According to Pluralsight, the list of skills that engineers and organizations need to succeed grows with each new technological advancement. However, many organizations continue to see their budgets and staff shrink.
The survey asked 1,400 executives and IT professionals how their organizations can leverage technology to drive business value in a world where budgets and workforces are shrinking and technology is rapidly evolving. I asked.
Critical skills gaps within your organization
The results were consistent across markets and career levels. Cybersecurity, cloud, and software development are considered the most technical skills to master and are the top areas where skill gaps still exist. Cybersecurity and cloud are listed as his two biggest skill gaps for 2021 and beyond.
This sends a clear message that organizations need solid foundational skills in security, cloud, and software development before prioritizing technology trending skills.
65% of respondents said cybersecurity skills are the most scarce within their organization, followed by cloud (52%) and software development (40%). Cybersecurity skills are cited as the most important skill to learn next year (63%), followed by cloud (47%) and software development (45%).
Despite the hype in newsfeeds, a Pluralsight report found that the AI/ML skills gap is the lowest priority to address, but demand is increasing. Compared to last year, he saw an 11% increase in engineers interested in building AI/ML skills.
Aaron Rosenmund, Senior Director of Security and GenAI Skills at Pluralsight, said: “We know that AI/ML skills are becoming increasingly important, but we also know that organizations have other more immediate upskilling priorities.” “The average cost of a data breach is 4.45 million and that the success rate of cyberattacks continues to increase exponentially every year, it's clear why cybersecurity skills are a top priority for organizations.”
When a skills gap is identified, organizations have two options. Either hire new talent or upskill your current employees. Recruitment is thought to be an easy way to find top talent with the right skills, but research shows this is not the case. 66% of organizations say hiring takes the same or more time than upskilling existing talent.
Upskilling tends to be cost-effective
The benefits of skill improvement can be seen in numbers. The average cost to hire a new tech talent in the US is over $23,000 and takes 10 weeks. According to respondents, 57% of organizations spend only $5,000 per employee on upskilling.
“This year's report explores the economic benefits of upskilling today's workforce and how continuous learning increases employee confidence and empowers them to succeed in their roles as the technology landscape continues to change. ,” said Will Clive, chief human resources officer at Pluralsight. “It’s clear that investing in customized learning paths to assess and address specific knowledge gaps can lead to significant business outcomes.”
The power of upskilling is undeniable, but the real challenge is putting it into practice for employees. The top reasons why organizations struggle to implement upskilling programs remain the same over the past three years of this study. It's a lack of time.
Despite clear barriers, organizations can unleash their upskilling efforts with a culture of continuous learning. The first step is to identify existing skills to identify gaps. Leaders need to stay involved in this process. Only 33% of executives fully understand the skills their IT teams need, and 68% of technologists say their organization's leaders don't recognize the technology skills gap .
When it comes to what motivates employees to improve their skills, the number one motivation for participation has emerged this year. It's about increasing job security and increasing self-confidence. This is yet another proof that upskilling can contribute to increased employee engagement and drive performance and innovation.
With 78% of organizations abandoning projects due to a lack of employees with the right technology skills, there's no time to waste filling the gap.
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