Our 2024 ILX Group research report has unveiled some of the most interesting insights for the IT industry yet. Every year since 2022, we have surveyed 250 business, HR and L&D leaders to understand the trends in learning and development. Answering questions, such as:
- What are the biggest challenges facing businesses?
- What are the most in-demand skills?
- Where are organisations planning to spend their L&D budgets?
- And much more…
So, what have we learnt about the IT service management (ITSM) industry in 2024?
The IT department is seeing most demand for L&D
The demand for L&D from the IT department is almost double that of the Marketing and Sales, Product Development and Operations departments, and triple that of Finance and R&D.
But why is this happening?
Businesses increasingly rely on complex IT infrastructures to support operations. They need the ability to effectively manage and optimise these for maximum efficiency. Which could be why we’re seeing ITSM/ESM move from its previous position as sixth most in-demand skills for the IT department in 2023, up to first place in 2024.
As well as this, businesses need to keep up with the latest tools and technologies to remain competitive and ahead of the curve. And these are most likely reasons why AI (30%) and cloud (28%) both feature in the top three most in-demand skills within IT departments.
The battle against technological advancement
IT and technological skills development are a point of focus for many organisations this year, with many increasing budgets in areas such as:
- Artificial intelligence (76%)
- Cloud (75%)
- Automation (73%)
- Cyber (68%)
Businesses needs have changed, and organisations are struggling to keep up with technological advancements and new ways of working. In fact, 76% state keeping up with technology developments is a key challenge for 2024. This is leading to a skills shortage, as employees lack the skills needed to use new technologies and take on new roles in the business, while candidates that do have those skills are hard to attract.
Embracing generative artificial intelligence
1 in 4 organisations say adopting generative AI is a top priority for them in 2024. 84% of organisations say employees will have access to more AI tools to be effective within their role. As such, 79% of businesses say they need to accelerate employee L&D programmes to upskill/reskill/cross skill people to use AI effectively.
But 64% of organisations say their employees have started fearing they’ll lose their job or be replaced by AI, which reinforces the importance of upskilling in these areas. While 60% said that their industry isn’t ready for AI yet, including 88% of organisations in the Finance industry, 75% in Automotive and 70% in Digital, Advertising & Media. Developing an understand of this new technology and how it can complement your current skillset to enhance productivity and efficiency is the best way to show value as an employee.
Discover more about the impact of AI and our other predictions for the ITSM industry in 2024 here.
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