I have just provided the following article to CIO magazine, which resulted in interviews with a number of others on how to promote ICT governance in organisations.

Click here to read it on the CIO NZ Magazine site

I am please to say that it has also been picked up by the following publications – proof that ICT governance is a topic which is of interest worldwide:

• Computerworld India
• IT World Canada
• Computerworld Norway

Registrations for ILX’s upcoming PRINCE2 seminar hosted in Wellington on 11^th November 2010 6-7pm are closing soon.

• Are you looking to enhance your project management capabilities?
• Are you looking for the right project management methodology for your organisation?
• Do you want to know more about PRINCE2 before you commit to a course?

If so come and learn what PRINCE2, the world’s most successful project management methodology, can do for you.

How to Register

To take advantage of this great opportunity, register now online at no cost – there are limited places remaining so don’t delay!

NZ Wellington Seminar Nov 2010 Information

http://blog.prince2.com/2010/07/top-15-iphone-apps-for-project-managers/

Tuesday 11th May 2010 -

ILX Group plc, the best practice training company, today announced that it has won a major global contract to help KCA DEUTAG, a major international drilling contractor, to deliver project management training across 22 countries. ILX will host a secure e-learning platform to deliver both the APM Introductory Certificate in Project Management and PRINCE2® Foundation and Practitioner courses to remote geographic locations such as the arctic conditions in Siberia and Kazakhstan and offices based in the deserts of the Middle East and North Africa. Read more …

Those companies who have been shortsighted and let staff go that they should have retained, or who have made the life of their IT contractors or staff uncomfortable during the last few months may be in for a few sleepless nights as they figure out how to retain and attract resources going forward.

This article in infotech today tells the story.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/3621039/Shortage-in-Australian-IT-skills-threat-to-projects

For further reading on this topic, follow the links below:

The IT Skills Shortage – It’s Back!

http://www.ilxgroup.com/iseb-foundation-softwaretesting-elearning.asp

What is it?
A fully interactive multimedia based course designed for Companies and Individuals wishing to achieve Foundation level certification in the ISEB/ISTQB Foundation qualification.

Who is it for?
The ISEB Foundation Level qualification is aimed at anyone involved in software testing and includes people in roles such as testers, test analysts, test engineers, test consultants, test managers, user acceptance testers and software developers.

This Foundation level qualification is also appropriate for anyone who wants a basic understanding of software testing, such as project managers, quality managers, software development managers, business analysts, IT directors and management consultants. Holders of the Foundation Certificate will be able to go on to a higher level software testing qualification. Exams can be taken at a Prometrics Testing Centre.

http://cio.co.nz/cio.nsf/depth/DFC18A4D92BDED3ECC2576AF006BF91B

According to the story and recruitment and human resource outsourcing specialists Robert Walters, “the Asia Pacific is currently experiencing what is likely to be the fastest turnaround in the IT recruitment market in history. This is particularly evident in markets such as Hong Kong and Singapore, where job opportunities available through Robert Walters in IT have more than doubled in the last six months.”

The article contains a warning to employers that they need to constantly examine compensation models “to make sure they are being calibrated with a fast-moving market in order to stay competitive”.  They also need to prepare for a shortage of talent and examine how they plan to attract and then keep senior people.

In the New Zealand market last year I think we had two issues that affected the roles for IT professionals:

1. The recession
2. The change of Government, line by line reviews for government agencies and ,much overdue for some, reorganisation.

Private sector organisations, apart from consultancy companies were of course mainly affected by the recession.

The CIO article makes the point that banks are leading the hiring recovery and that  ”the level of hiring going on currently is competitive and bringing up compensation levels quickly, especially at the VP level.”

The Government sector has been slow to recover.  Some government agencies “froze” for some months; not helped, I suspect, by a  lack of direction by central government, and a lack of  IT governance knowledge.  This put, and continues to put, major pressure on the IT industry in Wellington. The issue is when the work to be done is prioritied which companies and contractors will still be around to complete it? 

Already the 2010 year has started off much more boyantly than 2009. It is as if organisations woke up just before Christmas and decided that their legacy systems did still need to be replaced, that they did need to add value to the business through new systems and processes, and that citizens still deserved to see efficencies in government, enabled by IT. In fact this investment will make them more competitive and better able to ride out the turbulent next few years.

