16/08/2008 ICT: Strategies for Developing the Nation
The service year started at a crawling pace but towards the ending, we couldn't believe how fast things flew by. Just as the batch before us had
hosted their very own IT Seminar, so too were we obliged to host our own. And just as a parent would wish their offspring to surpass them in every
way possible, so too did we plan to make our Seminar the best till date. Did we succeed? I'd like to think so.
"a copy of the flyer that we handed
out to passer-bys for the seminar"
We used the same venue as the last seminar; the Center for IT & Sysems, at the University of Lagos. The date was August 16th, 2008, and it was an all
day event (9am to 5pm). It would feature guest speakers from leading IT firms like Microsoft, KPMG, Nokia, as well as volunteers from a Korean
internet initiative.
Chapter I: Road to the Seminar
Chapter II: The Seminar Begins
Chapter III: Funto Akinpute on Job Hunting
Chapter IV: Omatech Computers on Development
Chapter V: Inspiration from Nigeria Internet Group (NIG)
Chapter VI: Nokia's Kola on Developing Yourself
Chapter VII: KPMG's Gboye on Governance
Chapter VIII: Gbenga Sesan's Keynote
Chapter IX: An Interactive Session With NiPRO's Victor
Chapter X: Funto on Finding a Job in Africa
Chapter I: Road to the Seminar
It had been almost a year since the old batch had passed out and now that the NYSC phase had come full-circle, it was now our turn to plan and
execute the next InfoTech CD Group Annual Seminar.
Planning a seminar is no easy feat, there are several factors that needed to be taken into account. Factors such as logistics, publicity, decoration,
refreshments, sound production, fund raising, speaker sourcing etc. Each individual factor depended on one-another and had to be managed with care.
To this effect, a commitee was formed out of existing members of the CD group and were given the task of managing these factors to ensure that the
Seminar would be a success. I was put in charge of Publicity and along with other members of the Commitee, we set out to make the seminar a reality.
Each CD day thereafter, we would meet and deliberate on the various aspects of the Seminar. Yahoo! Groups and Messenger would become our
chosen medium for communicating thoughts and ideas. Within a couple of months everything was set and our fingers were crossed in hope and
anticipation as the Seminar day drew nearer and nearer.
Chapter II: The Seminar Begins
The seminar commenced at about 10:15am with a prayer from one of our own; Bolanle. The MC’s of this occasion were Bola and Ifeoma. We started
off by asking the invited schools (kids and teachers) to offer us some kind of feedback or criticism on the work we had done thus far in their schools.
Typical commends and criticisms included:
“the lectures don’t go in-depth or advanced enough”
“there aren’t any practical’s, only the theoretical aspects are covered”
“we want to learn more about software we can use, like MS Office”
Besides the minor criticism, they all thanked the InfoTech CD group for helping them progress in the field of IT.
Message from the Chairman
The chairman of the occasion, Dasola Oluge gave his opening remark. He reminded us on the theme of the seminar, on how much we utilize computer
technology in our day to day operations, and how much it was crucial in the development of our nation. He explained how the Seminar would benefit
both those invited for the seminar (speakers, guests and schools) as well as those that hosted it (the InfoTech CD group). After the chairman’s
message, we launched the Seminar by singing the Nigerian National Anthem, as well as the NYSC Anthem.
The Coordinator's Remark
Our CD coordinator; Mr Afe took to the floor to give a welcoming remark. He voiced his appreciation to the large turnout, especially to all the schools
for coming. The Seminar was on a Saturday, a day of rest and relaxation for most of the school kids but instead they chose to be with us on that day so
that we could all learn from one another. Finally, he welcomed each and everyone to the event.
The President's Road Map
The InfoTech President; Ugochukwu Nwosu took to the floor and gave a road map of how the CD group has progressed thus far. He explained how in
2001, a group of like-minded Nigerian’s came together to form the InfoTech CD group. They all had IT backgrounds and were serving in IT industry.
They felt obliged to do some real community development and didn’t want to just come for CD to talk and sign their CD cards.
Chapter III: Funto Akinpute on Job Hunting
Funto is a representative of Find a Job in Africa. When he took to the floor he asked us some pretty interesting questions and made some thought
provoking statements:
What are you doing now to contribute to your skill acquisition?
This question was a direct reference to our constant pursuit of knowledge. In the IT industry new technologies are being released and updated daily
and it's crucial to keep up with current events, not just for the sake of being able to confidently discuss about these technologies but also to be able
to apply them on the job. More formal ways of skill acquisition involve getting certified in an IT course such as software development and network
engineering.
What will make you marketable?
