How can ICT recruiters help combat skills challenges

I recently read an article about falling ICT graduate numbers and the expectation that this will lead to skills shortages down the track.

I believe it’s vital for ICT to be regarded as a powerful career choice and a highly valued profession. It should stop being considered as a career for nerds or geeks. It is constantly changing so the benefits of staying relevant within your chosen profession are paramount.

There has been a continuous push to make ICT careers more attractive, particularly to women. Unfortunately career choices by students tend to be influenced by their peers, career counsellors, parents and media, and they presume ICT is risky, nerdy and only for people who like to work alone. The ICT whiz in the TV programs and movies creates a self-perpetuating “nerd” image of this profession and, thanks to the IT bust and other issues perpetuated over a number of years, the attraction to this profession is still a slow trickle despite the growing use of technology across business.

There’s also some debate about which option is better: getting a formal education or relying on ‘on the job’ training? There’s a demand for people to have qualifications, yet qualifications in ICT become outdated quickly. People continue to upskill and suddenly they are “overqualified” or too diverse and not focused on a particular skill set and become disenchanted with ICT. To combat this, it is essential that professionals make sure that the skills they choose to upskill in are relevant to market demands.

This also means that ICT skills alignments and shortages can come and go much faster than many other industries. All it takes is a new popular product to hit the market and there’s an instant skills shortage. Attitudes and traits such as being a fast learner and having a logical mind are more important than a qualification from ten years ago. Yet, how do you test for that? That’s the real issue. More importantly, how do you encourage those entering the workforce to see fast learning and a logical mind as an important attribute – and based on whose definition?

However the fact that there has been a 50% drop in ICT tertiary enrolments in the past decade speaks volumes for the need to seek talent from a broader talent pool. Although sourcing offshore is often the option first considered, that doesn’t mean it is the better option.

The nature of economic drivers is another factor to consider. If the economy is focused on a developing sector that doesn’t typically demand ICT professionals (such as mining) then many professionals choose move offshore or transition into to other industries.

ITCRA has published a number of papers based on comprehensive research and SkillsMatch data to discuss other candidates for ICT recruiters to consider aside from graduates. The proactive work of the ICT recruitment industry in supporting the ongoing maintenance and growth of a strong ICT workforce in Australia and New Zealand can’t be underestimated. We should be the drivers, not the passengers, in this process and ITCRA is continuing to resource and develop tools to assist Members to understand the opportunities.

The current need for the elusive, perfect match between ICT professionals and clients is growing in significance as employers delay hiring on the basis they’d rather wait for that perfect skills match than accept someone with less than 100% of the skills required. Again recruiters are the drivers and should be educating and advising clients on the state of the available talent pool and be confident in emphasising a candidate’s potential to undertake the role, as well as supporting the notion of ‘on the job’ education and upskilling.

Below are samples of interesting, although dated, research on the outsourcing and offshoring discussion:

• Australian Computer Society report on outsourcing and offshoring in Australia from 2004
  
• The Finance Department has a guide (not a policy document) that goes through ICT sourcing; what’s useful is the graphic on the evolution of outsourcing on page 6
  

Are you a recruitment ‘matchmaker’?

Not so long ago I read an article claiming that “half of new ICT hires are not up to the job” and the message has stayed with me as I wrestle with what that means.

In my view, the employment market and the commentators still haven’t accepted that there has been a shift in the employment paradigm. The constant use of the term ‘skills shortage’ demonstrates this: the conversation around this topic is bogged down by two schools of thought – either that ‘lots of high quality workers are unemployed’ or ‘there are limited available workers with the exact skills required’.

The new workforce paradigm – which is characterised by low unemployment – suggests those seeking employees are unlikely to find 100% perfect candidates or even suitable workers among the unemployed.

 A large percentage of people with the required skills are, in most instances, already employed or have chosen other lifestyle options, or are in that group of  workseekers who are often overlooked (mature age people, parents returning to work, those with a disability, and indigenous Australians).

This means employers and recruiters must forget the days of being gatekeepers for an avalanche of exceptional resumes, and instead focus on being the ‘first port of call’ for desirable employees when they decide to leave their current role… and work to place/keep them in their talent pool immediately when that shift occurs. Recruiters must also become employment educators with respect to where the talent really lies – using their expert knowledge and ability to determine the best fit.

“Just in time recruitment” still works for small placement requests (employers who occasionally recruit for a single employee at a time) but in that case, employers will need to wait until the right person becomes available. Big employers need to be more strategic and perhaps focus on engaging the right talent when they become available, rather than only when there is an immediate need.

I believe the most effective recruitment ‘matchmakers’ and HR strategists will ultimately win this current skills and resourcing chess game that now exists in the employment landscape.

ITCRA’s SkillsMatch data base can be used as a real-time reference tool for those in the business of ‘employment matchmaking’. It provides insight as to where workers are coming from, existing skills gaps and the professional backgrounds of successful candidates, allowing employment matchmakers to strategically target candidates and win the skills and resourcing chess game.

Solving the skills shortage

During my time in this industry one of the key issues I’ve faced is trying to navigate the path between recruiters who tell me there’s a skills shortage, and candidates who say they can’t get a job.

Both sides have a role to play in ensuring high quality candidates are placed in available positions.

First, it’s important for candidates to make sure they have the skills employers are looking for. At ITCRA, we collect placement data from our Members on a regular basis, and found that in the second quarter of 2011, there was little correlation between the skills employers were requesting in job advertisements, and those offered by candidates.

In fact, only two of the top 10 skills in demand by employers were among the top 10 skills offered by candidates.  Help desk and project management experience are the key skills employers are requesting, but these aren’t being offered by the majority of job candidates. It therefore makes sense for candidates who want to be employable to upskill in these areas.

It’s also important for candidates to keep their skills up to date by undertaking relevant training through a registered training organisation. Qualifications gained through a recognised authority can give potential employers confidence that candidates have the ability to perform successfully in the role.

At the same time, recruiters need to have the right processes in place to make sure all candidates are getting a fair go.

In order to become an ITCRA Certified Recruitment Professional, recruiters need to have successfully completed our certification exam, which covers procedures on a range of topics, including candidate management. By dealing with an ITCRA Member, candidates can be confident that their consultant will have the necessary skills to represent them fairly to potential employers, and help them secure a job.

Rather than describing the current situation as a ‘skills shortage’, I’d call it a ‘skills mismatch’. Both recruiters and candidates need to work together to minimise this, and achieve positive outcomes for both parties.