I remain optimistic that if the right people engage on government-wide education, and then co-ordination of IT governance then we can meet both government and private sector goals for cost savings and IT enablement at a much quicker pace (see http://www.maxsys.co.nz/?p=517 by what we mean by IT Governance).  Of course, we at Maxsys can help with this.

So where will this lead us skills-wise. Well, I direct you back to the article written in 2005. I believe it still holds true and will do for many years to come.

A survey released by the NZICT Group found that NZ ICT companies continue to suffer from a skills shortage, despite the recession.

The survey had more than 100 respondents and found that more than 50% of companies are planning to appoint technical staff, but 83% stated that the difficulties recruiting qualified, skilled and experienced staff is having a medium to major effect on business.

http://www.techday.co.nz/itbrief/news/ict-skills-shortage-for-nz-businesses/7037/

In 2005 I wrote a paper, along with then colleague Robert Sutcliffe discussing the IT skills shortage and some measures that could be taken by industry and by Government to lessen the impact.

Here is a link to a blog post on the topic and our original paper:

http://www.maxsys.co.nz/?p=204

Some of the things that we suggested as possible ways to redress the issue were to offer fees scholarships for IT study, or to give a period of tax breaks in certain key skills shortage areas. Lower tertiary fees for IT study is also an option.

We also talked of targeting school students with information about IT career options well before Year 11 given that many students are making career choices in late primary school and very early secondary school.

Collaboration between tertiary institutions, government and industry is also high on the list. 

Much is yet to be done in this area, and after reading the previous post and paper, if you have any comments on the issue or any ideas to put forward on how to help please list them below:

In addition to the above, I am getting increasingly concerned about what we are teaching our primary and secondary school students that might help with an IT Career (recent Government initiatives may help with this), and whether we are teaching them in the most appropriate way to facilitate both girls and boys’ learning.

A recent study in New Zealand raises major concerns that our education system is failing boys and not meeting their learning needs. This will lead to major socio and economic issues in the near future.  The following article makes for some serious reading: http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/765563. It indicates that by 2025 three times more women than men will graduate from New Zealand tertiary institutions.

Murray

Maxsys is an exam invigilator for ILX.

The professional Programme and Project Sponsorship (PPS) qualification has been developed specifically for Senior Responsible Owners (SROs) and Sponsors or Executives of programmes and projects and it is really needed. It is all very well implementing a project management methodology within an organisation, but if your project sponsors do not understand where what their responsibilities are then you will have issues.

The course is ideal taken as an elearning course, as executives can undertake the study when it suits them and at their own pace. The course is designed to take approximately 6-8 study hours.

Here is a link to the PPS (Programme and Project Sponsorship) course material.

http://cf.ilxgroup.com/demos/ppsdemo/default.htm

The qualification is based on OGC Best Practice Guidance and combines leadership ability with PPM skills.

The PPS syllabus has been split into four separate units to offer flexible half-day training modules:
• The role of the sponsor
• The sponsor working with people
• Identifying and establishing a programme/project
• The delivery journey.

The syllabus is methodology independent and uses generic terms as far as possible. However, it is assumed that candidates are familiar with Office of Government Commerce (OGC) Best Practice Guidance. Candidates should also be, or aspire to become, Programme and Project Sponsors, also known as SROs/Project Executives. These are typically at management or senior level in their organisations who often have responsibility for several programmes or projects.

What do SROs and Project Sponsors in the real world think about the need for training?

According to ILX, 83% of SROs polled believed that training in how to understand the role of the SRO; programme management language; and how to lead in a programme environment, would all have been useful when they first took on the role, according to a survey conducted by Moorhouse Consultancy.

The ILX Programme and Project Sponsorship e-learning course can be delivered via:

• CD – delegates can study anywhere, anytime, without the need for Internet access
• Corporate network – staff access the course on a shared network drive
• Intranet – staff access the e-learning course as a link on your Intranet
• Hosted Internet – ILX host the course so delegates can study anywhere at any time

Click here to find out more from the ILX site.