The tech hiring (and talent retention) crisis is clearly deepening. The latest employment report from KPMG and REC shows that the fastest falls in permanent vacancies were seen in the IT and computing sectors. Additionally, hiring in these industries has been falling steadily since its peak in 2021, with more than a quarter of a million tech jobs being eliminated last year.
At the same time, an estimated 30 to 70 percent of data, security and development jobs remain unfilled, and by 2025, the global shortage of software developers and IT professionals is expected to full-time cybersecurity reaches eight million. Clearly, there are not enough people with the right skills to fill the roles that organizations currently need.
The digital skills mismatch
This is a major issue because it has the potential to negatively impact productivity and innovation, and could lead IT organizations to struggle to compete with their international competitors.
So how has such a skills mismatch materialized? Mainly, traditional education systems have lagged behind industry requirements to teach the latest digital skills. But with technology transforming at such a pace, it would have been difficult to avoid this situation.
Head of Technology, KPMG UK.
In the long term, the Government needs to invest even more in STEM education. Initiatives like T Levels are a great start, but we also need greater collaboration between schools, universities and employers to ensure they are teaching the skills UK businesses require.
Technologies advance at an incredible pace; Two years ago, generative AI was relatively unknown. This not only makes it difficult to predict what skills will be needed in the near future, but can also lead to changes in skill demands. Therefore, it would be sensible to assume that spending on internal training is expected to increase. However, the reality is the opposite: globally, IT training and education already represents less than one percent of total IT spending.
How to accelerate technological talent
Organizations cannot afford to sit back and wait for the education system to change. Fortunately, there are several actions you can take now to help close your current and future knowledge gaps. First, they should start looking for talent from the beginning and hire people from schools and universities to create a strong pipeline of employees. Companies should also reach out to high schools and universities to find candidates for in-demand positions, such as data engineers, business analysts, and programmers, through internships and apprenticeships early in their careers.
While spending on IT training has plunged, resources should be directed toward a more holistic talent strategy. This should incorporate investments in diverse training, focusing on identifying and developing future skills and defining career paths for employees. Additionally, by placing greater importance on soft skills such as communication and collaboration, people will improve their creative thinking and draw on the experience of others more effectively. As technology permeates every department, new roles and skills will span different functions in organizations. Therefore, different parts of the business must work better together to develop training programs for employees to use all of their technology and broader business vision to help foster innovation.
While financial incentives are a major driver of talent attraction, an organization's values and purpose are also important: 75 percent of job seekers consider an employer's brand before even applying for a job. If IT leaders can link technology to purpose, backed by real action, this will be a big draw for existing employees and potential candidates.
Leading digital talent naturally wants to work with cutting-edge technology, so companies that want to attract and retain leaders in their field should look to build or buy the latest technology. Having a clear understanding and ability to communicate about the technology your business uses should give you a real competitive advantage in the fight to attract and retain the best people. It will also help improve the employee experience across the organization as other staff will benefit from new innovations and ways of working.
Human resources will be essential to accelerate the talent agenda. The challenge for IT leaders will be how to persuade HR to look beyond sourcing talent for current projects and persuade them that by adopting new hiring techniques and changing internal training, there will be a return on investment. in technological talent. This may take years to happen as it will challenge the existing IT talent structure and new roles, titles and salary bands could emerge.
IT organizations as talent incubators
Despite the high demand for technology professionals, many job openings remain unfilled due to a skills mismatch. For change to occur, IT organizations will need to take responsibility for acting as talent incubators at the forefront of finding and generating the skills needed for the future. Without a radical transformation of the way companies attract and retain digital talent, they will significantly inhibit their ability to thrive.
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