SIDN and HAN give graduates the chance to retrain as software engineers
SIDN joins Make IT Work, opening the door to people looking for careers in ICT
On the jobs market, there's a serious shortage of ICT professionals. And, as UWV data shows, the problem has only become worse in recent years. The number of people wanting ICT jobs has fallen, while the number of jobs has gone up. Employers in almost every sector of the economy need people for various ICT-related roles. It's a challenging situation, which we're familiar with ourselves here at SIDN. The Make IT Work initiative is intended to ease the skills shortage by enabling people with other higher education backgrounds to retrain for a career in ICT. The scheme involves an intensive eleven-month programme at HAN University of Applied Sciences that prepares participants for software engineering roles. "By offering retraining, HAN is contributing to the supply of well-trained people entering the ICT jobs market," says Make IT Work Project Leader Martine Bal. SIDN is now one of the employers supporting the scheme. Our ICT Development Manager Peter de Beijer and HR Consultant Samantha van Eck talk about this promising development. "We're looking forward to receiving our first three trainees in July and supporting their progress," says Peter.
Social aims
Started by Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, the Make IT Work scheme now offers retraining at six centres around the Netherlands. "The ICT jobs market is getting bigger and more diverse," says Martine. "ICT professionals are expected to have not only technical skills, but also the ability to manage projects and advise customers. It's very important to have a steady stream of people with ICT training entering the jobs market. Make IT Work supports that goal by giving people with other backgrounds the chance to retrain for ICT careers. Nearly all the people entering the scheme have degrees in other subjects and/or work experience in other fields. And most are highly motivated to become software engineers."
"It was HAN that introduced us to Make IT Work," recalls Samantha. "It was clear from the introductory meeting that the project dovetails neatly with our own social aims. We believe in people having access to training and opportunities for personal development. We also see Make IT Work as having the potential to provide structural help with recruitment." As Peter points out, "Make IT Work trainees are generally people with experience and clear ambitions to work in the field. Those qualities are very valuable in terms of making someone suitable for a role at SIDN."
Retraining programme
"The retraining programme starts with a detailed online assessment," explains Martine. "We look at things such as candidates' analytical abilities and spatial awareness, and whether ICT is the right choice for them. People who pass the assessment are invited to an information meeting and employers market. We also interview the candidates to build up a picture of what motivates them, what their personal interests and qualities are. That helps us to match candidates with participating employers. After five months of intensive retraining, forty hours a week, each candidate spends six months on placement at the matched employer, working full time. SIDN is now one of the employers that take candidates on placement, having joined Make IT Work at the end of 2021. SIDN's first three trainees are due to start their placements in July for on-the-job further training in ICT."
"One of the candidates we spoke to at the intake meetings had a background in graphic design," recalls Peter. "We need a variety of ICT professionals, including software engineers who specialise in 'front-end development' – developing websites, applications and other user-facing resources. For that kind of work, graphic design and ICT is a good combination. To succeed on the programme, a trainee needs intrinsic motivation and an interest in the software development process. Software engineering is a complex discipline, in which you're always learning."
Samantha adds, "Over the coming months, we'll find out how the retraining goes. It promises to be an interesting learning process, one we're looking forward to. The candidates who come to work for us will be joining a team where they can hone their capabilities. We've selected a number of projects that they can tackle as a team. They'll have the opportunity to develop and to discover where their strengths lie."
Valuable partnerships
SIDN is just one of 250-plus employers of all sizes taking part in Make IT Work around the Netherlands. They include the Dutch Ministry of Defence, software house Avisi and consultants Deloitte. The involvement of a large and varied group of employers means that Make IT Work trainees can be matched with organisations that are right for them. "Our aim is to find a suitable placement for every trainee, where they would be happy to continue working after completing the programme," says Martine.
Plans for the future
HAN's first nine trainees have recently completed their retraining programmes and were presented with their diplomas at a ceremony on 16 May. The next intake starts in September. Plans are also in place for the further development of Make IT Work. "Because we build long-term relationships with employers, we're able to provide each other with ongoing support," explains Martine. "We want to increase and consolidate the inflow of new ICT professionals, with the aim of easing the ICT skills shortage and providing a steady flow of people to take up roles. The partnerships we've established with employers and the mutual trust that we've built up enable us to maximise the impact of the scheme. We also monitor market developments, so that we can further optimise our training in line with employers' needs. For example, we'd like to make the programme more flexible, with multiple intake points during the year, and offline and online tuition options. The addition of data analysis tools is also on our to-do list. In years to come, an English-language version of the programme is envisaged as well. That would enable us to appeal to a bigger target group and further boost uptake."
Samantha adds, "We're really looking forward to welcoming our first trainees and seeing how things progress. We'd like to take on a number of new ICT professionals each year and provide them with training. And, of course, provide ourselves with people who can fill our ICT vacancies. That would be the ideal win-win outcome."
Is your organisation looking for software engineers? Interested in becoming a Make IT Work employer? Mail Judith Oostenrijk at info.ict-media@han.nl or visit https://www.han.nl/opleidingen/post-hbo/omscholing-make-it-work/ for more information.
Photos Martine Bal: Gerard Burgers, Tech Gelderland
