Technology professionals are in demand
By Chris Devonshire | 6th January 2021
The global spike in reliance on technology.
Our reliance on technology has never been more prevalent than now, as the world adapts to working remotely.
It might come as little surprise then that the global pandemic has given rise to the largest surge in technology investment, primarily spent on enabling safe and secure home working, according to Information Age reporting on the trends in the latest Harvey Nash/KPMG 2020 CIO Report.
For almost half of IT leaders, Covid-19 has permanently accelerated digital transformation and adoption of emerging technology – AI, ML, blockchain and automation.
The report goes on to say that, in addition to cyber security skills, the next three most scarce technology skills are organisational change management, enterprise architecture and technical architecture and advanced analytics, coming in joint third.
This seismic change for organisations to keep their operations running throughout the crisis, has increased the pressure on the already small technology talent market.
Despite the major uplift in investment, shortages in technology talent have remained high.
What does this mean for technology professionals?
The global pandemic has cemented the importance of robust digital infrastructure in the modern world. None more so than accessibility, anywhere, anytime. What is clear is that the acceleration of digital transformation has escalated to warp speed and is continuously evolving.
Cloud specialists
Behind security and privacy, Cloud investment is significant with a large proportion of the roles in demand, relating to virtual deployment.
What does the long-term landscape look like for cloud-computing skills, salary, and job growth and can cloud-based skills boost technology professionals job security and prospects, even in these challenging times?
Cloud specialists do not only need to manage information migration and services to the Cloud. Maintaining continued operations in a digital landscape is equally important, both in the initial migration and troubleshooting, as organisations continue to operate in a Cloud infrastructure. This requires different skills in navigating the Cloud environment.
Developers, Engineers, and Architects dominate our hit list for most in-demand technology professionals, with 40% of Devonshire Hayes’ placements in the last three months falling into this skillset.
What about Data?
According to Statista, by 2020 every human on the planet will be creating 1.7 megabytes of information. Each. Second.
That’s why data specialists are next on our list of hot technology skills. It’s all good and well organising information, but it’s hard to organise volume, without an understanding of what the information is or the skills to segment it, to improve strategic decisions and outcomes.
Whether it’s identifying trends and examining large data sets or constructing new processes for data modelling, using predictive models and custom analysis, data specialists are in demand.
The big sectors with a heavy reliance on data (and growing) is healthcare, energy and banking. The primary technology professionals on our most-desired list are Data Analysts, Data Scientists, Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence professionals.
Your career is bright
Whether it’s Cloud & Infrastructure or Data, digital transformation is here to stay and at Devonshire Hayes, we’ve seen an increased spike in demand for these specialist skills 3-fold throughout 2020.
What does this mean for organisations hiring technology talent?
Prior to the pandemic, 2020 skills shortages remained high. Subsequently there has been a significant increase of job applications. Positive news for organisations looking to attract top talent with what might be considered rich pickings.
If this is the silver lining, then the cloud is the increased administrative burden on hiring organisations not only on finding the right candidate but having access to the increased pools of quality candidates and managing their application process effectively.
There has been an increase in complaints from candidates across social platforms on the lack of feedback during the application process. A natural, although unfortunate, side-effect of high-volume applicants, coupled with the administration of managing this influx, for organisations.
Regardless of your view on the increased ‘candidate-ghosting’, the available public forums on which to voice your experiences, can result in an organisations brand being impacted negatively, simply by a bad application or interview experience.
Alleviating hiring pressures
At Devonshire Hayes, we understand the importance of competency frameworks and targeted feedback in the candidate experience. Couple that with our capabilities and track record of managing the hiring process, we will secure the right candidate for your organisation. We’re positioned to help you alleviate hiring pressures, protect your brand and save money, by accounting for the unforeseen challenges of hiring in a candidate rich market.
Looking for your next move or facing hiring challenges?
We’re here to create opportunities for people in technology to exceed their career ambitions with passion, empathy and respect.
We’d love to hear from you if you’re considering a career move in technology, because we have access to some incredible organisations looking for your technology skills.
If you’re hiring, leverage our long-standing partnerships with a network of technology professionals suited to your organisation.
Get in touch and speak to one of our trusted advisors today.