A communiqué remitted to our editorial office by the most representative IT sector association in Romania sounds the alarm: shortage of specialists could lead to a blockage in the growth of the most dynamic industry in Romania. The Government just about to be sworn in but also those that will succeed it should take into account the association’s opinions.
According to the Association of Software and IT Services Industry Employers (ANIS), the software and IT services industry’s projected turnover growth stands at 11 per cent over the next 3 years. Against the backdrop in which the industry’s turnover continues to be generated mostly in the services area, ANIS’s estimates show that the average growth rate could surpass 20 per cent provided there are sufficient resources available.
The main factor that blocks the Romanian software industry’s faster development consists of the availability of human resources; the number of graduates from technical institutions is too small compared to the market demand and their competences are limited to what they can assimilate during their university courses.
“Companies constantly announce employment plans for short to medium-term periods (1-3 years); if we take into account these public announcements alone, the estimates for next year for instance surpass 5,000 new job openings in large companies alone. The final number will very likely approach 9-10,000,” according to Valerica Dragomir, ANIS Executive Director.
The annual number of technical profile graduates does not surpass 7,000, with an absorption rate of 100 per cent on the labour market. In these conditions, the higher technical education system is not able to cover the demand and the companies compensate the shortage by attracting employees with different skills that are complementary to technical skills.
The ways through which the industry is trying to address the difference between offer and demand are some of the most varied – from internship programmes to scholarships, internal training programmes, summer schools, coding events and competitions, as well as short-term training programmes whose goal is to prepare employees for entry-level positions.
In order to meet the companies’ preoccupations, the talks taking place within ANIS concern the Association’s involvement in several types of initiatives – short- and medium-term retraining programmes, involvement in defining short-term formal higher education programmes and, last but not least, supporting the growth of enrolment figures for technical specialties.
ANIS represents the interests of Romanian IT companies, supports the development of the Romanian software and IT services industry and the growth of companies involved in outsourcing project and of those that generate intellectual property by creating products.
The Association was set up in 1998 and currently has over 120 members, which include Romanian and foreign companies, small companies as well as MNCs, with headquarters in all of the country’s large IT centres, which gives the Association nation-wide representativeness. For more information, visit www.anis.ro.