Where networking and knowledge intersect.
James Reed, FCIPD
First, the bad news. The IT sector, which has been immune to many previous downturns, has undoubtedly been hit this time. While booming sectors like banking led the dive down to bust, economic turmoil spread across all areas of the global economy. Entire companies—and their IT staff—have been eliminated in this recession, while IT professionals have not been immune from across-the-board cuts in other organisations that survived the initial shock.
For many IT professionals, this is the first time in their career they have had to face a potential lack of demand for their expertise. Nearly four decades of unbroken growth seemed to judder to a halt at the end of 2008. Since then, some have experienced six, 12 or even 18 months of unemployment without being able to secure another role.
Of course, most people have retained their permanent or contract positions. Yet, many have found that salaries and rates have been frozen or even cut by 5 or 10 percent—occasionally by as much as 30 percent. Many who have kept their jobs are finding that they have to achieve more with fewer resources, but they feel too insecure to look for jobs elsewhere. Things are tough.
However, the shock of the initial crisis has passed, and good news is returning. What’s more, it is IT professionals who are benefiting most from current developments.
For a start, the IT function is now acknowledged as the central driver of the entire organisation. Reed research amongst more than 600 employers in 2009 found that IT was less hit by cuts than any other function within organisations apart from the human resources (HR) profession. Fewer than two in five (18 percent) organisations made IT cuts, compared to 26 percent that cut core operations staff and one in three that cut administrators.1
At the same time, a fundamental shift has occurred in demand for IT expertise.
During the boom, investing big money in cutting-edge technological development was seen as essential to retaining competitive advantage and maximising profits. That was then.
Now, organisations are in a different place. Their priority is to consolidate and protect what they have while maximising performance. Information governance, control, security, risk management and audit are all essential in this environment. These are also the skills organisations need to effectively undertake technology transitions and manage the restructures, consolidations, mergers and takeovers that characterise the current business environment. As stability has returned to world markets, ISACA members are finding that their particular skill set is leading demand for IT professionals.
And the good news is growing. Having led the dive down, the banking and finance sector is currently leading recovery in many countries. Other areas are also returning to health, and new sectors and entire economies are growing. IT professionals who spend time preparing themselves now will be ready to benefit from new opportunities as they arrive.
In this still uncertain context, employers need reassurance—and quality assurance above all— when they recruit new expertise. Professional certification provides this. Membership in professional associations and possession of a range of specialist qualifications are now minimum requirements for many key roles. If, as an IT professional, you are aware of gaps in your qualification portfolio or additional certificates that would add to your range, now is an excellent time to acquire them.
However, simply holding the requisite professional certification and listing the technologies, processes, ISO standards and frameworks you have mastered are not enough in this competitive marketplace to secure the desired role. As an IT professional, your curriculum vitae (CV) must demonstrate that you have the track record of achievement to go with the qualifications. You must show how your knowledge has been proactively applied to make a difference.
You need to demonstrate your ability to understand requirements and resolve project issues, to identify as well as report on critical areas, and to design and implement solutions that encompass processes and procedures as well as technical fixes. Surprising words such as ‘flexibility’ and ‘creativity’ are now featured on successful CVs, alongside examples of a results-driven outlook. If you can add evidence of times you have succeeded in thinking ‘outside the box’ to deliver more with less, so much the better.
Information governance, control, security and audit functions may have proved their importance in the current climate, but more than ever before, they need to demonstrate how they contribute to achieving the organisation’s strategic goals.
Frameworks developed by ISACA, such as Risk IT and, of course, Val IT™, demonstrate exactly this approach. At this stage, recruiters may be less familiar with these specific qualifications than they are with the more established International Organization for Standardisation (ISO) standards and ISACA’s COBIT framework, or certifications such as the Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT) and Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).
However, those who demonstrate their awareness of this approach and its effectiveness will stand out during the job assessment process.
The strategic drive to deliver value goes hand in hand with another key shift in the economic environment.
Fascinatingly, in the current climate, the apparently ‘soft’ people skills are more in demand than before. In complex global environments recovering from turmoil and under more pressure than ever, a proven ability to lead and manage people is critical.
Leadership groups need to be created and developed. Policies on change programmes, performance management and communications need to be agreed upon and implemented amongst specialists under pressure. Expert teams need to be motivated, coached and developed more, not less, in the current climate if they are to keep delivering to their full potential.
Problem solving in this complex environment requires a proven ability to manage relationships with internal and external expert stakeholders. ISACA members, supported by their chapter networks, have particular skills in managing relationships amongst their own peers, from technology risk managers, control and security experts, and group financial governance specialists, to internal and external audit specialists. This environment also makes it even more essential that IT governance, strategy and practice are wholly aligned with board strategy and decision making. Whatever your specialty, you need to build on your authority and embed your ability to manage upward, to maximise your effectiveness for the business as a whole.
