Julius Simon holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Guyana and is the Technical Director and Lead Developer at Innovative Systems Inc. (INNOSYS), a software development company which he, along with three partners, own and operate.
Next month INNOSYS, which is located at 43 Croal Street, Stabroek, celebrates its second anniversary and Simon already asserts without the slightest hint of equivocation that his decision to leave his permanent job as a Systems Analyst with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and venture into what is often the risky domain of the private sector has paid dividends.
What prompted him to take the plunge was a chance engagement with an overseas client that was not only seeking a service provider in Guyana with the capacity to create a specialized piece of software but one that could do so at a competitive price compared to prices in the United States. The potential client, Simon says, was also willing to offer a longer-term contract to the developer.
Simon explains that it is not uncommon for clients in the United States to seek out software developers in developing countries. For a start, he says, it’s cheaper. He explains that the incentive to venture out on his own has been rendered all the more appealing having watched overseas software developers secure jobs in Guyana for which they charge ‘an arm and a leg’ in circumstances where the same service can be delivered here in Guyana at a fraction of that cost.
INNOSYS, Simon says, has moved on. Over the past two years the company has secured contracts to provide services for both the public and private sectors in Guyana. Its clients in the public sector here include the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. Simon believes that the company’s most successful initiative up to this time is its human resources software package which has allowed it to get the attention of the local market.
If INNOSYS is still finding its feet in the world of business Simon is convinced that the timing of the emergence of the company fits in with what he says is the increasing awareness in both the public and private sectors in Guyana of the importance of Information Technology to the importance of their operations. Among the company’s current preoccupations are the development of an electronic health records software package for which an initial presentation has already been made to the health sector and another package designed to support the Mayor and City Council in its efforts to enhance its rates and taxes collection. Simon says that INNOSYS hopes to hand over this latter package by early next year.
The company’s efforts to spread its wings beyond what is still a limited local market has led it examine its prospects in the region. Simon says that INNOSYS is currently engaged in discussions with companies in Trinidad and Tobago and Antigua in the hope that a collaborative initiative might emerge.
Simon says that INNOSYS is currently the only local partner of Oracle, one of the largest software development companies in the world which specializes in database products.
It is, Simon believes, a tribute to the quality of the training offered by the IT Department of the University of Guyana that INNOSYS has been able to grow over the two years of its existence. He believes that the training offered there is good enough to be a stepping stone that can cause graduates to make sound professional choices in the various areas of the discipline. In the short term the company is seeking to attract greater numbers of local clients to its Human Resources software products which he says will improve both the administration of their payrolls as well as help address other human resources challenges.
