Essex Sector Skills Profile:
IT & Technology
Sector Definition: Includes technologies, software, internet, computer gaming, IT services and business change expertise.
‘What is it like working in the sector?’ information
o The most recent Association of Graduate Recruiters Survey suggested that starting salaries throughout the sector would be around £26,250 in 2013 for graduates;
o Typically long working hours - employers emphasise getting the project done rather than maintaining standard 9am-5pm hours;
o Freelancing and self-employment opportunities - it is not unusual for graduates to go straight into self-employment, particularly in web development or programming.
Employs over 11,000 people locally, in nearly 4,000 companies
Employers Include: Oakley Integrated Business Solutions, Objective IT, Xchanging, Eurobase Systems
Ltd, Yellowspring, Accentra, Technologies Ltd, Banctec Ltd, Safety Critical Communications Ltd
NATIONAL HEADLINES
The UK’s IT & Telecoms industries produced an annual GVA) of £51.9 billion; over 5% of the total UK economy (2009)
Recruiting Programmers is a key challenge for many businesses
The previously un-assessed economic contribution of the internet is now said to be worth an estimated £100 billion to the UK economy
Optimisation of ICT by businesses could generate an additional £47 billion GVA in the UK and could translate into half a million jobs over the next 5 – 7 years
Skills shortages were most often cited by recruiters seeking to fill positions for Programmers/Software Developers and Web Design/Development professionals (2012)
LOCAL AND REGIONAL HEADLINES
Regionally, IT & Telecoms contributes 9% of GVA and employs 1 in every 20 people
Across Essex, the greatest numbers of vacancies have been for IT Business Analysts and Systems Designers followed by programmers and software development professionals. IT operations and support technicians are also in fairly high demand
Local companies have reported a lack of practical and technical skills of applicants. Leadership and project management skills have also been difficult to find.
KEY DRIVERS FOR FUTURE EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS
Nationally, there is a need for an average of 129,000 new entrants per year into IT & Telecoms professional job role. Nearly 23,000 are expected to come through education
This sector shows a continuing trend towards being more highly qualified with the higher levels (QCF 4-8) rising to around 60 per cent by 2020.
Keeping pace with new technologies is crucial, with Cloud Computing; Big Data; Green IT; Social &Mobile Computing requiring skills
KEY CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNTIES
Enrolments on ICT courses look sufficient but are clearly not meeting the needs of the sector and lack appropriate technical elements and relevance to the workplace
Industry and education need to work more closely to develop more appropriate provision and activity such as work experience and internships
Training and education need to keep up to speed with new technologies and advances in the sector which is fast paced (i.e. industry awareness days/training)
IT underpins growth across all sectors of the economy, optimisation of IT by all types of businesses is key to local economic growth and competition
Delivery of Higher Apprenticeships in IT are needed to respond to employer need for higher level technical skill
Formal and informal support is crucial including extended schools activities, teacher industry training, Computers at School and Code Clubs,
1. Summary of the sector at UK, regional and local level
The UK’s IT and Telecoms industries produced an annual Gross Value Added (GVA) of £51.9 billion, which is over 5% of the total UK economy. There are approximately 105,000 enterprises in the UK offering IT and Telecom products and services, 92% of these enterprises are IT and 8% are Telecoms. Recent research estimates that the number digital businesses are massively underestimated by government classification systems and could be more than triple that of official figures. While employment in the overall UK workforce is forecast to increase at 0.89% per annum for the coming decade, the IT professional workforce is forecast to grow at 1.62% per annum, nearly twice as fast as the average employment growth of the UK.
The IT & Telecoms sector in the East of England contributes 9% of the region’s total GVA. The sector is at the heart of every sector in the East of England, underpinning the GVA contributions of all businesses.
One in every 20 people working in East of England is employed in the IT & Telecoms workforce.
