Financial Times

IT work force 20,000-strong and growing
By Akhry Ameer
Sri Lanka recorded a healthy 20,276 strong ICT (Information Communication Technology) workforce by the end of last year having grown by 30% over 2003 according to a national ICT workforce survey released recently.

The first-ever comprehensive survey to assess the human resource potential in the much-talked about ICT industry seems to be 'falling into place', according to a sponsor of the survey.

In the specific area of IT software development and related services where the larger slice of export revenue is expected, the survey made certain the number of employees as 9,000 doubling figures earlier approximated by industry professionals. "We have titled the report 'Geared for Growth' indicating the outcome of the study. It shows the industry is falling into place. Though there is still a shortfall, the graduate supply is increasing. We would like policy-makers and the industry to take note of the findings and move forward," said T.I. Jamaldeen, Programme Specialist of USAID funded The Competitiveness Program (TCP), one of the primary sponsors of the survey.

According to the survey Sri Lanka needs to meet a growing demand of over 5,000 IT professionals a year. This comprises staff in one of 12 categories directly related to IT functions in organizations supplying IT services and other organizations where IT is a support function. The categorization was based on a similar annual survey conducted by the IT Association of America.

Yet another notable finding of the survey was in the area of training which perhaps explains the inability to increase the supply of IT graduates. Currently demand exists for over 120 lecturers with more than three years of experience in degree awarding institutions. Further, an even greater number of IT trainers are required among the numerous private non-degree awarding institutions island wide. While training takes place at all levels of educational qualifications, there is no training at Ph.D. level.

The survey, however, did not include the newly growing IT Enabled Services (ITES) workforce, as their main job function does not involve producing IT related products and services. This had been deliberately omitted as their day-to-day usage of IT services for outsourced business processing services is routine, and could be trained by the organizations themselves.

MG Consultants that conducted the survey concluded that there is an 'overall air of stability in the IT workforce'. Commenting on the Rs. 1.2 million survey, Jamaldeen said it was the start of information gathering for future planning and informed decision; and it was up to the industry to move forward. He also praised the Sri Lanka Information and Communications Technology Association (SLICTA), the apex body representing the local IT associations for its initiative to sell the 'Geared for Growth' report with the aim of carrying out similar surveys annually without dependence on donor agencies. The report is priced at Rs. 5,000. The TCP was joined by US based IT Mentors Alliance as primary sponsors of the survey. The World Information Technology Services Alliance (WITSA) contributed technical assistance to validate the survey instrument.

The survey sample was categorized into ICT Supplier, ICT User and Public Sector organization to obtain a comprehensive finding. A 58% return rate accounting for 359 questionnaires from the sample of 628 organizations were used to conclude the survey. The original sample comprised 130 ICT Supplier, 380 ICT User and 118 Public Sector organizations.

In the separate Training Organization sample to study the supply to the workforce, a 69% return rate accounting for 75 training organizations was recorded from the 108 organizations that were sent questionnaires. These institutions included universities, degree and non-degree awarding private institutions and government technical colleges.

The last known estimate of the IT workforce was presented in a 2001 survey report by the Computer Society of Sri Lanka. This reported a figure of 6,000 for the year 1999.

Geared for Growth

IT workforce in Sri Lanka as at end 2004 was 20,276, a 30% growth over 2003.
Female population in the IT industry is growing albeit slowly and is at 22% of the workforce. The proportion of female IT workers in the public sector is 27%.
ICT product and service suppliers employ 47%, while ICT users employ 44% leaving the public sector with 9% of the total IT workers.
Overall attrition rate of the workforce has dropped from 19% in 1999 to 6.6%.
A good compensation plan is essential to retain IT workers at any level of experience.
Demand for IT workers is 5,724 in 2005 and 5034 in 2006.
Around 4,300 graduates are required by the industry in 2005, while supply is just over 3,600.
Employers find that essential soft skills are deficient in new recruits.
Starting salary of an IT worker is approx. Rs. 20,000. The capacity to earn increased to a higher rate if in the ICT Supplier sector.

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