Kay Nolte, Chief Information Officer at South Australia’s Department of Education & Children’s Services has taken a year’s sabbatical and will work with Mitrais assisting with business development in the Australian market.
Kay brings a diverse range of experience, at a technical and business management level to Mitrais, which she has gained across several industry sectors and countries.
Mitrais CEO David Magson said “Kay’s in-depth understanding of the requirements of Australian business in both the private and public sectors, together with her extensive experience as a CIO, will assist us to refine and enhance our existing business model and processes to provide software development services to Australian organizations.”
Kay contends that off-shoring must become a feature of the Australia IT scene.
“Skills shortages are here to stay in the Australian IT industry, however Australian IT organizations are increasingly being asked to deliver projects at lower cost and in shorter time frames, as well as continue to provide “Business As Usual” IT services at a reduced cost.”
“Australian organizations are also expecting a higher level of involvement and focus by IT in the area of business improvements. Many organizations are reshaping their IT workforce to focus more on business analysis and business process review and reengineering. As such they are looking to have the software development components undertaken offshore.”
“Offshore development is the better alternative to the “457” visa which simply enables suitably qualified people to come to Australia to work but only on a short term basis. Offshore development allows software engineers to contribute to the economy in their home country and in the longer term promotes trade and develops partnerships on which Australian industry can build,” Ms Nolte says.
“However I know there are issues with managing remote teams, including communications and cultural differences. Working with Mitrais will provide me with an understanding of these issues and how they can be resolved and therefore contribute to the improvement of Mitrais’ processes.”
Kay Nolte has worked for a wide range of multinationals in Asia, Europe, New Zealand and Australia. She was based in Singapore for six years, working for IBM in various locations, including a year in a mining camp in Brunei.
In Australia Kay worked in ICT within the transport industry (TNT, Wards Express and Mayne Nickless), pastoral/insurance/merchandise/real estate/finance (Elders), a local software house specialising in retail management software that was sold and supported in Australia, Malaysia and New Zealand, as well as periods as a self-employed contractor and consultant, developing systems and undertaking strategic planning assignments in various Australian locations.
Following extensive experience in the private sector, Kay joined WorkCover in 1992, and was appointed to an executive position equivalent to that of Chief Information Officer (CIO) in 1995. In 2000, Kay joined the executive team at ElectraNetSA, again with the CIO lead responsibility for the ICT function.
In January 2004, Kay joined the Department of Education & Children’s Services (DECS) in South Australia as Chief Information Officer. DECS is ranked as one of the largest ICT installation in Australia, comparable in size to the Commonwealth Bank.
Kay holds an MBA from the University of Adelaide, has completed numerous technical courses and was a finalist in the South Australian “Telstra Woman of the Year” in 1997.
She began her ICT career as a systems engineer and technical specialist before progressing through various applications development roles, to project management and business management.