Majority of CIOs plan to expand their IT teams despite shrinking budgets

CIOs are contending with significant “roadblocks” in IT hiring despite an appetite to expand headcounts in the year ahead, according to new research.

81% of CIOs plan to increase their IT headcount in 2023, according to Gartner. However, this optimistic outlook and prospective hiring spree could be scuppered by growing economic volatility.

Nearly half (41%) of CIOs at large enterprises reported “slow hiring” for IT roles amid talent shortages, while 35% revealed they were contending with a decreasing overall IT budget that is inhibiting their ability to attract talent. 

Similarly, nearly one-third (29%) said they are forced to work around an IT hiring freeze due to budgetary constraints.

These challenging conditions mean that IT leaders are being forced to explore new ways of both attracting and retaining talent in the coming months, according to Jose Ramirez, senior principal analyst at Gartner.

This includes opening up opportunities to IT workers from further afield and the relaxation of role requirements to attract staff. 

“CIOs are taking proactive steps to combat economic volatility by relaxing geographic and role requirements to expand their IT talent pipeline,” he said. 

“Some organizations have found success by hiring early-career technologists and providing upskilling opportunities to fill critical technology needs.”

CIOs are using upskilling to mitigate talent shortages

A key approach currently employed by CIOs includes upskilling and reskilling of workers to fill IT talent pipeline gaps, Gartner said. 

Nearly half of IT leaders surveyed by the consultancy revealed they plan to invest in training programmes for IT staff to ensure teams have the relevant “roles, skills, and capacity” to meet current and future enterprise objectives. 

Around 46% of CIOs said they also plan to establish “fusion teams” to compensate for broader talent shortages across the enterprise. 

These multidisciplinary teams are a mixture of workers that combine technology or analytics and business domain expertise to drive innovation that takes into account the differing goals and requirements of each segment of a business.

“Recruiting the right IT expertise takes time and planning, especially for skills in architecture, cyber security, cloud computing and agile software development,” said Ramirez. 

“Ensure that IT has relevant roles, skills and capacity to meet enterprise objectives. This may require embracing a blended workforce model of IT and business domain roles.”

The necessity for digital transformation  is, in part, a key driver of the need for skilled IT staff.

Ramirez noted that more than two-thirds (67%) of CIOs plan to grow their IT headcount this year “by at least 10%” to support digital initiatives. 

However, with IT teams faced with difficult budgetary conditions, previous research from Gartner shows that many CIOs are now faced with a choice of doubling down on spending or taking a more conservative approach to investment. 

Earlier this year, analysts suggested that some IT leaders will continue to invest heavily and view economic challenges as an opportunity to accelerate digital initiatives and differentiate themselves from competitors.