literature review summary-nov 5 2010

8/7/2019 Literature Review Summary-NOV 5 2010

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SUMMARY OF LITERATURE REVIEW

Information Technology is nothing new today; we see new inventions and modifications hitting shelf every day.

Information technology is wide field encompassing software and hardware, the field initiated several decades ag o,

however commercially the concept was available from early 1960s . This report covers software aspect of

information technology and further studies Human resource and its importance in the software industry

Human resource is an integral part of any organi zation as it provides extra advantage through creativity and

efficiency. The software industry is no different; in fact it is more dependants on creative intelligence of individuals

than any other industry.

Software industry from its inception in early 60s, faced rapid multifold change and growth throughout decades, and

is now considered as one of the most important and bankable industries of the world, with so ftware industry

revenues in 2008 exceeding 190 Billion dollars.

Initially software was dependant on highly complicated and complex hardware which was not manufactured

commercially, however with the advent of PCs in the early 1980s software and hardware was available for

commercial and private use. Software industry then started to find commercial requirement in banks hospitals and

various corporate sectors.

Industry utilizes Software Engineers and developers skills and abilities and the level of creative input it can bring in

to the software development process. The software development process is a step by step procedure that initiates

from development of idea/concept and follows designing and programming steps, than it is tested and finally

deployed to the end user/customer or sold commercially.

Success of software depends upon the creative talents of Software Engineer and Developer. Software development

requires sound technical knowledge and information from employees that is why for majority of the jobs not less

than a bachelor degree is required. A software professional should be well versed in mathematics and engineering

concepts. Software programming revolves around programming languages; currently Java, C# and SQL are amongst

the top choices for programmers and developers around the world.

Software education is very critical and it is important that curriculum designed is according to the current market

and industry demand, since software is a very dynamic and ever changing industry. It is important and critical to

understand that Software studies are but not limited to computer only, a software graduate should be practical and

creative; he must have strong business understanding and problem solving approach.

Standardization is very important in the development of software curriculum, theref ore around the world in

different countries various bodies, organizations exist that design and authorize software curriculum. Example of

this can be Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), QAA conducts internal and external reviews to identify how well

universities are fulfilling their responsibilities and meeting the required criteria, QAA also develops and regulates

benchmark requirements for computer science degrees in UK. Similarly British Computer Society (BCS), the main

objective of BCS is to promote and initiate ICT development in UK, and to facilitate access of Information Technology

to entire UK. BCS also regulates and develops ICT regulation and all associated computer science fields in UK. BCS isthe only body in the UK that is legally authorized to aw ard status of Chartered IT professionals (CITP).

Comment [a1]: This pertains to Q18




Over the years software Industry has become a truly globalized industry with various countries contributing to its

growth. Underdeveloped countries like India, China and Brazil have also found there niche in this industry, over the

years these countries have utilized this human resource intensive industry and worked upon developed low cost

outsourced product for there clients in UK and USA, below major initiatives that led to Software industry

development have been highlighted country wise,

India

y Foreign companies were allowed to establish fully owned business units.

y Assigning status of Industry by the government (this opened door for financing).

y Tax exemption on Income from Exports in software and related sector

y Export Subsidies 60% on Hardware and Software.

y Duty Free import of hardware directly use for developing software developed for export purposes

y Many software giants such as HP, Texas Instruments and Microsoft opened their corporate offices and

further expanded.

y The Government of India laid foundation of Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) in major te chnology

intensive cities of India.

y From 1980s onwards a lot of engineering universities opened computer science departments and by early

2000, thousands of institutes and many universities were established in India.

China

y Promoting local development of software.

y Financing facilities with subsidized interest rates for Small medium enterprises

y Use of local software and hardware products for Government and its allied organizations , Govt of China is

the biggest customer of Chinese software industry.

y Tax exemption on Research based software activi ties and working.

y Tax exemption on income from transfer or development of new technology

y Subsidies on import duties and taxes for import of latest technology equipment

y Investment of 100 billion dollars in infrastructure for software sector.

y Growth in industry is primarily based on domestic sales (90%).

