Allan Alter of CIO Insight says yes. In Blame CIOs for the IT Skills Shortage, he claims that employers aren't making the investments they need to develop their people, are refusing candidates who lack narrowly defined skills, and then complaining about their IT staffs. I've been thinking about this a lot lately (see We can't hire enough "talent." Oh, and we're eliminating 3,000+ jobs.), and I agree with his conclusion that "Many IT executives gripe that universities are not producing a stream of IT graduates who are prepared to function in the business world. Some worry about the unflattering image of technical professionals as socially awkward. But no one is more to blame for the skills shortage than CIOs, especially those at large companies. The reality is that IT executives are creating the skills shortage they grumble about." He quotes training investment statistics to support his claims.
Does this touch a nerve? Alter's view seems to resonate with lots of folks. This is the first time I recall seeing a CIO Insight article, or any IT-related article for that matter, so highly rated (as of this afternoon, it had received five stars out of five from dozens of reviewers). Alter suggests a way around the IT talent problem: "There’s a three-part solution to the skill shortage: One, no matter how the economy affects your firm, increase training for employees. Two, when recruiting from outside your company, be willing to interview capable IT professionals, even if their skills aren’t a perfect match for the job. Three, be willing to provide new hires with technical training." Or, as he puts it, "So stop griping about the skill shortage, broaden your searches, and start creating the skilled workforce your company needs."
Anecdotal evidence. Here's an example from one of my colleagues. He works in an in-demand engineering field, and recently told me his previous company claimed to value people, but was completely clueless about developing or retaining experienced talent. For instance, the executives allowed a not-very-people-savvy director to keep employees assigned to the same group essentially forever (or until they quit, whichever came first). Folks who asked to work in a different area within the company were refused, and given virtually no opportunities to expand their skill set. So my colleague left, and more hard-to-replace senior people continue to walk out the door.
What do you think? Is your company missing the opportunity to help people grow along with it? What can be done about it?
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