Essential Professional skills and Competencies for

Future Information Technology graduates: Meeting IT

Industry Demands
2024 International Conference on Engineering Management of Communication and Technology (EMCTECH) | 979-8-3315-0790-9/24/$31.00 ©2024 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/EMCTECH63049.2024.10741786

Dimanthinie De Silva Henk Huijser Sam Cunningham Nona Press

Queensland University of Queensland University of Queensland University of Queensland University of
Technology, Technology, Technology, Technology,
Australia Australia Australia Australia
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Abstract— As per the World Economic Forum, there are now in the next three to four years. The field has changed
two significant obstacles faced by organizations: the challenge of dramatically and very quickly in recent years and is likely to
attracting suitable talents and the presence of a skills gap among continue to do so with the advancement of technology.
recruited personnel. Over the next five years, industries across all Significant advancements included cloud computing, machine
sectors anticipate that 44% of employee skills will be impacted by learning, data analytics, cyber security, Internet of Things
technological improvements and business technology adoption. (IoT), and most recently generative Artificial Intelligence.
Therefore, it is crucial that graduates entering the workforce A main concern that has emerged from these technological
possess the necessary skills and competencies for the future. Prior breakthroughs is whether automation and technology may
research indicates that there are clearly identifiable skill sets for
supplant employment opportunities [2]. Even as IT
Information Technology (IT) professionals, and it is evident that
the number of skills is consistently increasing over time.
professionals, every university graduate will eventually ask the
Therefore, it is vital for graduates, industry, and IT academics to same question when entering the workforce. It was suggested
comprehend the actual need for the skills and competencies of IT that machines should be used for tasks that are repetitive,
professionals. This knowledge will enable them to better equip crucial, and labour-intensive [3]. Conversely, professionals in
their graduates with the necessary skills to meet the demands of the field of IT should actively participate in tasks that need
the real-world business environment. This study examines the creative, innovative, and critical thinking skills [3-5].
industry's expected skills and competencies for IT graduates. To The development of skills and competencies among
determine the industry-required professional skills and
graduates in the field of IT has been the subject of investigation
competencies, IT job advertisements posted on online job portals
were used and analyzed using Reflexive thematic analysis (RTA).
in several studies [6-8]. Moreover, it is visible from browsing
Overall, 222 job advertisements were collected and analyzed, the IT-related postings on online job platforms that employers
resulting in the identification of 136 distinctive skills. The appreciate candidates' diverse skill sets and competencies in
findings reveal that professional skills may evolve over time, addition to their technical expertise. However, when
especially when future job advertisements are analyzed. investigating perceptions of professional skills and
Additionally, the IT industry recognizes that academic competencies of IT graduates with industry professionals who
achievement should not be the sole criterion for selecting a recruit graduates from higher educational institutions, some
competent IT professional. Instead, professional skills and have expressed that while these graduates may possess
competencies are considered equally important. The identified skills technical expertise in the discipline, they seem to lack the
were classified into four competencies: 1) strategic thinking and necessary professional preparation in terms of skills and
cognitive agility, 2) workplace agility and performance excellence, 3) competencies [6, 7, 9-14]. Both academics and students
adaptive resilience, and 4) technical proficiency. This indicates that studying IT have drawn attention to a similar skills gap [7, 13-
future IT professionals must possess the capacity to adapt to the 16]. This does not imply that those with higher education
constantly evolving needs for professional skills and competencies in degrees are lacking in technical knowledge. Instead, it
the IT industry and swiftly acquire new skills as needed by the IT highlights the fact that graduates who are entering the job
industry in the future. market often lack the necessary professional skills. These
Keywords— Industry demands, professional skills, findings validate the notion that employers in IT industries
competencies, Information Technology, job, reflexive thematic place importance not only on technical skills but also
analysis professional skills such as communication, teamwork,
problem-solving, attitude, capacity to learn on the job, hands-
I. INTRODUCTION on experience, soft skills, professional qualities, ethics,
In a rapidly evolving industry like Information Technology, leadership, and customer relations. In order to achieve success
it is impractical to anticipate that things would stay unchanged in industry and provide the company with a competitive

