Date Published: December 2025
In a world increasingly driven by cloud computing, AI, cybersecurity, and data, companies across industries — from banking and healthcare to education and retail — face the same daunting problem: a shortage of qualified tech talent. According to IBM, despite recent waves of layoffs in big tech, demand for skilled technologists isn’t slowing down. In fact, the number of tech jobs in the coming decade is projected to grow twice as fast as the overall workforce growth rate in the U.S. So why is there still a talent crunch? Because the skills companies need today are changing rapidly — and many training pipelines, hiring practices, and educational programs have not kept up.
Where the Gap Comes From: Rapidly Evolving Tech + Shifting Job Requirements.
New technologies like generative AI, advanced cloud services, and automation have dramatically altered what “tech roles” look like. As a result, many entry-level or traditional tech jobs have been automated away — and companies now look for people with different or more advanced skill sets.
Furthermore, roles requiring deep expertise — e.g. in AI, ML, cybersecurity, systems architecture or cloud computing — are in high demand. But those niche skills also have a short shelf-life; what’s relevant now might be outdated in about 2–3 years.
Education & Training Not Keeping Pace
According to the IBM analysis, education and formal training (from colleges, certifications, etc.) have not adapted quickly enough to the shifting demands of the tech industry. As a result, there’s a mismatch between what the workforce has learned and what employers are asking for.
Similarly, during a recent panel at Live! 360 Tech Con, industry experts suggested that one root cause of the shortage is that employers often don’t know how to identify “good fit” candidates. It’s not always about someone having a long resume or a degree; sometimes, flexibility, ability to learn, and diverse experience — even beyond traditional tech backgrounds — matter more.
Workforce Dynamics: Turnover, Job-Hopping, Expectations
Post-pandemic, many tech workers changed jobs, reconsidered their career paths, or demanded more flexibility (remote work, better work-life balance, meaningful projects).
At the same time, for companies hiring now — especially for emerging fields like AI — salary and expectation mismatches have become common. Some job descriptions ask for top-tier AI expertise but offer compensation and budgets more suitable for standard engineering roles.
What IT Pros Are Saying: On the Ground Realities
During the Live! 360 Tech Con panel, several seasoned professionals shared real-world observations:
-One said that conventional hiring filters may be misguided — someone with a “perfect” CV may not always be the best fit, while someone with a more diverse or unconventional background may adapt faster and learn better.
-Another expert noted that many foundational tech concepts — DNS, identity management (like Active Directory), network fundamentals — are often overlooked in modern education. That means even “junior” hires might lack critical basics.
-On a more optimistic note: for those willing to learn, upskill, or even pivot into IT from another field, there are still many opportunities. The panelists encouraged both experienced professionals looking to shift lanes and newcomers entering the field.
What Companies (and the Industry) Should Do — Ideas That Work
Rethink Hiring: Beyond Rigid Checklists
Rather than insisting on precision-fit candidates (degree, years of experience, narrow skill sets), companies should open doors for candidates with curiosity, adaptability, and willingness to learn.
Broader hiring pipelines — including apprenticeships, certifications, bootcamps, flexible credentials — can bring in people from non-traditional backgrounds while still delivering solid results.
Invest in Reskilling & Upskilling
The half-life of many tech skills is shrinking. To keep up, companies should treat learning as continuous: offer ongoing training, mentorship, internal “digital playgrounds,” hackathons or collaborative projects where employees can expand or shift their skill sets.
Also: soft skills — like problem-solving, flexibility, collaboration — are increasingly valuable, especially in a world where technologies shift fast and workers may need to pivot.
Build a People-Centric, Flexible, and Inclusive Culture
Retention matters. Companies that offer remote work options, meaningful projects, chances to experiment with new technologies, and a culture that values learning over rigid hierarchy tend to fare better.
Broadening hiring pools — tapping into underrepresented groups or people from different industries — and encouraging diversity can also help build a richer talent ecosystem.
What This Means For the Future
The tech talent shortage isn’t just a “tech-company problem.” As digital transformation sweeps through industries — from law to retail, education to manufacturing — the demand for people who understand data, cloud, AI and cybersecurity will only grow. That means the shortage could impact sectors far outside traditional tech.
For job seekers, this could be a golden time: companies may be more open to diverse backgrounds, nontraditional career paths, and people willing to learn. For employers, success may rely less on “perfect fit” hiring and more on flexibility, adaptability and investment in growth — for people and culture.
But fixing the shortage won’t happen overnight. It will require collaboration among companies, educators, governments, and individuals — a shift in mindset from “hiring to fill openings” to “building and nurturing talent over time.”
MSA has been inundated with Tech requests all year. As a result, we not only have a database of candidates with strong (and diverse) technology/AI experience, we now have an even broader tech network spanning all areas within the industry, including Operations, DTC, IT, Marketing and Sales leadership. If you are upgrading your Tech stack and need experienced leaders to implement, reach out to us today to discuss options.
Articles:
https://www.ibm.com/think/insights/tech-talent-shortage
Author: Kerry Martin
