CIOs, IT VPs, IT directors and IT hiring managers feel they are able to satisfy core and ongoing line of business (LOB) IT initiatives. However, they are losing confidence in their ability to meet the demands of new initiatives. These findings were released as part of a new survey by IT staffing firm TEKsystems.
A big reason why they are struggling is that they are being assailed by three impact areas: Security, mobility and cloud computing. Each of these zones is placing severe stress on IT departments.
“While IT leaders seem comfortable that they can address core IT demands and LOB needs, new initiatives seem to be a stressor,” said TEKsystems Research Manager Jason Hayman.
According to the survey, the primary response to heavy stress is to recruit personnel skilled in software development related to these areas. But that option is proving tough to execute. TEKsystems said programmers, developers and software engineers are highly difficult-to-fill positions. The company believes that increased demand for top talent means they have little confidence in their ability to fulfill their needs.
So if hiring isn’t likely to be the solution, what is? The best way to bring in programmers that can rapidly and effectively address new technology initiatives in security, mobility and cloud computing is to find the right team of bespoke software developers and outsourcing.
Ballard Chalmers understands:
- Security and the many cybersecurity threats that exist in the modern IT landscape: Viruses, malware, ransomware, phishing – these and many other dangers lurk. It takes great programming skill to be able to safeguard the enterprise from cyber-threats.
- Mobility: Cisco’s Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast showed mobile data growing by 69% in one year to more than two Exabytes (EB) per month. Interestingly, the worldwide mobile traffic in one year now exceeds the entire extent of Internet traffic as it stood in the year 2000. With there being close to five billion mobile devices in operation (many of them smart phones which generate 22 times more traffic than a non-smart device), the mobile traffic burden is escalating. With Cisco predicting that monthly global mobile traffic will surpass 24.3 EB by 2019, enterprises need the right applications that can take the organisation forward into this new mobile world.
- Cloud computing: According to a survey by the Uptime Institute, 50% of IT executives expect the majority of IT workloads to reside in the cloud within the next year. Of those respondents, 70% expect that shift to occur by 2020, and 23% expect the shift will happen by next year. Clearly, enterprises need to get ready for a major shift to the cloud. Yet such skills are rarely available internally.
Outsourcing can help solve the IT hiring problem, bring in specialists when needed, reduce costs, and provide your organisation with access to up to date technologies. The key is understanding which areas of your IT could benefit from being managed by a third party service provider. At Ballard Chalmers we’ve helped many companies solve their hiring problems by providing them with handpicked personnel (see this case study for how outsourcing helped Transport for London). In our own experience we’ve found that often IT recruitment agencies do not fully understand or possess the in-depth knowledge required to meet briefs for specialised Microsoft technologies. Since we are in the industry and a Microsoft Gold Partner we know exactly what to look for and, importantly, why. From a few months to several years, our staff members and associates are based at client sites across the UK helping to deliver enterprise projects.
If you would like more information on outsourcing for your IT department read more about our Services or give us a call 01342 410223.
By Drew Robb, Editorial Contributor
Drew Robb has been a full-time professional writer and editor for more than twenty years, specialising in the Information Technology sector. His articles have featured in publications including Computerworld, Forbes, Data Center Management, Enterprise Applications Today, The Economist and countless others. Born and raised in Scotland, Drew currently resides in the USA where he is Editor-in-Chief of an international engineering magazine.
