The Director's Cut: Skills crisis? Pah

If there is one trend that continues unabated regardless of economic climate, it is the skill shortages in IT. No matter where we look, no matter what we learn, it continues all around us. The government, bless 'em, have more skill think tanks than the London Aquarium.

And so, in keeping with the style of my last two columns (and thank you for your feedback on these), here are my top 10 ways to overcome the skills crisis, in priority order:

1. Cultural transformation

Transform your culture so people are valued (our main need as human beings, after food and drink etc.), so that true openness is the norm and so that people can enjoy coming into work. You will retain more excellent people, thereby reducing skills turnover. First step: hold an open forum for the whole team.

2. Ensure skill transfer

If you have specific skills with only one person you are in trouble. Make sure people are actively encouraged to transfer their skills. How? By putting in place a skills contract, where, year-on-year, you as an organisation agree to develop one new skill for each person, providing they ensure they are not the only person holding that skill. First step: pilot this with a team ASAP.

3. Automate

A controversial one but it is inevitable and it is happening now. It is now possible to automatically generate Java code with no IT skills whatsoever, revolutionising implementation time, quality and cost. First step: stop fretting if your Java programmers, or worse, your Java contractors, are holding you to ransom - you now have a choice

4. Be aware of skills available outside your department

More IT skills exist outside your department. Over 50 per cent, in fact. Think about all those spreadsheets and complex consultancy driven applications. It all starts innocently enough, and then they become mission critical. I call these 'boomerang' applications because while you may not know about them now, you will when they go wrong - they are coming your way. First step: form a working party from across the organisation to assess how many business-dependent applications are out there, how they're supported and what skills are needed to do so.

5. Identify the key skills needed in-house

And outsource the rest. I never recommend wholesale outsourcing but I always advocate selective outsourcing, in particular for PC support. First step: make a list of the skills you need and those you can outsource.

6. Perception is all

This could easily be number one but I go on and on about it so much you probably would not have read any further! My last column covered hidden account management (http://www.silicon.com/a51596 ). This one recommends focusing on those key skills that are most important to you as an IT leader. What are they? Think about someone in your team on whom you can always rely, no matter how difficult the situation - what skills do they have? Exactly. First step: never, ever, refer to the term softer skills - call them the critical skills.

7. Put in place project skill teams

The most successful projects I see are made up of people who are in the team because of their strengths and those strengths are unique to that project (but not to the department - see 2). This works brilliantly because it ensures everyone plays an active and involved role and it reduces in-team competition. First step: form your next project team on this basis.

8. Put competency-based anything in the library

Or in the bin. Every year we tell people to focus on their 'weaknesses' so that when these improve they will become more effective. Wrong. If people do not spend time developing their strengths these will weaken. All competency-based anything does is create general all rounders. First step: encourage people to develop their strengths and pull different people's strengths together through skill teams.

9. Recruit people from outside IT

Some people would say 'from the business'. This will ensure you are where you should be - at the heart of the organisation - and will ensure your skills focus is always on what your skills and technology are delivering, rather than being about the skills and technology themselves. First step: put up a sexy advert to encourage people to join IT.

10. Introduce people descriptions, not job descriptions

Aside from the fact that most job descriptions are so boring, they are also irrelevant to fast moving companies who encourage flexibility of their people and projects. People descriptions focus on the person, their skills, and their abilities. In IT, no two jobs are ever the same because the people doing them are different. Make your people CVs, with skill strengths to the fore, your new descriptions. Pay people what they are worth based on who they are. First step: tell your HR director (if you can find him/her) that you will be throwing out job descriptions. Don't do it over a cup of coffee as hot liquid can scald.

David Taylor is the president of IT directors association Certus and a regular contributor to silicon.com.