How businesses can deal with the lack of IT experts?

Despite the seeming abundance of systems engineers, network specialists, and IT generalists, it is more difficult than ever to find qualified candidates for crucial positions like cloud architects, cybersecurity experts, or agile developers. According to the U.S. National Science Foundation, the number of computer science degrees peaked in 2004 but did not start to recover until 2015. There are several reasons for this, but the most likely one is that students chose other majors due to the dot-com bust, which caused the job market for computer science to collapse. A whole generation of computer science graduates that would have been in senior-level technical employment is suddenly absent. What are the reasons behind the current IT talent shortage, and what can CIOs do to address it?

Another factor contributing to the IT talent shortage is the development of new technologies and paradigms. Cybersecurity, cloud computing, and agile development fields have serious talent gaps and have advanced significantly over the previous five years. Even while certification and training programs are developing, schools have just started to educate specialists in these fields. It will take some time for experienced practitioners with other specialties to transition.

Last but not least, IT careers are becoming less appealing. Despite an increase in responsibility, salaries in various fields have held steady. Additionally, the field had lost its excitement until recently. Most IT departments have been under pressure to cut expenses. Occasionally, a desire to invest in technology to enable business could pop up for a quarter or two, but overall, IT was encouraged to cut costs. IT was left out even as the digital transformation revolution began in 2012. Most businesses that made digital transformation investments didn't ask their IT employees to take responsibility. In its place, they hired outsiders to manage the high-profile, extremely lucrative projects.

The need for new talents

How can CIOs deal with these issues? The most important step is establishing a culture where the organization values technology and technology practitioners. Nemertes Research often gives respondents to surveys four categories to choose from when describing how their company views technology: conservative, moderate, aggressive, and leading edge/bleeding edge (see Figure 1). While aggressive and bleeding edge cultures perceive IT as a differentiator and business enabler, conservative and moderate cultures often consider it a cost-saving. The workplace for IT teams is more enjoyable from the latter perspective.

In addition, three practical actions can help nurture IT talent:

Offering internships for talented students. Businesses that want to retain the best and the brightest start out early. Identify promising high school and college students, then offer them paid internships on stimulating projects. These prospects are more likely to work with the company when they graduate.

Providing payment and compensation for completing technical specialties. Vendors provide reliable and efficient training and certification programs in numerous fields, including cloud architecture. Technology professionals will be motivated to put in the effort to learn more if they are financially and professionally rewarding.

Inviting IT to the table. Today's strategic undertakings are almost always at least somewhat dependent on technology, although IT is rarely discussed. The research discovered that businesses beginning digital transformation projects are more likely to have IT-related ideas.