Just over 12 years after opening its doors to students interested in entering the world of information technology, Global Technology Inc is anticipating the incremental advancements in the field opening up opportunities that allow for the significant expansion of the services that it offers.
Chief Executive Officer Ramesh Latchanna believes that the demand for tuition in the various IT-related disciplines reflects the myriad career and business opportunities that continue to emerge in the new information age. Demand among public and private sector entities alike for work regimens that pay attention to information gathering, storage and retrieval and the application of IT to enhancing the effectiveness of accounting, management and stock management regimes has brought hundreds of students to Global Tech in recent years. “People come to us from all of the sectors; the commercial banks, insurance companies, entities like the Caricom Secretariat, government ministries; just about any sector that you can think about. We have University of Guyana students who come to us for additional tuition,” Latchanna said.
This month, Global Technology, whose secretariat cum main operating centre is situated on the western carriageway of Camp Street, immediately south of New Market Street will extend its services to Berbice. The opening of its new Branch at New Amsterdam is already scheduled for mid-June.
Administrative Manager Lisa Foster said the decision to extend the entity’s service to Berbice is “a direct response to the demand for IT qualifications” by people in Berbice. “At the moment there are people in Berbice who travel to Georgetown to do our courses.”
Academic Administrator Joe Brandt believes that the IT “rage” is both about “what the technology can do to make systems more efficient and create new service-related opportunities” as well as about “the craze of a young generation” who are fortunate to be living in an age of change. “Our students do not only come from entities that want to dispose of paper files. We have young people who are motivated to learn more about information technology and the myriad ways in which it can be applied in their lives.”
Lactchanna agrees with the assertion made by the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company’s Chief Executive Officer (designate) Yog Mahadeo that the company’s investment of US$30 million in a new submarine cable opens up a range of new “employment and business opportunities” for Guyanese. “It is the additional bandwidth that offers the opportunities,” Latchanna says. “One of the immediate likely spin-offs will probably be the emergence of more Call Centres. That means foreign investment, it means jobs and it means training.
As far as training is concerned that is where Global Technology comes in. Latchanna disclosed that Global Tech-nology has already been asked by a potential foreign investor to identify prospective employees for a new Call Centre in Guyana. Latchanna said that Global Technology has already begun to examine the request. It is, he says, the kind of opportunity which the school continues to look for in order to maximize its effectiveness and take the fullest advantage of a growing market.
“Apart from this we are also beginning to get more enquiries from people who want to become more proficient in the management of databases,” Latchanna said.
Opened for business on January 12, 1998, Global Technology says it is Guyana’s largest private technology training centre.
Foster estimates that every two hours a minimum of 25 students pursuing various IT-related courses “pass through” the centre.
Brandt, who runs the Academic Centre, is responsible for the tuition of around 600 children who are part of the formal education curriculum. “Children are coming to us for one kind of training or another from as early as age 12 and as far as IT training is concerned we have actually had a 75-year-old student. Older people too do not want to be left out of the loop,” Brandt said.
Global Technology’s public advertising focuses primarily on a range of IT-related disciplines: from Foundation courses that introduce students to computers to advanced Wed Design courses. It also offers a range of high-demand courses subscribed mostly by business and public sector institutions including courses in Computerized Accounting, Desktop Publishing, Media Arts and courses for Engineers and Architects. Latchanna explained that the range of courses being offered reflects both the growing demand for IT training as well as the broad range of disciplines that can become more operationally efficient through the application of information technology. “Apart from the contribution that we make to improving the efficiency of organizations in both the public and private sectors we are also putting people in a position to make career choices,” Latchanna said.
Global Technology boasts what it describes as state-of-the-art teaching tools, which include seven computer training laboratories equipped with “the latest software packages.” Latchanna said that Global Technology is currently “working on” two new software packages, and one provides details of five different career areas in the IT field. “What we are hoping to do through this particular package is to help people make career choices in the IT field,” Latchanna said.
Apart from being a Microsoft Certified Application Specialist and an Authorized Testing Centre, Global Technology also serves as a CXC Examination Centre. The centre provides tuition to its 600-odd students in a range of subjects including English, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Information Technology, Principles of Business and Spanish. “Our main objective is for students to produce results,” Brandt said.
Latchanna is upbeat about the future of the institution, pointing out that these are “exciting times” for the IT sector. A computer engineer by training, he conceded that he is excited about the idea of being part of an institution that has positioned itself to play a central role training Guyanese to respond to the challenges of the IT age.
