The latest survey by Equinix, a digital infrastructure company, revealed that UK IT leaders have serious concerns about staff retention and recruitment.
According to the Equinix 2022 Global Tech Trends Survey, 67% of IT decision-makers in the UK view a shortage of personnel with IT skills as one of the main threats to their business, compared to 62% globally. Companies – including Equinix – are looking to widen the talent pool, bringing in more diverse candidates through alternative recruitment drives.
The 2,900 survey respondents acknowledged the speed at which the tech industry is transforming has left companies struggling to find people with the right skill sets to meet present and future challenges. In addition, 61% of UK IT leaders acknowledged that the skills shortage has been exacerbated by the speed at which the tech industry is transforming.
Globally, the most common concerns identified by 44% of respondents were candidates with the wrong skill sets applying for jobs and retention of current talent. In the UK, the results were slightly higher, with 45% of IT leaders highlighting applicants’ skill sets not matching vacancies, while 49% felt retaining talent was an increasing challenge. In addition, half of UK respondents (50%) said shifting expectations of employees towards hybrid and flexible working models had added further pressure.
Across the globe, the most in-demand tech employees are IT technicians (27%), cloud computing specialists (26%) and those with an AI/Machine Learning aptitude (26%).
