IT is full of challenges and opportunities. There are many opportunities to acquire new skills and earn high salaries. However, the industry has been disrupted by new technologies and IT managers and staff are not always on equal footing.
We went straight to the source to understand the most pressing IT issues. All data taken from the Global Knowledge IT Skills and Salary Report.
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Top 12 challenges facing IT professionals
Workload
Cybersecurity
Skills gaps
Digital transformation
Cloud computing
Hiring
Budget
Leadership support
Analytics and data management
Automation
Project management
Career growth
NEW CHALLENGE: Remote workforce management
Working from home can be a challenge for many people, not only in IT. Millions of professionals are adapting to work remotely. Supervisors and staff have to quickly learn how to improve communication, collaboration, and productivity in a virtual setting. If you’re not used to working remotely, it can be difficult to avoid distractions like family members, chores and Netflix. These distractions are not an issue if you work in an office setting. We offer several training courses to help you and your team transition to remote work.
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1. Workload
Both IT staff and decision-makers are overwhelmed with work demands. It’s sort of a chicken and egg scenario–decision-makers are using increasing workloads as an excuse not to authorize training, and staff are struggling to complete assignments because they lack the proper skills. In both cases, time that was previously allocated for skills development is being used as a catch-up to the growing backlog of work.
Our IT Skills and Salary Report revealed that workload concerns are at an all-time high. It is the greatest training obstacle for IT professionals. They believe that increasing workloads reduce their time in the office and in training courses.
This can be solved by better management oversight and a strategy. Automation could also help to reduce time spent on tasks that don’t have high priority.
To make more time in your day, take this two-hour Effective Time Management course.
2. Cybersecurity
There are two-fold cybersecurity challenges:
Cyberattacks are getting more sophisticated and larger in scope.
Millions of cybersecurity jobs remain unfilled
IT security is a serious concern for organizations. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), 55% of global identity and access management users would switch providers or platforms in the event of a threat to their data. 78% of these users wouldn’t mind putting the security of their data at risk.
Problem is, there aren’t enough cybersecurity professionals in IT. 40% of IT decision-makers admit to having cybersecurity skills gaps within their teams. This is also the most difficult area for IT hiring.
This problem will not disappear immediately. It is possible to build a cyber workforce internally. Invest in cybersecurity training and upskill your employees. Outsourcing and hiring are not always an option. Current IT professionals who have a solid knowledge of the industry are more likely succeed as cybersecurity professionals.
Have a look at our cybersecurity training courses.
3. Skills gaps
More than 80% of North American IT departments are facing skills gaps. Globally, the IT skills gap increased by 155% in three years. They can’t be ignored.