The right IT skills for the next generation

Human eye In ten years' time today's 11 and 12 year-olds will be graduates looking for jobs in the IT industry. Will they have the right skills, or have been let down by academia?

These were the subjects explored at PLAN-IT 2015, a conference hosted by BCS and the IBM Academy of Technology.

Around 80 business leaders, academics and government representatives got together with thought leaders in the IT industry to consider the different skills that would be needed in a decade’s time, and to debate the most effective way to equip the next generation.

All agreed that, although many excellent initiatives focused on improving IT skills were underway, a stronger and more responsive partnership between commercial organizations and universities was imperative.

Worrying statistics formed the backdrop

Several well-known statistics provided a worrying backdrop for the conference. Youngsters turn their backs on technology early on, even though more than 90% of jobs require some level of IT skills, and the number of women on computer science and engineering courses continues to decline.

In light of these growing problems in the UK, and with the aim of encouraging an open debate between industry and academia on the best way forward, four key influencers put in motion the wheels to set up the PLAN-IT conference at IBM's Laboratories at Hursley.

The four influencers were: Chris Winter FBCS, IBM distinguished engineer, member of the IBM Academy of Technology; Professor Wendy Hall of the University of Southampton, CBE and former BCS President; Rebecca George OBE, director of IBM's Government Business; and Mandy Chessell, IBM Senior Technical Staff Member and Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering

'We all know that as the IT industry is evolving, the skills needed to work in it are also changing,' explained Chris. 'The skills required in future will be quite different to those gained in a classic computer science course, for instance.

'And there is a growing difference between the needs of the horizontal IT industry - which spans all sectors such as financial services, public sector, and retail - and the vertical computing industry, which is becoming more and more commoditized.

'There is a view that the much broader IT industry, which needs more creative, softer skills, is poorly served by academia. We therefore wanted to provide a forum to debate all the interconnected issues.'

Financial incentives to promote IT subjects

In her presentation at PLAN-IT Wendy spoke about the different ways boys and girls viewed IT, and said that much of the blame for the lack of interest shown by girls stemmed from the initial introduction of PCs to the classroom in the 1980s.

She said that at an early age boys showed more interest in the potential of computers, particularly in playing games.

They tend to find computing intrinsically interesting. Girls, however, tend to see IT as a means to an end, which is why encouraging young girls to use PCs for creative projects and promotional activities is proving so successful in the Computer Clubs 4 Girls initiative.

Wendy suggested that the long-term solution was to do more to encourage an interest in computing at a younger age - when there are little differences between the sexes. There could also be financial incentives, such as no university tuition fees, to encourage more students to study IT-related subjects.

Like others, she wanted to see more media coverage of the issues, to ensure the damage of the continuing 'jobs for the boys' mentality was understood by teachers and parents. Eastenders has three female characters who worked in technology, but a female IT superstar would have a real impact on the GCSE and A level choices of young girls.

Although she praised IBM for its inclusive policies that welcomed women into the company, she said that the industry as a whole had some way to go to increase its appeal.

Other academics who addressed the conference included professor Steve Thornton from the University of Warwick, who spoke about computer challenges in medicine, and Professor Mike Holcombe from the University of Sheffield, who stressed that computer science teaching needed to embrace the enterprise agenda.

He spoke enthusiastically about Sheffield's Software Observatory and its 100 or so commercial projects that had been run with 300 teams. He said that, when students were given responsibility, the results were dramatic.

Qualifications should be fit for purpose

Patrick Beasley, representing e-Skills UK, agreed it was important that qualifications, such as an IT Diploma, were fit for purpose, as employers needed an indication of a candidate’s skill level.

In a panel discussion on skills, Gillian Lovegrove, manager for the BCS Education and Training Forum, explained how the Society was engaging with schools at key stages - around the time pupils make their decisions on GCSE courses, and again when they start thinking about 'A' level options.

She described how BCS was working with e-Skills UK to encourage a greater exchange between businesses and academia, which was particularly useful for teaching staff who had been out of the industry for some years.

Gillian said that technology companies desperately needed open, intelligent, well-rounded individuals with good communications skills. This type of graduate would obviously be in high demand, but the IT industry needed to enhance its image to ensure it attracted its share of the right people.

Bob Assirati, executive at the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), raised the need for increased professionalism within the IT industry in the coming decade. Bob made reference to the good work of the BCS in its leadership of the Professionalism in IT programme.

During the break out sessions, it was suggested that funding issues, combined with dynamic technological developments, could result in universities aligning themselves with the private sector in order to survive.

Closer collaboration proposed

This was the first event of its type to be staged by BCS and the IBM Academy, and organizers were delighted with the extremely positive feedback from the delegates.

Chris Winter adds: 'All who attended felt the subject was so important, we should repeat the conference in a few years' time.

'There was also consensus that academia and business must work closer together. Certainly, the university curriculum needs to be able to change dynamically to reflect what's happening on the outside, and we need to focus on how the subjects are taught - particularly if we want to attract more women into the industry.'

The PLAN-IT 2015 conference was held in June 2006.

The IBM Academy of Technology brings together the company's most accomplished technologists to investigate technical issues impacting IBM and advise senior executives on how to resolve them.

Slides and Audio

Audio in the form of MP3 is available for many of the plenary sessions below. Macromedia Flash files containing the slides and audio are also available.

Innovation for the 21st Century Nick Donofrio IBM Corporation Length: 44 minutes
	Innovation for the 21st Century - Flash version
	Innovation for the 21st Century - MP3 version

Where have all the girls gone? Professor Wendy Hall University of Southampton Length: 24 minutes
	Where have all the girls gone? - Flash version
	Where have all the girls gone? - MP3 version (followed by Teaching Post-Classical Computation)

Teaching Post-Classical Computation Susan Stepney University of York Length: 17 minutes
	Teaching Post-Classical Computation - Flash version
	Teaching Post-Classical Computation - MP3 version (preceded by 'Where have all the girls gone?')

The Future of Computer Science Professor Mike Holcombe University of Sheffield Length: 38 minutes
	The Future of Computer Science - Flash version
	The Future of Computer Science - MP3 version

Government IT Profession in 2015 Katie Davis e-Government Unit, Cabinet Office Length: 28 minutes
	Government IT Profession in 2015 - Flash version
	Government IT Profession in 2015 - MP3 version