|
|
|
|
|
Now is the time to set the record straight
07 March 2010
Entrepreneur Jerry Kennelly has joined the debate about grade inflation, raising concerns about educational standards and the expectations of Irish graduates.
Kennelly said that ‘‘the cat is out of the bag’’ after the decision by the Minister for Education and Science, Batt O’Keeffe, to investigate the grades awarded in the education system.
One of Ireland’s most successful technology entrepreneurs, Kennelly sold Stockbyte for $135 million in 2006 and has spent several million euro on a new venture, which has staff in Ireland and overseas.
Kennelly called for wholesale changes to how third-level institutions were run and said that there were huge variations in the quality of qualifications, depending on the institution.
‘‘It is about time that we woke upto the fact that we have a very broad range of skill levels from third-level institutions. We now don’t have a choice but to act," he said.
Kennelly said that Ireland was ‘‘paying the price for highly-protected, union-led nonsense, where lecturers live in a cossetted, highly-paid bubble’’.
‘‘Like private companies, educational establishments at all levels need to become meritocracies where the best are rewarded and the incompetent are dismissed. It’s called management," he said.
‘‘To hell with the rights of lecturers for ‘academic freedom’, where they effectively set their own standards. It’s about time they were scheduled for a proper week’s work like the rest of society, not just the 16 hours which they can be rostered for today."
The entrepreneur said that he had been concerned about the standard of workers available in Ireland for some time. He welcomed any move to address the issue.
‘‘For nearly a decade, I’ve been bemoaning the fact that CVs are littered with multiple spelling and punctuation errors," said Kennelly. ‘‘It is not unusual to immediately trash 75 per cent of CVs because of carelessness.
‘‘In the boom years, many employers made the mistake of rewarding those sloppy, poorly-prepared individuals with permanent positions. In any company - and particularly those operating at a high level internationally - those employees are time-bombs who can demolish reputations at the press of a ‘send’ button."
While the economic downturn had made it easier to find employees, ‘‘quality is still an issue’’ and many workers had unrealistic expectations, said Kennelly. ‘‘Jobseekers need to understand that they have responsibilities, as well as rights.
They don’t have a God-given right to a job or a high-ticket salary," he said.
Kennelly said Ireland had failed in its ambition to be ‘‘the Silicon Valley of Europe’’, and had yet to produce a large scale e-commerce or software firm.
‘‘Silicon Valley is a success because of the high standard of the peer group in all areas - from mathematically brilliant developers to web designers to digital marketing expertise. To create high-performance companies that can operate successfully on the global stage, we’re probably going to have to import talent in the areas where our skills are weakest." He also sounded a stark warning about the challenge to Ireland from Asia.
‘‘We are a high-cost economy and need to understand that the world doesn’t owe us a living. Very well-educated Indian graduates are very happy to work for $1,000 a month. Don’t believe they’ve been given a lesser standard of education than ours - far from it.
‘‘Individuals need to get the picture that they are competing, not just against their competitors in Ireland, Europe and the US, but with highly-motivated, well-educated Asians. They’ll hardly be happy with low-value outsourcing jobs.
When they arrive to compete for our business, they won’t be happy to be thrown a few crumbs; they will demand the entire pie."
Kennelly’s comments mirrored the concerns of John Herlihy, the Irish-based vice president of ad operations for Google, about the quality of graduates in Ireland. The investigation into grade inflation was conducted after a meeting between O’Keeffe and representatives of Google, Intel and other firms.
Herlihy said last week that the education system had been a critical attraction for US investment in Ireland, and the key to delivering the so-called ‘smart economy’. ‘‘We believe it is imperative that the integrity of our third-level education system is maintained," he said.
Lionel Alexander, managing director of HP in Ireland and president of the American Chamber of Commerce, which represents US employers in Ireland, echoed that sentiment.
‘‘The success of US companies in Ireland to date has been based around the skills, qualities and productivity of an overall highly-educated workforce," he said. ‘‘Were they not so well qualified and had they not been so productive, then the multinational sector would not have continued its developments in Ireland at such a strong pace.
‘‘To maintain this momentum, it is imperative that Ireland’s education system remains in line with international standards and is considered best in class.
‘‘Maintaining a high standard of education at second and third level is vital if we are to work towards restoring our economy and increasing our competitiveness on the global stage. We welcome any initiative that seeks to ensure the high calibre of Ireland’s graduates," said Alexander.
|
|
|
