Top 10 IT careers and skills stories of 2024

1. Lack of tech skills making hiring more competitive, says Morgan McKinley

The year started on a familiar not,e with research from Morgan McKinley finding that hiring managers are having to be more competitive when making job offers to win over those with the appropriate skills for roles.

The research also found that a lack of skills in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are a big issue in a time when these technologies are becoming an increasingly important part in the future of business.

2. Computing curriculum leaving digital skills behind, research suggests

Where the responsibility lies for this lack of technology skills in the UK is a subject of much debate, with some blaming a lack of industry training and flexibility for a lack of talent, and others pointing the finger to education providers earlier in the pipeline.

The Subject Choice, Attainment and Representation in Computing Project (SCARI) released research in early 2024 suggesting one of the issues leading to a lack of tech skills is the computing curriculum’s narrow focus.

The report suggested the curriculum’s focus on technical coding and programming skills deters some and leaves others without some of the other essential digital skills needed for the future of work.

3. AI and cyber skills worryingly lacking, say business leaders

On the other end of the pipeline, Computer Weekly’s own research found business leaders are claiming that AI and cyber security skills are lacking to a worrying degree.

Many employees claimed their next certification would be in these areas, and 17% of IT workers said their company was aiming to hire people with skills in AI, machine learning and data science over the next year.

4. Number of girls taking GCSE computing grows three years in a row

This year, 21,020 female students across the UK took the GCSE computing exam, marking the third consecutive year of growth for the subject at this level.

But experts still warn the pool of girls taking the subject is small in the grand scheme of things, and many believe that stereotypes about the subject and a lack of female role models featuring in the curriculum stand in the way of more girls taking the subject.

5. Number of girls taking A-level computing exceeds 3,000

At the next academic level up from GCSE, the number of girls choosing to take computing at A-Level topped 3,000 for the first time since the subject was introduced.

This was also the largest year-on-year increase in the number of girls taking the subject at this level in five years, with a 28.6% jump from 2023 to 2024.

6. Number of women choosing computer science degrees up 8%

The number of women choosing computing-based degree subjects also increased this year, with women making up 2,940 of the 15,530 UK-based students accepted to study computer science this year.

This is an 8% year-on-year increase, marking a year where women choosing computing has increased at all educational levels.

7. Lack of skills causing AI setbacks, says research

Much like the beginning of the year, the rest of 2024 continued to have worries about the lack of AI skills in the sector.

Research from Expereo and IDC found that 37% of firms in the UK are struggling to keep their AI, automation and data talent, and it’s standing in the way of their plans for AI.

8. UK’s C-suite more technically skilled than others, finds Accenture

Despite higher-ups in organisations having concerns about the widespread lack of tech talent, C-level executives in the UK are more technically skilled than average.

Almost a quarter of higher-ups in the UK have a technology background, making them some of the most technically savvy executives in the world, according to research by Accenture.

9. Making hybrid working work

The nature of work has changed since the Covid-19 pandemic, and flexibility has become an increasingly important way to work for tech employees across the UK and beyond.

This year, Cath Everett reported on the importance of hybrid working for promoting retention of tech industry talent, as well as how to ensure those who are working outside of the office feel just as important as those at their desks.

10. The shift towards developing internal tech talent

While skills shortages persist, and firms find it increasingly difficult to retain the talent they have, Cath Everett finished the year talking about how firms are focusing more on developing their own internal talent to ensure they have workers with the skills they need.