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advantage, it is essential to possess a high level of professional C. Essential Skills and Competencies Explored in Literature
expertise. Many studies have identified certain skill sets that are
II. BACKGROUND crucial for IT workers as they start their careers. While
reviewing literature the following table was created which
A. Skills and competencies summarises some of the key skill sets crucial for IT
According to the European Qualifications Framework, professionals (Table I). This shows that the number of
skills have been defined as "the ability to apply knowledge and professional skills has steadily increased over time.
use know-how to complete tasks and solve problems" [17].
Spencer and Spencer [18] defined it as "the ability for
performing a given physical or mental task". Competency is the TABLE I. SKILLS OF AN IT PROFESSION
behaviour that a person demonstrates when performing a task
References Skills required by the IT professionals
[19]; that is, a combination of key attributes that promote the
success of their performance. Winterton and Turnbow [20] Assyne et al. Interpersonal relations (communicate; sociable),
define competence as the collection of skills, knowledge, and [22] cooperation and work in a team (knowledge transfer;
behaviours required to perform a job according to a standard in global outlook; leadership), managing conflicts
(humbleness; customer awareness; understand
a work situation. However, in this study, the term competency customer needs), development in the job environment
is defined in accordance with Association for Computing (unafraid; creative; think outside the box), personal
Machinery (ACM and IEEE-CS [21], bringing in three development (practical; see opportunities; initiative;
important components – knowledge, skills, and attitudes – availabl;, self-sufficient)
which are observable when accomplishing a task. ACM & Adaptable, collaborative, inventive, meticulous,
IEEE-CS [21] passionate, proactive, professional, purpose driven,
Competency = Knowledge + Skills + Dispositions responsible, responsive, self-motivated
ACS [30] Social responsibility (respecting; confidentiality;
ACM and IEEE-CS [21] define the knowledge dimension responsible; accountable), cooperate (accountable;
as the conceptual understanding necessary for job descriptions honesty), personal development (knowledge expansion;
and certification requirements. Skills pertain to the ability and be aware about yourself), professionalism
tactics in employing knowledge to execute a job in a certain World Analytical thinking, creative thinking, resilience,
context. This may be assessed indirectly by observing a process Economic flexibility, agility, motivation, self-awareness, ethical,
Forum [31] curiosity, lifelong learning, dependability, attention to
or the quality of work done. Dispositions refer to the preferred detail, empathy, active listening, leadership, social
characteristics or quality of task performance. Stated influence, quality control, systems thinking, talent
differently, an individual's dispositions may have a substantial management, service orientation, customer service,
impact on their work performance, interpersonal interactions, reading, writing, teaching, mentoring, environment
and organizational contributions. Therefore, this highlights the stewardship, global citizenship, sensory processing
ability, manual dexterity, endurance, precision,
necessity of having professional skills in workplaces.
marketing, media
B. Overview of the Information Technology Profession CompTIA Durable skills, lifelong learning
[32]
The ACM, the world's largest educational and scientific Suciu et al. Critical thinking, creativity, communication, emotional
computing society, has offered tools that contribute to the [33] intelligence, collaborative working environment,
advancement of computing as both a scientific discipline and a lifelong learning, problem-solving
profession [21]. A profession refers to a cohesive group of Chin [34] Emotional intelligence
individuals who possess specific expertise and skills in a Rodriguez- Self-learning, personal transformation, adapting to new
Abitia et al. work and life
particular field, which they apply to assist others [22-25]. To [35]
attain success in their respective domains, it is crucial for all Oviawe & People-related skills, conceptualizing/thinking skills,
professionals to possess a comprehensive range of skills, Uwameiye personal skills and attributes, skills related to the
competencies, and knowledge. [36] business world, community skills: citizenship abilities
Australian Ethics, professional expectations, teamwork,
The Code of Professional Conduct was created by the Computer interpersonal communication, societal issues/legal
Australian Computer Society (ACS) specifically for those Society [23] issues/privacy, understanding the ICT profession
employed in the field of Information and Communication
Technology (ICT). This outlined the fundamental attributes of III. PROBLEM STATEMENT OF THE STUDY
the profession, along with the responsibilities of the The ever-evolving nature of the IT industry necessitates a
practitioners towards the general public; this would aid them in clear grasp of the actual expectations that the industry has for
becoming upstanding members of society. Furthermore, people IT graduates upon entering the profession, especially in light of
are required to uphold ACS values such as the utmost recent technological advancements like artificial intelligence.
importance of serving the public interest, the improvement of An IT professional's required skills and competencies may vary
quality of life, integrity, proficiency, continuous professional between the current industry context and the future industry
growth, and professionalism [26]. IT professionals and higher context [37, 38].
education institutions have been experimenting with the notion
of providing themselves and IT students with professional Investigating the actual demands of the industry can help
skills and competences in addition to technical knowledge, in higher education institutions in the field of IT align their
order to offer value to society and to IT profession [27-29] . pedagogical approaches to supporting students in acquiring the
necessary skills and become industry ready.

