Organizations are largely aware that they have widening skills gaps within their workforces. But according to a report from CompTIA, the world’s leading technology association, many organizations are struggling to find solutions to narrow those skills gaps.
600 business and technology executives were surveyed for CompTIA’s “Assessing the IT Skills Gap” report, and almost half (46 percent) believe skills shortcomings within their organizations have grown over the past two years.
It is not only in technology that skills gaps are present. Executives also reported skills issues in marketing, sales, business development, operations, customer service, and accounting and finance.
Regarding the report, Charles Eaton, CompTIA’s executive vice president for social innovation and CEO of Creating IT Futures, lamented that the term ‘skills gap’ is often a catch-all phrase for other workplace challenges such as a labor supply gap or generational work style differences. “But whatever the cause there is clearly a wide chasm between the skills employers want and their perception of the skills their workers have,” Eaton stated.
Workforce skills gaps can affect many areas of an organization resulting in lower staff productivity, lower sales and profitability, delays in bringing new products and services to market, and losing ground to competitors.
Despite the myriad of consequences, few organizations (one in three) have a formal process and resources in place to address their skills gap challenges. Amy Carrado, senior director of research and market intelligence for CompTIA, said, “More than half of organizations acknowledge they struggle in identifying and assessing skills gaps among their workforce. Knowing what to fix must precede discussions of how to fix it, and to fix it soon.”
The top five strategies given by companies for addressing workforce skills gaps were:
- Better ways to provide on-the-job experience, such as internships.
- Better ways to provide intense job training, such as apprenticeships.
- Early student exposure to careers in IT.
- Certifications and credentials to validate skills and knowledge.
- Better assessments and methods for evaluating the skills of job candidates.
To download a free copy of the full report, visit CompTIA Insight & Tools.
Danita White for TechFunnel.com
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