From implementing remote working organisation-wide overnight during the Covid-19 pandemic, to responding to ambitious company net zero targets for sustainable processes, to protecting global companies and millions of users from digital threats and their consequences – IT contractors have faced a couple of years like no other. With fast-growing tech capabilities, IT skills shortages and the need for greater diversity, transparency and uniqueness at the heart of every business, tech professionals will be presented with a plethora of rewarding job roles in the year ahead.
Generate’s payroll and contractor management specialists support thousands of IT contractors across the globe. Here our experts reveal the top trends, challenges and opportunities that tech contractors will face in 2022 and beyond.
Everything Tech Contracting Specialists Need to Look Out For in 2022
1. Unprecedented Opportunities
Demand for IT contractors recently reached a record 23-year high. Organisations across industries and sectors are fast realising the potential of digital transformation – 70% of companies are aiming to implement a digitisation plan in the next few years, although only 7% of organisations have fully digitised, meaning a vast gap between existing skilled workforces and business’ urgent IT needs.
With business booming post-pandemic, thousands of firms that delivered mass redundancies and delayed important projects are looking to return to driving growth and success. Although the contract market as a whole is experiencing a five-year high as companies compete for the best talent, employers know that skilled IT professionals are the key to transformation and differentiation, and they will be actively recruiting.
2. Cloud & Connectivity to Dominate Strategy & Projects
Hyperscale providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud are already dominating the cloud market. 70% of administrators identify AWS as the primary cloud platform used within their organization, whilst Azure and GCP are identified as the primary cloud platform less than 10% of the time – although Azure is fast catching up. 80% of Developers have trained on AWS, whereas 35% have experience with Azure and 30% with GCP, and even fewer have cyber security skills that relate to each specialism.
In 2022 cloud providers will shorten cycles of innovation from years to months or even weeks, with R&D spend prioritised and opening up both challenges and opportunities for cloud contractors. Organisations of all sizes from previously less than tech-savvy industries and sectors will fully embrace cloud-led strategies with the help of hyperscalers to generate fast digital-led innovation, making cloud – and therefore those owning the cloud strategy, harnessing end client data and rebuilding entire organisational ecosystems – an integral part of every enterprise’s digital transformation in 2022.
Organisations are in desperate need of cloud skills, yet only half of digitally engaged companies have plans in place to develop employee cloud capabilities. CTOs and tech leaders will increasingly search for specific experience with the most popular hyperscale providers and the ability to act as a trainer, coach and manager for cloud teams who have not yet worked with these systems. Revenue from cloud will grow astronomically in 2022, meaning tech professionals will be at the heart of their end client’s business growth and success.
3. Ethical & Sustainable Tech
With few regulations currently in place, tech and in particular AI and Machine Learning are fast becoming scrutinised in more detail. From algorithms that schedule company social media feeds and optimise advertising, to intelligent tech that decides whether or not to award a mortgage loan or help doctors decide which and how much medication patients should take – AI, ML and emerging technologies have real-life impacts and could prove the difference between life and death, as well as global business success or failure.
The potential for good – and harm – is mostly unfathomable as of 2022, meaning governments, societal bodies and communities across the globe are looking for more clarification on the boundaries and opportunities of IT in Industry 4.0. World-leading brands and fast-moving start-ups are already planning to leapfrog regulators to implement safe strategies and reassure stakeholders in time for inevitable new laws, and will be looking for the most skilled IT specialists to help them compete with ethical AI on a global scale.
IT contractors will also be at the forefront of leading digital transformations focused on business and environmental sustainability. Increased consumer awareness in environmental sustainability and fair trade products will continue to drive sustainable processes. PwC report: “Consumers, governments and other stakeholders are demanding that retailers and consumer goods companies clearly define sustainability standards in their network. Going forward, companies in the industry will also be measured by the transparency and measurability of their sustainability initiatives.” On top of existing environmental targets regarding supply chain waste, material usage and energy efficiencies, the growth in cloud will create another major challenge for IT contractors. In 2022 highly skilled tech specialists will encounter projects around data warehousing and ambitious carbon-neutral tech targets spanning whole organisations across the globe.
4. Customer Experience
Seasoned tech specialists know that even some of the world’s most successful companies lack organisation, operate in department- and location-based silos, and neglect optimised integration. However, throughout 2022 and beyond, business leaders the world over will be realising the links between the external and internal, and will be looking to IT experts to drive the digitisation needed to align an organisation with its growth goals.
‘Total’ experience acknowledges that no experience operates in a vacuum; for example, user experience impacts employee experience, which in turn impacts on customer experience, which impacts on customer retention, which impacts on profit etc.
The total experience recognises that every piece of a business is connected and must be closely aligned, from software and applications to usage and adoption, training, strategy and ways of working. Total experience can drive greater consumer loyalty, customer referrals, employee satisfaction and development, brand recognition and growth, and ultimately set up an organisation for unprecedented success.
In 2022 tech contractors will be increasingly involved in business-critical projects to integrate internal stakeholders with business processes and the entire customer journey across multiple touchpoints to accelerate growth.
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