From lorry drivers to nurses, from automotive semiconductors to hospital beds, from eggs to (I learned today) sink plungers – it seems lately that you’re never far away from a story about one shortage or another!
A few weeks back the Telegraph was reporting that a shortage of wooden pellets had forced people to burn cat litter! What a time to be alive!
IT (and IT project) resourcing has not been immune from these sunlit uplands! According to Gartner, almost two thirds (64%) of IT executives see talent shortages as the most significant barrier to adoption of emerging technologies … that’s compared to 4% in 2020!
Writing for Forbes, Kevin Beasley, highlights an extra issue for IT departments. He says, “… many organisations have been striving for digital maturity over the past few years as business and IT leaders recentred their strategies around enterprise technologies. While the increased reliance on technology helps organisations collaborate more effectively and boost operational efficiencies, it also drives demand for IT, data, engineering, and security expertise that remains in short supply.”
In other words, every business is fishing in the IT talent pool but it’s a pool that’s drying out rapidly and becoming a talent puddle! So, what to do?
Kevin Beasley observes, “… it’s critical for organisations to invest in their current IT workforce while potentially leveraging strategies like outsourcing to fill the gaps. By developing a talent acquisition strategy that promotes organisational agility, technology leaders can navigate the year ahead to achieve fully equipped teams that bring value and innovation to the business.”
He’s hit the nail squarely on the head!! (Phew, there is also a nail shortage!)
ALMOST EVERY PROJECT IS AN IT PROJECT
Globally, three-quarters of employers (75%) say they are struggling to find the necessary talent, compared with just over a third (35%) a decade ago – IT (and data roles) are the most in demand.
This naturally transfers over to the IT project talent market, anecdotally, our sector is under even more pressure!
Every business is becoming an IT business, you only have to look at Just Eat, Amazon and Cinch, these organisations aren’t takeaway delivery, department stores or car showrooms – they are all fully fledged tech companies. Every project they undertake is an IT Project.
Now in response, traditional businesses in these sectors have had to swap bricks for clicks to compete. Taking car sales as an example, near Stoneseed there’s a firm called ‘Available Car’, they still have a huge car sales site and alongside it they now have an increasing online presence that I’ve watched grow from a brochure type website to a state-of-the-art online sales operation. The point is, it’s not just at the obvious tech firms where every project is an IT project – now it’s most projects at most organisations and there’s only so many IT project professionals to go round! Your go-to IT project talent might be off working on tech solutions for pizza delivery!
As Kevin Beasley identified in his Forbes article, organisations’ talent acquisition strategies have to adapt – like the car showrooms are. Especially in IT Project Management and resourcing where it’s crucial to invest in your “current IT workforce while potentially leveraging strategies like outsourcing to fill the gaps”.
OUTSOURCING YOUR RESOURCING 2.0 – WHAT IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT as a SERVICE?
Stoneseed’s Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) gives you access to project professionals, resources and tools, and the services portfolio we offer delivers a true end to end service, from IT Technical Advisory, Business Analysis Services and PMO Services through to Programme & Project Delivery – and best of all – all at a flexible and predictable cost.
Whereas other talent resourcing models can be hit and miss when it comes to relevant experience, Stoneseed’s team are practised across multiple technology solutions, sectors and industries. Furthermore, we work on all types of projects and programmes including Business Change, Transformation, Infrastructure, Digital and IT Project Delivery.
All Stoneseed’s PMaaS services are available onsite or remote. Actually, Stoneseed were experts in Remote Project Delivery long before it became the default method during the pandemic lockdowns. Stoneseed clients find that having the option to access resources remotely gives them extra convenience, flexibility, and control.
That sense of control and ability to flex extends into Stoneseed’s innovative on-demand resource model which allows you to dial up (and dial down) IT project resources in alignment with your delivery needs. You get to turn it on, turn it off, turn it up, turn it down in sync with your changing talent needs.
Stoneseed’s PMaaS is a one-stop shop for Programme Management, Project Management, Business Analysis, Technical Advisory and PMO/PSO resources, our memberships and accreditations include PRINCE2, Project Management Institute, P3M3, Agile Project Management Certification and MSP. Stoneseed’s experience, gained from multiple sectors and industries, means YOU benefit from a practical, hands-on approach to programme and project delivery that works.
So, with some reasonable planning, Project Management as a Service allows access to a wide portfolio of project skills, made available against your demand schedule, from a single Project Manager, Business Analyst, Technical Advisory or PMO expert for a few days, right through to a full-scale, large team of fully utilised project professionals.
In addition to its delivery model, Stoneseed’s PMaaS also benefits from an innovative and straightforward commercial model. With you, we forecast the project resources required and then provide a straightforward rate card with resources defined by type and skill set. You call resources off against your demand schedule, they can flex up and down throughout the period, and you are simply billed for the resources you called off at the end of each month.
All of this combined means PMaaS can enable you to align resources as and when you need them – on a cost effective, full-time, or part-time basis. Download the PMaaS brochure and find out more today.
In conclusion, I think the way to solve any of the shortages we discussed at the start is to reframe the problem. You have to hand it to those people who reframed the problem of “how can I get hold of wood pellets to burn?” to “I’m cold, what can I burn?” and in reframing the question they also solved the problem of how to dispose of the cat litter!
IT Project talent resourcing gaps and shortages need a similar intellectual shake up.
If you’re finding the traditional paradigm isn’t fit for purpose, shift it! Ask not “how do I hire a Project Manager, a Business Analyst and a Technical Architect – in this climate?”, instead ask “how do I fully resource my project with PM, BA and TA talent – in any climate?” – Project Management as a Service is the answer!!
PMaaS is the flexible, on-demand resourcing model you need to gain access to Project Managers, Business Analysts (BAaaS), PMO Resources and Technical Advisory expertise, not just in times of talent gaps, but in more abundant periods too.
Whether you need access to a single resource for a flexible time period or a fully managed service, Stoneseed’s resource pool of Programme and Project Management specialists are ready to be deployed. Experienced practitioners from across the complete portfolio of project and programmes – as a Service, at your Service.
Your IT Project Talent Gap Hotline is 01623 723910!
Sources
https://go.manpowergroup.com/hubfs/Talent%20Shortage%202022/MPG-Talent-Shortage-Infographic-2022.pdf
https://packagingrevolution.net/german-pallet-nail-shortage/
https://www.energylivenews.com/2023/01/11/wood-pellets-shortage-make-uk-households-burn-cat-litter/