Funto explained to us that as a company creates a product and tries to market it to consumers, so too does a prospective employee have to market
themselves to employers. The employee takes up the role of both the product/service and the marketer, while the employer becomes the customer.
In this case, the product are the services the employee can render for the employer. Marketing is a huge topic, all about product placement and
pitching. Your in full control of how you want yourself to be viewed, what features and perculiar personalities about you that you want to stand out,
and what skills you have acquired over the years that you feel has made you a the most suitable candidate for a particular job.
IT is a tool not a career, everyone should acquire the necessary skills!
He went on to talk about how IT should be viewed as a tool, through which a worker can meet their objectives more efficiently. To deny the fact that
IT has become a major part of the modern day business world would be a naive mistake. IT has become such a broad term that its reach encompasses
most if not all the major commercial industries. The Financial Industry use it to manage user accounts, the Oil & Gas Industry use it to log, transmit
and interpret data from offshore rigs and vessels, etc. It is crucial for every prospective employee to at least be able to manipulate a personal
computer system at the basic level.
Nigerian employers use IT to filter applications!
These days, most employers require that all their employees be able to use a personal computer. Laptops and Desktops running Microsoft Windows or
Linux have become the de facto standard and chosen medium of various Nigerian companies for carrying out their day to day business. Employees are
expected for example to know the basics of Microsoft Windows and be able to perform tasks such as send/recieve email, create word documents,
power point slides, excel spreadsheets, surf the internet, etc. In summary, in most employment cases if you can't use a computer, you dont qualify!
Always be a good ambassador of your country, no matter where you go!
The final statement seemed off topic but made more sense as he proceeded. He talked about how Nigeria's image abroad has diminished due to the
flurry of 419 scams and internet frauds across the globe that originated from Nigeria. He explained how these incidents have hurt us both at home and
abroad and that the damage as a result has made it very difficult for Nigerian based businesses to garner enough trust to expand their market both
locally and especially internationally. He went on to add that it will take time for our image to be restored but that we the youth should lead the way.
Chapter IV: Omatech Computers on Development
The Omatech representative; Iiya started off with a quote to put his talk into perspective:
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift, that is why they call it the present."
He went on to explain how the company was founded by an NYSC Corper while he was serving and how Omatech Computers is the very first Nigerian
IT company to be listed on the stock exchange.
He urged all the youths in the audience to ponder on the following questions:
What is my vision for my future?
Where do i see myself in the next 30 days?
Seemingly simple questions but can go a long way in getting you focussed. Setting goals for yourself is crucial to progression. All youths should know
what they want to do now because time waits for nobody.
Chapter V: Inspiration from Nigeria Internet Group (NIG)
The NIG speakers were welcomed to the floor and they congratulated the InfoTech CD Group for hosting the seminar, afterwhich they proceeded
with their presentation. They introduced themselves and an Internet Job Initiative established to promote online businesses. The procedure was
that you would present them with a detailed business plan that they would review internally and if it was successful, they would provide you with the
necessary funds to get started up.
"A jack of all trades is a master of none!"
Their focus was on skills acquisition and specialisation, that we should strive to know something about everything and everything about something. In
other words, they urged us to expand our knowledge in everything but specialise in something.
A little effort goes a long way!
They explained how most workers meet the status quo when it comes to the amount of effort put into their job. An easy way of distinguishing
yourself from the rest is to put that little more effort into your work. For example staying on longer after the close of work or resuming a little
earlier before the start of work to wrap up pending work. That extra effort doesn't only have to be applied to time spent working, it could also be
applied to for example, customer relations; being more patient, accommodating, understanding etc.
Structure of an Organisation
The speaker outlined the basic 3 structures of every organisation. Firstly is the Infrastructure, which refers
to the physical and tangible things like the building where business is conducted, the furniture, the computer hardware etc. Secondly is the
Infostructure, which refers to the intangible things like the digital data stored on the company servers,
the rules and regulations of the company that the workers must abide by at all times. And finally, the Human Structure,
which refers to the human factor and arguably the most important structure. The human factor governs the remaining structures and you have to
take into account the fact that human beings are not machines, they have flaws, prone to fatigue and emotional tantrums in the sense that their
current state of mind dictates their mood, their attitude towards, their degree of accuracy and level of concentration.
They rounded up their talk by urging us to start the dreaming and visioning now so we can have enough time to dedicate to the building and
achieving the dream.
Chapter VI: Nokia's Kola on Developing Yourself
Kola works for Nokia Nigeria and was invited to the seminar to enlighten us on what kind of mindset is crucial for progression and how we can further
develop ourselves. He was greeted into the spotlight where he promptly introduced his first point:
Yourself as a Brand
His talk was a kind of a re-iteration on what an earlier speaker discussed on, concerning marketing yourself. In this case however he took it a step
further by introducing the term "branding".
