Discourse on the challenges of developing the digital economy continues to circulate. One major challenge is that the new economy is eliminating many traditional jobs.
Jobs will disappear, but as the digital economy grows, it will increase the need for skilled employees in not only their number, but also their expertise. The number of jobs may decline, but the need for new skilled human resources will increase.
On Monday (4/08/2019), this daily discussed the issue of the possibility of attracting Indonesian diaspora to repatriate from abroad and contribute to growing skilled human resources for the country’s digital economy.
We must address this problem. The founder of a digital media company recently shared that his company was forced to employ a CTO (chief technology officer) from a neighboring country because no one in the domestic market met the criteria for the job. It has cost the company dearly because there was no other choice.
To face the growing competition, many digital companies are fighting to recruit coding experts and creative programmers. New applications must be developed to offer new services, so these companies have a competitive advantage over other, similar companies.
Under such conditions, it makes sense that coding experts and information technology (IT) experts are generally in high demand. What is the possibility of attracting Indonesian experts who are currently living overseas?
Imeiniar Chandra, the associate director of Michael Page Indonesia, said that Indonesian professionals usually preferred to work in the country to be close to their families. They also tended to observe the growing prospects in the Indonesian economy. With such characteristics, companies like Michael Page Indonesia often received requests to recruit Indonesian professionals that have worked abroad.
The trend among Indonesian nationals to return to the country and find work has begun growing since 2016, with the emergence of start-ups. Bukalapak talent head Engelbertus Panggalo concurred, saying that recruiting Indonesian diaspora was picking up. Since Bukalapak was established in 2016, more than 100 Indonesian diaspora have taken executive positions at the online marketplace.
Recruiting Indonesian diaspora to executive positions was not incidental, but done systematically through programs like Michael Page Indonesia’s "Building the Country". Approximately 50 professionals are participating in the program to develop expertise in a number of fields, primarily in engineering, manufacturing, marketing, finance and digital technology.
We welcome the initiative of recruitment companies that are innovating to close the gap between digital business development and the availability of skilled human resources.
In the future, human resource development for strengthening the pillars of the digital economy must involve not only the number of human resources, but also their expertise. Skills in artificial intelligence and 3D printing are widely sought in Industry 4.0. The country’s educational institutions must also respond to this challenge responded by adjusting their curriculums.