An old Philippine model that needs to be replaced

The title above aptly describes the antiquated manual elections in the Philippines that were replaced--thankfully--by an automated system this week.

The old model I'm talking about is the scientific approach which the Philippines, and perhaps other countries as well, is employing to solve the problems it is currently facing. The academic sector, in particular, is still teaching science and engineering courses that were designed and intended to address the needs of the 20th century.

But has anyone realized we're now in the 21st century?

This is where a new scientific model called SSME, or service science and management engineering, which tech giant IBM introduced in recent years, comes to play. Actually, it was at an event co-sponsored by IBM and the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) last week that I first got to know the concept behind SSME.

However, it was an amiable Belgian professor named Guido Dedene, who explained the concept to me in simple terms and the need for a country like the Philippines to adapt to a changing global landscape.

Dedene said the Philippines has become a very important BPO destination for American and European companies. However, the country is still using the same old model in training its workforce to meet the demands of the outsourcing market.

For instance, he pointed out that local universities offer the course industrial engineering, which is meant to train students to be become technically proficient in the industrial world. But, and this is a big but, they are also conveniently neglecting the fact that a new sector--the services industry--has sprouted big-time.

But according to Dedene, there's some light springing out of the horizon with industry and the academic sector starting to recognize the value of introducing service-oriented technical education to students and young executives. He cited, in particular, St. Louis University (SLU) in Baguio City, up in the north, which will soon offer an SSME-based course to graduate students.

For its part, the CICT said it is currently coordinating with the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), the government agency in charge of tertiary-level education in the country, to have SSME included as a prescribed curriculum in colleges and universities.

I wish the CHEd would be as zealous as Dedene, who spoke at the conference without any professional fee, in pushing service science in our educational institutions--especially if the country is really serious in molding a new generation of Filipinos skilled and well-equipped for the services business.