The Tech and IT Skills Gap Continues to Expand. Employers, What’s Your Action Plan?

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By Ryan M. Sutton, Executive Director, Technology, Robert Half

Much has changed in the world in recent years, but not the tech skill shortage. It has remarkable staying power and is a significant—and worsening—issue for businesses across industries, especially those seeking to recruit tech talent with skills in rapidly emerging areas like AI, machine learning and data science.

In a Robert Half survey conducted for the 2025 edition of our Building Future-Forward Tech Teams report, 87% of technology leaders said they face challenges finding skilled talent. And more than three-quarters (76%) of respondents reported that a tech skills gap is evident in their department.

Left unaddressed, critical skills gaps can jeopardize a company’s ability to meet customer needs and capitalize on new opportunities in today’s fast-moving, digital business environment. They can also prevent tech departments from achieving their priority initiatives this year. Nearly half (45%) of the technology leaders surveyed for Building Future-Forward Tech Teams said they have already seen staffing challenges negatively impact projects.

What is the tech skills gap?

Before we look at some practical strategies to help tech leaders address a tech skill shortage in their organization, let’s define what the gap is and why it’s a concern for organizations.

For tech departments, the tech skills gap reflects the widening mismatch between the modern capabilities IT organizations need to help the business operate and innovate and the skills their teams currently possess. As technologies like AI, cloud computing and cybersecurity continue to evolve, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find professionals with the up-to-date expertise needed to implement and manage these tools effectively.

That’s why the IT skills gap isn’t just a staffing challenge for tech leaders—it’s a strategic concern. This gap contributes to slow processes, can strain existing teams and hinder a company’s ability to scale. It can also undermine companies’ efforts to modernize their IT or transform digitally at the pace required to stay competitive. In a Robert Half survey, 45% of technology leaders said they are already concerned that an insufficient supply of skilled talent could impede their ability to implement new technologies this year.

Where tech skills gaps are most evident in IT organizations

Where are tech leaders facing the most acute skill shortages? According to research for Robert Half’s Building Future-Forward Tech Teams report, these are the top six areas:

AI, machine learning and data science: 44%

IT operations and support: 39%

Cybersecurity and privacy: 30%

Technology process automation: 25%

Software and web applications development: 22%

Cloud architecture and operations: 20%

These are not fringe capabilities by any stretch. And as AI becomes embedded in nearly every business process and cloud environments continue to expand and become more complex, tech and business leaders are under increasing pressure to ensure their teams have the right skills—not tomorrow, but now.

With that urgency in mind, here is an overview of four strategies we present in Building Future-Forward Tech Teams that can help you create an action plan for meeting the tech skill shortage head-on and addressing IT skills gaps in your organization.

4 Strategies to Overcome Tech and IT Skills Gaps 1. Foster a learning-driven work environment 2. Encourage experimentation and cross-departmental collaboration 3. Recruit for potential, not just experience 4. Adopt an adaptive and flexible talent model

1. Foster a learning-driven work environment

Empower your team to stay ahead of the curve by providing them with access to certification programs, hands-on workshops and online courses in high-demand areas like AI, cloud architecture, data analytics and cybersecurity. Align learning opportunities with business needs and individual career goals to help foster engagement and retention.

Support upskilling and reskilling efforts by giving your employees the time and resources to grow into new roles or those with expanded responsibilities. Mentorship programs—traditional, reverse or peer-based—can also accelerate knowledge-sharing across your team.

Also, working to equip nontechnical teams in the company with foundational tech skills, from AI quality assurance to basic coding, can build cross-functional digital fluency and boost productivity and efficiency across the organization.

2. Encourage experimentation and cross-departmental collaboration

Urge your team members to view complex problems—like reducing technical debt or navigating enterprise resource planning (ERP) project challenges—as opportunities for innovation. Foster an organizational culture that rewards creative problem-solving, supports experimentation and treats occasional missteps as part of the learning curve.

Promoting cross-departmental collaboration can also broaden perspectives and drive more creative and strategic solutions. By exposing IT staff to other functions and roles through targeted cross-training, you can deepen their understanding of how departments interconnect. This can spark fresh thinking, improve coordination and increase the impact of enterprise-wide tech initiatives.

3. Recruit for potential, not just experience

To help expand your talent pipeline and mitigate a tech skill shortage in your IT organization, prioritize the recruitment of promising candidates instead of holding out indefinitely for professionals who meet all your ideal requirements. Look for potential hires who are adaptable, curious and have a solid track record of learning quickly and continuously.

Emerging technologies—like generative AI—require tech pros who can pivot, experiment and pick up new skills on the fly. Just be sure to ask for more specifics when candidates highlight in-demand capabilities like AI or machine learning during the hiring process. There is a significant difference between using generative AI tools and building the models behind them—though both skill sets can be valuable, depending on your team’s needs.

4. Adopt an adaptive and flexible talent model

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A flexible talent model helps tech leaders stay agile by providing access to specialized skills when needed and preventing core employees from becoming overloaded. By supplementing your permanent team with contract professionals or consultants, you can better respond to shifting priorities and keep your critical projects moving forward. And you would be far from alone in using this strategy: In a Robert Half survey, 65% of tech leaders said they are increasing their use of contract talent—and 73% plan to boost their consulting budgets.

Working with a talent solutions firm like Robert Half can make it easier to scale your IT team with in-demand expertise, especially for hard-to-staff roles or initiatives that involve emerging tech like AI. Many experienced professionals in the technology field choose to work on a contract basis because they enjoy the diversity of work. We often see employers decide to keep contract staff in place for full-time engagements or invite them to become part of their permanent team because they are such valued contributors.

If there was a quick fix to address the tech skill shortage, I would gladly offer it here. The reality is it will take years of focused effort and hard work by schools, businesses, the technology community and others to drive change and make a meaningful impact. Until progress is made, tech leaders can apply the four strategies outlined above to help ease current IT skills gaps in their organizations and start building a next-gen tech team that will be more than future-ready.

Get more insights and guidance on how to keep critical tech projects on track this year

View the full report now

Robert Half’s research-driven report, Building Future-Forward Tech Teams, examines tech leaders’ priorities and challenges for 2025. It offers insights into overcoming critical IT skills gaps—especially for technology modernization, digital transformation and enterprises systems projects—and tips for building well-rounded tech teams that are ready for what’s next.

Ryan M. Sutton is an executive director at Robert Half, leading the technology practice for the firm. He joined the company in 1999 as a recruiter and has been promoted multiple times to roles of increasing visibility. Prior to joining Robert Half, he worked in public accounting.

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