Industry mulls solutions to talent gap

South Africa’s ‘talent gap’ has been named the silent killer in an industry where new infrastructure and new equipment regularly dominate the headlines. “You can see your trucks and you can see your infrastructure, but it’s the people that make these things work,” said Nadia Viljoen, scientific editor of the recently released State of Logistics Survey. “Our colleagues at the University of Johannesburg have been asking the difficult questions,” said Viljoen. “Is it that the people we have aren’t competent or do we not have enough people? And are our curriculums really aligned to what industry needs?” The general consensus is that a very small percentage of people study logistics out of a passion for the industry, says Viljoen. “Many study it because it’s just another degree.” It’s clear, she says, that students need to be exposed at a younger stage to what it is like to work in the industry. Practical on-site experience is key to preparing candidates for the industry – and this involves internships and graduate programmes. “It’s important to get candidates engaged with real working people and projects and to see what’s out there – but this is only after school.” Students need to be exposed to the industry before they leave school, in her view. The reason for the talent gap is simple, says Professor Jan Havenga of the University of Stellenbosch. “The South African school system is failing us. If you want to train someone in the logistics industry, the quality of maths and science education is critical. And in the most recent global competitiveness survey, South Africa was ranked 148 out of 148 countries in terms of maths and science education. Botswana was around 80th and Zimbabwe 60th.” But it’s not all bad news, says Hans Ittman of HWI Consulting. “In 1994 we had 300 000 black middle class people in South Africa. Today that figure is 3.5 million. And that translates into a huge pool of talented and educated graduates. It won’t happen tomorrow, but it’s certainly a very positive development.” INSERT & CAPTION Growing pool of talented and educated graduates coming through. – Hans Ittman