In an accelerated digital world, it is becoming even more vital for public sector businesses to ensure their employees have digital skill sets.

Recent research by Globaldata suggested that the UK public sector investment in IT technology has been steadily rising for the last five years. At the same time, cybersecurity risks have increased at a similar rate. Last month, leading government supplier Capita, who provides a wide range of services to the public sector, confirmed that they had experienced a security breach impacting their systems and potentially compromising information associated with their customers, employees and suppliers.

With more sensitive information available, it’s critical that those working in the public sector have the digital skills and knowledge to apply new technologies efficiently and safely. These types of skills are no longer something that is covered just by IT departments. With technology’s involvement in our society, professionals of all industries and levels must recognise and be capable of implementing vital digital measures and be willing to expand their skillsets in a digital environment.

With a global digital skills shortage that has impact the private and pubic sectors, it is a question of how companies can fulfill the necessary digital skills within their talent pipelines. The rising pressures on the tech talent industry are likely to remain for some time. The Financial Times reported that the EU is looking for around 20 million technology specialists. In 2021, this figure stood closer to 9 million.

Digital skill programs capable of upskilling and training people in core tech skills could be necessary to meet the rising technology resourcing demands in the public sector.

The first focus area for all businesses exploring a digital transformation, whether it be in the public or private sector should be mapping their existing skill set against their targets and goals. This assessment should be a comprehensive study of their existing skills and explore the potential of their employees. Determining overall growth capacity and the existing skillsets may allow them to adapt current roles toward a more tech-focused position or incorporate technology more efficiently into their activities. 

For example, AI is being integrated into all industries at an accelerated pace. By delivering a thorough skills analysis, businesses can discover talent with vital digital skills that can be developed further to prepare teams to adapt and integrate AT technology. They can also determine individuals with core foundational skills, like experience in statistics or data analysis, knowledge and experience which can strengthen with additional skill-focused training.

Skills assessments can be delivered via a mix of firsthand insights from team managers and talent management tools. As a digital transformation progresses, talent management tools provide further benefits of generating data on digital competencies that provide a critical reference point for employee progress and indicate how ready an organisation is to introduce new digital tools. 

Digital skilling requires continuous effort. It needs an ongoing commitment towards embedding a culture of digital education. As new technology opportunities evolve, and teams to continue to adapt and strengthen their digital skills with further knowledge, talent management tools can support managers stay connected with these new development and understand which tech-focused opportunities are relevant and applicable to their organisation.

To strengthen the impact of digital development programs, companies should incorporate technical training with development in general skills like communication, empathy and collaboration. These skills are critical in how effective a person is in the workplace and how they can utilise their digital skills to benefit the wider team. Ignoring these core skills can impact the level of digital communication and the overall success of enabling the opportunities that come with digitisation. 

In a digital world, it’s vital that public sector talent recognises what presents a risk and how to take action, and also how to harness the opportunities that technology offers. A safe and effective digital world must be driven by talent, with people working in the public sector recognising what to focus on, when to escalate things and how to protect data. Businesses are now exploring ways to upskill their workforce with core digital skills like cloud computing, AI and cybersecurity. For the public sector to remain competitive and in touch with the digital world, significant investment will be required.

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