Liberty IT: Cultivating the next wave of software engineers in NI

Sam Mawhinney is a Senior Director in the Emerging Business and Technology team at Liberty IT. His team boasts a diverse group of talented professionals, with 250 employees including engineers, data scientists, product designers and consultants.

Sam’s team has a focus on advanced analytics and data – and it falls within his mandate to steer Liberty IT’s wider response to the opportunities in AI.

“How we experiment with and adopt emerging technologies – and planning that in a structured way – is the key to our success,” he said. “That means thinking about the future from all dimensions, including the impact on our business and our customers - but also thinking about the people skills that are evolving because of AI.”

He went on, “We’re always asking, ‘How we can motivate people to adopt and explore these new technologies? How do we do that in a way that's safe, ethical and aligned with our company values?’”

Sam said that joining forces with other IT and software companies in Northern Ireland is an important part of the journey. This led to Liberty IT becoming a founding member of Software NI, the software industry’s collaborative voice.

Sam said, “Software engineering is a team sport. Here in NI, we find like-minded companies who are also investing in their people. Together, we’re addressing the question, ‘What are the skills of the future?’”?

Sam said he feels it’s a privilege to work in the technology sector, where people can work on things they’re passionate about, while benefitting from a culture of collaboration.

“Overall, Liberty IT has over 800 team members, so we are one of the larger software firms here. There’s a spirit of giving back and being part of a wider ecosystem in the economy,” he said.

From Sam’s perspective, looking for talent from other industries – including banking, professional services, and telecoms – can add to the richness of that perspective.?Encouraging talent from a young age, while kids are still in school, is where it all begins.

“Liberty IT has been in Northern Ireland for 27 years – we also have sites in Dublin and Galway. Through this time, we’ve focused consistently on developing the next generation of engineers. With the focus that Software NI brings, it means that companies aren’t reaching out to schools individually – we are doubling down on our efforts and spreading our energy as far and wide as possible,” he explained.

With more than 190 post-primary schools in NI teaching more than 150,000 students, the future is promising. Liberty IT has made a specific effort to reach as many of these students as possible through its programme with National Museums. The first collaboration of its kind, the STEAM Studio is a place for inspiring 13 - to 16-year-olds to consider a career in a STEAM subject. Located within the Ulster Museum, it includes a dedicated space for a coding exercise - using Microsoft’s Make Code Arcade to create a virtual museum collection personal to each student. This boasts a walk-around digital environment, showing the students in a unique and immersive way what a job in technology can entail.

Sam said, “We’re proud that more than 1,000 students have come through our STEAM Studio since we launched last year – and we’ve ensuring equity by targeting schools outside the city, who are lacking that close proximity to the opportunities that Belfast can give. Demand has been huge because of the fact it’s inclusive and available free of charge to all secondary schools across Northern Ireland.”

When asked whether the software industry has experienced a change in skillsets, Sam agreed that evolution is underway with today’s AI systems. “As a software engineer, there are many focus areas – security, ethics, data protection – and underpinning it all is the fundamental need to write stable, secure code.”

“Our success, as with many tech firms, lies in building highly feasible technology solutions that scale. All this, while giving people the space to learn and explore new innovations,” he concluded.

?