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One of the reasons why people find technology such an exciting area to work in is its pace of change: new ideas and new transformations make for a constant flow of new, engaging challenges.
And yet, one of our biggest current challenges also seems to be a permanent feature of the technology landscape in the UK – and it’s not even an explicitly technical issue. The IT skills gap is a consistently reported problem, and recent figures give no indication that it might be abating. Last year, for instance, Forbes surveyed 500 British employers across a range of industries and found that 93% believe that there is a lack of supply of IT skills in the market.
Needless to say that the commercial base is also where the public sector predominantly fulfils its contracts, and a governmental focus on digitalisation is tapping into that same talent pool. The IT skills gap, in other words, is a big-picture problem which every organisation, public and private alike, is experiencing on an individual level.
I think there are two ways that organisations can and do react to this situation. One is competitive: investing in ways to attract skills into the organisation and secure a larger share of the talent pie. That competition can have progressive consequences on the employee experience, but does little to close the overall skills gap.
We also have the opportunity, though, to recognise that this is a collective challenge and act in a more collaborative spirit for longer-term benefits. Ultimately, skills are a resource which, like natural resources, we have to share – and that should encourage us to approach the challenge with a mindset of stewardship and development, ensuring that we both get the most out of the resources we have today and create more supply for the future.
What that growth should look like for technology skills is, I think, readily apparent. While the UK tech sector has come a long way over the last few decades in terms of broadening the makeup of its workforce and overcoming assumptions about what ‘kind’ of person works in technology, the fact remains that many social groups remain under-represented, both in terms of current workers and in terms of who joins the industry each year.
In other words, the larger body of people we need to tap into in order to meet the demand for tech skills is out there. We just need to give more people the confidence, inspiration, and opportunity to take that leap.
This big picture view could seem too daunting or even grandiose for individual professionals to address, but I don’t think that interventions need to have the scope and sweeping significance of national policy in order to make a big difference. To use the natural resources metaphor one more time, planting many small seeds now will deliver yields in the future.
It might be creating space for employees to work directly with schools, demystifying the industry and inspiring belief in students at a vital age. The business I work for, Kyndryl, collaborates with Skills Builder – a non-profit enterprise bringing hundreds of schools, colleges, employers and non-profit organisations to help young people develop essential soft skills – and facilitates office visits to give students in-person experience of thinking like a technologist. It might mean finding relatively low-effort, high-impact initiatives to address historical imbalances in the workforce. Kyndryl regularly dedicates marketing resources to celebrating the women in our workforce, highlighting the diversity of routes that people take into the industry to raise awareness around gender equity, and a number of our experts work with TechSheCan to run outreach sessions in schools.
And it doesn’t even need to be directly highlighting a tech business as a career destination; it might mean working with a charity like The Prince’s Trust, as I have alongside employees from Fulham Football Club, to run sessions on personal development and employability skills, overcoming some of the ‘soft’ skills gap which can make a huge difference in terms of who gets onto ambitious career paths. Other colleagues have also volunteered with the Prince’s Trust and I also recently delivered a pilot session for young entrepreneurs on ‘Building a Sustainable Business’ with The Prince’s Trust and peers from other companies enabling the next generation to develop ‘green skills.
The skills gap is something that gets reported on year in, year out, and so we shouldn’t be under any illusion that it’s going to take less than many years to fix it. That fact should only motivate us to take the many small actions, as individuals and as organisations, which might sow the seeds for our future workforce – and recognise and celebrate one another for doing so.
I believe that small everyday actions like this will add up to a meaningful difference.
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Head of Central Government Programme, techUK
Heather is Head of Central Government Programme at techUK, working to represent the supplier community of tech products and services to Central Government.
Prior to joining techUK in April 2022, Heather worked in the Economic Policy and Small States Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat. She led the organisation’s FinTech programme and worked to create an enabling environment for developing countries to take advantage of the socio-economic benefits of FinTech.
Before moving to the UK, Heather worked at the Office of the Prime Minister of The Bahamas and the Central Bank of The Bahamas.
Heather holds a Graduate Diploma in Law from BPP, a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from LSE, and a BA in Economics and Sociology from Macalester College.
Programme Manager, Cyber Security and Central Government, techUK
Annie joined techUK as the Programme Manager for Cyber Security and Central Government in September 2023.
Prior to joining techUK, Annie worked as an Account Manager at PLMR Healthcomms, a specialist healthcare agency providing public affairs support to a wide range of medical technology clients. Annie also spent time as an Intern in an MPs constituency office and as an Intern at the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed.
Annie graduated from Nottingham Trent University, where she was an active member of the lacrosse society.
Programme Manager, Central Government, techUK
Ellie joined techUK in March 2018 as a Programme Assistant to the Public Sector team and now works as a Programme Manager for the Central Government Programme.
The programme represents the supplier community of technology products and services in Central Government – in summary working to make Government a more informed buyer, increasing supplier visibility in order to improve their chances of supplying to Government Departments, and fostering better engagement between the public sector and industry. To find out more about what we do, how we do this and how you can get involved – make sure to get in touch!
Prior to joining techUK, Ellie completed Sixth Form in June 2015 and went on to work in Waitrose, moved on swiftly to walking dogs and finally, got an office job working for a small local business in North London, where she lives with her family and their two Bengal cats Kai and Nova.
When she isn’t working Ellie likes to spend time with her family and friends, her cats, and enjoys volunteering for diabetes charities. She has a keen interest in writing, escaping with a good book and expanding her knowledge watching far too many quiz shows!
Team Assistant, Markets, techUK
Ella joined techUK in November 2023 as a Markets Team Assistant, supporting the Justice and Emergency Services, Central Government and Financial Services Programmes.
Before joining the team, she was working at the Magistrates' Courts in legal administration and graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2022. Ella attained an undergraduate degree in History and Politics, and a master's degree in International Relations and Security Studies, with a particular interest in studying asylum rights and gendered violence.
In her spare time she enjoys going to the gym, watching true crime documentaries, travelling, and making her best attempts to become a better cook.
Associate Director, Social Impact, Kyndryl UK & Ireland