IT shares in £200m training cash allocation

The government has recognized the importance of the IT sector by announcing a big new grant.  It is believed that the sector will share in a grant of £200m to be invested in new training facilities.

The investment, to be made over the next three years, is part of a wider move, signalled over the weekend by John Denham, secretary of state for innovation, universities and skills, that the government will focus attention on developing skills in a number of strategic sectors.

Official Government research shows that UK businesses will need an extra 160,000 extra IT staff by 2014. This is in addition to the 190,000 IT professionals identified by the report, Working Futures 2004-2014, needed to replace those currently working in IT, who will retire or otherwise leave the industry over the next seven years.

The money will come from existing further education budgets rather than additional funding. IT’s slice of the pie has yet to be announced. Denham is to arrange meetings next month with the industry-led sector skills councils, including E-Skills UK, to identify how the money should be invested.

Derrick Cameron, MD of IT firm Eximium which offers IT training as well as other IT services comments “Naturally, I’m delighted that the importance of investing in the future of IT is being recognized.  The sector is clearly important and will become even more important in the future.  There will be profound implications for the economy if training for the IT sector does not match its needs. Every part of the economy depends on the expertise of the UK’s IT professionals, and these plans to allocate more funds to help address the sector’s priority skills needs will be greatly welcomed by employers”.

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Is there a good time to resign?

With the news that David Davis has joined an ever growing list of people that have resigned on a political matter of principle, it’s hard not to wonder what drives a person to those lengths.  As both a businessman and an IT professional, I can’t help debating when we should simply accept what our employers, customers and colleagues are doing as just the way it is, whether we agree with it or not, and when it’s time to take drastic action and say ‘if you want it like this, you can do it without me’.

Voting with your feet certainly makes a statement, and shows you have strong principles, but couldn’t it also be seen as simply giving up?  If so, when is an issue big enough to warrant this kind of action without creating the wrong sort of whispers once you’ve gone?

In the world of IT and business change, particularly in larger organisations, we all come across some ridiculous things. Timescales are set that can never be achieved, changes are planned that are clearly never going to work, and the approach taken to projects is sometimes quite obviously inappropriate or unethical.  It’s become customary for us to accept the latest crazy scheme as the norm.  But are there some golden rules that we shouldn’t allow to be broken? Are there times when we should be taking a stand and making it clear that we don’t agree with what’s happening by opting out, just as Mr Davis and others like him have done?  And, if we do that, would it be viewed as an honourable gesture or would it create the reputation of someone who doesn’t see things through?

In my view, these are quite complicated questions to answer. Having witnessed several departures of this sort, and been the escapee myself on a few occasions, I think there are a number of factors at play.

It all seems to start with 5 main questions:

1. Is something about this situation going against either my core values or my belief system?
2. How bad is it really going to be for me if I just put up with what’s going on?
3. What are the ramifications for everyone else, and the project in hand, if I go?
4. Does being involved in this cause me more grief than the problems walking away from it could potentially cause me?
5. Is my leaving defensible - could I explain it to future customers or employers and would it sound like I did the right thing?

After these points, there are other things to consider, like peer pressure.  Many of the bad situations I’ve found myself in have been cases where everyone else thinks it’s bad too, but most of them have stayed to see it through. So you feel a certain pressure to stay yourself, and that it can’t be all that bad if they’re all willing to carry on.

I think it’s partly about how comfortable you are with yourself and where your self-esteem comes from.  If your self-esteem is partly based on how others perceive you, which is certainly true in my case, then walking out of any situation is not top of your list - what will people say when you’ve gone?  However, if you’re generally not that concerned with what people think about you, as long as you know you’ve done the right thing, then you’re free to make the decision that suits you best.

There’s also the nature of the engagement to think about. During my time as a freelance IT consultant, I must admit that I was much less inclined to leave a project just because I didn’t like it. I always felt that reputation was everything, and I didn’t want to burn any bridges, so I wouldn’t want to upset my customer or create the wrong impression amongst my colleagues. However, it must be said that, if you don’t truly believe in what you’re doing, what quality of service are you really providing, and what impression is that creating?

With a permanent position, things are a little different. You’re not normally thinking of going back there, and it doesn’t matter so much what people around you are thinking, so you’re a little freer to do what you feel is right.

Another factor is how high profile the role or project is. In the case of Mr Davis’ departure, the profile doesn’t really come much higher!  But, even if it is high, that can work to your advantage. The PR it might generate for you could be invaluable, if you’re in a situation that goes against popular opinion.

With our work taking up such a high percentage of our lives it makes sense to enjoy what we do. If a task becomes too onerous or problematic, is it best to try and stick at it or is the sensible thing to do to give up and go and do something else that you’ll enjoy more? I guess the answer is that the reward needs to be great enough at the end for it to be truly worth putting yourself through something that you’re not really enjoying.

