Telecom providers are tapping the potential of services that are rendered on mobile and connected devices (like TV and Internet).
Sharma says, “These companies require large capex and skilled manpower for their expansion to host and provide these services. With this growth, telecom product developers (that develop devices that are the building blocks of these networks) need to churn out newer products, with intelligent features and services.”
Talking about the telecom sector from the enterprise perspective, “There will always be migration of matured products to low-cost geographies (like India). And the expectation from Indian divisions to extract ‘innovation’ out of it will continue for the next decade,” says Revuru.
Talking about the consumer side, he says, “Indians will continue to be app-savvy and gadget freaks. With sustained buying power of consumers, more start-ups will emerge with innovative solutions. Watch out for a promising start-up and get your foot into the industry.”
Telecom—a complex field
Talking about telecom’s inherent complexity, Sridhar Parthasarathy says, “It takes an intricate ballet of the physical network, software, analytics, regulatory framework and value-added services to help you connect that call within microseconds of dialling the digits.”
“If you think about it, it is just so astounding that in that half second between hitting the call button, the software figuresout what ringtone the called party has set and plays it to you, even if she is at the other end of the world!”
This complexity requires multiple people with varied skills to come together and work. There is definitelyenough scope at all levels for the qualified and the challenge seekers.
[stextbox id=”info” caption=”Emerging Telecom Technologies”]IMS: IP multimedia subsystem
HSDPA: High-speed downlink packet access
MVNO: Mobile virtual network operator
IPv6: Internet protocol version 6
4G: 4th generation mobile networks[/stextbox]
High priority to computer, IT and electronics engineers
“Product companies largely look for engineering graduates (having computers, electronics or communications background) since most of the work involves research and development,” says Sharma.
However, he adds, “The overall solution typically involves several other related applications that help in provisioning, managing, billing or monitoring services.”
This application development and maintenance opens up an opportunity for application developers with strong programming skills in database, GUI development and so forth. Other aspects that complete the ecosystem are customer support and sales, which can be met with graduates having the right level of skill or training.
Telecom sector can also be broadly classified into enterprise (service providers) side and consumer side. Talking about the enterprise side of telecom, Revuru says, “Engineers with IT, computers and electronics background will have an edge in this domain due to their knowledge of computer architecture and systems design.”
Shifting focus towards the consumer side, he adds, “If one is to work on the development of VAS, the minimum qualifcation could just be any three- or four-year degree. If one is a teen developer, he could be an independent app developer and sell applications in app stores.”
Every industry requires people from all backgrounds to come together and work. “At Maveric, we believe that it certainly requires technical graduates with an aptitude for testing to shine in this industry. With experience we have found that we can absorb a percentage of non-technical graduates very effectively but the average person for the kind of work we do needs a technical background,” says Parthasarathy.
Opportunities for freshers
Freshers are always a major chunk of the recruiting plan in any industry. Telecom companies have been recruiting freshers over the years.
Sharma says, “Freshers are usually put through a mentoring system where they get help from a senior colleague to ramp-up quickly and to understand the nuances. In addition, they go through several orientation programmes to introduce them to the corporate environment and technical trainings to equip them with right skills and knowledge. In most cases, the freshers learn on-the-job with the help of a senior mentor.”
Given the current growth rate and looking at the future prospects, there are abundant opportunities for freshers in this sector.
“If a fresher is being allocated to the development team, he would definitely be involved in coding, where it is essential to have knowledge about programming languages. But if he is allocated to testing team, he would be involved with testing of software to ensure that whatever is being developed is free of bugs and giving the desired results,” says Majeed.
There are various kinds of jobs available for those who install and maintain telecom hardware as well. Some of these jobs are lumped into the category of telecommunications technicians.
Talking about Maveric, Parthasarathy says, “We specialise in lifecycle assurance, which requires us to support clients across the IT adoption lifecycle. Therefore we expect all our associates to be well grounded in the testing processes and in the domain.”