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 Therefore, this study focused on the following research as they are reflected in the skills requested in job
question: “How do demands for professional skills and advertisements. The findings were triangulated [29] to provide
competencies in the IT industry evolve over time?”. The credibility while researching the same phenomena (Fig. 1).
objectives of this study were to discover the significance of This article showcases the perspectives of IT industry experts
educational credentials in the recruiting process of a company regarding the professional skills they anticipate higher
and to explore the expectations of employers regarding skills education institutions to cultivate.
and competencies.
B. Data collection
IV. METHODOLOGY A traditional narrative literature review [40] has been
conducted to gain a deeper understanding of the professional
A. Research design
skills and competencies necessary for an IT graduate to be
The research design was aimed at investigating the employable. This provided the context for understanding the
evolving demands of the IT industry for professional skills and background, current state, and future direction of the study.
competencies. This was achieved via the use of document The study examined the existing literature on key topics such
analysis. Document analysis is a qualitative research method as “skills and competencies of an IT professional”, and of the
that requires carefully examining documents in both physical “skills gap of IT graduates”, and the findings were then
and digital forms [39]. The main benefit is to systematically synthesized [41].
look through documents which meet a certain criteria and also
it is an efficient and cost-effective method of collecting data as The IT job advertisements on online job portals, including
the documents are in the public domain (internet) and open SEEK.com, and indeed.com [12] were examined to address
access. As the data was accessible online via job portals, research question as these platforms have gained significant
obtaining ethical approval prior to conducting this study was worldwide recognition. The purposeful sampling method was
not necessary. used to enhance the quality of the data [42]. This enabled the
researcher to choose postings that strongly related to the
This document analysis included conducting a traditional- research question. Additionally, these specific posts offered
narrative literature review and analysing the demands of job rich information, deep insights, and a detailed
portals. Prior to performing the need analysis, the traditional understanding of the phenomena being studied. Various
narrative literature review [42] was performed to get a filtering criteria, including fulltime positions, locations
comprehensive understanding of the professional skills and throughout Australia, entry-level roles, and the specific
competencies required for an IT graduate to be marketable, as classification of 'Information and communication technology'
well as to identify the evolving skill demands of this industry. were used. The data were scraped from the month of October
This provided the context for understanding the background, 2023 to prior months. The primary rationale for choosing
current state, and future direction of a study [32, 33]. "entry level" roles was that these roles would mostly be filled
While analysing job advertisements posted on career by recent graduates.
portals, industry expectations of graduates have been explored,

Fig. 1 Research design adapted from [1]

