Talent shortage stymies Indonesia's tech scene

Jakarta

INDONESIAN online retailer Bilna spent two years looking for a chief technology officer before it finally discovered Ridy Lie, who had returned home after eight years with Amazon in the United States.

Until Mr Lie, the company had struggled to find someone who could "take us to the next level", said Eka Himawan, group chief financial officer at the company, which was renamed Orami after a merger this year. "He is the one who is guiding (the engineers) and telling them: This is how the things are done in Amazon and this is how we should do it," Mr Himawan said.