Taking a person with potential from A to B is seldom simple but always rewarding. The complexities of equipping someone with skills and the ability to gain skills involves many moving parts and various forms of motivation. Resources, programme design, accreditation, industry involvement, the right guide, aptitude, recruitment and selection processes all need to come together to find and support a student and prepare them to build their careers.

In South Africa, with a 26.7% unemployment rate, and a challenged schooling and tertiary schooling system, resources are an issue. Even after access to training or education has been established, students contend with more challenges than completing their school work: support, transport, money, and knowledge of how to get a foot in the door – these all present barriers to entry. For those who want to learn but can’t, resources to enable them have to come from somewhere and can take on many forms.

The Red & Yellow Springboard Marketing Institute (RYSMI) has produced more than one batch of marketing and advertising professionals who could enter the industry after completing the National Certificate in Advertising with them. A partnership between industry and government means that Springboard can offer learnerships to make this possible. They are now applying this formula to a web development and programming qualification.

There are many organisations struggling to hire web developers – listed as a scarce skill in a number of industries – but only a portion of those are investing in training and equipping people with this skillset. There are a number of local initiatives operating as vehicles (We Think Code, Code for South Africa, Code for Cape Town), and their success depends on funding and partnerships. Government has incentivised business through various rewards to invest in skills development. Find out what your organisation is doing or can do to grow people with the skillsets they need. This investment should be one of not just money, but time, and requires long term thinking.

Those in the world of programming and web development, like many in the marketing and advertising industry, often look more to what you can do, your portfolio and skillset, than just your qualification. This opens up the possibilities for the ways in which skills can be imparted and how Springboard can work within the programme design. Mentorship, guest lecturing, providing live case studies and briefs, all provide points of connection that current professionals can offer. In the world of marketing and advertising specifically there are unique challenges and contexts that a young web developer should be made aware of. Consider what kind of time you can make available, or where you can offer some mentored work experience to a student undertaking training.

Whether it's mentorship, sponsoring learnerships, or lending your time and expertise to the programme, Springboard needs your help to create and develop opportunities for the real career growth that South Africa's youth needs.

For more information, visit www.redandyellow.co.za. Alternatively, connect with them on Facebook, TwitterLinkedIn or Instagram.