CompTIA E2C members hear real views from employers on readying their IT workforce

A United Kingdom native may have said it similarly when he called, literally, one day, “Watson, come here! I want to see you!” Today’s panel discussion at the CompTIA EMEA Member Conference had local IT academia asking how do I help newly learned IT certified students prepare and present their most hirable abilities to today’s employers large and small. How do they get seen? Specific case studies provided UK Academia examples to increase the credibility and hire-ability of their young students with potential employers when the traditional one size-fits-all approach tires in these modern hiring times.

One panelist, Kirk Redhead, of ITEC Learning Technologies, said he now assesses the full spectrum of needs, both from the local employers in finding what specific skills would be useful in new candidates, to the local recruiters, who help young people understand what employers are looking for, not only in certified IT skills, but in interview attire, personal branding, and first line interview questions.

At the end – five Top Tips were provided by the panelists to the attendees in working with employers of ranging sizes:
1) We all like to do business with people we like. Trust and integrity -the old adage still sticks.
2) Use authorized IT certification academic partners and programs for training, and prevent employers from having to retrain someone without a tested skill.
3) Going forward, social media is almost a soft skill - it is just like learning telephone etiquette. (See? Mr. Bell was even more ahead of his time.) If you as Academia are not embracing Facebook and the like, that will adversely filter down to the student.
4) What are the skills the employers require now and what does Academia need to incorporate into current curriculum? Listen to your customer.
5) Don’t just run courses. Employers want real hands-on scenario training. When your students go out to workplace, make sure they actually know what they are doing.

Ring! Ring! Employer: “Who’s calling?” Academia: “I know exactly…I see you too.”