How to Create ICT Talent Pool in India?

The Indian telecom sector is one of the biggest employers in the country, employing close to 2.8 million people directly and 7 million indirectly, across four major sub sectors – telecom infrastructure, network, handset manufacturing and repair, and telecom service providers.

Initiatives like Digital India, Direct Benefit Transfer, financial inclusion, Aadhaar linked governance systems etc will be almost completely dependent on the improving and evolving skill ecosystem of the Information and Communications Technology sector.

According to Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), towards ensuring that the industry employs the necessary skilled labour that is up to a required standard, the following recommendations would make the programs more impactful.

• Integrate the Industry skilling effort with that of Sector Skilling Council (SSC) led effort
• Develop a dynamic labour market information system with SSCs working closely with industry.
• Trades capable of self-employment like mobile repair technician, broadband technicians, digital literacy trainers etc, should be given more attention in skilling to bring greater scale to the digital technology infusion at grass root level.
• As telecom network and devices are being built to global standard, the skilled manpower trained in India should be deployable in any country and such facilitation should be provided through government efforts for better and global opportunity of the trained workforce. This will enhance internal quality too.

With all these, the number of skilled workforce in the sector will double by 2020 to around nine million. Of these, around 20% will be in the administrative roles like HR and finance. On the other hand, the remaining 80% workforce entering the sector will have to go through constant upgradation of skill sets as technology evolves. This would mean that the TSPs would partner with or set up their own skilling institutes to ensure their employees stay ahead of the curve.

Voice&Data in association with Telecom Sector Skill Council (TSSC) is organising annual “Telecom Manthan” a meeting of Telecom Ecosystem & Talent pool in India, on May 16th in New Delhi.

The year 2018 is a landmark year for the Indian Telecom Industry as there will be challenges and opportunities in the Telecom sector. Telecom industry, Livelihood seekers, Academia, Training Partners and Government would articulate their views and chart-out the way forward for the following at Telecom Manthan
A. Challenges and Opportunities
B. Emerging New Technologies
C. The path forward in the Telecom space for Academia and students