Any white guy tempted to blame black empowerment for his failure to progress in the IT industry would probably hate to meet Len de Villiers. He’s not only white, he’s also 56, and has forged a memorable career and recently had the pick of various CIO jobs with which companies and even government offices tried to tempt him.

“I don’t believe colour is a constraint in the industry because there are 74 000 IT vacancies in South Africa, so you are constantly looking for key skills,” he says. “The staff attrition rate in technology departments is relatively high and the key challenge for most is holding on to their people, because IT people are so sought after and so scarce, they can almost pick and choose where you work.”