Are you surprised by the current UK technology jobs market? Advertising plus wider recruitment activities returning very few applicants?
Challenging jobs market (Spring 2021).
For those tech companies on a mission to find top software engineers, developers, data scientists or Board level executives right now, a lot of factors are in play that are making this extremely tough (to put it mildly).
What is it that motivates the top talent to choose a tech startup over a myriad of alternatives?
These are the most common reasons tech candidates give to RWA:
The Internet of Things is connecting more devices every day. Earlier this year, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the US released a report which found that 25 billion objects are already connected online worldwide, gathering information using sensors and communicating with each other over the internet.
A new AI tool designed to support fleet electrification has been launched by fleet management software firm Teletrac Navman. The tool can advise fleet operators on how many and what type of chargers are required, as well as the cost of the chargers and where they would be lest located.
A strong growth in market interest in medical technology (MedTech) and biotechnology (Biotech) companies, driven by an ageing population, a global pandemic and increased healthcare spending, has seen the UK leading the way in the development of: medical devices; diagnostics and monitoring software; digital health tech; pharmaceutical manufacturing technologies and genomics.
Demand is growing for candidates with advanced digital skills, with 60% of employers expecting demand to continue rising in the next 5 years.
Research by the Learning and Work Institute (LWI) found that over one in three employers say they face a skills gap within their current workforce for advanced digital skills, while 41% have struggled to recruit workers with the advanced digital skills that they need.
The LWI is an independent policy research organisation that conducted research exploring digital skills and the future of the labour market in the UK.
Energy Networks Association (ENA) is developing an in-depth digital system map of the UK’s energy system to support a pathway to net zero. Network data will be pulled from Britain’s electricity and gas network operators and integrated into the digital map.
The proof-of-concept project will allow the association to test the model it is developing for a full National Energy System Map, which is set to include network assets, generators and energy intensive users.
The recruitment process is focused on speed, using metrics such as ‘time to hire’, timed technical tests and job descriptions littered with phrases including fast-paced, fast-moving, urgent requirement and deadline for applications.
As the push to diversify the IT sector picks up speed, so too has awareness of unconscious bias. Can technology-enabled ‘blind’ recruitment do a better job of identifying talent? In these more enlightened times, companies have strategies to beat a kneejerk reaction to an unfamiliar name, the “wrong” gender, or the suspect “gut feeling”.
Fossil fuel generation has more than halved over the last decade, hitting a new record low in 2020. Just 102.7TWh was produced by coal and gas-fired plants combined last year, compared with 230.5TWh in 2011, according to analysis from EnAppSys.