Canadian startup CostCertified, which recently opened a local office in Cape Town, said that Cape Town is now one of the world\u2019s fastest-growing regions in terms of foreign investment. Citing data from fDi Intelligence, the group noted that the city has been established as a top destination for international tech companies, with over 40,000 people employed in the sector.<\/p>\n
In addition to its infrastructure and cost savings, this highlights the country\u2019s most attractive resource for international businesses \u2013 its people.<\/p>\n
\u201cSouth Africa offers a high-calibre, untapped talent pool for international businesses. Between unemployed graduates and people who don\u2019t have any formal qualifications, but have all the relevant soft skills and potential, it\u2019s not difficult to build a strong and successful local team,\u201d said Mike Bignold, founder and chief executive of CostCertified.<\/p>\n
The company, which provides cost estimating software for the residential construction industry, acquired offices and began its local hiring process weeks before anyone from the CostCertified team were on the ground in South Africa. From location scouting to conducting Zoom interviews, the entire process was virtual \u2013 which posed a number of opportunities and challenges.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found that some of our candidates were apprehensive about the speed at which they received offers. CostCertified is a hypergrowth company, and once we decide someone is a good fit, we fast-track the employment process to get them started ASAP. For South Africans who are used to four-week-long hiring processes at huge firms, this can come as a surprise or seem questionable \u2013 but eventually, they come around,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur strategy is not to solely focus on experience or education, but rather to get to know our employees in order to fully maximise their strengths and value. This presents an opportunity to accelerate their careers significantly,\u201d says Bignold.<\/p>\n
In particular, South Africans are sought-after for sales development and customer success roles. First and second-language English speakers often have neutral accents that make it easier to connect with customers across the world.<\/p>\n
Major multinationals like Amazon and Panasonic have identified and leveraged this opportunity since 2004 \u2013 but with more businesses moving in every year, companies now have to work harder to differentiate themselves and attract talent.<\/p>\n
\u201cCreating an environment where employees genuinely want to spend their time is a simple and effective way to attract talent, promote productivity, and generate positive word-of-mouth reviews. This doesn\u2019t mean bean bags and ping pong tables \u2013 it\u2019s about ensuring that each employee feels they are doing purposeful work, learning new skills, and that they share the values of the company,\u201d said Bignold.<\/p>\n
South Africa\u2019s \u2018silicon valley\u2019<\/p>\n
The 2021 report from fDi Intelligence, a data division of the Financial Times group, shows Cape Town is one of the world\u2019s fastest-growing regions for foreign direct investment.<\/p>\n
The ranking also awarded South Africa first place in Africa for economic potential, start-up status and business friendliness.<\/p>\n
In addition to receiving the largest number of foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in the software and IT services sector, South Africa also recorded the second-highest number of start-ups, after Nigeria.<\/p>\n
Cape Town was awarded second place after Cairo for FDI strategy after displaying impressive initiative in creating the necessary infrastructure for a thriving tech ecosystem.<\/p>\n
\u201cExtending beyond Cape Town, the Western Cape boasts a robust tech ecosystem,\u201d said Wesgro, the Western Cape\u2019s official tourism, trade and investment promotion agency.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Cape Town \u2013 Stellenbosch corridor contains 450 tech firms employing more than 40,000 people, making the ecosystem bigger than Nairobi and Lagos combined.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other key aspects that make Cape Town the \u2018tech capital of Africa\u2019 include:<\/p>\n
Tech start-ups: At the end of 2020, there were 550 tech companies and over 40,000 people employed in the tech sector, in Cape Town.
\nInvestments: In 2020, a total of $88 million (R1.2 billion) disclosed investments were injected into tech start-ups in Cape Town across 46 deals, the highest investments made in South Africa.
\nVenture capital firms: the Western Cape has the highest number of venture capital firms, which makes it easy for startups to access funding.
\nCo-working spaces: The Western Cape has over 30 co-working spaces, the highest in Africa and 715 free WiFi spots in Cape Town alone.
\nDeveloper talent: Cape Town hosts 38% of the total developers in South Africa, the highest concentration of developers in the country.
\nCoffee culture: Cape Town boasts a deep and diverse coffee culture across 100s of stylish outlets.
\nEdTech Hub of Africa: Cape Town has a high density of digital skills training academies and is the location of choice for EdTech businesses that are building content for entities and educational institutions across the globe.
\nHome to four world-class universities: The University of Cape Town retained its spot as Africa\u2019s top university, with Stellenbosch University ranked the 3rd best University in the 2021 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings. Students from across the globe come to study in Cape Town, with many being attracted into the growing tech ecosystem.
\nEase of doing business: According to the latest World Bank research report on Doing Business in South Africa, Cape Town ranked the top metropolitan municipality in the country when it comes to the ease of doing business.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
International companies, like Amazon and Panasonic, are increasingly choosing to set up headquarters in South Africa as part of their global expansion. With more foreign businesses moving in every year, skilled people have become one of the country\u2019s most in-demand commodities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12963,"featured_media":12111,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,21],"tags":[7,26,22],"class_list":{"0":"post-12114","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"category-technology","9":"tag-apie-project","10":"tag-news","11":"tag-technology"},"yoast_head":"\n