(Source: Technology Insights Report, 2012)
1.1. Examples of job roles within the sector Computer/Data processing/Telecom Manager Computer/Software Consultant
Computer Programmer Software Engineer
Systems Architect & Designer Games Developer
1.2. Industries within the sector Digital and Interactive Media Telecommunications
Computer programming, consultancy and related activities Data processing, hosting and related activities
Repair of computers and communications equipment
1.3. Course provision in the county (2011/2012 full academic year)
565 2,315 1,390 75 575 10 365 0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 FE & Independent Private Providers
School Sixth Forms FE & Independent Private Providers
School Sixth Forms FE & Independent Private Providers ICT for Users ICT Practitioners Information and Communication Technology Level 3 Level 2 Level 1
130 30 270 30 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450
IT and Telecoms Professionals (inc ICT)
IT User Level 3 Level 2
IT/Network Technician Web Master
Help Desk Operator IT Helpline Support Officer Computer/Data Entry Clerk Data Processor
Telecommunications Engineer Telephone Engineer/Technician Cable Jointer
Data Analyst (Big Data) Computer Engineer
Computer Service Engineer/Technician
Figure 1: Course provision in FE&IPP, S6F – Enrolment Data Figure 2: Apprenticeships – Participation Data
Figure 1 - This graph covers provision in Further Education Colleges (including Sixth Form Colleges, which are also classed as FE), School Sixth Forms and a small amount of provision (usually on Foundation Learning -Entry Level and Level 1) at Independent Private Providers. These numbers relate to enrolments – a learner will be counted more than once if they are enrolled on more than one course (such as 3 A levels).
Figure 2 - This graph covers the number of sector-related apprenticeships in the county. These numbers relate to participation (learners are only counted once).
Note: For a more complete list of course providers and apprenticeships available, please visit http://www.i-essex.co.uk/ and http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/
Both graphs show what sector-related courses are the most popular among the people who study at Essex colleges, 6th Form and Independent Private Providers (IPP). However, although Level 3 ICT Practitioners course in colleges and IPP appears to have the highest number of students interested in studying it, that does not mean that the particular qualification will assure them a job in the sector. Please refer to section 2.2.2 for more information on what qualifications, skills and experience employers in the area require from the right candidates within the sector.
Essex-based University/College* Course
University of Essex, Colchester BSc Computer Science (3 or 4 years)
MSci Computer Science (3 years + Masters year integrated) BEng Computer Network (3 or 4 years)
BSc Information and Communication Technology (3 or 4 years) BSc Computing and Mathematics (3 or 4 years)
BEng Telecommunication Engineering (3 or 4 years) BEng Computers with Electronics (3 or 4 years) Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford BSc Business Information Systems
BSc Network Infrastructure and Security
The following course are available at the Cambridge Campus of Anglia Ruskin University, there may be potential to also offer these courses in Chelmsford.
BSc Computer Gaming Technology BSc Computer Science
BSc Information Security and Forensic Computing BSc Computing and Information Systems BA Computer Games Art
1.4. Establishment and workforce concentration in the sector (map + graphs)
Figure 3: 3,640 individual businesses in Essex, Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea
(Source: ONS 2011)
Figure 4: 11,370 employees in Essex, Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea
(Source: Nomis 2011)
1.5. Examples of companies locally E2v technologies PLC
Location: Chelmsford
No. of employees: approx. 1,500 Industry: Consumer electronics
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 61 : Telecommunications 62 : Computer programming, consultancy and related activities 63 : Information service activities 0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 61 : Telecommunications 62 : Computer programming, consultancy and related activities 63 : Information service activities Analysis of Figure 3 and 4:
The largest industry within the IT & Telecommunications sector is Computer programming, consultancy and related activities.
The highest number of individual businesses in this industry is in Chelmsford (382 in 2011), employing a total of 1,450 people. This means that the size band of these companies is generally 1-5
employees, with an average number of 3-4 people working in each business.
The highest number of employees in this industry is in Basildon, with just over 2,200 people working in 310 companies across the district. Therefore, the size band of Basildon companies working in Computer programming, consultancy and related activities is higher than in Chelmsford: 6-10 employees, with an average of 7 people working in one business.
The second largest industry is
Telecommunications.
The highest number of individual businesses in this industry is also in Chelmsford (40 registered in 2011), which employ a total of 465 people. This means that the average size band of these businesses is 11-20, with an average of 11 people working in one company.
The highest number of employees working in Telecommunications is in Brentwood, where 700 people were employed in 15 businesses in the district in 2011. This is largely a result of BT, a large local employer having a central office in
Brentwood.
Information service activities is the sector’s smallest industry in the county.
Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea have the highest number of industry-related businesses (20 in 2011). Chelmsford businesses employed more people than Southend businesses in 2011: 71 as opposed to 38. Therefore, although the business size band in both districts is very low (1-5 employees), it is more likely to find 1-employee businesses in Southend than in Chelmsford.
LPA Group
Location: Saffron Walden, Uttlesford No. of employees: approx.160 Industry: Electronic components
Concurrent technologies PLC Location: Colchester
No. of employees: approx. 100 Industry: Computer systems
Ultima Networks PLC Location: Harlow
No. of employees: approx. 30 Industry: Application software Data Recovery Services
Location: Southend-on-Sea No. of employees: Industry: Azura Group Ltd Location: Clacton-on-Sea No. of employees: Industry: Vella Technology Location: Colchester No. of employees: Industry:
Exorno Complete Solutions Location: Basildon No. of employees: Industry: PC Surgery Location: Southend-on-Sea No. of employees: Industry: Redcentric Location: Chelmsford No. of employees: Industry:
2. Vacancy and Salary trends
2.1. Current Salaries
Examples of starting salaries in the sector:
(Source: National Careers Service)
£0 £10,000 £20,000 £30,000 £40,000 £50,000 £60,000 £70,000 Call and contact centre occupations
IT engineers Communication operators IT operations technicians IT user support technicians Web design and development professionals Telecommunications engineers IT business analysts, architects and systems designers IT specialist managers IT project and programme managers Information technology and telecommunications director
Figure 5: National Average Salaries
Software Developer
-Starting salaries for graduates can be between £20,000 and £26,000 a year.
-Experienced developers can earn between £28,000 and £40,000. -Software developers with management responsibilities can earn over £50,000 a year.
Computer Service and Repair Technician
-Starting salaries are between £14,000 and £17,000 a year.
-Experienced staff can earn between £18,000 and £25,000 a year.
-Senior staff with management responsibility can earn up to £30,000 a year.
IT Support Technician
-Starting salaries are between £18,000 and £22,000 a year, and experienced technicians can earn up to £30,000 a year.
-Senior staff with management responsibilities can earn over £30,000 a year.
Computer Games Developer
-Starting salaries for artists and programmers are usually around £25,000 a year.
-Experienced and skilled designers, head programmers and producers can earn between £30,000 and £50,000. -Many companies also offer bonuses and share schemes for successfully completing projects.
Web Designer
-Starting salaries can be between £15,000 and £22,000 a year.
-The average salary is £30,000.
-Experienced designers can earn up to £37,500 a year. -Senior designers and those with specialist skills can earn over £40,000 a year.
2.2. Vacancy concentrations in Essex, Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea
Figure 6: Annual vacancy numbers in Computer and Related activities
(Source: Nomis, based on JobCentre Plus data only)
Figure 7: Total number of online vacancies advertised in the county between 03 April 2013 and 02 May 2013
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 2011 2012 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 IT Business Analysts, Architects and
Systems Designers Programmers and Software Development
Professionals
IT Support Technicians IT Operations Technicians Web Design and Development
Professionals Information Technology and Telecommunications Professionals n.e.c.
Call and Contact Centre Occupations IT Specialist Managers IT Project and Programme Managers Telecommunications Engineers IT Engineers JobCentre Plus Vacancy – Example 1:
Job Title: Trainee Telecommunications Installation Engineer
Location: Southend-on-Sea Salary: £23,000 - £27,000 per year +
Company Van, Fuel Card, Tools, Uniform and PPE Job Description: The role will involve the installation of broadband, TV and telephone lines into the customers’ home.
Straight days working pattern - Monday to Friday. On-going and long term contracts with immediate starts!
Job Requirements:GCSE / Scottish or equivalent. Must have a full valid UK driver’s license for at least two years (no more than 6 points).
Would be suitable for candidates from a skilled or technical background that may be seeking a new career within the Telecommunications industry.
A full and comprehensive paid 13 day training course prior to job start.
JobCentre Plus Vacancy – Example 2: Job Title: Software Developer
Location: Braintree
Salary: £18,000 - £20,000 per year
Job Description: The position itself will be office based and you will be working within an established team. You will provide telephone and remote support to existing client, web development of sites, maintain existing web sites and create new ones as required.
