With Tech Talent Shortage Inevitable, What Can CIOs Do?

Without talent, there is no true innovation. Without innovation, there is no business transformation. Talent shortages derail human capital management and digital transformation through continuous innovation.

This article discusses the daily challenges of Chief Information Officers (CIO) and Chief People Officers (CPO) with recruitment, talent retention, compensation, and productivity goals.

Students seeking to connect with the technology industry are highly recommended to pursue a Cybersecurity or Data Analytics career and consider attending CIAT.edu. The education institute offers several degree and certificate programs to help students enter these exciting career fields.

A Lack of Software Engineers is Detrimental to Daily Business

Critical innovation is one of the first areas to suffer as talent gaps increase. To remain competitive, businesses must improve their product development innovation processes. Current workers need to gain digital skills to hire the right people. 46% of enterprise organizations say talent shortages cause delays.

Without innovation, companies become less competitive and less profitable. Feature differentiators drive higher revenue and profitability for organizations. Commodity capabilities drive lesser profits and higher operational costs to maintain. Innovations are also critical to breaking into new market segments. With access to qualified talent, organizations can gain the skilled and experienced workforce needed to drive future solution opportunities.

Despite the diversity of employees and skills on the market, it is crucial for companies to craft talent acquisition strategies. Organizations need a strategy to develop a resource pool of talent. They must create outreach programs seeking a diverse workforce to draw people with different critical skills. More workforce planning is essential for ongoing innovation and capital gains.

Hiring is Challenging With a Shallow Talent Pool

The recent wave of layoffs in the tech industry has confused job applicants. Companies that lay off workers often have open positions. And, tech companies have even laid off employees while hiring for new roles. As a result, top and mid-size technology companies have come under media scrutiny for their communication methods around this issue. 

Business leaders, including CIOs, have a role in talent acquisition. Their management skills and ability to effectively communicate their corporate vision and strategy are essential for attracting new talent. Recent layoffs in the tech sector have many questioning whether or not business leaders fully understand how their actions may impact talent acquisition. These actions may deter qualified candidates from applying to, or even considering, their organizations.

New tech industry students should be aware of this issue and should know that despite these recent layoffs, the tech industry is, and continues to be, a viable path for career growth. 

Knowledge for Today and in the Future

Organizations continue to invest in diversity and inclusion to help create a broader pool of candidates. These continuous efforts help create more well-rounded organizations and help deliver more creativity and innovation. The challenge with any recruiting strategy is finding qualified candidates with degrees and certifications. 

Many underserved communities and diverse groups need more practical experience and educational opportunities to qualify for many open job positions. Many learning institutions, including CIAT.Edu, have several degree programs and certifications to help students of all diverse backgrounds achieve their educational and career goals.

National and global organizations, including IBM, Microsoft, and Facebook, continue to invest in outreach programs to help build a well-qualified diverse workforce to meet their human capital demands.