training Authorities (Setas),” explains Outlearning director Susheila Moodley. “It combines formal classroom learning with opportunities to practice that knowledge in a working environment, thereby establishing a level of competence.SARS supports the skills development act by offering a R50 000 incentive to encourage companies to take on learners.

  T-Systems in partnership with DEG, a German Investment and Development Company, invested an initial R4 million to be used for the necessary hardware, software, administration, purchasing of manuals, project management and exams. A consortium comprising TSystems, SAP Public Services, Espial, CompTIA, Cisco Systems, Sun Microsystems and Outlearning, all lent their expertise to provide the basis for the curriculum and supply certification to the students. These companies will in turn be in a position to pick those students that graduate from the Academy for employment within their organisation. The first batch of 117 students, sourced from the existing second third and fourth year students currently doing their Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree at CIDA, is about to embark a five-week hands-on practical experience at T-Systems and other companies. “The first intention of the Academy is to build a pool of skilled individuals and ultimately job creation,” says Wolfgang Jakob, CEO of T-Systems SA. “The consortium expects to see immediate benefits from the Academy by establishing a knowledge base for inclusion in their respective organisations, having access to additional capacity and competencies.” For their role in this, T-Systems and its partners will receive a R5.8m rebate from SARS, a figure they will reinvest in further training initiatives.

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• Women in Business

  Women are defining their own roles in business
  By Susheila Moodley

  “More women are choosing to open doors for themselves in the business environment by changing the rules, following their own vision and fulfilling roles they define for themselves,” says Susheila Moodley, director of OutLearning, a woman-owned, 100% BEE outsourced training, services and project management company with a R65-million turnover.

  “It’s not about competing in a man’s world: that’s fast becoming an outdated concept. It’s about using your accumulated skills, experience and knowledge and applying the creativity and ingenuity that an entrepreneurial mindset presents you with to exploit an identified, lucrative business opportunity.

  “Being an entrepreneur means you have decided to make your own way, write your own cheque and fulfil your own vision in terms of your abilities, intellectual needs and the quality of life you desire. But it is not easy — you take the knocks and you sweat blood for every inch of paint on that luxury vehicle.” Hard work, a skilled team and a penchant for innovation is what has allowed OutLearning to succeed. In five years the company has grown to a 55-person, R65-million turnover business delivering outsourced training services to the likes of MNET and IT outsourcer, T-Systems. “One of out first major successes was creating a workable learnership model for MNET from what was at the time no more than a regulatory outline of the newly issued Skills Levy Act from the Department of Labour.

  “We just sat down and said: ‘here’s how it will work best’. It did, it was the first time it had been done, and the result of that success has put us in a specialist position, which has brought us numerous business opportunities.” OutLearning has thus established itself as an authority in the field of learnership design, development, implementation and management.

  Business is Business

  A survey of woman business owners in 14 countries, including SA, was conducted by the National Foundation for Women Business Owners (NFWBO) and sponsored by IBM. “Women’s entrepreneurship is expanding around the world. The growing economic power and influence of women-owned businesses are changing the shape of the global economy,” says NFWBO Director of Research Julie Weeks. “Research into the challenges and contributions of women business owners is thus of increasing importance.” The research shows that the primary concerns of women business owners internationally are a blend of day-to-day internal business management issues and external factors. The top business management issues facing women business leaders include: maintaining business profitability (100%); finding and keeping quality employees (95%); managing cash flow (88%); obtaining more training in business management issues (81%).

  The top external issues affecting the growth and development of women-owned businesses internationally include: government business laws and policies (86%); the state of their country’s economy (81%); gaining access to technology (79%); access to capital for business growth (79%); development and expansion of infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, electricity; phones (74%); and political instability (70%). International business opportunities are also playing an increasingly important role for women business owners around the world, says the report. Four in ten (39%) of the women business leaders surveyed are currently involved in the international marketplace. Among those not yet involved in importing or exporting, nearly half (48%) say they will be likely to do so within the next three years.

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