Addressing the growing industry needs for qualified manpower ICT/BPO Raj Nijhawan, Managing Director, Appletree (Mauritius)

OUTLOOK Fragility and uncertainty of the global economic environment BPO sector is demonstrating resilience towards growth BPO sector as the key pillar of the Mauritian economy Expecting a rise of 8% in GDP by 2015 Rise in GDP, retrieved from Board of investment website:

OUTLOOK Source: Board of investment, Central Statistics Office

KEY WEAKNESS Shortage of local skilled manpower Source: IBS, Growth of ICT Sector FDI in Mauritius

ELEMENTS Shortage of Skilled Manpower Skill-set mismatch existing in emerging BPO/ICT sector Skilled individuals seek “greener” pastures and “higher” paying jobs abroad

SKILLS GAP Skill-set mismatch existing in emerging BPO/ICT sector Skills exceeding job requirements Lack of qualification & experience Foreign labour has to be looked for to ensure that the sector continues to grow Resulting in

SKILLS GAP (Align with industry requirements) Lack of qualification and experience Skills exceeding job requirements SECONDARY SCHOOL CURRICULUM AND TERTIARY COURSES Cater for the existing and growing labour market needs

Career Guidance & advocacy Courses Curriculum to align with industry needs Retention Strategy Continuous Training Encourage students to tune their academic pathways to the requirements of the ICT/BPO world through career fair. Academic institutions to align training programme/courses to meet industry needs Organisations to keep up with emerging industry trends and provide skill- development training Organisations should design effective retention strategies for skilled workers STRATEGIES AND INTERVENTIONS

Thank You ICT/BPO and academia should appeal for a collective policy to sustain an inspired industry growth… ~ Raj Nijhawan