Technology

Lanka's varsities produce higher standard IT professionals

by Gamini WARUSHAMANA

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The quality of IT professionals who pass out from Sri Lanka's universities is of the highest standard, said International Sales Manager British Computer Society (BCS) Graham E Morris.

Morris was the Guest of Honour at the BCS graduation ceremony at the BMICH last week. He said Sri Lankan students won world awards at the BCS graduation which is an extraordinary achievement. Here are excerpts from his interview with the Sunday Observer.

BCS formerly established its Colombo office in 1996. Even prior to that we held BCS examinations in Sri Lanka.

During the past few years BCS has achieved a rapid growth and there is a 32% increase in BCS membership and a 10% annual growth in the number of students who sit professional examinations.

There is a huge potential to expand our programs in Sri Lanka and new opportunities are emerging in the North and East of the country. However, we still have no official program for the North and East.

But there are registrations and students follow these courses and we deal with them through our Colombo contacts.

BCS is a Chartered organisation established in 1957 and we support the IT industry and IT professionals worldwide. Today BCS is working in 100 countries. There are over 67,000 BCS members worldwide and Sri Lanka has 4,150 members, the highest grouping outside the UK.

BCS promotes good quality work and professionalism in the IT industry. Apart from that we have many educational programs. We have simple educational programs such as typing, e-typing for the keyboard. We have an International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL), a course which provides a simple and effective way of using IT in general.

Three levels

In addition we also have the professional graduate program where students graduated in Sri Lanka last week. In that program there are three levels which effectively allow them to reach an honours degree level.

This qualification is recognised in the UK marketplace and 16 universities in the UK accept the BSc (Hons) equivalent qualification for second degree or master's degree programs. In Sri Lanka, the University of Moratuwa, Colombo and Kelaniya recognise the BCS qualification for the master's degree programs.

This is a very effective qualification and there is a huge demand among IT professionals in Sri Lanka and the world.

These are the qualifications which we are looking to develop in association with the government, other training providers and professional software houses in Sri Lanka so that the IT profession in Sri Lanka can grow and mature in the Sri Lankan market

Compared to your neighbour India. Sri Lanka is some years behind in the field. But still Sri Lanka can develop the IT field in the specialised area of software development.

IT is a very young profession compared to other professions such as accounting and law. Therefore, quality standards of the industry have to be developed. We provide quality education and training and have huge networking opportunities for BCS members.

We have 65 specialist groups such as project management, women and IT green IT. It allows the professionals to share their views with our internationally renowned members as well as professionals at the same level.

Today IT touches every single part of our lives. The car you drive has IT and if that does not work, you will not be happy with the software we use.

One issue we face today is some early software we still use has not been tested properly. If we develop a product and put it into the market without testing and without a standard it creates many problems. That is not acceptable in the IT profession.

To maintain the standards in the software profession, BCS carries out various programs. In education we regularly review our syllabi and have university professors working with us while BCS also deals with the industry.

World bodies

We have world bodies which set standards for areas such as IT service management and software testing. BCS always works with the industry, professionals and markets where people are demanding new products.

BCS is very keen on the changes that are taking place in the market.

Markets are changing very fast with the technology improvements. For instance, the SMS text messaging was invented in 1992, 16 years ago. But until 2001, it was not commonly used because the mobile phones were not popular. However, in the recent past the mobile phone market grew rapidly and today there are billions of people who communicate through text messages.

BCS has offered several concessions for students. Four years ago we reduced the BCS membership fees by 50% for Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan.

For professional examinations we try to keep the price as low as possible. We have reduced the online testing fee and offer three-year membership for full-time students. In the future, students will be able to pay fees in local currency and avoid the impact of exchange rate fluctuations. We have shown our commitment to the marketplace.

Sala Enterprises - 'Overall Winner at Infotel 2008'

Sala Enterprises, the leader in introducing innovative products to Sri Lanka was adjudged the Overall Winner at Infotel 2008.

The award covers many criteria which include innovation, stall presentation, communication and product presentation.

The company has diversified into various products and services and has established itself in the industry as one of the leading IT providers to the nation.

Sala is proud to add yet another to its collection of awards. The secret behind the company's success is introducing innovative products to Sri Lanka at an affordable price to the average Sri Lankan. Today Sala Enterprises represents several leading brands of computer peripherals and communication products.

In the near future Sala will focus on providing better IT based solutions as well as Internet protocol based solutions.

Lanka continues as a growing market for HP

HP recently reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to Sri Lanka through specialised business programs and initiatives to leverage on the latest consumer and business trends.

"HP is set to continue delivering what consumers in Sri Lanka want as we continue to take advantage of the latest shifts and trends of the market," said Ng Tian Chong, Vice President, South East Asia/Taiwan, HP Personal Systems Group.

"It is a rapidly emerging and growing marketplace, and with our end-to-end expertise in consumer and business devices and solutions across all segments, HP is well-poised to remain as the technology partner of choice here," he said. HP is committed to capture key opportunities in Sri Lanka by: * Expanding on its broad portfolio of products and solutions; * Driving the Best Customer Experience at Retail; * Continued push towards mobility.

As the leader in lifestyle and professional computing, HP offers the broadest portfolio of products and solutions to deliver personal and professional computing solutions for customers in SEAT.

The products are highly personal, always-connected for consumers on the move, at home and at work. HP has its ear-to-the-ground, listening to customers, trendsetters for a clear understanding of market trends and key customer drivers that re-defines the personal computing experience.

Bharti Airtel Lanka signs IT management agreement with IBM

Bharti Airtel Lanka, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel Limited - one of the leading telecom companies has entered into an agreement with IBM to manage its comprehensive IT infrastructure and application requirements for the Sri Lanka market.

The agreement forms part of Airtel's innovative business model based on outsourcing of IT and Networks to achieve business leadership through enhanced performance and efficiencies.

The agreement takes into account the consolidation, transformation and management of comprehensive IT infrastructure and applications of Bharti Airtel Lanka (Pvt) Ltd by IBM Sri Lanka, and also includes customer facing applications such as billing and customer relationship management (CRM).

"We are delighted to further strengthen our relationship with IBM.

The creation of the IT Community of Practice with IBM in 2004 has led to one of the fastest integrations of IT anywhere in the globe," said Dr Jai Menon, Director Bharti Airtel and Group CIO, Bharti Enterprises.

"This agreement for our operations in Sri Lanka is the extension of the utility computing model that has successfully managed unprecedented growth from seven million to 70 million customers for Airtel in India.

The partnership will continue to consolidate, manage and deliver business process transformation that will drive innovation and enhance value for all our users in Sri Lanka."