Brazil

y Formulation of Research and Development program for IT in early 1990s

y Foreign investment was allowed in Brazil industry, increasing competition and reducing price.

y Introduction of Informatics Law with effect from 1993 provided financial support to companies producing

good locally having at least 5% R&D expenditure.

y Since, 1996 the Ministry of Science and Technology has provided financial support to as many as 600

Brazilians to obtain PhDs in IT under Softex Program

Thailand

y Development of bodies such as:



o Thailands ministry of Information and Communication Technology has developed 2002 -2006

strategic ICT and software development plan for Thailand, and is continuously working for the

economic development and expansion of this sector.

o The National Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biote chnology (BIOTEC)

o The National Nanotechnology Centre (NANOTECH)

o Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) focuses in development of industrial development of

technology.

y Development of Software Technology Parks in Thailand, they provide consultation, trainings, as well as

arrange seminars. In addition they also provide basis infrastructure facilities

The trend of outsourcing emerged to provide business advantage to organizations through cutting the business

expenditures. The idea is to focus on core activities and outsource rest of the operations to third world countries in

order to save labor cost. All the major countries like United States and Great Britain are opting for this mechanismand are outsourcing various business functions to third world co untries such as India, China, Brazil and Thailand. Due

to this trend the software industries of underdeveloped countries have seen rapid growth. China has changed its

focus from hardware development to software development and its government is showing a l ot of interest in

developing it, but it is the $60 billion worth of Indias IT industry that has captured the worlds attention. The major

advantage of Indias software industry over China is the benefit of language and easy interaction to the software

market around the world.

The impact of software outsourcing is very positive on the underdeveloped countries as it provides employment

opportunities and improves the economy. The major outsourcing business activity is Call Centre which is used to

assist customers and is very essential for providing value to customers. India is market leader in this domain as it has

language privilege over China and Brazil. Another outsourcing activity that is gaining a lot of attention is software

coding. In this domain, India again has major advantage over other countries as its government is very supportive in

this field and the level of Indian programmers is very good. India not only produces creative programmers it also

produces them in huge quantities as education is much cheaper there than the developed countries. Also, being partof third world country their salary level is quite lower than the programmers of developed countries which work as

an added advantage for them.

The research and development centers are also being outsourced to underdeveloped cou ntries and major software

giant such as Microsoft is establishing its R&D Centre IN China. Now it is up to the government of Libya to apply

these mechanisms for the development of its software industry as it is evident that outsourcing phenomenon is

growing day by day.

Libya, being under the Leadership of Moammar- Al- Gaddafi since last four decades is living in isolation due to the

imposed sanctions by UN and USA. It is just recently the ban has l ifted and country is trying to stabilize i tself through

trade agreements with Italy and bilateral relations with European Union. The country has nil production in

agriculture field but is blessed with the fortune of oil and is a Oil based wealthy nation. Although, country is

currently facing 25% unemployment rate that shows that wealth is not divided equally.

The Libyan government is very unsupportive when it comes to foreign investment and that is why people are notprovided with employment opportunities like other developing countries. However, after the removal of ban the

government realized the importance of trade relations and a rise in foreign investment has incurred due to the

Comment [a3]: This pertains to Q21, 22, 23

24



bilateral trade with Germany, Italy and Spain. The government is also trying to promote tourism but due to the

previous sanctions Libya is not considered as a favorable tourist dest ination. However, government is trying to

change its image by investing heavily in renovation of Hotels, Airports and Historical sites. Also visits from famous

leader such as Tony Blair is adding positive outlook to the country and many companies such as Shell and Exxon

Mobil have restarted their business activities in Libya.

