Massive digitalization and automation at work have been changing the nature of work, allowing companies to boost productivity and causing job loss, especially in the labour-intensive industry. While millions of jobs will be displaced, technology advancement will create an enormous amount of new jobs that mostly require digital and computer skills. However, many countries in the world, including Indonesia, still lack digital talents.

To support the development of digital talents in Indonesia, the ILO has conducted many social dialogues and studies around the topic and raised awareness of gender equality in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. Recently, in collaboration with GRID Network, an Indonesian leading media network, the ILO conducted an Instagram live session to discuss challenges and opportunities in building a career in ICT for young people, especially girls.

“ICT jobs are often perceived as men’s job. Today, more women are harnessing the power of technology to make a profit even in a simple way, such as selling a product online. On a larger scale, we can see more women involved in start-up companies as IT engineer or developer. It proves that women have the potential to grab opportunities that digitalization has offered,” said Tauvik Muhamad, ILO’s Technical Officer for Skills Development.

Meanwhile, Fransiska Hadiwidjana, Head of Engineering Mamikos.com, admitted that women are insufficiently represented in ICT. She shared that out of 60 software engineers in her team, only 10 are women. “Back in my university time, there were only 20 female students out of 100 software engineer students in my class. No wonder, only a few women ended up pursuing a career in ICT,” said Fransiska, who is also a Co-Founder and CTO of WomenWorks, a start-up that provides a mentoring programme for women to achieve their career goals.

During the event that took place on Wednesday on 17 March, young audiences were curious about whether they could start a career in the sector if they did not have an ICT background. Answering the question, Fransiska said that everyone from any education background could apply for any positions as long as they have the skills and capacity needed.

“Digital and internet industry constantly evolves. Even someone with a relevant education background needs to continue upgrading his/her skills to catch up with the latest developments. So, everyone is welcome, but they need to prove their ability,” she explained.

Aside from technical skill, Tauvik highlighted the importance of soft skills to apply for ICT positions. According to ILO’s recent study on Rapid assessment of ICT skills demand in Indonesia, teamwork is the most non-technical skills demanded by the industry at 33.72 percent, followed by communication (20.18%) and eagerness to learn (12.39%).

“Nowadays, youth are heavily relying on the gadget and the internet to get the work done. It makes them up to date with the latest digital development, but at the same time reduces social interaction. As a result, they lack teamwork and communication skills. Actively involved in extracurricular or youth organization can help them improving this soft skills,” he advised.

Both Tauvik and Fransiska agreed that digitalization opens a massive opportunity for everyone to embrace, regardless of their gender. “The career path is promising, and the compensation is above the average. Why do you still hesitate? Just believe in yourself because if you do, no one can bring you down,” Fransiska closed the session with a motivational quote.

This event is a part of a knowledge-sharing series on skills demands and job opportunities in the ICT sector jointly funded by the Government of Japan (Japan-funded Skills Project) and Fast Retailing Co., Ltd (the unemployment protection or UNIQLO Project). These series invite inspirational young people to share their success story in building career in the digital era. With more people joining the digital workforce, it will bring positive impact to the national economy, open market opportunities for industry, and generate higher income for workers.