How to Close the UK’s Tech Skills Gap

Every year, technology becomes more integral to our lives and a larger contributor to the UK economy – with open source technologies driving the biggest growth in the technology marketplace today. However, it’s widely acknowledged that the UK is experiencing a significant IT skills shortage. The answer? Skills certification.

In the UK, there’s huge employer demand for tech specialists, with more developers, systems administrators and DevOps personnel needed across every industry. Advancements in software development have led to the rapid expansion of this sector.

There are now more than 29,000 software development companies in the UK – an increase of 150% in the past five years. The ever-increasing adoption of software and solutions based on open source technologies, such as Linux, is playing a vital role in the rapid growth of the tech industry and its global impact.

As Linux has now been adopted by corporate giants like Google, Facebook and the US Government, this global trend towards open source means an increased demand for skills in open source technologies.

A recent survey carried out by the Linux Professional Institute (LPI) of 200 UK IT employers finds that nearly 89% report difficulties in recruiting the right candidates for IT positions. Furthermore, 82% state that the shortage of suitable IT professionals is having a negative impact on their organisation.

The implications of this shortage on the UK economy are serious. There is a real risk that more jobs will be off-shored, or even that businesses will move their entire operations overseas. How can the industry prevent this from happening?

IT skills certification can help, by enabling employers to hire candidates with proven advanced, professional-level IT skills in Linux and other open source technologies. Certification provides accredited evidence of these skills, ensuring employers have access to a trusted talent pool of highly skilled and qualified IT professionals.

For a more in-depth analysis of the UK IT skills gap, read our new whitepaper: The IT Skills Gap