The economy continues to thrive with a historically low unemployment rate as a result. Additionally, certain technical roles – especially cybersecurity and machine learning – remain in high demand.
These two factors make it difficult for companies to successfully source and hire talented IT candidates. So let’s look more closely at the issues affecting the hiring efforts across the business spectrum. A closer understanding of the current job market helps your organization craft the right staffing plan. After all, this helps ensure your organization doesn’t end up suffering from a technology skills gap.
The Demand for Technical Talent Remains High
Sure, the low unemployment rate definitely contributes to a difficult market for companies looking to hire fresh talent. Still, the strong demand for talented IT professionals exacerbates the issue. Current job market data perfectly illustrates this problem.
A recent study noted the average time to fill an open tech position is nearly one month. This is combined with the fact that many tech candidates with the most in-demand skills are only on the market for two to three weeks. Those two data points ultimately strike fear in the hearts of many hiring managers. Simply put, the competition is fierce for the best tech candidates.
Additionally, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the demand for IT pros isn’t going to abate any time soon. In fact, the BLS forecasts a 12 percent increase in demand over the next decade, with over one-million technology positions going unfilled. So even if the economy takes a downturn, a higher unemployment rate won’t make it easier to source tech talent.
What Technology Roles Are Difficult to Fill?
We already noted the high demand for specific tech roles, like information security and artificial intelligence. Other IT positions are also expected to be difficult to fill in the foreseeable future. These include a wide variety of software engineering disciplines, like mobile app development, web development, and full-stack programming.
With more companies embracing the Cloud for their technical infrastructure, companies need network administrators boasting experience in this area, as well as with new innovative networking technologies, like SD-WAN. Also, data analytics and data science are creating copious opportunities as companies try to wean actionable information from their data stores.
Ultimately, expect a candidate-driven job market to be the new normal across the technology realm.
If your company is finding it difficult to hire technology talent, speak with the team at The CERES Group. As one of the top IT staffing agencies in Boston, we provide great candidates able to make a difference for you. Schedule some time with us soon.