Job Requirements: You will have experience using the following applications:
Microsoft Visual Web Developer, Microsoft Visual N/A, Macromedia Fireworks, Programming in Visual Basic 6. Excellent working knowledge of Excel.
You will have understanding of the following web development languages: HTML, CSS, XML, Javascript, CSS, DHTML, and AJAX.
Experience working within a similar support role would be ideal but not essential. However you must have the ability to communicate clearly via the telephone. PLEASE NOTE DUE TO LOCATION you will need to be a CAR DRIVER
(Source: Labour Insights 2013)
Figure 6 shows that there has been a significant rise in workforce demand in the county between 2011 (approx. 270 jobs advertised) and 2012 (approx. 750).
Colchester companies advertised the highest number of vacancies in both years (111 in 2011; 129 in 2012). On the other hand, Harlow businesses did not register any workforce demand in either 2011 or the majority of 2012 except October 2012, when the workforce demand in the district was the highest monthly demand in the county: 102 vacancies.
Regarding annual increase in workforce demand, companies in Tendring appeared to have had the most opportunities of expanding their workforce, with only 3 job vacancies advertised in 2011 and 107 in 2012.
Maldon and Southend-on-Sea are the only districts where workforce demand decreased from 2011 to 2012.
In 2013, there have been more vacancies in Telecommunications than in IT (exceptions being January and February vacancies) in Greater Essex, according to JobCentre Plus. The highest number of jobs advertised in one month was 48 in Telecommunications (June 2013) and 30 in IT (September 2013).
Please note that due to limited data sets, the numbers above do not include December vacancies for both years.
2.2.2. Skills/Qualifications/Experience required
Table 2: Examples of jobs that require a Higher Education Qualification:
Job Role Degree accepted
Junior Systems Analyst Computer science; information technology; information management systems; business information systems; business studies; mathematics/science-based subjects; electrical/electronic engineering. Technical Author IT; technical/scientific subject; communications; English; journalism.
Applications Developer Computer science; software engineering; information systems; mathematics; business; management; physical/mathematical/applied science.
Games Developer Computer games development; computer games design; multimedia design; interactive media; software engineering; mathematics; physics; animation/graphic design; computer science. Software Developer Computer science/studies; information technology; software development; software engineering;
business information systems.
Web Developer Web development or web design; multimedia design; digital media development; web content management; business information systems; computer programming.
Multimedia Programmer Interactive/multimedia technology or design/animation; computer science/software; engineering; mathematics or physics; engineering or electronics; 3D design or digital art; graphic
design/illustration; spatial design; fine/visual art.
(Source: Prospects; National Careers Service)
Figure 8: National Qualification Trends in IT & Telecoms
(Source: CE/IER estimates based on ONS data (MDM revision 7146) cited in Working Futures 2010-2020 – Sectoral Report August 2012)
The technical skills most often called for by employers in 2011 were: SQL, C, C#, .NET and Java and this was true for both permanent and contract positions on offer.
2.3. Skills Gaps and Shortages
Around 1 in 10 companies with IT & Telecoms professionals report gaps in their skills, most often in their business and technical skills. In 2 years’ time this could get much worse as employers report training requirements will increase by a third.
Difficulty in recruiting programmers is by far the biggest skills challenge. Many employers say these problems are holding back business growth. This affects traditional programming roles for example in the game industry but is also having a much wider effect on the creative and digital media industries and businesses who are redeveloping their business models to include mobile app development and other interactive and digital media services. Lack of these skills is holding back local growth, stifling innovation in new products and services, and is affecting national and international competitiveness.
Skills shortages were most often cited by recruiters seeking to fill positions for Programmers/Software Developers and Web
Design/Development professionals. An inadequate supply of candidates with the required Microsoft skills was the most common cause of these shortages (e.g. .NET/ASP.NET, Dynamics, SharePoint, Visual Basic/Visual Studio and C#) though difficulties sourcing applicants with PHP and VMWare were also noted. Many of the skills needed reported by employers are not currently available through the mainstream education and skills system, many are short, highly industry relevant, specific courses offered by either private providers or the software providers themselves.
