Saice launches career growth platform for engineers

25th November 2020 By: Donna Slater - Features Deputy Editor and Chief Photographer

The South African Institution of Civil Engineering (Saice) has launched an innovative new platform – Saice Connect – that enables its members to network and engage with potential employers and like-minded individuals.

The platform is designed to bridge the gap between skills shortages in many industries and high unemployment rates.

Saice says there are myriad opportunities in the engineering and built environment industry, but the problem lies in finding these opportunities and connecting them with appropriately skilled professionals.

Saice Connect enables potential recruiters to find job seekers' resumes and is designed to help engineers, technicians and technologists to engage with employers and grow their careers.

Saice CEO Vishaal Lutchman says the organisation foresees that Saice Connect will become a go-to portal for connecting employers with skilled engineers, connecting mentors and mentees, and assisting qualified engineers, technicians or technologists to find steady work in South Africa.

He says that while many engineers have left South Africa in search of work, there is in fact plenty of work to be done locally.

“The problem isn’t a lack of opportunities; the problem has been a historically disjointed industry in connecting skills with the work required. With Saice Connect, we are helping align the various fields of the built environment landscape to see a more prosperous industry.”

The platform is available free of charge for Saice members that may not have employment at this time, by registering under a variety of categories. Registration can be done for one-on-one, online and group mentoring; subcontracting for projects or fixed-term; working for a consultant, subcontractor, contractor, developer, government department, municipality, or State-owned enterprise; working in an office or on-site; business startups or consortiums; full-time or part-time academic work; and technical online or in-person training opportunities.

“This platform provides an opportunity for our members to progress and grow their careers in a difficult economy. It offers endless possibilities to help you grow as an individual and as a company whilst Saice continues to lobby government to unlock a resilient and sustainable project pipeline,” says Lutchman.