Of course, it’s good to be challenged. It keeps us on our toes, ensures we continue to learn, and makes success that much more fulfilling. But, too much stress is a bad thing. It can reduce your effectiveness, affect your health, and leaves you feeling drained and exhausted during the precious time you spend with family and friends. If a situation is too stressful, you have to know when to draw the line before it makes you ill.

Having the courage to take action is also a key part of the decision - it’s much easier just to carry on.  I met a business owner recently who backed away from his biggest customer because he wasn’t getting the most profitable work from them, and the relationship was time-consuming and difficult. I asked him how he’d got on since then and he said he’s never looked back. He’s happier, the business is making more money, and he has more time to spend on growing his business.

Someone once told me how best to deal with today’s pressing issues. Take a step away and look at the journey you’ve made to date. Consider all the things that have gone before in your life to get you to this point. Think of the obstacles you’ve overcome, the low points, and how they’ve often led to great transformations. Only then think of where you are now and the issues you are currently dealing with. This process helps put perspective on the current problems and it usually makes them seem insignificant.  I think this process also helps enormously when we’re considering whether backing away from a customer, resigning from a permanent job, or terminating a great contract is the right thing to do. It might seem like the biggest decision we’ve ever made at the time, but it probably isn’t if we look back at what’s gone before in our lives.

Mr Davis and others like him, whether you agree with his views in this case or not, are to be commended for taking a stand. We should all learn from their example and try and lead work lives on our terms, that are a better reflection of who we are and where we really want to be.

Derrick Cameron is Managing Director of Eximium Ltd, a business IT solutions provider that specialise in helping business people get more benefit out of their IT systems, by using them to solve their business headaches. He can be contacted on 01582 635 078 or via their website at www.eximium.net.

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The right recruitment company is the key to finding the right candidate

Recruiting new staff is a headache that all business people have to face at one time or another. This is why recruitment consultants exist – to take the headache out of the situation for you. But do they?

I recently read an article that, whilst aimed at candidates and employers, reinforced everything that we believe about our service. It was great to hear that others share the same views.

Matthew Poyiadgi, Vice President of EMEA at the Computer Technology Industry Association (CompTIA), suggests that the issues that employees and employers face when using recruitment companies, such as submitting inappropriate candidates for jobs, can be combated by ensuring that your recruitment consultant knows exactly what you are looking for.

This is the thinking that underpins our recruitment philosophy: you can only provide employers with the right type of candidate if you firstly understand exactly what the employer is looking for, and secondly, understand what the candidates’ skills are. We do this by providing IT recruitment using recruitment consultants who currently work in the IT industry, so we know what we are talking about – you won’t find us trying to provide specialist plumbers because we don’t know anything about plumbing!

As his article is aimed at candidates and employers, Matthew says that the onus is on them to ensure that their consultant has enough information to find them the right job or candidate. As the recruitment company, we have taken on this responsibility ourselves, as we also believe that it is also up to the consultant to find this information out, otherwise how can they provide an acceptable service? It is easy to just supply CVs for candidates that have keywords somewhere within the text of the CV without understanding what those keywords are, but in order to provide a truly suitable candidate, you need to understand what the keywords mean and what the employer is looking for, whether that is a qualification or some specific business experience.

Whilst many recruitment companies claim to provide a specialist service, very few of their consultants have worked in the sector they are recruiting for, let alone still currently work in that sector. We actually provide these skills so can provide both candidates and employers with a better service. If you would like more information on our recruitment service, please go to www.eximium.net/recruitment.asp

To read Matthew’s full article see www.computing.co.uk/computing/analysis/2217560/perfect-match-4019770

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Eximium selected by Total Systems plc as IT recruitment partner

IT recruitment specialists Eximium are delighted to announce that they have been selected by Total Systems plc to undertake their IT recruitment provision.

The city based software house decided to sign a recruitment contract with Eximium after being impressed by their expertise in the IT recruitment field.

Total Systems plc was founded in 1971 and employs over 50 staff. They specialise in the area of insurance software and have created several products targeting the Finance sector. The company was admitted to the main LSE in 1995.

“We are delighted that Total Systems have chosen us to help them expand their already excellent team. Because we are IT experts ourselves, it makes it easy for us understand their needs, and to provide very effective selection, interviewing and vetting services, to get the right candidates for them, saving them both time and money” comments Derrick Cameron, Eximium’s Technical Director.

“I am impressed with Eximium’s interview reports - I wish all the agencies we use supplied such good information” says Clive Dutton, Operations Director for Total Systems plc.

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