In spite of growing demand, difficulties remain. Some IT professionals who have retained their jobs feel their careers have stalled. A key minority of those who are unemployed feel traumatised by job loss and marooned in unemployment.
In this situation, IT professionals need to take an active, strategic look at their career options. This is their opportunity to plan a new career path to meet both their immediate needs and their longer-term career aspirations.
As an IT professional, you should take comfort in the fact that the underlying demand for your professional skills is high and on an upward trajectory. However, this is not a time to be complacent. Things really have changed. This means you have to be open to change as well and be prepared to develop your mind-set as well as your skill set to secure the best new opportunities.
At the same time, you must actively open your mind to new possibilities. You must start from your own experience. What have you enjoyed? What drives you? Where do your passions lie? Where would you ideally want to be in five years time? You must set out your best vision for everything you want your career to bring to you. You must not be afraid to think big.
From this, if you are looking for employment, you will be able to map out the best opportunities.
Remember, if a fundamental change in the wider economy has stalled your career as an IT professional, you may need to dramatically change your attitude—mind-set—to open yourself to new opportunities.
If, for example, as an IT professional, you have always had permanent roles, now is the time for you to consider contract work, especially since this sector is most in demand as organisations emerge from recession. If you are an established contractor, you can build on your flexibility and wide range of experiences to explore different options as they emerge.
The first priority, when seeking a career move, is to keep taking the practical steps that will continue to move one forward. Even the smallest step will help build confidence and help lead to the next. Research shows that employers will recruit people with the right attitude—the right mindset— over and above those with better skills. Demonstrating grit and resilience will put you in the best state of mind to demonstrate these vital qualities to potential future employers.
You must remember that this is a journey to the next stage in your career. Yes, you should expand your networks, explore existing and new markets, identify where demand is highest for your skill set, target areas of growth, and continue to hone your CV. At the same time, the next job could take you in a direction you could never have anticipated. To maximise success, you should try to enjoy the journey as much as possible, and, above all, keep your mind open to explore all the new opportunities that will come your way.
1 Reed Global, ‘Meeting the People Challenge: How Are Employers Responding to Recession Today, Compared to Two Decades Ago?’, produced by Reed in support of Keep Britain Working, September 2009
ISACA is developing the Career Guide for Information Security and Assurance Professionals, which will be available to the public as a complimentary PDF download on the ISACA web site. Please look for its availability by midyear. Once available, please look for it at www.isaca.org/deliverables. To learn more about ISACA research projects in development, please visit www.isaca.org/research.
James Reed, FCIPDis chairman of the Reed Global group of companies, the recruitment specialist firm founded by his father, Alec Reed, in 1960. The group comprises Reed Specialist Recruitment, Reed Online recruitment, Reed in Partnership and Reed Learning, and spans Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. In January 2010, Reed was named as preferred bidder to deliver the UK Government’s Backing Young Britain campaign. He is also a member of the UK Government’s National Employment Partnership, which was set up in January 2009 to identify what more can be done to collectively help people and businesses cope with the downturn in the economy, and ensure that they are well placed for the upturn. He initiated the Keep Britain Working campaign, which aims to promote innovative ways to preserve and create jobs. The campaign is backed by a broad range of businesses, the prime minister, the mayor of London, all three of the main political parties, the British Chambers of Commerce and the Trades Union Congress.
Enjoying this article? To read the most current ISACA® Journal articles, become a member or subscribe to the Journal.
The ISACA Journal is published by ISACA. Membership in the association, a voluntary organization serving IT governance professionals, entitles one to receive an annual subscription to the ISACA Journal.
Opinions expressed in the ISACA Journal represent the views of the authors and advertisers. They may differ from policies and official statements of ISACA and/or the IT Governance Institute® and their committees, and from opinions endorsed by authors’ employers, or the editors of this Journal. ISACA Journal does not attest to the originality of authors’ content.
© 2010 ISACA. All rights reserved.
Instructors are permitted to photocopy isolated articles for noncommercial classroom use without fee. For other copying, reprint or republication, permission must be obtained in writing from the association. Where necessary, permission is granted by the copyright owners for those registered with the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC), 27 Congress St., Salem, MA 01970, to photocopy articles owned by ISACA, for a flat fee of US $2.50 per article plus 25¢ per page. Send payment to the CCC stating the ISSN (1526-7407), date, volume, and first and last page number of each article. Copying for other than personal use or internal reference, or of articles or columns not owned by the association without express permission of the association or the copyright owner is expressly prohibited.