By Joanne Finkeldey, People Director at razorblue
The tech landscape is evolving rapidly, and the last decade has seen huge amounts of growth in the sector. Tech professionals are the second most sought after role in the marketplace and a considerable amount of research shows that the UK is suffering from a digital skills gap. A study carried out by Microsoft found that seven out of ten UK businesses are facing a shortage in digital skills.
So, what is the digital skills gap?
It refers to the lack of properly trained candidates to fill necessary posts in businesses. A recent government report found that 72% of large companies and 49% of SMEs are suffering a large Digital Skills Gap.
Arguably, the most notable reason for the extensive digital skills gap is the rapid expansion of the tech industry over the last few decades. Digital transformation has rocketed across all industries and driven an extraordinary level of demand for new skills that the country is ill-equipped to meet. This skills gap presents a challenge to the future of both businesses and individuals.
The good news? The problem is not as obstinate as it might seem.
This issue requires response from policymakers, employers, and educators to diminish the potential negative implications for the UK and for businesses. Of course, to fully close the skills gap will take time, and a shift of mindset, with more young people encouraged to embrace technical subjects to help build a deeper talent pool for the future.
Take an active role at closing the gap
Build partnerships with local schools, colleges, and universities to inspire young people and try to get them excited about embracing digital and technological skills.
We see the value in encouraging young talent to join the technology sector. Our approach to the digital skills gap has seen a huge expansion of our apprenticeship programme, more recently creating the razorblue Academy, which gives us a chance to train staff and give them hands-on experience in key disciplines. We actively work with local colleges in attempts to engage with students, allowing them to have insight into the tech world.
Invest in training and development
Although this is harder for some businesses, there is no getting away from the fact that employers must invest in their work force to continually increase their skills- for both existing staff and the future talent pool.
Retraining people to work in new areas, and allowing them to develop in their current disciplines supports employees’ individual learning and professional development and boosts staff morale, becoming a key element of the organisations ability to retain staff.
At razorblue, we support the advancement and growth of our teams by offering personal development opportunities and plans, where individual employees can utilise them and the training on offer in a way that suits them.
All razorblue employees are offered at least one full day a month to focus on training and improving their skills. We also keep updated on what our partners are providing, like free universities via partner portals, or seminars, to find training opportunities for our staff that is effective and affordable. Within our business, Infrastructure and Network engineers frequently take members from Service Desk with them on jobs to get hands on training.
The constant improvement and diversification of our staff’s skillsets are a priority for us at razorblue. With the rapidly evolving landscape of technology, we want to be ahead of the changes that occur within our sector, so we can provide IT support regardless of the challenge.
Think about your company
The value a company brings and what it offers to its employees is a critical aspect when it comes to attracting and retaining talent. Proactive employers are already finding ways to cope with the skills gap by including opportunities for flexible working and offering perks to benefit employees.
Creating a culture in which people feel supported is key. We recently introduced the implementation of a companywide HR system to give us insight into how our people are doing at any given time, both in work and a personal capacity, ensuring that the business can support them in the most appropriate way.
There is a lot that still needs to be done about the digital skills gap in the UK, however business proactivity is key to close the gap. Digital skills are the future, and how we react in a micro scale will impact how the UK competes on the world market in the upcoming years.
razorblue.com
