CHICAGO – April 23, 2014 – Most IT companies are struggling to fill certain positions, but the reasons behind their recruiting challenges are nuanced, according to a new survey by Sologig.com – CareerBuilder’s job site for computer and IT professionals. The nationwide survey was conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Sologig between October 17, 2013 and November 6, 2013, among 240 hiring and human resources managers in the information technology industry.
Fifty-three percent of information technology firms have open positions for which they can’t find qualified candidates. But among those concerned about a skills gap, several causes are seen as driving factors.
What is causing the skills gap?
· Gaps in expectations around wages: 40 percent
· New and shifting technologies: 39 percent
· Job requirements that are above entry-level: 38 percent
· Education gaps in particular areas: 33 percent
· Gaps in on the job training: 33 percent
· Job requirements that are too specific: 29 percent
· Outsourcing of jobs to other countries: 26 percent
“At the pace certain programming and development skills evolve, there’s no silver bullet for recruiting tough-to-fill technology jobs,” said Eric Presley, chief technology officer for CareerBuilder. “Employers have to constantly evaluate their talent needs through workforce planning and ensure their compensation is competitive enough to attract top talent. IT workers, meanwhile, must always be polishing their existing competencies and acquiring new ones to stay relevant.”
Experience and Training
Forty-five percent of IT hiring managers believe training should be equally shared between employers and workers and 29 percent say the bulk of the responsibility should fall on the employer. Forty-four percent of IT employers provide technical skills training on-the-job.
However, 60 percent of IT hiring managers have never hired someone who doesn’t meet the full requirements of the job listing.
Is Compensation Competitive?
Boosting compensation is often the simplest way to enhance a pool of skilled candidates. Currently, only 20 percent of IT employers think their organizations offer “extremely or very” competitive pay. Forty-four percent said they would consider increasing compensation for tough-to-fill roles and 22 percent said they would not. Thirty-four percent said they’ve already increased compensation.
Additionally, 34 percent feel they can pay employees less due to the high-unemployment rate – a view that could actually deter truly in-demand workers from accepting roles.
Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder among 240 Information Technology employers (employed full-time, not self-employed and have full or significant involvement in hiring decisions) ages 18 and over between October 17 and November 6, 2013 (percentages for some questions are based on a subset, based on their responses to certain questions). With a pure probability sample of 240, one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/-6.33 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.
About Sologig.com and CareerBuilder®
Sologig is an employment website that connects experienced IT and engineering professionals and matches them with relevant opportunities. Users can also post resumes, sign up for automatic job alerts, and take advantage of job search management tools.
CareerBuilder is the global leader in human capital solutions, helping companies target and attract great talent. Its online career site, CareerBuilder.com®, is the largest in the United States with more than 24 million unique visitors and 1 million jobs. CareerBuilder works with the world’s top employers, providing everything from labor market intelligence to talent management software and other recruitment solutions. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE:GCI), Tribune Company and The McClatchy Company (NYSE:MNI), CareerBuilder and its subsidiaries operate in the United States, Europe, South America, Canada and Asia. For more information, visit www.careerbuilder.com.
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