Tech jobs: More skills needed
The question of the tech sector creating or destroying jobs is a complex one. But there is a strong case for schools and tertiary institutions to place greater emphasis on computer-dominated careers
Manyowa Nong has hired 30 or so employees in the two years since creating a start-up that helps minibus taxi owners to track and monitor vehicles via a mobile device. His app has helped taxi owners by preventing drivers from taking unreported trips and pocketing the earnings. Nong added jobs through a call centre he opened, as well as with a number of installers and a sales team. Yet his company, MobifyTracker, is probably one of the exceptions when it comes to tech start-ups. Most create very few jobs. In addition, a large number of tech companies are likely to destroy jobs in the country when they disrupt traditional sectors. Three incubation or business acceleration programmes sampled by the Financial Mail create, at best, between 2.5 and 5.5 jobs per firm a year. A 2015 survey, by start-up news site Ventureburn, of about 200 SA tech start-ups revealed that just 3% employ more than 10 people. In the US, a report in The Wall Street Journal in October last year noted that employmen...
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