Harnessing the power of technology has become necessary for every company to remain competitive in the digital landscape, regardless of the industry. There is a perpetual need to hire tech talent in every sector. Hence the demand for professionals with skills in software engineering, data management, platform design, analytics-based automation, customer experience designs, and cybersecurity to enhance the companies’ product offerings and services has grown exponentially in recent times.

However, companies are now finding it difficult to address the tech talent gap between the required digital skills and the available candidates with the necessary qualifications. A solution to this shortage is for companies to retain candidates with conventional backgrounds and strong learning capabilities. Talented people who are familiar with the workings of the business can be trained to step into technical roles. Although it sounds logical in theory, it is hard to implement. Hiring managers are rightfully skittish about hiring people with learning curves to fill mission-critical roles. They feel safer hiring candidates already performing the tasks exactly as required. 

A recent study by MGI and McKinsey McKinsey’s People & Organizational Performance Practice showed that employees are capable of mastering distinctly new skills and unconventional tech hires are not so uncommon. The study had a sample size of 280,000 tech professionals from Germany, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It looked into their work history and quantified “skill distance” associated with specific job moves.

Candidates from tech backgrounds typically overcame a skill distance of 27% every time they changed roles. On the other hand, individuals transitioning from non-IT occupations had a skill distance of 44%. These individuals not only mastered a greater share of distinct new skills, but their reward for doing so was upward mobility. Their salaries grew at a higher rate of 5.3% viz-a-viz the 2.3-2.6% growth of individuals from a tech background. This shows that professionals taking the plunge ‘out of their comfort zones can develop and apply more new technical skills than hiring managers’ expectations. 

Another study by Gallup titled “The American Upskilling Study: Empowering Workers for the Jobs of Tomorrow” highlighted the importance of mentioning upskilling opportunities in a job offer. The study was based on a survey of 15,066 U.S. workers aged 18-65 years in the workforce. Of which, 65% of workers consider employer-provided upskilling an essential aspect for evaluating a potential job offer, and 48% of American workers said that they would stay in their roles if offered opportunities for skills training to update and expand their portfolio. 

But the willingness to hire such talent, retain them, and fine-tune their capabilities requires a shift in thinking. 

Strategies for cultivating internal tech talent

• Search for talent within your organization: Look for people with aspirations and untapped potential. Invest in learning and development opportunities for people who already know the business. They can be a safer bet than external talent who may have to learn the nuances of the company. Candidates who may be open to making unconventional moves can come from the most common and generic roles, such as; operations, marketing, management analysis, public relations, market research, human resource management, and customer services. Tech specializations of workers can be paired with an employee’s current job role for growth. For example, a customer service representative with already acquired skills like sales, customer relationship management (CRM), documentation, and communication can easily be transformed into a ‘tech support specialist’ by adding new skills such as technical data analysis, data management, technical support, and knowledge of IT frameworks. Creating such internal mobility opportunities would enable them to change course comfortably and keep them energized for optimal efficiency at work.

  Look for people with aspirations and untapped potential. Invest in learning and development opportunities for people who already know the business. They can be a safer bet than external talent who may have to learn the nuances of the company. Candidates who may be open to making unconventional moves can come from the most common and generic roles, such as; operations, marketing, management analysis, public relations, market research, human resource management, and customer services. Tech specializations of workers can be paired with an employee’s current job role for growth. For example, a customer service representative with already acquired skills like sales, customer relationship management (CRM), documentation, and communication can easily be transformed into a ‘tech support specialist’ by adding new skills such as technical data analysis, data management, technical support, and knowledge of IT frameworks. Creating such internal mobility opportunities would enable them to change course comfortably and keep them energized for optimal efficiency at work.

• Assessing employees’ potential before offering a switch: Since technical skills can be taught, employers must critically assess the prospective employees’ mindsets and relevant soft skills, which the new role would demand. For example, does the candidate need an analytical mind or meticulous attention to detail, whether they are problem solvers, adaptable, have communication skills, multitaskers, or enjoy solving puzzles? Digital tools like gamified profile analysis can provide performance outcomes through data predictors and refine the hiring criteria. Sometimes, removing strict requirements for a college degree can also liberate employees. 

• Increase the talent pool: Hiring managers can look at unconventional options, such as providing opportunities for development to mid-career workers and individuals who may have earlier stepped off the career track for caregiving responsibilities and have re-joined the organization. This will help them reconnect with the organization at a more personal level. Plus, it’s never too late to embark on a career in the tech world.

• Train to retain: Given the mobility of tech workers, employers need to assess and re-calibrate the totality of their offering to the employees, as deepening and expanding the workforce’s digital skills would result in increased productivity, innovation, and retention. Up-skilling or learning can have many options, like structured in-person courses tailored to a specific set of employees, online digital modules, or even hands-on experience workshops. Organizations should also be able to tap into the frontline and middle managers to teach the workforce. Companies that do not have the required in-house teaching talent can use technology training resources. For example, organize classes and boot camps or give access to online certification courses to grasp the basics.

Conclusion

Overall, the most sought-after employers offer not only a handsome and just compensation package but also opportunities for learning and growth along the way. The fast-changing nature of technology has made it necessary for even high-level technical experts to learn on the job constantly. So, opening the field to all employees, especially those who want to reinvent themselves, is an intelligent tactic for activating talent and organizational growth from a long-term perspective.