The real solution to skills shortages

By JOHN R. REINERT and PAUL J. KOSTEK, IEEE - usa

Employers can substantially reduce shortages by offering rewarding careers coupled with support for continuous formal training.

Everyone has been hearing recently about an alleged shortage of American workers skilled in engineering and information technology specialties. This has led to an effort in Congress to increase the number of H-1B temporary skilled-employment visas issued yearly from 65,000 to over 100,000. Is this increase needed? Or are education and training programs the solution for meeting industry`s needs?

First of all, not all positions that companies are advertising require technical degrees and exposure to the latest technical skills. The National Science Foundation discovered that 80% of those working as computer scientists, systems analysts, and programmers have educational backgrounds in other fields. Twenty percent of those working as engineers do not possess engineering degrees.

In many cases, industry can transfer employees from other technical and non-technical degree fields, upgrade non-degreed technicians, and re-enter degreed and non-degreed personnel with applicable skills and experience but who have left the field. This would include engineers and scientists who have retired, been fired, or taken full- or part-time positions in other fields. People in most positions can gain the needed skills quickly through on-the-job training programs and seminars and workshops. When combined with other sources of supply, the U.S. university system is capable of turning out sufficient graduates to satisfy demand for computer scientists and engineers.

Tapping all resources

The number of students majoring in engineering and computer science declined in the early 1990s and is only now beginning to increase. Some blame the pre-college educational system for the decline. More directly, however, it was caused by the high rate of engineering unemployment and the difficulties new graduates faced in finding technical employment. Students do respond to the marketplace and, when demand drops, they change majors. Many of the people who failed to find employment previously, along with early retirees, are a resource that needs to be tapped to address current demand. Many retired programmers have returned to address the Year 2000 problem. They have been joined by people from other fields who have been put through "boot camp"-style programming classes.

According to a report by the Department of Education and the National Institute for Science Education entitled Leading, Concurrent, or Lagging: The Knowledge Content of Computer Science in Higher Education and the Labor Market, perceptible gaps in the labor market may in fact be temporary cases of personnel recycling. There is no magic bullet to resolve this constant shift as technology rapidly evolves. New graduates, or holders of H-1B visas, will not possess knowledge or experience superior to seasoned practitioners already in the field. The evolution in technology requires that all technology professionals practice life-long learning.

As old technologies are supplanted by new technologies and industries disappear while new ones emerge, we cannot afford to write off generations of technology professionals because of their lack of knowledge about the newest technology. Rather, we need to develop and utilize a variety of training programs that, in combination, can support the needs of industry.

Encouraging professional growth

Community college programs and private seminars and workshops can support short-term needs for specific skills. A broad-based approach in college programs can develop the necessary degreed personnel in computer engineering, computer and information sciences, and closely related electrotechnological disciplines. Encouragement by employers to continue formal post-graduate degree education can provide skills at the highest level. A combination of individual- and industry-supported on-the-job training, short courses, and seminars can continue to refresh the skills of the current workforce.