CIO OPINION
CIO opinion
“
COMPANIES
AREN’T
HELPING THEMSELVES
BY NARROWING THEIR
OPTIONS TO THE
UNIVERSITY EDUCATED.
/////////////////
Neil Hammerton, CEO and Co-founder of Natterbox
Thinking outside the
box to reduce the
talent shortage
Traditional approaches to hiring
candidates for the workplace
are placing employers at a
disadvantage as they limit
potential candidates to
just graduates. Intelligent
CIO Europe talks to Neil
Hammerton, CEO and Co–
Founder of Natterbox, who
tells us how employers are
contributing to the cyberskills
gap and how they should
consider hiring those from more
diverse backgrounds.
T
he story around the skills gap in technology and the shortage of
actual talent to fill it is an old one. Companies today almost wear
it like a badge of honour: finding qualified staff is impossible. But
is it actually the case?
To me, the fear of not finding talent is only justified when companies
go through the traditional way of hiring, where a university degree
and some solid experience is required to make the cut. This drastically
reduces the talent pool companies could tap into, so if they are to fill the
talent shortage, they need to start thinking outside the box.
Expanding the talent pool
Finding the right people for the job has always been a challenge
and it will likely remain that way. Many of us will be familiar with
the disappointment of hiring a new staff member, only to find they
don’t turn up on their first day or aren’t quite what you expected. And
although there used to be a long waiting list for jobs, that just isn’t the
case now and companies aren’t helping themselves by narrowing their
options to the university educated.
Ultimately, a degree and impressive qualifications aren’t the be all
and end all – in fact, with so many university graduates on the job
searching scene, good grades don’t necessarily stand out from the
crowd anymore. For this reason, companies should be extending
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