The UK faces an increasing threat of having insufficient skilled IT leaders to take the technology profession forward, according to a growing number of industry experts.
The wave of redundancies prompted by the recession, the growth in outsourcing and technology changes have created a potential time bomb as traditional career paths to IT management disappear.
For these reasons, Computing has launched Tomorrow’s IT Leaders, a campaign aimed at analysing the impact of these changes and providing a career roadmap for aspiring IT managers.
This online special report collects all out campaign content into one place - and gives you an opportunity to tell us what you think. Join the debate by clicking on the red "Add your comments" button at the end of this article.
Developing the IT leaders of tomorrow
We kick-off the campaign by looking at the latest research and expert opinion on the scale of the challenges faced by UK IT.
Help us to avert a leadership crisis
Computing's leader article explains why we have launched the Tomorrow's IT Leaders campaign and what we hope to achieve.
British Airways devises a new programme to develop the IT high-flyers of the future
We look at how BA is maintaining its focus on IT staff development despite huge budget cuts caused by the downturn.
Video Q&A: Paul Coby, CIO at British Airways - Part one
Video Q&A: Paul Coby, CIO at British Airways - Part two
Computing senior reporter Angelica Mari talks exclusively to BA's IT chief about developing the IT leaders of the future.
Podcast: Q&A with Whitbread CIO Ben Wishart
Podcast: Q&A with Robin Young, former retail CIO at financial services giant Citibank
Two influential IT leaders give their views on the challenges facing their profession.
Technology chiefs must evolve into information leaders
IT leadership expert David Chan explains how changes in the way firms are organised will affect CIOs.
IT management requires a focus on the business and its customers
Tomorrow's IT Leaders: Whitbread Group IT director Ben Wishart gives his views.
Leadership
means managing staff commitment and motivation
Tomorrow's IT Leaders - Domino's Pizza IT director Jane Kimberlin gives her
views.
Think
long and hard before deciding
IT leaders must adapt their decision-making processes to the current economic
turmoil, says Nick Smith of CIOnet.
IT professionals back our campaign
Computing's Tomorrow's IT Leaders campaign gains support.
Video Q&A: Jane Kimberlin, IT director, Domino's Pizza - Part one
Video Q&A: Jane Kimberlin, IT director, Domino's Pizza - Part two
Domino's Pizza IT director Jane Kimberlin talks to Computing senior reporter Angelica Mari and George Lawrie, principal analyst at Forrester Research.
Podcast Q&A: John Bovill, CIO, Aurora Fashions
On IT staff development at his firm and career advice to technology professionals.
Podcast Q&A: Guy Kawasaki, technology guru
On the future of IT leadership, industry trends, and innovation.
IT staff development programmes fail to make the grade
Current staff development strategies are not good enough to solve the IT leadership skills gap, according to a global study by Deloitte.
Virgin on success as media and technology are brought together
Virgin Media’s chief technology and information officer talks about his ambitious plans to converge IT.
There should be no problem in recruiting tomorrow's IT leaders. Companies can simply adopt the same tried and tested outsourcing solution that their HR departments have adopted for all other IT skills over the past ten years. That is, to import the required personnel from the Indian sub-continent at less than the British cost . Since we will soon have no native IT industry anyway this should cause no problems and the board members of the concerned companies will be able to use the savings to further increase their annual bonuses.
Posted by: Barry Fildes 28 Sep 2009
A consistent complaint from IT professionals is that the IT function is not represented or taken seriously at board level. Some have dubbed this the 'Silicon Ceiling'.
Tomorrow's IT leader must breach this supposed barrier by engaging themselves with the business. Information Technology is, despite the protestations of Nicholas Carr, a genuine source of competitive advantage, and this is where the IT leader of the future will make his worth known.
The continuing commoditisation of IT services with the growth of cloud computing and the growing maturity of Business Intelligence products that wring the last drops of worth out of the organisation's data will change the main function of the IT leader, no longer the person that keeps the lights on, but the provider of the most appropriate and cost-effective technology to suit the business strategy.
Posted by: Chris W 18 Sep 2009
"Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." - JFK.
I read with interest your article. I have been within the IT industry for approximately 15 years. I became fascinated by IT while I was managing my own business. The business was subsequently sold to make way for my new IT career, throttled along by John Major's promise of Europe's largest semiconductor plant to be built locally in Wales by LG that was badly timed as the semiconductor market shrank soon after and LG never moved in. IT jobs were at their peak with such a shortage that I remember reading Computing and Computer Weekly editions almost an inch think, primarily with IT related jobs.
How did I go about doing that? Well, having left school without any O or A levels, I studied part time towards a HNC Business and Finance while working full time and followed that with a B.Sc (Hons) Business Information Technology. During the degree, I found a placement at a local business and by the time I qualified, I had been working in an IT department for a few years. Comptia, Prince 2 Practitioner and ITIL qualifications followed with full membership of the Institution of Electronics and Technology.
In 2005, I joined a business and subsequently became the Head of IT. Redundancy followed in 2006 and since then I have struggled to get back into the role of IT management. I have survived by being a contractor and since June 2009 have struggled to even find a contract.
I have both the business and IT skills required as I not only have managed a few of my own businesses but did come through the IT ranks having started as an assistant network administrator. The statistics that I am reading are most interesting. 40% of CIOs are sourced external to the IT department, 54% of IT staff feel that there is no scope for progression, 14% of 2008's IT graduates are still unemployed and in 2010 7,700 more IT jobs will be outsourced. Here is both a statistic and fact, in 2008-9, BT received 4800 applications for 130 jobs!
I have no doubt in my mind and agree with your article that we are sat on a skills shortage time bomb. We are experiencing a shortfall of people applying for IT degrees as many students realise that there is no scope to enter the IT profession, after all, why would a business want to employ a local graduate for the average graduate salary of £17.5K when they can get three outsourced graduates as part of an outsourcing contract. I highlighted this in my blog, recently, The future graduate and the IT and computing skills shortage - http://tinyurl.com/skillshortage .
The recent decision by the government to ensure that job vacancies are advertised in local job centres and Job Centre Plus online for at least a month prior to allowing foreign talent is a step in the right direction. That combined with appropriate IT degrees/qualifications that are aimed at meeting business requirements (View my blog, as above for more detail) is what is required.
If on the other hand, we as a nation can only pay our IT graduates a salary that is just above the minimum wage, then we are destined to be followed by an industry dominated by the large outsourcers. I am passionate about IT and what it can achieve and remain committed to do what I can to further this cause. So, Computing, when you need assistance please do call on me...
In the meantime, I have what it takes to be a CIO, are there any takers out there? Anyone who doubts me or my skills is welcome to visit my blog on my perspective on what makes IT work - http://mubbisherahmed.wordpress.com.
Posted by: Mubbisher Ahmed 11 Sep 2009
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