Technology jobs of the future  

Big technology companies like Amazon, Google and Microsoft have laid off staff this year to shrug off the tough economy.

The tech industry is reeling from the combination of a rough economy, the Covid-19 pandemic and some obvious business missteps.  

Three minutes into a job interview at a top Information and communication technologies (ICT) company in Uganda, Desmond Adoko realised he was not going to get the job offer. Why? “My ICT skills were not that competitive,” he says.

This shattered his dream of working in one of the top ICT companies. 
“Ever since I started looking for an ICT job, I realised the job market needs more skills than what I had acquired at the university,” says Adoko, a software engineering graduate.  

John Akonya is no different. After graduating with a Master’s Degree in Telecom Engineering,  he still does not have the skills and practical experience that can enable him secure a job in that field.

Cindy Bugembe, who recently graduated, says her dream was to become a network engineer. However, she feels that her hands-on skills are still lacking and this has discouraged her from applying for jobs. This has also forced her to look for graduate programmes in different companies to bridge the skills gap.      

Every year, students graduate from different universities and institutions of higher learning, armed with first and second-upper-class degrees eager to join the highly competitive job market but many fail to get employment due to skills gaps.

Good degrees are prestigious but without skills, they become a liability to the owners.

Adoko says some universities, for example, are equipped with ICT facilities but produce half-baked graduates because students do not cover all the course units.

“Some units differ but when you come to the job market, the ones you ignore could be the ones employers want. However much I tried to learn on my own, I could not grasp enough so it is quite challenging,” he says.

Yusuf Higenyi, a graduate of telecommunication engineering, says even when a graduate is willing to offer themselves for free, some companies shun them, probably because the company would incur training costs.

The world of work is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by advancements in technology. From artificial intelligence to automation, emerging technologies are reshaping industries and creating new career opportunities.

In all this, skills are critical, and not many companies are willing or have the budget to retrain new recruits. It becomes more challenging in the ICT field where technology is changing and advancing daily.

The skills that graduates put on their Curriculum vitaes are likely the top priority for employers to examine when seeking candidates for their organisations. Depending on the career sector and profession you choose to work in, there could be very specific skills, abilities, and knowledge needed to do the job.

According to the World Bank’s report  titled, ‘Skills and Workforce Development Report, 2023,’ about 450 million youth are economically disengaged, due to lack of adequate skills to succeed in the labour market.
To remain relevant, graduates must be on the lookout for any opportunities that can enable them to acquire additional skills.

In October, the Ministry of Information, Communication Technology (ICT) and National Guidance,  in partnership with Huawei Technologies held a national ICT Job Fair at Kololo Independence Grounds under the theme; ‘Navigating the digital horizon’. 

The ICT job fair, which was graced by President Museveni, was aimed at making ICT students ‘future ready’ by connecting them with employers to develop the skills, knowledge and personality needed to thrive in this new era of technology.

To narrow the skills gap, Huawei Uganda managing director Xie Qiuxiang Sunrise revealed that the company will offer 15 internship opportunities to students from different universities in ICT-related courses. This is also aimed at equipping students with skills for tech jobs of the future.

Currently, 11 students from Ndejje University, Makerere University, ISBAT University, Kyambogo, and St Petersburg State of University Telecommunications, Russia have been given internship placements at the technology firm.

With the increasing demand for technology, the job market for technology professionals is quickly expanding, and new tech jobs are emerging.
Mr Moses Ainebyona, the human resource manager, Huawei Technologies, local staff, says the on-demand tech jobs are in 5G development, Artificial Intelligence (AI), smartphone technologies, cyber security, software engineering, and robotics among others.

He says most ICT graduates, cannot be enrolled directly into work because they need further training to acquire the field skills from experts and mentors.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) specialist
With the rise of AI and machine learning, the demand for AI specialists is expected to grow in the coming years. AI specialists develop, test, and implement AI systems that can learn, reason, and perceive the world around them.

Cybersecurity analyst
As more businesses move their operations online, the need for cybersecurity analysts is becoming real. Cybersecurity analysts secure an organisation’s digital assets by detecting and mitigating security threats, monitoring security systems, and implementing security protocols.

User experience designer
User experience (UX) designers are responsible for designing and optimising the user experience of websites, applications, and digital products. They use a range of tools and techniques to ensure that users can easily and intuitively navigate digital interfaces and achieve their goals.

Robotics engineer
As technology evolves at a rapid pace, robotics engineers are having to constantly analyse, reevaluate, configure, test and maintain the prototypes, robotic components, integrated softwares and machines they create for the manufacturing, mining and automotive service industries, among others. It is a highly technical job which requires patience and rational thinking.

Data scientist 
As businesses and organisations collect and use more data every day, the demand for skilled experts has skyrocketed.

With opportunities to work in almost every sector and industry, from IT to entertainment, manufacturing to healthcare, data scientists have the responsibility to compile, process, analyse and present data for an organisation for it to make more informed decisions.

Product development
Since the 5G market is still new, quickly growing and changing, many companies are looking for applicants with experience bringing software or hardware products or operator services from concept to deliverables. Many employers want some project management experience or project management professional certification.