Human Resource planning in IT
II. FORECASTING AND PLANNING
HUMAN RESOURCES FOR
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY1
Executive Summary
The purpose of this study is to create a policy maker’s guide for forecasting and planning human resources for information technology (IT). It was prepared as a background paper for the Seminar on Human Resources Development in
Information Technology, held on 5-7 September 2000, in Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Methodology of human resources forecasting and planning for information technology
The first step for IT human resources planning is to determine which jobs are classified as ‘information technology occupations.’ However, this task is not simple, as IT occupations vary enormously in required skills and penetrate virtually every sector of society.
Selection of a particular method for the classification of IT workers should be based on the research goal and data availability. For example, if the goal of the research is to investigate the possibility of a current shortage in IT skills and the need for an immediate policy response, then classifications directly relevant to IT skills would be more useful than standard schemes such as ISCO-88. As for the scope of IT workers, broader definitions such as ‘IT-related occupations’ would be appropriate if the goal is to examine the overall impact of IT on a skilled workforce. If the target were to devise education policies for building a critical IT workforce, then the use of narrower definitions such as ‘core IT workers’ would be more desirable.
Commonly used workforce forecasting methods can generally be classified into two categories based on the utilization of past data. Methods that do not rely on past data include employer’s survey, international comparisons and labour market signal analysis. In contrast, examination of the past trend is the basis for the labour-output ratios approach or input-output analysis. Some advanced countries use sophisticated macroeconomic modelling techniques for
HUMAN RESOURCES FOR
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY1
Executive Summary
The purpose of this study is to create a policy maker’s guide for forecasting and planning human resources for information technology (IT). It was prepared as a background paper for the Seminar on Human Resources Development in
Information Technology, held on 5-7 September 2000, in Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Methodology of human resources forecasting and planning for information technology
The first step for IT human resources planning is to determine which jobs are classified as ‘information technology occupations.’ However, this task is not simple, as IT occupations vary enormously in required skills and penetrate virtually every sector of society.
Selection of a particular method for the classification of IT workers should be based on the research goal and data availability. For example, if the goal of the research is to investigate the possibility of a current shortage in IT skills and the need for an immediate policy response, then classifications directly relevant to IT skills would be more useful than standard schemes such as ISCO-88. As for the scope of IT workers, broader definitions such as ‘IT-related occupations’ would be appropriate if the goal is to examine the overall impact of IT on a skilled workforce. If the target were to devise education policies for building a critical IT workforce, then the use of narrower definitions such as ‘core IT workers’ would be more desirable.
Commonly used workforce forecasting methods can generally be classified into two categories based on the utilization of past data. Methods that do not rely on past data include employer’s survey, international comparisons and labour market signal analysis. In contrast, examination of the past trend is the basis for the labour-output ratios approach or input-output analysis. Some advanced countries use sophisticated macroeconomic modelling techniques for