In the UK the current shortage of IT graduates is beginning to bite. Levels have fallen 20% since 2001 and continue to decline. The reasons cited are often around the ‘attractiveness’ of IT roles, however I fail to accept that argument - One look on a job posting site will show the salaries that are currently available for IT professionals, and if this truly is a hedonistic society obsessed with bling then surely being in IT should be the perfect stepping stone. However, I feel that the true reason behind the lack of IT skills being generated within the UK, is the collective view of the IT industry in general. IT, from an organisational perspective is seen as a service, an enabler and very little more. With this mindset, even the highest levels of CTO or CIO potentially yield comparatively little power from an organisational perspective. Organisations are just waiting for the boom in IT professionals in Poland, Argentina, India and China so that they can outsource - The problem is, they are seeing slow downs too. My solution to this problem is relatively simple - Hug a techie. Business people need to integrate their technology teams within the business, they should be one, with the same or greater levels of training and development available to them, outside of the IT skills. Enabling IT professions with business skills makes for a significantly more attractive career proposition.
Source: Abdelaziz (Aziz) Musa