IT skills - Statistics & Facts

Whole lotta IT skills

Alvin Toffler, an American writer and businessman recognized for his discussion on modern technologies, once stated: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn”. The IT skills market has never been more dynamic. AI, web development, and game development were the most important tech skills that developers wanted to acquire in 2022. SQL and Java were the most popular programming languages on the IT market, while data science and Python were ranked as the fastest growing IT skills on the DevSkiller Talent score.

Recruiting, hiring and retaining

As of 2022, web development was the most demanded tech skill by recruiters. Web development is simply the work involved in developing a website. Its applications vary from web engineering and web design to web server and network security configuration. At the same time, Python remained among the top three most sought programming languages by recruiters, with JavaScript leading the top.
It is hardly surprising that the IT skills gap is threatening to put companies out of business, by affecting their ability to remain secure. In 2021, cloud computing security was the area with the most significant shortage of cybersecurity skills worldwide, followed by security analysis and investigations. Consequently, most companies are under considerable pressure to upgrade their hiring games. Five out of ten recruiters from South Africa were willing to remove CVs from their recruitment process in 2022, while only 25 percent of recruiters were willing to do the same in Europe.

Shifting from IT skills development to IT skills initiatives

In order to successfully manage the changing demands and optimize the full potential of available IT skills, it is essential to cultivate and emphasize a learning culture in the work environment consisting of e-learning and company-paid certifications. In North America and Europe, a significant number of companies have already implemented employee security training tools as of 2022. Moreover, the traditional view of skilled employment that requires academic studies and years of work experience is switching to IT certifications. According to IT and cybersecurity decision-makers worldwide, such certifications acknowledge high awareness of the topic, and ensure faster career growth and high salaries. Some essential IT security certifications include (ISC)2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), CompTIA Security +, and Cisco Certified Network Associate Security.

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