Almost 50 percent of small businesses in the UK technology sector ranked staff lacking the right skills and hiring difficulties as their top two concerns for 2023. However, to fill the digital skills gap, the UK is faced with reskilling an estimated 30 million workers by 2030.
The need for rapid digital transformation means companies are scaling at a rate that is outpacing skills development, leaving 72 percent of IT teams with significant staff shortages. From small businesses to multinational corporations, businesses of all sizes and sectors are competing to hire the best tech talent to accelerate their growth. I spoke to Simon Gay, Head of the School of Computing Science at the University of Glasgow, who stresses that the current theme of layoffs does not reflect the hunt for IT talent: “Despite well-publicized staff reductions in some of the big tech companies who over-expanded during the pandemic, there is strong demand for staff across the computing, digital and tech sector.”
Employee Development and Recruitment
But what’s the solution to this problem? Organizations must adopt an innovative approach to employee development and recruitment if they are to bridge the digital skills gap. Attention needs to move away from the traditional desire for highly qualified technical people and focus more on soft skills and what businesses can do to reskill their existing workforce.
The IT market is in turmoil. High staff turnover has become the norm, leaving companies questioning how to attract and develop talent. Instead of focusing on the difficulty of finding personnel, we should be asking ourselves how we create the ideal conditions for people already in the business to improve and grow. A key part of our strategy at Mia-Platform is to focus on soft skills during the recruitment process as well as supporting our existing team’s personal and professional growth.
As a result of this strategy, Mia-Platform has recruited over 100 new developers in the last three years, and the company now has an average age of 29. Embracing methodologies such as scrum working and co-responsibility has helped foster a culture of constant communication and created a working environment where employees feel valued.
Traditionally, there has always been a heavy focus on technical skills, especially in the IT sector. However, we believe investing in developing soft skills such as communication and public speaking is essential. Offering agile working conditions, continued development of hard and soft skills, and promoting a culture of co-responsibility have helped us enhance our workforce and fill areas of need.
In the UK alone, there has been a 150 percent rise in demand for software engineers in the past year. However, the skills shortage isn’t exclusive to the UK; there is also a need for digitally skilled professionals across Europe. Software developers are second only to cybersecurity technicians as the most sought-after IT professionals on the continent.
Despite the rise in demand for roles requiring specialist training, Dr Rachid Hourizi, Director of the Institute of Coding, is optimistic for those seeking a career in the technology sector. “The current digital skills shortage means it’s a job seekers market, and there is a plethora of opportunities for someone exploring a career in a sector such as coding. Yes, there is a need for specialist coders and technical roles, but there has also been a huge rise in the number of non-technical and IT vacancies. These positions place greater emphasis on soft skills and only require digital and technical ability as part of a broader role.”
Innovation
Innovation is key to solving the skills shortage, and the government needs to work with organizations in the public and private sectors to encourage retraining opportunities for existing staff.
I also spoke to Jon Norris of Codeworks, a coding boot camp, and he supports this theory: “There is a wealth of technical talent in areas such as oil and gas, or the automotive industry, who will see their jobs disappear as we move away from fossil fuels. These people could have very successful second careers as software engineers or in other areas of the technology sector. It would be great to see the government supporting retraining efforts for groups like this.”
Such is the need for skilled workers. UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt used his spring budget to announce more than £60 million in extra funding for skills boot camps and sector-based work academy programs (SWAPS). The government believes this extra money will help up to 8,000 more people benefit from skills boot camps and create an estimated 40,000 new SWAPs.
We encourage our team members to push themselves and learn new skills constantly. Whether that’s through completing professional qualifications or exploring different areas of the business, it’s all about challenging people and encouraging them to communicate openly and transparently. This creates a healthy culture of continuous feedback and puts us in a strong position to retain talent.
To learn more about Mia-Platform, visit www.mia-platform.eu
