Bridge Technical Talent, Tech Collective release survey results revealing IT entry-level hiring needs

Entry-level information technology employees are in demand, according to the results of a survey from Bridge Technical Talent and Tech Collective.
Entry-level information technology employees are in demand, according to the results of a survey from Bridge Technical Talent and Tech Collective.

PROVIDENCE – Entry-level information technology employees are in demand, according to the results of a survey from Bridge Technical Talent and Tech Collective.

More than 70 businesses were surveyed last fall and winter to analyze the hiring market for information technology graduates.

Companies were asked about their hiring processes, as well as the kind of personality traits and workforce readiness skills they were seeking in employees.

The survey found that entry-level IT employees are in demand, as nearly two out of three, or 64.8 percent, of Rhode Island firms said they hire these types of workers.
It also found that 89 percent of Rhode Island businesses are looking for entry-level IT employees with problem solving/critical thinking skills and 73 percent are seeking employees interested in teamwork and who can communicate with coworkers.
But more than half – 51.2 percent – said they have difficulty finding and hiring entry-level IT employees.
As for Rhode Island companies who do not look to hire entry-level IT employees, more than half again – 52 percent – said it is because their IT positions require previous experience.

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Additional report findings will be released June 10 at the Enter IT RI Summit at Tech Collective, 66 Valley St. The summit, which will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. and is open to the public, will feature Rhode Island businesses and college computer science departments.
The summit is being held to discuss entry-level hiring needs, technical skill sets and workforce readiness skills.
The report is being shared to drive awareness and collaboration between university-level technical computer science/computer information systems programs and businesses to improve the match between how colleges are preparing IT students for post-grad jobs and local hiring needs.
The report also details skills needs specifically for six technical domains: application development; operations infrastructure; service desk; data warehousing/business intelligence; information security; and project and portfolio management.

Information about the summit can be found HERE.
The summit will feature a panel discussion with Joan Peckham, chair of computer science and statistics at the University of Rhode Island; Peter Moreau, senior vice president and chief information officer at Amica Mutual Insurance Co.; Anthony Ruocco, computer science program coordinator at Roger Williams University; and Chris Shoemaker, chief technology officer at MojoTech.
“It’s critical that we in R.I. work together to increase the number of IT workers available for our existing businesses and for courting new businesses to relocate to our state. There are many programs underway to achieve that goal. This report and panel discussion is a first step toward ensuring that we are providing these new IT workers with the in-demand technical and workforce readiness skills they will need,” Joe Devine, a partner with Bridge Technical Talent, said in a statement.
Tom Falcone, executive director for Tech Collective, said they are excited to release the “Enter IT RI” report.
“The report is a tool to drive awareness and collaboration between business and academia, ensuring a comprehensive cycle of talent development, employment, and business and economic growth. We’d also like to give thanks to Bridge Technical Talent for starting this process and working in partnership with us to see it to conclusion,” Falcone said.
The Enter IT RI report was funded by an Industry Partnership grant through the Governor’s Workforce Board of Rhode Island. The report is a follow-up to Tech Collective’s previous skills gap reports, released in 2007 and 2014, and also funded by GWBRI.
To download the “Enter IT RI” report after the summit, visit www.bridge-talent.com or www.tech-collective.org.

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