Dive Brief:
- New research from Nintex reveals that a third of companies follow a digital transformation policy for only one year or less, according to The State of Intelligent Process Automation Study. The report also found that 64% of the companies studied had plans in place for three years or less.
- Companies that fail to meet their expectations after launching a digital transformation program said they needed more executive buy-in, sufficient in-house talent and transformation-specific leadership to be successful. As decision makers push for improvement, 67% of managers are prioritizing IT hires, half are looking for project management staff and another 46% are searching for consultants in growth strategy.
- Poor communication from company leadership is cited as a barrier to a successful transformation. A little less than half (53%) of employees understand what a digital transformation plan is. Only 27% of non-managerial staff knew about their company's efforts toward digital transformation even though 67% of managers were aware of such plans. An overwhelming majority of respondents (94%), however, said they believed their shift to digitize would provide valuable return on investment.
Dive Insight:
Employers are feeling the squeeze of the skills gap in technology and related fields across the country and around the world. Even the federal government has experienced the pinch. As more businesses struggle to meet their own needs for existing workers, increasing head counts and growing businesses may be more of a pipe dream, as research shows the lack of workers may impede the flourishing U.S. market.
The fallout from the lack of talent in the IT industry is far-reaching — 92% of employers said it hampers job satisfaction, productivity, employee satisfaction and turnover, according to the Hays U.S. 2018 Salary Guide. Many employers are looking for solutions to the talent drought in tech as well as other disciplines. In today's market, creativity and flexibility may be the keys to successful recruiting.
