Despite the pandemic—or perhaps because of it—the tech talent gap in metro areas such as Milwaukee continues to grow.
That’s the word from Harley Lippman, CEO at Genesis10, who framed the issue nicely during a podcast with Nick Williams, a reporter with the Milwaukee Business Journal. Jennifer Turnquist, Dev10 Client Director was also featured on the Milwaukee Business Journal Podcast.
The move to accelerate the pace of digital transformation initiatives during the pandemic increased the need for software developers, which grew by more than 3% in 2020, Lippman said. “There is a huge demand from employers for a variety of skills within IT—the cloud, AI, automation.” A new U.S. News & World Report blog lists Software Developer as the #2 Best Job for 2021. Software Developer, which had claimed the top spot the three previous years, ceded it this year to Physician’s Assistant.
There is one qualified candidate for every six tech roles that require Java skills, Lippman added. For roles that require .Net skills, the ratio is 1:10.
The pandemic has also affected job candidates.
“Through the pandemic, we saw an increase in the number of career pivoters interested in the program,” said Jennifer Turnquist, Dev10 Client Director. “People whose career was impacted by COVID-19 had to rewrite their story. Genesis10’s Dev10 Talent Creation Program gives them an opportunity for a new path, which leads to exciting candidates for us because they bring a diverse background. Their life experiences are very different from those of college students coming out of an engineering program.”
Another way that Genesis10 is able to help employers shore up the tech talent gap is through its Domestic Outsourcing solution. As Lippman explains, the pandemic shined a harsh light on the disaster recovery plans of companies. Concentrating work in one location proved risky for many, teaching them a hard-learned lesson. “What companies can do to mitigate risk is to work outside the headquarters or central office location in a remote area. Genesis10 has seven U.S. based delivery centers that help companies to diversify work at several locations that are secure around the country.”