Branding is one of the after-effects of a marketing campaign. A brand is a particular product line that is differentiated from all other simillar product
lines through a unique and easily recognisable set of features. There are several good examples from the consumer market such as the automotive
industry. There are several cars in the market but certain manufacturers have opted to establish brands instead and market them at a particular target
audience. Some cars are targeted at the rich, some at the middle-class, some are engineered for performance racing, others for domestic
transportation. Based on the needs and requirements of the target audience, a car manufacturer will design, build, tweak and test the car to meet
those goals.
This concept can be migrated into the job hunting scenario. You can brand yourself by carefully honing your skills and abilities to satisfy a specific need
or want in the commercial industry. This need or want could be in the form of a Niche in the Market propmting you to start your own business, or a
role in an organisation prompting you to apply to fill it.
4 Things You Need to Know
Openness, a term that refers to the method of operation used by most organisations today. It involves the
public access of resources within the organisational structure (taking into account the hierarchy of different security clearances) allowing any user to
access the information required to work and complete their projects. It can also be applied to the decision making aspects of a business where
important choices are voted upon rather than being made by olny an elite few.
Peer Innovation, it's a common conception that competition drives innovation. A company that has no
competitors on the same level (peers) will have a market monopoly and as such would find it hard to find the drive to grow in a healthy way. However,
when you have a market saturated with competing companies, all vying for the attention and hard-earned money of potential customers, each
company will be forced to stand out, the only obvious channel is through innovation. Peer Innovation is a crucial requirement for the healthy
progression of an industry. Examples of Peer Innovation includes the Linux OS, an open source alternative to Microsoft Windows.
Sharing, in this instance refers to sharing within an organisation and between organisations. You might
object and argue that why share data and information after putting millions of Naira into Research and Development? In a sense your right, the
innovator has the right to enjoy their monopoly for a limited amount of time afterwhich the rest of the market catches up. It is after this time that
data and information can be shared amongst competitors in the market. The competition might be able to utilise it in a way not previously thought up
by you and along the lines a rivalry might grow to become a partnership. Sharing can also exceed the market boundaries where a developer for
example might release some inside information (legally) or methodologies to online communities giving them an idea of the inner-workings of a
global multinational. Examples of sharing include online blogs/spaces/journals, online contribution forums, data repositories, etc.
Acting Globally, this term is meant as a target to set your standards, sights and mode of conduct. It simply
means that you should adhere to global standards when carrying out anything you do because you never know where you will find yourself in the long
run or who has taken a keen interest in you and what you represent. This was also a nod in the direction that we should all be good Ambassadors of
our country and showcase the greatness of our Nation.
Lastly, Kola dropped a couple of key terms that he wanted us to deliberate on one at a time, these included; mastery, manage to legacy, unique
selling propositions, rolodex obsession (keeping contacts), entrepreneurial instincts, master of improv, sense of humour, etc.
Chapter VII: KPMG's Gboye on Governance
Gboye Ademola is a representative of KPMG, and he was invited to the seminar as a guest speaker to give a talk on Project Management and
Governance. His talk would encompass retrieving the requirements from the customer, structuring the objectives, getting background information,
phases of a project and governance.
Phases of a Project
Gboye explained to us how there were 4 main phases of any project which included:
Initiation, this is the beginning stages of the project and it involves gathering the requirements of the
client, user or customer and validating them. Validation is a very important aspect because all the client has is an idea of how they would like a specific
mechanic to work, however since their not usually technical-minded they would have little next to no idea of how to go about implementing such a
mechanic. This is where the feasibility study comes into play. For each feature the client conjures up, you must analyse it and determine if it is possible
to implement.
Planning, this is arguably the most important aspect of project management. Planning is crucial as it
determines the budget (how much?) and schedule (how long?) of the project. Once the plan is completed, it can be presented to the client who will
verify the project results, make sure the price is affordable, and that the duration is within reason. There-after the plan is used as a roadmap to
measure progress, it becomes the ideal scenario and as the project progresses, the manager's job is to ensure minimum deviaiton from this ideal
scenario.
Coorperation, this is the collaboration between the different departments (admin and technical) to
ensure the project goes from start to finnish (regardless of any issues that may arise) within the constraints of the planned time and budget. From
time to time it is imperative to compare your current progress to your original plan to measure your deviation. The deviation will give you and idea
of what departments and processes are falling behind schedule so that you can decide what needs to be done about it. A good technique for
managing this phase is the use of milestones (target objectives) to serve as a guideline for progressing through the project cycle.
