Businesses having difficulties filling specialized IT positions
With most organizations now increasingly using a wide variety of software and IT tools to maximize their potential, keeping track of all your various services has never been more important.
This importance has been highlighted by new research from CA Technologies showing that those organizations that are able to adopt modern software development practices are seeing overwhelmingly more benefits than those who don't.
In a survey of over 460 senior executives from six European countries including the UK, companies that have adopted a modern, flexible approach to software development were benefitting from a 70 percent higher rate of profit growth, and 50 percent higher rate of revenue growth.
These leaders, who come from a number of separate industries, have been labelled as masters of this new software economy by CA Technologies, striding ahead of more mainstream organizations in terms of growth and customers satisfaction.
Fifty-seven percent of these businesses were able to say that their company truly understands what their customers need from them, and were therefore able to give the best possible customer experience, as opposed to only 24 percent of the mainstream companies.
"The reality is that we aren't at the starting line for what is a race to use software to drive business and competitive advantage... there are already leaders and laggers," Otto Berkes, CA Technologies executive vice president and chief technology officer told attendees including ITProPortal at a presentation to announce the findings.
However, the battle to stay at the top of the game when it comes to software development and leadership could be hindered by difficulties in attracting the right kind of talent, the study warned.
Although the masters find it twice as easy to recruit experienced software development professionals compared to mainstream organisations, and 1.6 times easier to attract young software development graduates, more specialized positions are proving difficult to fill.
Security and DevOps have proved particularly tough areas to recruit in, with 71 percent and 70 percent of businesses respectively saying they are struggling to find qualified workers in these posts.
However, the UK was faring much better than the other European nations included in the survey, with better government support and private funding named as major factors in encouraging specialist knowledge.
In order to boost these figures, though, a greater focus on STEM training initiatives would help contribute to creating the next generation of talent, UK businesses said, allowing both new graduates and experienced workers to benefit the workforce and take it to new heights.
"The study provides clear evidence that if you don't have a modern approach to software along with the factory needed to deliver on your vision, you will be left behind in a world where the masters are the winners," Berkes added.
"There’s a clear indication that those organisations that adopt modern software development practices such as agile, automation, machine learning and analytics to generate insights, and integrating security into the development process, do a better job of driving growth. In reality, the future of your business is in the hands of your developers."
Published under license from ITProPortal.com, a Future plc Publication. All rights reserved.
Photo Credit: NicoElNino/Shutterstock