The ICT sector in Tasmania plays a crucial role in supporting other high growth sectors as well as providing key standalone services.

With the industry expanding, the Tasmanian ICT sector has a growing need for specialists. Business analysts, systems analysts, programmers, developers and software engineers have all been identified as job opportunity hotspots by the local industry.

Tasmania also has many successful ICT enterprises, who are being recognised on the global stage. Two notable examples are Biteable –winner of Startup of the Year at the 2016 iAwards, and PopUp WiFi – winner of Startup of the Year and Infrastructure & Platforms Innovation of the Year at the 2017 iAwards. The iAwards are hosted by TasICT, the peak industry body for ICT in Tasmania, in association with the Australian Information Industry Association. Both organisations seek to discover, recognise and reward the technology innovations that have the potential to, or are already having a positive impact on the community.

Other Tasmanian winners in the 2018 iAwards include:

• Ionata Digital and the University of Tasmania for Tourism Tracer – which provides user friendly tracking solutions and actionable insights into traveller behaviour – for Infrastructure and Platforms Innovation of the Year, Research and Development Project of the Year, and the ‘Consumer Markers’ category.
• The Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, and Condense, for Seamap Australia – a website that brings together data from national seabed mapping collections, making it accessible in the one location – for Big Data Innovation of the Year and the ‘Public Sector & Government’ category.
• Sproutr – an online platform for entrepreneurs and start-ups to trade services for equity – for the ‘Business Service Markets’ category.
• The University of Tasmania for SpiderHouse – an online spider phobia treatment that combines technology with exposure therapy – in the ‘Undergraduate Tertiary Students’ category.
• Mitchell Torok of Rosny College and Isaac Brain of Launceston College for Aged Care Watch – a smartwatch that is designed to assist aged care residents in their daily lives – in the ‘Senior Students’ category.

TasICT also hosts the TasICT Awards for Excellence, 2018 winners include:

• DXC Technology for Best Tasmanian ICT Employer;
• Tasmania Core (Tasmanet) for Best Tasmanian Customer Services or Solution in IT Business;
• TasNetworks for Power of Choice for Best Tasmanian Project/Project Management; and
• Mel Lukianenko of Ignite Project Services for Outstanding Contribution for a Tasmanian Woman in Technology.

TasICT has partnered with the Tasmanian Government to produce a workforce development plan to further grow, foster and develop the local industry to ensure it remains dynamic and innovative.

Phase 1 of the plan has been put into action with a number of successful programs including:

• IT@Work – a program supporting up and coming specialists by embedding real life business challenges in study programs;
• IT’s Your Career, a work placement program for students; and
• TasICT Generations program for grades 7-12 around the state.

As well as offering ICT job opportunities, Tasmania has a growing community of ICT businesses who are choosing to base themselves here with MINT Telecom a prime example. And with over half the state now having access to the National Broadband Network, the ICT sector has high speed connections to the global market.

Tasmania is also an ideal home for large-scale data centres with Red Cloud the latest company to show interest in locating here.

Tasmania has much to offer including: our temperate climate offering lower cooling costs, water at globally competitive prices, an enviable lifestyle, and renewable energy offering a strong and cost-competitive alternative for operators wishing to operate in an environmentally sustainable manner.

Thinking about being part of the ICT industry in Tasmania? Then visit TasICT online for more information on finding your next job in Tasmania, or read about the Biteable, PopUp WiFi and MINT Telecom success stories.