(Source: Technology Insights Report, 2012)
QFC = Qualifications and Credit Framework QFC 7-8 = Postgraduate level
QFC 4-6 = Degree level or equivalent QFC 3 = Advanced
QFC 2 = Intermediate QFC 1 = Foundation
The occupational structure for Information Technology favours those qualified at higher levels in particular (QCF 4-8).
The trend towards more employees being highly qualified is expected to continue with the higher levels (QCF 4-8) rising to around 60 per cent by 2020. Intermediate (QCF levels 2 and 3) qualifications are projected to fall significantly to under 20 per cent while the share of low level (QCF 0-1) qualifications are projected to rise slightly, against the general trend.
3. Future growth
Nationally, there is a need for an average of 129,000 new entrants a year into IT & Telecoms professional job roles. Based on current data, the makeup of this intake is expected to be as follows:
o 56,000 (43%) people a year coming from occupations other than IT or Telecoms (i.e. experienced workers who can be re-trained as IT & Telecoms professionals),
o 22,600 (18%) people a year coming from education (predominantly graduate level and higher),
o 50,400 (39%) people a year coming from other sources (e.g. re-entering the workforce after a career break, early retirement or unemployment).
Employment of IT & Telecoms professionals in the East of England is forecast to grow at more than 3 times the region’s average over the next decade.
3.2. Future trends in job roles and skills demands
Nationally, specific emerging technologies with important skills implications are: Cloud Computing; Green IT; Social and Mobile Computing; ‘Big Data’/Smart Computing/Analytics and Security and Data Protection.
(Source: Technology Insights Report, 2012)
Demands in roles for future projects: o Business analyst
o .Net Developer (with knowledge and experience in Microsoft .NET)
4. Employer Feedback
4.1. Employer survey data
o According to the Business Survey results, all employers mentioned ‘leadership skills’ as being the hardest to recruit in this sector locally. Recruiting new staff with good technical expertise was also identified as highly problematic.
o The main needs identified by employers in the overall development of the company are those of employees with an ability to work on own initiative, as well as the combined skills of being a good communicator and good technical skills.
o All employers said that they find it hard to find people with previous work experience. Most of them have not been able to employ graduates due to the lack of practical skills developed at the university, which suggests that this sector would strongly benefit from graduate work placements/ internships during studies in order to build up relevant experience. Apprentices are also likely not to be employed in this sector locally, mainly due to the fact that the educational courses in FE colleges lack industry-relevance.
Appendix
2007 SIC Codes for IT & Telecoms sector 18.20 Reproduction of recorded media
58.21 Publishing of computer games 58.29 Other software publishing 61 Telecommunications
62 Computer programming, consultancy and related activities 63 Information service activities
95.11 Repair of computers and peripheral equipment
Total Number of IT & Telecoms workplaces in the UK IT Services
Software Publishing Publishing of computer games 100
Other software publishing 1,800
Computer Programming 18,900
Computer Consultancy 67,400
Other IT Services
Computer facilities management activities 200 Other IT & computer service activities 22,600 Data processing, hosting & related activities 3,200
Web portals 1,100
Repair of computer & peripheral equipment 3,700 IT Manufacturing
Reproduction of recorded media *
Manufacture of computer & peripheral equipment 800
IT Wholesale/Retail
IT Sector Total 125,300 Telecoms Services
Wired telecommunications activities 900
Wireless telecommunications activities 700
Satellite telecommunication activities 100
Other telecommunication activities 8,500
Repair of communication equipment 200
Telecoms Manufacturing
Manufacture of communication equipment 1,500
Manufacture of fibre optic cables 100
Telecoms Wholesale/Retail
Wholesale electronic & telecommunications equipment & parts 3,300 Retail sale of telecommunications equipment in specialised stores 3,600 Telecoms Sector Total 18,900
(Source: E-skills UK analysis of data from the ONS Inter Departmental Business Register, 2011)
Useful Links:
E-skills (Sector Skills Council for Technology skills software, internet, computer gaming, IT services and business change expertise): http://www.e-skills.com/
National Apprenticeship Service (NAS): http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/About-Us/National-Apprenticeship-Service.aspx Prospects (The Official Graduate Careers Website): http://www.prospects.ac.uk/
National Careers Service: https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/Pages/Home.aspx Universal Jobmatch (Jobcentre Plus job search tool): https://www.gov.uk/jobsearch
