Standard terminology for describing IT skills and career paths will help the sector produce the staff it needs, according to skills groups.

A three-tier model has been developed by sector skills council e-Skills UK and is supported by industry bodies including the BCS, business group the CBI and supplier body Intellect.

The first strand of the Professional Competency Model specifies seven general disciplines, including service delivery, business change management, and development and implementation.

The second element relates to the career progression paths within the seven disciplines.

The third covers the associated business and personal skills.

It is designed to enable better understanding between employers, staff industry groups and educational bodies.

At the moment there is confusion about what different job descriptions and skills terminology mean, says e-Skills UK head of strategy Margaret Sambell.

‘One of the difficulties in such a fast-moving sector is there are so many different terms for the same thing it can be difficult to communicate,’ she said.

‘If we are all using this model it will clarify that these are the disciplines across the industry, these are the jobs that exist and these are the range of skills that people need.’

The framework is a welcome step, but needs to constantly evolve, says Jeremy Beale, head of e-business at the CBI.

‘It is a step in the right direction, but this is not an issue that can be dealt with once and is then solved, it has to be an on-going process,’ said Beale.

‘This is only the first iteration of a rolling process and it will need to change as, for example, technology changes,’ he said.

The IT sector has so far been resistant to the adoption of professional standards, says John Eary, head of staff consultancy at user group NCC Group. ‘I hope this changes the situation, but the jury is still out,’ he said.

Cabinet Office director of the Government IT Profession Katie Davis said: ‘A common language for skills and experience is efficient, practical and of use to us all.’