Skills gap & underinvestment disrupting industry – survey
According to research from Expleo, 83% of energy business leaders agree that they have under-invested in the technical skills base of their employees. An unintended consequence of this skills gap is a disruption of industry, which is held back from advancing new technologies such as generative AI.
This was one of the results of a survey conducted by Expleo, a global engineering, technology and consulting service provider, and shows that a talent drought and heightened salary expectations are threatening business transformation plans for half of UK organisations.
Expleo surveyed 1,395 business and IT leaders from large organisations in the UK, France, Germany, Ireland, India and the US to understand the impact of the pandemic, geopolitical tensions and inflationary pressure on business transformation.
Survey results were collated and used to inform the company’s Business Transformation Index 2023, which finds that:
- For 83% of energy business leaders, the technical skills base of their employees has been an area of underinvestment
- For nearly eight in 10 (79%), a scarcity of skills in emerging technologies is a growing problem for their organisation
- For 71%, technology talent is a struggle to retain due to unaffordable salaries
- For 49% of respondents, talent shortages are a growing concern
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Karen Lee, programme manager for energy & utilities at Expleo, commented on the findings, which suggest that “employees with the skills to effectively harness the latest technology remain in short supply, despite recent job losses in big tech. In turn this creates upward pressure on salary expectations, with top talent able to influence unprecedented levels of remuneration.
“The skills gap remains the most common barrier identified by transformation leaders in our survey, just as it was in our 2022 Index. However, the difference this year is a significant increase in the disruption this is causing – with the acute shortage of digital skills holding organisations back from harnessing the power of new technology such as generative AI.”
Skills gap and global disruptive issues
Of those sampled from the energy and utilities sector specifically – 113 respondents – 83% agree that they have under-invested in the technical skills base of their employees. This is the highest of any sector and compares to 74% of overall respondents, suggesting energy companies are more open than other industry players in acknowledging the importance of plugging the skills gap.
To address this, nearly half (47%) of companies intend to increase the use of temporary/contract labour and engaging the services of third parties – 6% more than other sectors.
Respondents pointed to economic uncertainty and global instability as the second most significant barrier to the success of transformation projects in the UK, moving up from sixth position in last year’s survey.
This is largely due to disruptive global and macroeconomic issues causing greater concern among business leaders, with 58% scaling back digital transformation plans as a result.
Moving forward
Looking to the future, the research found that business and IT leaders are aware of the importance of being able to pivot at pace. In the UK, 45% now identify business agility as a discipline that will be a major focus area for their organisation over the next 12 months.
Lee summarised: “While leaders grapple with a changing skills market, they are also navigating choppy economic waters. The uneasy reality for some is that plans set out a few years ago may not be the right ones for the market circumstances of today.
“To help keep transformation programmes on track, many organisations may be looking to external partners to fill gaps in expertise. Doing so can help provide flexibility and scalability to projects, and foster the harmonious blend of innovation, discipline, experience, and effective collaboration that is required for success.”
Expleo’s research parallel survey findings were released earlier this year by Energy Systems Catapult.
According to their research, while digitalisation is driving vast opportunities for new services and innovations in the energy sector, proper and optimal implementation will require personnel with the necessary data science skills, of which there is currently a jarring lack.
The skills gap also forms one of the four pillars behind the EU’s Green Deal Industrial Plan announced earlier this year in February, alongside regulation, funding and supply chains.
