Nations are looking everywhere for ways to sustain or prop up growth. The information technology industry is one of the first targets, demanding an educated workforce and offering well-paying jobs — if everything goes right.
That’s why, this report from Forbes says, the Brazilian government intends to spend upwards of US$250 million on IT projects and start-up support in an attempt to boost the industry there. The program aims to train 50,000 new software engineers by 2014. By 2022, the goal is to train 900,000 new professionals.
Should Canada care? There are two ways of looking at this move. First, it’s wise: Given the ever-changing nature of IT, a country ignores it at its peril. Optimists would argue the unlimited potential for IT (who would have thought social media would drive the use of smart phones?) means the country that masters it masters the future.
On the other hand, will there at some point in the future be a glut of software developers? There are thousands of apps in Google, Apple, Windows and BlackBerry app stores. It is believed only a small number bring developers any reasonable revenue. How long will their patience last?
Of course, there’s always a saviour: Enterprise resource planning systems. Those projects never finish.