Libyan government is very keen in providing education to all Libyans till university level for free. Government has

established schools not only at cities but at small towns and tribe s as well and that is why the country has literacy

rate of 80%. Currently Libya has 84 universities but the level of teachers is not up to the mark due to lack of

exposure to technological advancement. However, government is taking important steps to improve the scenario

like providing scholarships to students to study in foreign developed countries and by funding various international

institutes in Libya. The aim of government is to develop qualified workforce that is competent with the workforce of

developed countries. However, private education is not allowed in Libya and that limits teachers to gaininternational exposure.

All the major departments in Libya are under the influence of Moammar - Al Qadhafi and education system is no

exception. The higher education of Libya is governed by Peoples Committee Of Higher Education (PCOHE) whose

main objectives are to provide free education, develop infrastructure and standard curriculum and to standardized

all education in Arabic. PCOHE is also responsible for budgeting and internal administration of universities as well. A

subdivision of PCOHE was formed under the name of National Authority for Scientific Research (NASR) in 2004 to

technologically advance the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. The NASR is sponsored and

guided by UNESCO with the aim of expanding telecommunication sector, implementing modern technology in all

technical institutes and to encourage research for business opportunities in Libya.

The underdeveloped infrastructure and lack of exposure to latest technologies has created problems for all

industrial sectors of Libya. Libyan software industry is also facing major problems as due to lack of exposure

software studies in initiated on self learning basis. The telecommunication sector is also very limited and is based on

small stature that is unable to meet the needs of software industry. Only one internet service provider (ISP) is

available in Libya and is very expensive as well. The industry initiated in late 90s on a very small scale to cater local

demand and simple software was developed based on C language. The major software organizations are based on

Tripoli. The software offered was mainly data management and business software and were aim towards small and

medium level organizations.

Currently a lot of African and international telecommunication and software companies are operating in Libya such

as GeoTronics, Applied Technology and FARES but the industry still has a lot of way to go. The industry is mainly

focusing on software coding and network solutions but the phenomenon of Call Centre is also emerging. Human

resource of software industry is currently quite inexperienced due to the initial stage of industry and most of the

employees are fresh graduates. Many of them are not even fully qualified as Libyan education system is not up to

the mark with the rest of the world as students are not taught latest languages such as JAVA and SQL and are not

exposed to latest technologies.

Comment [a4]: This pertains to Q2 and Q4



Comment [a7]: This pertains to Q10 and Q

and Q15

Comment [a8]: This pertains to Q12, 13, 14

Q16






Comment [a14]: This pertains to Q8 AND Q



HYPOTHESIS

1. Competency level of work force has a direct impact on the progress of the software industry (A)

2. Existing Human Resource and students are incapable of developing Software Industry in Libya (B)

In the below questionnaire for students I have at the end mentioned the hypothesis the question pertains

to, as per my working (B) will cover students and software professionals and (A) will cover software

industry. In the summary I have linked the part from which we have developed questionnaire. Kindly

check and let me know.



Questionnaire f or Students

Name (Optional): ________________________________________

Gender: ________________________________________

Institute: ________________________________________

1. DEMOGRAPHICS:

a. Which part of Libya do you belong to? (B)

b. Why are you living in Tripoli? (B )

a. _____________________________________

b. _____________________________________

2. Which degree of Inf ormation Technology (IT) are you currently enrolled in? (B )

Certification

Diploma

Bachelors

Masters

Other (please specify)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________ ________________

___________________________________________________ ____

3. Which year of your IT program are you currently in? (A)

First Second

Third

Fourth

Other (please elaborate)

___________________________________________________________________________ __________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

4. In which University/institute you are currently studying, please also descried brief ly about your

University/institute (Courses off ered etc):

_________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

5. What are your areas of interests in this f ield? (A)



Software development/ programming

Database management

Web development

Graphics

Software ProjectManagement SPM)

Not decided


___________________________________________________________________

6. Do you have state-of -the-art hardware/ sof tware in your institute? (A)

Yes

No


_____________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________ _____________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

