Australia’s first website designed exclusively to directly link Australian charity organisations with free IT-tech support has been launched.
CharityWorks.com.au is an innovative new platform that matches under-resourced charities with under-worked/inexperienced IT candidates looking to bolster their CV – while gaining invaluable “real-time” work experience and contacts at the same time.
CharityWorks – A Free IT-Technology Expert Assistance
“Undergraduates and/or new-comers to the IT industry are often looking for pro-bono work they can add to their portfolio of work while they attempt to enter the industry – and resource-poor charities are always looking for help with their IT-tech infrastructure – so we believe CharityWorks.com.au is a win-win,” said Brisbane businessman and program founder, Mr John Christian, who broke into the IT industry by volunteering himself at Queensland & Northern Territory Multimedia in 1997.
“The objective of CharityWorks.com.au is to bridge the gap between the two – free of charge,”
“Most charities in Australia are historically horribly under-resourced and one of the areas that is normally overlooked is a charity’s IT-tech infrastructure.
“Undergrads or people looking at a new career change in the IT industry don’t necessarily find work immediately in the sector.
“CharityWorks.com.au works by linking these two groups together so the charity groups get the crucial IT-tech support and advice they so desperately need while undergrads and/or new-comers obtain some vital experience they need to kick-start their careers.
“My own volunteering experience launched me into the industry and I daresay was more valuable to future employers than my actual degree.
Mr Christian said there are enough websites – like e-lance or Freelancer for example – taking work away from the Australian technology industry as the work is outsourced to primarily India, China or Russia.
He launched CharityWorks.com.au in an attempt to “bring back” value to the Australian IT sector and its developers, and also to help the next generation of programmers, designers and engineers to get “that all important leg into the industry.”
Mr Christian said he was been overwhelmed by the response from both charities and IT undergraduates during a soft-launch late last week
“I think we have struck a chord – CharityWorks.com.au had barely been live for four hours before word started spreading, and the website is now a flurry of activity,” Mr Christian said.
“I knew charities would be very interested to try the website – but I wasn’t sure how it would be accepted by the developers and engineers we’re looking to pair them with,” he said.
“We have simply been overwhelmed with the interest from both sides of the spectrum.
“My vision is to do my part in building value in the next generation of IT candidates.
“As you get older and realise not only how un-invincible you are, but how important charities are to the socio-balance of our country, any opportunity to make a difference is something to be grabbed with both hands.”
Mr Christian said he would never charge charities or individuals to use the site and would only consider advertising on the website if he was unable to fund the operating costs himself.
Visit CharityWorks website: http://charityworks.com.au/