Completion, this is the final phase in a project life cycle. It involves rounding up the project. Deploying it
for the client, negotiating terms of maintenance (if applicable), etc. At this point, only a handful of people are required. A completions report can be
drafted to measure the overal deviation of the final product from the original proposal. This information can then be analysed and fed back into the
management process to help future projects.
IT Governance
Governance is about leading and giving direction to organisations. There are two main concerns of IT Governance:
1.) Deliver value to the business by aligning IT to the business process
2.) Effective management and mitigation of risk
For more information check out the IT Governance Institute website.
Chapter VIII: Gbenga Sesan's Keynote
Gbenga was present for the previous seminar and was invited to give the Keynote speech this time around. He started off by talking about the
current situation in Nigeria and how there are several local problems that can be solved using IT but it's not possible to import innovation. He
further explained that only we in our country have an inside idea of what's missing, what's required and what we can do to solve issues. He went on to
talk about the various opportunities that exist in the country such as outsourcing, software and web content development, niche (local) research,
mobile adaptations and applications, etc.
Gbenga urged us to take some time and define our niche; to find within us some skill or ability that we are good at and search for a localised problem
that we can use our chosen skill to solve. Most of the generic issues are currently being solved by large organisations and the markets are already
saturated. However, there are the smaller and more focussed markets that larger organisations are unable to cater for as the potential gain doesn't
justify their investment, but for a smaller organisation it could be the perfect market.
He rounded up with the term; "value creation". He defined it as the process of adding value to yourself
with time. Value can be added through the means of skill acquisition, work experience and social networking. The more value you have, the more
lucrative you appear in the eyes of organisations looking to recruit or partner with you, or customers willing to invest in your services or products.
Dare to be BIG?
Gbenga introduced a new reality show to find the brightest ITC guy or girl (BIG) in the nation. 12 contestants would star and be involved in solo and
group activities that would test their theoretical and applied knowledge of ICT concepts and how it relates to the real world (at home, at work and
in the nation as a whole). More information about the show can be found on the Paradigm Initiative website.
Chapter IX: An Interactive Session With NiPRO's Victor
Victor is a representative of NiPRO (Nigerian Professionals), a network of young professionals, executives
and entrepreneurs. He led the entire hall in a series of practical and interactive sessions. First off he wanted to introduce us to the situation of
unfamiliarity, we tried the hand knot where you cage your fingers after twisting your arm and you're now asked to move different fingers individually.
Most people find this impossible to do. Another test of unfamiliarity involved writing with the opposite hand. These tests were performed to give us as
idea of how it feels to be in a strange and unfamiliar situation that we have little or no control over.
The Human Knot
Victor then introduced us to the concept of networking and used a simple practical task to explain it. He asked for a dozen people from the audience
and asked them to stand in a circle and join hands crossing over the circle in no particular pattern. When every hand was joined the arrangement
resembled a kind of human knot, much like how a telephone network. He explained that this was how networking worked; a group of people linked
together and exploiting one another to achieve a greater purpose. One of the participants was asked to lie down untop the human knot to show how
effortless it was to suspend that much weight across the network.
Networking Tasks Simplified
The final practical activity was more elaborate. He picked out 16 random people from the audience to form 4 groups of 4 people. Each group was
positioned at a different corner of the square-shaped hall. The procedure was that Victor would ask for an item, each team would deliberate amongst
themselves on the best way to procure and deliver the particular item to the requestor as quickly and efficiently as possible. Typical items were
sourced from the guests, such as pens, gold watches, a specific number of combs, mirrors etc.
Chapter X: Funto on Finding a Job in Africa
Funto works for FJA (find a job in Africa); a website portal dedicated to linking the
job seekers to company vacancies. The site was setup in 1999, towards the end of the ".com" boom. Back then it was very difficult to find a job in the
country so a group of them came together and formed the website. Now almost a decade later the website takes in daily hits of around 2.1 million.
Experience is Key
Funto went on discuss how at our stage the money isn't really all that important and we shouldn't make it the focus of our pursuit. He stressed that
experience is the key, that eventually it will bring the money. He went on to talk about the Master's Degree,
regarded as job magnet by the Nigerian Youth. He stated that the Master's Degree doesn't matter if you can't start working right away, that it was
only useful when you already have working experience.
He shifted his focus to the employers, that most don't want to see certifications, that they would prefer it if you have hands-on experience in the field
they required you for. Finally, he pin-pointed the change in the market, that most employers are looking for what else you can bring to the table
besides what you originally applied for.
© Copyright 2008 HexGEAR Studios