Skills roundup

IT leaders looking to hire should check out this week’s Management Strategies article for an overview what skills are in the highest demand. My colleague Denise Pappalardo reports that managers are most in need of application development and infrastructure skills in networking, wireless and security. Some also seek vertical market experience from their IT pros, particularly in the finance field.

You’ll also find the results of Foote Partners’ research, including a list of what certified and non-certified skills command the largest pay premiums and which are on the decline, which skills are more or less desirable in 2006 and a breakdown of customer-facing, infrastructure and enabling skills that are in demand.

And if you haven’t yet seen a recent report from the Society of Information Management (SIM), that’s worth checking out. As I touched on in a previous newsletter, SIM forecasts future demand for the IT workforce. One interesting aspect of the research that I didn’t delve into pertains to demand for business skills from even entry-level IT workers.

As my colleague Denise Dubie reports, the SIM survey results show that employers are looking for project management, leadership and communication skills. For example, systems analysis and systems design are both customer-facing positions that require user interaction and communications skills, notes Kate Kaiser, a SIM member and an associate professor at Marquette University.

As for your own career aspirations, business knowledge is increasingly important to the position of CIO. An expert says these candidates are well-rounded, possess international business and outsourcing experience, and one day will be individuals who could succeed the CEO.