Amidst the fallout of the RBS and Ulster Bank IT glitch that has inconvenienced millions in the UK and Ireland, CIO professional body Innovation Value Institute (IVI) has called for the creation of a European framework for ICT professionalism.
The NUI Maynooth-based IVI and the Council of European Professional Informatics Societies (CEPIS) have jointly produced the results of a research project that sets out a vision for maturing the ICT profession in Europe.
“Over the past 40 years the ICT industry has completely transformed the world, but the ICT profession itself and how it is organised has not evolved at the same pace,” the director of Intel Labs Europe and IVI director Prof Martin Curley said.
“This research provides insight into how the profession might evolve in coming years and calls for related stakeholders to get engaged,” Curley said.
Among the actions being called for are the creation of a sustainable operating model for the IT profession and the development of a foundational meta-level ICT body of knowledge.
They have also called for the alignment of education courses with national and international frameworks, the establishment of ICT professional career streams and the alignment of national codes of ethics.
The state of the IT professional in 2012
According to the research, 66pc of respondents were not aware of any ICT-specific competence framework. Only 9pc of respondents were aware if the e-CF. Adoption of ICT competence frameworks is very low. Only 2.6pc adopted the e-CF.
The most dominant route into the ICT profession is an ICT-related college/university course at 56pc.
Some 72pc of respondents regard certifications and greater than 88pc regard formal education qualifications as ‘very important’, ‘important’ or ‘a factor’ in recruiting for ICT jobs at any level. Some 94.3pc of respondents suggest formal academic qualifications are ‘very important’, ‘important’ or ‘a factor’ in recruiting entry-level positions – suggests in order to work in ICT some level of formal qualification is needed.
About 34.6pc of respondents identified job mobility as a reason for acquiring certifications.
Around 74.1pc of respondents believe ICT certifications support worker mobility across national boundaries. Some 74.4pc of respondents believe that formal education qualifications support mobility.
Some 70.8pc of respondents adhered to a professional code of ethics/code of conduct. Ninety per cent of respondents felt they were at least useful. Nearly half of respondents (45.1pc) suggest the need for greater enforcement mechanisms.
IT professional image via Shutterstock
