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Not enough IT workers on staff, survey finds

Close to 60% of CEOs and CIOs worldwide point to insufficient number of staff as the most common problem experienced in the past 12 months
By Denise Dubie , Network World , 02/13/2008
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A shortage of IT workers on staff is the top IT-related concern of C-level executives, according to new research.

Close to 60% of 749 CEOs, CIOs and other C-level executives reported in a survey released Wednesday that an insufficient number of IT staff continues to pose a problem in their organization. That number has grown since 2005, when 35% of those polled in a similar survey reported insufficient IT staff as an issue.

Close to 50% of those polled said IT service delivery problems are the second most common problem they have experienced with IT in the past 12 months, and more than one-third (38%) also consider staff with inadequate skills a common problem.

The survey, commissioned by the IT Governance Institute (ITGI) and conducted between July and October 2007, examined C-level executives' take on IT and the problems they face with their internal organization. The survey also found that 93% said IT was somewhat to very important to the overall corporate strategy, a number that increased by 6% since 2005. Yet less than one-third (32%) reported that IT is always on the agenda at board meetings (up from 25% in 2005).

ITGI, which is the research arm of the Information Systems Audit and Control Association, reports that IT and business relations could still improve. For instance, 36% of respondents reported that alignment between corporate and IT strategy is average, poor or very poor. But ITGI officials say despite a potential economic recession and reports of layoffs, IT workers continue to be in high demand and that IT is growing in importance to the business.

"We are seeing an increased demand for qualified information technology professionals throughout the industry,” said Lynn Lawton, international president of ITGI, in a statement. “Without a well-trained, fully staffed IT department, the bottom line is that many organizations around the world are needlessly sacrificing money, productivity and competitive advantage."

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Worldwide shortage of IT workersBy Anonymous on February 19, 2008, 4:26 pmWhen will C-Level managment and their underlings realize that their huge shopping lists of skills and meager salaries don't mix. Employers ask for skills in everything...

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Yes, it is a laughBy tuomoks on February 15, 2008, 12:39 amSkilled? They mean people who have a skill to say yes instead using the learned skills. Unfortunately for companies current generations have grown with computers...

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This is a laughBy zlito on February 14, 2008, 9:52 pmThe same people CEO's, CIO's and others have been getting big bonuses for reducing staff and making what’s left of work force do all the extra work. Hey we can...

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RE: Not enough IT workers on staff, survey findsBy tech68 on February 14, 2008, 1:31 pmhmmmm....Strange.. The people polled are the exact people who can make the difference in their orgs. Direct hire more IT people instead of trying to get them on...

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Partner Content

NetScout and analyst Jim Metzler have teamed to deliver a series of IT Briefs on Network and Application Performance Management leveraging research from NetScout's nGenius & Sniffer users.

www.netscout.com

Metzler on Service Delivery Management

Delivering IT business value by evolving our thinking from managing application performance to focusing on services.

Learn More

2009 Handbook of Application Delivery

Successful IT organizations must know how to make the right application delivery decisions in these tough economic times.

Download the Handbook

Metzler on the Modern IP Network

Discusses the growing emphasis on network management and the need to implement a holistic view of the end-to-end experience of the user.

Read the Brief