7. What Languages/Sof twares have you studied? (B)

Java

C#

SQL

Other ___________

8. Does your institute provide you the opportunity of hands-on training? (B)

Yes No


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

9. How will you rate the education level of your institute? (C )

Highly satisfactory Satisfactory Neutral Unsatisfactory Highly unsatisfactory

10. How will you rate the Teaching Methodology of your teachers? (C )

Highly satisfactory Satisfactory Neutral Unsatisfacto ry Highly unsatisfactory

11. How will you rate the Technical Knowledge of your teachers? (C )




12. Are you satisf ied with Sof tware Technology Curriculum off ered in Libya and developed by Peoples

Committee of Higher Education (PCOHE) and National Authority f or Scientif ic Research (NASR)? (C )

Yes Go to Q13

No Go to Q14

13. How do you rate the current curriculum at your place of study ? (C ) change it to (B)

Excellent

Good

Average

Bad Poor

14. According to you what are the limitations of current curriculum? (C ) change it to (B)

Outdated Courses

Lack of Qualified teachers

Absence of Practical Assignments

Other _____________________

15. How w ill you rate the awareness about latest global technology/ developments in the industry of your

teachers? (C )


16. Which of the f ollowing do you think meets closest with your objective of joining this f ield? (A)

Personal interest in the field

Higher number of jobs/ easier job availability in the local market

Higher number of jobs/ easier job availability in the global market

Promising career growth/ path

Highly paid jobs

Social pressure

Importance of software industry in the economic growth of a country

Did not have any other option


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

17. If given an opportunity, will you move abroad to f urther your career path or you will stay in Libya and

work on the development of the sof tware industry of the country? (A)



I will stay in Libya

I will move abroad, if given the opportunity

I havent decided


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

18. In your opinion, how important is the role of sof tware industry in the economic growth of a country? (C )

change it to (B)

Extremely important Important Not-so- important Not-at-all important

19. In your opinion, what is the current status of the sof tware industry in Libya? (C ) change it to (B)


20. In your opinion, what is the most important reason f or slow development of sof tware industry in Libya

(you can choose up-to 3 reasons)? (C ) change it to (B)

Language barrier

Lack of technical educational institutes

Lack of trained workforce

No/ limited support from the Government

Lack of economic resources

Poor/ unsatisfactory infrastructure/ social development

Lack of local demand of software/ technology

No/ low foreign investment

I think the development of software industry in Libya is satisfactory

Other (please elaborate) _____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

21. Please give suggestions on how in your opinion, the sof tware industry in Libya can be developed to match

with other global giants. (C )/ (B)

________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ ______________________

________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________



Questionnaire f or Employees/Employers

Name (Optional): ________________________________________

Gender: ________________________________________

Company: ________________________________________

1. DEMOGRAPHICS:

a. Which part of Libya do you belong to? (C )

b. Why are you living in Tripoli? (C )

c. _____________________________________

d. _____________________________________

2. What is your qualif ication? (A)

Certification Please Specify _________________

Diploma

Bachelors

o Computer Engineering

o Computer Software Programming

o Engineering Other

Masters

o Computer Engineering

o Computer Software Programming

o Engineering Other


_____________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

3. How many years of experience you have in this industry? (A)

0 1 years 2 3 years 4 5 years 6 8 years Above 10 years

4. What is your area of specialization? (A )

Software development/ programming

Database management

Web development

Graphics

Software ProjectManagement SPM)

No specific area or role assigned Other (please specify)

___________________________________________________________________



5. How will you classif y yourself ? And please describe why? (A/B)

Software Developer

Software Engineer

ProjectManager

Trainee

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________ ________

_______________________________________________________

6. What Languages/Sof twares do you work? (please mark 1, 2 3 with one most and 3 least) (B )

Java C#

SQL

Other ___________

7. What is the nature of work you mostly do in your company? (B)

Developing new software products

Making replicas of existing licensed software

Developing product as per local market needs

Providing maintenance to clients on contract basis.

