How to address the IT skills shortage

[Roo!]

Very true situation!!

The other problem in the IT market is the fact that you get a MUCH bigger "increase" by moving companies, than to get a promotion in your own company ... 30% increase when you move, 6.5% increase when you stay ... the math is obvious

6.5%, ahh, I could only dream, I'm being scr3w3d all the way to the bank

 

[icyrus]

I find that most companies see their staff as expendable - like furniture. This doesn't help if you want to retain your good staff and attract others.

 

[CathJ]

And then you hit the 6-10+ years mark and suddenly there is no positions available to you because 'you're too experienced'!!! Not all of us actually want to be in management and are quit content with developing for our foreseeable future.

Absolutely agree. But this is seen by employers as not being ambitious... instead, they should be glad we won't be looking to take over their jobs

 

[noxibox]

1. Double salaries to match international standards.

I've seen very high salaries offered overseas, but I've also seen a lot of low ones.

Well, yes. Typically, a graduate won't have 2 to 4 years experience, because they're just graduated - by definition. You also typically won't have 4 years experience in a new technology, again by definition.

Companies need to start realising that you can't get experience without having experience - someone has to be willing to hire those without experience so that they can gain experience. And you can't expect to pay peanuts just because someone doesn't have experience yet.

Generally the term can graduate be used to refer to someone who has a degree, not necessarily someone who has just graduated.

When I was working during a university vacation, way back in the days of the dinosaurs, one of the managers advised me to ignore the experience requirements in job adverts and just apply for anything that interested me. That stood me in good stead, made me feel less overwhelmed when I was seeking work. I talked my way into some jobs I really wanted, despite the employer knowing I lacked the particular experience they were seeking.

Starting pay should be reasonable.

What are these guys earning now days 300 - 350k ? No enought for some one who probally has to forck out 50k in studies a year.. to keep up.....

I keep up to date with books. If there are courses an employer requires, then they should be paying. Still I agree the disparity between what top executives and the rest of the employees earn is not acceptable. Particularly people like engineers and programmers who often work long hours and are critical to the success of the company.

And then you hit the 6-10+ years mark and suddenly there is no positions available to you because 'you're too experienced'!!! Not all of us actually want to be in management and are quit content with developing for our foreseeable future.

The other problem is that there are just so many languages and software packages that get used. The longer you work the narrow your field of options and in the worst case you can become unemployable because your areas of expertise are no longer required at all.

 

[Superhero]

I have a dream job!

Hey dudes. I work for such an unbelievable company. One day I'd be doing ASP.NET e-commerce solutions, the next I'll be writing web-services for courier companies. I get to do a lot of graphic interface design, 3D animation, video editing, Windows software development. I code mostly in .NET using either VB or C#.

My boss encourages me to learn how to impliment AJAX in the most amazing ways possible. I get to write software interfacing with SMS gateways and accounting software. I'm a true jack of all trades. I have a company credit card and I can buy any IT book my heart desires - and I do!

Every 3 hours, we all sit around a big old fashioned kitchen table (no, we're actually a pretty big company - we don't work from home!) and we just think while sipping cuppicinos. Thinking rocks!

Yeah, I have the stresses of deadlines. I've been offered numerous opportunities to get myself assistants, but I love working alone. I get paid very well, and I'm only 26.

Life's good! But the reason for typing this letter is that I also had to start at the bottom. My professional training was at Microsoft institutions and somehow people think degrees are far superior to MS education (and yeah, I will agree with that to a certain extend) - but I had to work for R8000 in the beginning, then R12000, then R14000. Then another company offered me a job and suddenly my company woke up and offered me R25000. Now I'm in the 35K range, but it took me a good 5 years of crappy salaries to get to this point.

It doesn't just fall out of the sky. You have to struggle first.

I always say, ask any person that's 40 years old: "how easy was your life?" and I can guarantee you that they'll say "it was pretty hectic, I struggled soooooo much during my 20s". It builds character. You have to struggle and count your pennies to prepare youself to appreciate the big salary awaiting you!

I read books on stuff I don't even think I'll ever get an opportunity to do. But I'm telling you now, gimme an Oracle or MS SQL database any day and I'll make it do stuff you never thought possible!

Oh and for all you guys out there looking for a good SQL book, this one rocks: SQL Hacks by Andrew Cunning. If you boss makes you write a lot of reports, this book will make report writing soooooooo much fun, 'cause with about 5 lines of SQL you can produce a report that'll take bad programmers weeks to do!

Anyways, enough talking - I have work to do!

 

[Tns]

also been in that R2500 to 3000 place, applied for another job at a large firm asking only R30 and hour but got 50 and that was about 4years ago now, getting more now ....

but in general people don't want to hire unskilled or inexperienced workers.

 

[Abe]

I dont think there is a skills shortage, the fact is that there r many ppl (like myself) who r'nt given a chance, and r quick to learn!

I hope you don't write like this on your CV It has become second nature to the younger generations and often they start to use it when they shouldn't. I have interviewed a few people and often their language/writing skills are not up to scratch. The most important thing for me is getting the basics right and their aptitude and this is not something one learns in university.

 

[theStudent]

I hope you don't write like this on your CV It has become second nature to the younger generations and often they start to use it when they shouldn't. I have interviewed a few people and often their language/writing skills are not up to scratch. The most important thing for me is getting the basics right and their aptitude and this is not something one learns in university.

lol...
Not too worry....
Just my forum/sms/mxit chat...

The only thing I have going for me is my language skills, so not going to mess that one up.

I blame the sms'es for horrible shortening of messages
(unfortunately spills over into forums)

 

[The_Unbeliever]

Beh...

11 years experience, and struggling to find another job... (and let's keep it at that, no more details).

 

[Defib]

Sorry for the Hi_jack but what does this country intend doing about the paramedic shortages?? 2010 is almost here??

 

[Tns]

Sorry for the Hi_jack but what does this country intend doing about the paramedic shortages?? 2010 is almost here??

employ a Cuban ones?