50th University joins Micro Focus Action Programme as colleges respond to global IT skills crisis

- Core COBOL skills now being taught in seven countries across four continents

- 5,000 students per year expected to graduate from ACTION-assisted courses

Micro Focus, the provider of enterprise application management and modernisation solutions, today announces the signing of the 50th academic institution to its Academic ConnecTIONs (ACTION) program. The Georgian College of Applied Arts in Ontario, Canada becomes the newest member of the scheme, which now spreads across seven countries and four continents. The rapid growth of the ACTION programme is a clear signal that colleges and students increasingly recognise the value of IT skills in business.

The ACTION Program, launched under a year ago in May 2007, aims to ensure that future generations are equipped with the vital COBOL-programming and core IT skills required by major corporations, both in the UK and across the globe. The program provides member universities with free access to the latest technology and teaching tools for enterprise application development. Micro Focus estimates that around 5,000 students are now graduating every year with these vital skills, benefitting from the ACTION programme.

Bob Champion, IT Management in Business (ITMB) Course Director at Oxford Brookes University said: ìIt is evident that there is an ongoing need for COBOL-literate programmers as we enter the 21st Century. The rapid expansion of the ACTION program is testament to this need and to the value of the resources provided to member institutions.î

A priority of the ACTION program is to underline the importance of core IT systems and COBOL skills, which drive the operational effectiveness of organisations around the world. Recent research by Micro Focus of 650 customers and prospects revealed that more than three-quarters of CIOs expect the recruitment of COBOL programmers to remain a key focus of their IT departments over the next five years. Among the respondents, 94 percent indicated they run COBOL in production, whilst 73 percent indicated trained COBOL professionals can be hard to find.

One such organisation, JD Williams of Manchester, looks to recruit between five and ten graduates with COBOL and core Enterprise IT skills every two years. Mike Madden, Head of Support, commented that: ìWe often find it difficult to hire graduates with the core IT skills that we require today and which will be essential for our future. COBOL-programming skills, in particular, are becoming increasingly hard to find. The ACTION program is highly innovative, and we are looking forward to the opportunity of hiring some of the graduates from the ACTION Partner Universities in future.î

Stuart McGill, Chief Technology Officer, Micro Focus said: ìThe worldwide skills crisis in IT is well documented. Businesses are telling academic institutions that they need graduates trained in core IT skills. This is why the Micro Focus ACTION Program has signed up new colleges at a rate of one a week over the past year. The rapid expansion of the ACTION program reflects this need for COBOL and core IT skills and we fully intend to continue expanding the programme going forward. Micro Focus is committed to ensuring colleges have the resources they need to deliver appropriately skilled graduates to meet the needs of commercial organisations.î

June Online Recruitment Conference & Exhibition
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST IN ATTENDING