Searching for work

Call center

Web designing


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

8. How do you rate your self in using the f ollowing? (Please choose area pertaining to you a nd write 1 to 5,

with 5 shows you best and 1 shows you are not capable) (A)

Java

C#

SQL

Oracle

Php

Other __________

9. According to you what are the basic academic requirements of working in the Libya sof tware industry?

Please select maximum of Two options? (A/B)



Have to be an Engineer

Must have sound knowledge of (You can select from sub options as well)

o Java

o C#

o SQL

Should be a certified professional

Foreign Qualified

Should have a very creative mindset

Libyan University Computer Science Graduate s are well qualified to do jobs.

10. Since you are well experienced in this industry, Please ref er to standard Academic Curriculum f or Libyan

Computer Science graduates attached f or you? Do you think the current curriculum is up to date with

standard Sof tware Industry requirements? (C ) change it to (B)

Yes

No

Needs slight changes, following subjects should be added

o ____________________

o ____________________

o ____________________

o ____________________

o ____________________

11. What do you think of current workf orce in Libyan Sof tware Industry? (A)

Not qualified

Lacks practical exposure

Lacks basic knowledge

Non professional

Is not qualified to take professional assignments Very talented but require exposure

Very competitive

Have a very professional attitude

Lack professional attitude

12. Are you satisf ied with Role of Peoples Committee of Higher Education (PCOHE) in ICT development of

Libya? (C )

Yes

No

Needs Improvement

o ____________________

o ____________________

o ____________________

o ____________________

o ____________________

13. What f actors hinder growth of Sof tware Industry in Libya? (C )



Growth rate is OK

Lack of Qualified Human Resource

Ban on Exports

Lack of Foreign exposure

Absence of Telecommunication/Internet setup in Libya

Lack of Business Opportunities/ no work available in Local market

Government Restrictions in Foreign Investment

Lack of Support from Government


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________

14. According to you, what is the role of government in this (YOUR ) sector? (C ) CHANGE IT TO (B)

No support

Very Supportive

Have no idea

15. What actions should be undertaken by Government f or ICT and Sof tware Industry development in Libya?

With emphasis on Human Resource development? (A/C) CHANGE IT TO A/B)

Develop infrastructure for Telecommunications and Internet

Give the status of Industry to Software Sector

Reduce import and export barriers to trade for software sector

Tax exemptions for the software sector

Promote and attract foreign investment in this sector

Investment in development Universities that provide latest equipment

Revise the current software studies curriculum in line with international standards

Introduce computerization in Government department and become customer of Software sector.

Develop a Software Development committee/board

Develop Software Technology Parks

Encourage Foreign scholarships in the software sector to promote interest in general public

Other please specify

_____________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________ ___________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

16. In your opinion, how important is the role of sof tware industry in the economic growth of a country? (C )

CHANGE IT TO (B)

Extremely important Important Not -so-important Not-at-all important

17. In your opinion, which of the f ollowing is the most successf ul f actor in the development of sof tware industry f or a developing country? (C ) CHANGE IT TO (B)

Training workforce in-line with global standards/ technology



Creating local demand of software through computerizing of state-run departments

Developing low-cost copies of imported software

Developing export base with quality software development in line w ith global needs

Outsourcing technology

Development of Information Technology Parks


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________ ___________________

18. Developing countries like India, China, Thailand and Brazil are taking advantage of Outsourcing in the

sof tware industry, which has resulted in a boom in the said industry in these countries. In your opinion,

can this methodology help Libyas sof tware industry to grow? (C )

Yes

No


_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________ _______

19. Based on your knowledge, which developing country out of the f ollowing has the most successf ul business

model in the sof tware industry: (A )

India

China

Brazil

Thailand

Libya working model is OK I dont know


a. __________________________________

b. __________________________________

c. __________________________________

TAKE BOTH OF THEM OFF AND PUT THE Q UATION THAT SCAND ON THE EMAIL

20. Please give suggestions on how in your opinion, the sof tware industry in Libya can be developed to match

with other global giants. (B)

________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________ ________

________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________

literature review summary-nov 5 2010

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