The IT Talent Crisis: 2 Ways to Hire and Retain

Just what does the HR/IT war room look like right now as CIOs and other digital leaders strategize about how to attract and retain their valuable technology talent?

IT organizations are in the midst of a dual problem. The labor market for IT talent, particularly in security and emerging technology, is increasingly tight. Some might even call it a crisis. At the same time, we are in a period that economists have dubbed “The Great Resignation,” as masses of workers are voluntarily leaving their jobs.

But this isn’t just about getting help desk tickets resolved faster. The lack of talent threatens to stall enterprise efforts at digital transformation and other high-priority technology initiatives, according to the 2021 Harvey Nash Group Digital Leadership Report, an annual report by the IT talent firm.

Specifically, this year’s report found that 69% of digital leaders in the US are now unable to keep pace with change because they can’t hire the talent they need. The skills shortage is most acute in cybersecurity at 43% of firms, up by 11% in the last 12 months. Enterprises also cited shortages in DevOps (39%) and big data/analytics (38%).

Non-profit IT industry association CompTIA’s analysis of October’s US Labor Department numbers reached similar conclusions. US technology job postings are at their highest total in 2 years. Employers listed 360,065 job openings for technology positions in October, an increase of nearly 76,000 from the previous month, and the highest monthly total since September 2019.

How can CIOs and other digital leaders attract talent and get existing talent to stay?

Here’s the quick answer -- pay them more and give them better opportunities.

A CompTIA survey of 2,000 technology professionals who were either actively job hunting or passively looking/opportunity aware revealed that 58% were leaving for better salary or benefits and 54% were leaving for better career options or long-term opportunities.

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