Skills shortage worries UK IT managers

The majority of UK IT managers are worried about an apparent lack of skilled IT workers in the UK, according to a survey released today.

Six out of 10 of those questioned in HP's annual Pressure Point Index survey felt that there was a serious shortage when it came to finding staff with the relevant skills. 

Campbell Robertson, managed services director for HP in UK and Ireland, said that this is despite a growth in the number of IT staff in the UK.

"The market is growing and the numbers of people enjoying good careers in the IT marketplace is at an all time high. It looks like that trend will continue for some time," Robertson told vnunet.com.

"If you look at all of the major IT organisations, HP included, they all drive large scale graduate recruitment programmes and that is a response to the market."

Robertson said that demand for staff had led to an increase in the amount of outsourcing and pointed to HP's near-shore operations in Barcelona and Bratislava and offshore outfits in places such as Bangalore.

"HP took steps early on in the development of our services business to move some skills offshore and near-shore," Robertson said.

"That has allowed the capacity in the UK to develop some of the newer and more exotic IT skills that the market is now calling for."

The study of 200 UK IT managers also found that nearly half worry that their workload is too great and have difficulty managing their work/life balance.

Just over a third also felt that they personally could not make an impact on their company's performance.