Pressures of time, work and training budgets mean many IT professionals continue to struggle to plan and execute focused career development tasks, according to the 2013 CPD Trends and Challenges survey conducted recently by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT.
61% of those surveyed report there is less time in the working day for CPD activities than in previous years, with more than half working for organisations with no policy to set aside time for CPD in the working day.
David Evans, Director for Membership at the Institute explains: “Our research shows that the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) landscape has changed and continues to evolve. With this evolution, both employers and employees need to adapt to get the optimum benefits from their investment, and embrace an enlightened approach to CPD. This is not just a challenge to those in the IT industry, but to every workplace where IT plays a part.”
This presents a challenge for the profession, as short-term needs are driving a longer-term change in how individuals and employers approach personal development. Further, an IT workforce that does not keep up-to-date will lead to knowledge stagnation and a restriction on the ability to innovate and remain competitive; a situation that does not benefit the business or its employees.
The survey sets out the specific challenges being faced by IT Professionals (as perceived by their employers and line managers) in the planning and execution of their professional development objectives. These include the fact that two third of respondents state there is less funding for traditional CPD activities now than in previous years for their IT workforce and a third perceive their organisation does not support CPD.
Other key findings include:
- 46% of participants state primary CPD planning is the responsibility of the employee alone, rising to 59% in smaller organisations of 500 employees or fewer
- 78% of those surveyed believe their employees committed to less CPD than they would like, or none at all
- 59% expressed their organisations have no format or system for employees to record their CPD, or what they have is ineffective
David continues: “If we think of professional development in terms of staying current, maintaining a competitive edge – increasing our effectiveness as professionals – then the importance to the individual and the organisation is clear. IT and digital are continuing to move at an incredible pace, and those that make use of the opportunity to transform organisations are finding that faster, better, cheaper, is attainable.
“How then do we support professionals in this? The first way is by showing them how to plan and conduct their development activities effectively – focussing on real outcomes not tick-boxes. The second way is through employers giving them the right balance of time and financial support. Clearly from this survey we have a lot of work to do.”
To encourage and support IT professionals undertaking CPD, the Institute has developed a wide range of materials, resources, professional certifications and a new CPD recording tool.