A learnership programme launched five years ago by managed services provider, AppCentrix, is proving valuable in response to the urgent need to develop critical ICT skills and contributing to youth employment.
A recent study by McKinsey, The Future of Work in South Africa, highlights the need for digitisation, productivity and job creation. The paper focuses on the elements of digitisation, machine learning and automation and draws on key findings and insights from McKinsey’s research on the future of work in an age of rapid technology adoption – both in South Africa and around the globe.
The AppCentrix learnership programme was designed to help and equip interns with insights and practical experience on how to work and execute real projects, understand and interpret data for decision making as well as understand the architecture of an IT infrastructure.
“Whilst our programme is only a small example of how companies can make an impact to bridge the skills divide, we’re proud to have successfully trained more than 50 learners so far. Our approach enables our interns to grow their competence and hone their skills. These skills are in demand and required by businesses in the job market. We are proud to have recently employed a further two interns to take on positions of IT Operator and Junior Administrator,” said Tito Pereira, Chief Commercial Officer, at AppCentrix.
Morris Maruma, IT Operator at AppCentrix, commented: “I’ve learnt a lot through the theory content and practical experience from the learnership programme. When I was exposed to what AppCentrix does and the challenges that we had to work through as a team, that’s when my interest was captured. AppCentrix is all about teamwork, and I’m a big team player. I was so happy when I secured employment post my 12 months’ learnership programme”.
As Pereira points out, the learnership is a drop in the ocean when looking at the vast number of graduates that will be required to meet demand in the future. McKinsey estimates that tech-enabled jobs will require higher skills, resulting in demand
for an additional 1.7m graduates.
Humble beginnings are necessary, points out Pereira.
Zanele Khumalo, Junior Administrator, adds to this with her comment: “I’ve learnt a lot about end-user computing, communication skills and leadership skills through my learnership journey with AppCentrix. I love the fact that AppCentrix promotes educational growth through online courses, assigning different tasks and granting us the opportunity to come up with our own ideas, in turn allowing us to learn and grow. I’m glad to be part of the solution, when I got employed post my learnership programme, I couldn’t be more thrilled.”
AppCentrix is committed to developing critical skills through developing graduates in its learnership programme. The company received level one B-BBEE (broad-based black economic empowerment) certification in 2019 and has since maintained its position as a leading, black-empowered technology solutions partner in the managed services space.
“We view our learnership programme as a reflection of our own deep commitment to helping build a more inclusive ICT industry, providing opportunities for growth and prosperity, as well as uplifting skills in the areas of data science and artificial intelligence, where we provide services,” concludes Pereira.
About AppCentrix:
AppCentrix is a South African-based ICT services company offering locally developed solutions. Over a decade ago, the company started out by looking to provide solutions for clients wanting to have full visibility across their IT operations. Realising how difficult it was to span silos and provide a correlated view of devices, applications and infrastructure in a way that made sense to business leaders, they sought out the best technologies and high-end solutions. In doing so, a comprehensive managed service, SmartICT, was created. Follow AppCentrix on LinkedIn