What is the IT Skill Gap ?

IT has been expanding irrespective of whether there is a slump or upward swing in the economy. However, the skill force required to meet the rising demands of the IT industry is not sufficient at the present nor is the situation expected to change drastically in the coming years. This case is especially true for the US market. The result is that vast number of projects are lost, stalled, or postponed to later dates in the hope that the skills needed for the jobs will be found. A vast majority of people interviewed in the IT sector in the US conceded that they don’t have the skill sets required to perform a certain task or to manage a project, or supervise a team that is handling a project.

This is one of the many reasons why the US has been shipping jobs, especially in the IT sector, to offshore locations where the necessary skill sets can be employed or trained in a cost effective method. This discrepancy in the job market, where the demand outweighs the supply, has resulted in the blooming of the citizen developer. Who is a citizen developer? A citizen developer is a person who creates new business applications which will be consumed by the same people who are looking for a particular skill set to service their project. This person will bridge the skill gap prevalent in the industry.

To summarize, a citizen developer might not swear allegiance to an organization or company, but he or she will fulfill the needs of an organization by filling the IT skills gap by performing functions that were hitherto not performed by the existing skill sets of the company. He or she can assist the company by performing tasks that meet the end user’s need by using applications and software that are not necessarily provided by the company. A citizen developer is also free to service multi clients, much like in the actions of a freelancer. With so many advantages, what we are witnessing now in the US especially, the time is ripe for the rise of the citizen developer.