Report says IT employment culture is unsustainable as workforce ages
Bryan Glick, Computing 22 Sep 2004
The UK IT industry has a fundamental cultural problem in its approach to recruitment and employment that could lead to significant skills shortages in the future, according to a major research project into workforce practices.
The sector is failing to attract sufficient young people and is not taking advantage of the ageing workforce or retaining enough women, say researchers at the University of Cambridge.
The Workforce ageing in the new economy: A comparative study of IT employment report published this week reveals that:
- More than 80 per cent of UK IT staff are under 45, and more than half are younger than 35
- The number of under-25s entering the industry has nearly halved since 1995 - but in Germany it has almost trebled
- The number of women in UK IT has dropped from 100,900 in 1999 to just 53,700 in 2003
The report says the working culture in IT is unsustainable as the wider workforce ages, and claims that industry leaders recognise the problem but have done little to change.
'They argue for the development of human resource practices which attract and nurture talent from a much broader pool of labour,' it says.
'However, employers appear to have few incentives to introduce such innovative measures.'
Dr Kerry Platman, senior research associate at the University of Cambridge Interdisciplinary Research Centre on Ageing, says the average age of employees is increasing in many developed countries, and this will be a critical business issue for the coming decade.
'Do IT employers want older IT professionals? Can they put good practices in place to develop IT professionals as they age? That doesn't seem to be the case,' she said.
The study says that employment patterns for IT differ widely from the rest of the UK. Part-time and flexible working is uncommon, and is a factor in forcing women and older people out of the industry.
'People in their 20s and 30s have to consider their prospects for the future,' said Platman.
'They are not going to stay in an industry that haemorrhages staff in their late 40s.
The research is the first phase of a three-stage project that will be completed in 2006.
The second phase will involve case studies of IT firms, looking at working practices, skills strategies and employment issues.
The final phase will study international best practice in the IT industry. It will assess the effectiveness of human resource strategies and public policies, considering the sometimes contradictory demands of remaining competitive and retaining talented workers.
Glick, Bryan. (2004 September 22). Report says IT employment culture is unsustainable as workforce ages. Computing.