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 The decision to mainly choose full-time job porting was such as remembering and formulating conclusions, which
based on the fact that these positions are often more deeply enable greater focus and reflection. Ways of working refer to
embedded into the company structure and culture. The job the method in which individuals actively engage in their job,
adverts from various employers were considered, and a web interact with others, demonstrate understanding and respect
scraping tool (DataMiner)1 was used to gather the data. for others, and contribute to the process of globalization.
Tools for working include technical skills such as ICT
The needs analysis was carried out in two phases, with literacy and information literacy. Living in the world refers
limitations discovered during phase 1 of data collection. the act of people adjusting to their environment, which
Currently, there is a strong global shift towards adopting AI encompasses factors like the ability to adapt to different job
technology, and many job roles are increasingly centred on opportunities and other qualities associated with being a
AI-driven tasks. Hence, understanding the skills that the member of society. This model facilitated the maintenance
industry demands from IT professionals in the context of AI of concentration and alignment with the study goals. The
is equally vital in this study. During phase 1, employment process of generating codes and themes required extensive
ads related to the latest trend in Artificial Intelligence (AI) reading and study of employment adverts.
could not be gathered using the specified selection filtering
criteria. Therefore, the skills and competencies required by The inductive coding method was gradually used,
the industry for IT professionals in relation to the newest offering a flexible and exploratory method. Codes and
technological breakthroughs, such as AI, could not be themes emerged directly from the data, without any
completely comprehended or obtained in this context. As a preconceived notions. This facilitated the identification of
result, the investigation advanced to a further phase, which new patterns and insights. The researchers' previous
focused on identifying AI literacy skills. experiences in IT education and industry significantly
influenced this effort. Through the integration of deductive
The phase 2 data were obtained from the Indeed and and inductive coding, the researcher successfully maintained
Glassdoor online platforms through a manual scraping the focus while still being open to unforeseen discoveries.
process. The Glassdoor job portal was considered useful Three iterations of coding were used, and the themes were
because of its extensive collection of job advertisements generated at the end of coding cycle two. The data also went
from global companies. The main objective of phase 2 was through data visualization facilitating the effective
to investigate the AI-related skills and competencies. Due to communication of complex patterns of the relationships of
the limited availability of AI-related IT jobs on local the textual data.
platforms, the decision was made to assess the real demand
for these trends from international companies. Here, neither V. FINDING AND DISCUSSIONS
the employment level nor the location was taken into
consideration. The search phrases used included "Artificial During phase 1, a comprehensive analysis was conducted
Intelligence," "AI skills," "AI literacy," "ChatGPT," of a total of 183 job advertising in the Australian IT industry.
"Copilot," and other related variations along with specific AI The analysis shows that IT employment is spread across
technologies. various sectors such as education, finance, law, hospitality,
insurance, charity, defence, and technology. Below are some
C. Data analysis supporting quotes extracted from the job posting.
The data extracted from job postings were converted to ‘Relevant industry experience in the education sector’
.csv and pre-processed to exclude unnecessary data. The key ‘Do you have customer service experience?’
elements of the job advertisements were the job title, ‘Previous retail experience and customer service experience is beneficial’.
‘Basic administrative experience’
location, employer, job description, and necessary ‘The key applicant will be enthusiastic and personable with experience in
qualifications. Phase 1 included the analysis of a total of 183 application support to assist supporting our storage management’.
job postings, while Phase 2 involved the extraction of 39 job ‘Customer service or previous Service Desk experience desirable but not
adverts, primarily focused on AI. NVivo was used to identify essential’
‘How many years' experiences do you have as an LMS Administrator?’
patterns and themes of these qualitative data. The job ‘Excellent eye for fashion’
advertisements were analysed using RTA [43], using both ‘Knowledge of healthcare IT, more precisely in medical imaging, is a plus ‘
deductive and inductive coding, to gain a comprehensively ‘Understanding of electrical theory and experience with emphasis on AC/DC
understanding of the diverse skills and competencies power systems or other electronic systems, devices or components. '
‘Current Australian driver’s license’
required by the IT industry and to address the research
question and objectives. This demonstrates that IT professionals need to have
expertise and experience across different domains, as they
The skills recommended by the KSAVE model [44] were
may be employed in organizations that are not primarily
used while deducting coding. The KSAVA model is a skill
focused on IT. In today's world, undergraduate courses are
framework for the twenty-first century, was used as a pre-
unable to fully prepare students for specific occupations as
existing framework to establish the initial set of codes. The
graduates often find themselves changing professions
KSAVA model categorizes 10 distinct skills into four major
throughout their careers, and the job roles they will assume
categories: cognitive processes (ways of thinking), work
in the future will be influenced by technological
processes (ways of working), global citizenship (ways of
advancements.
living) in the world and technical skills (tools for working).
Ways of thinking encompasses advanced cognitive skills

1
DataMiner is a data extraction tool that scrapes HTML web pages
and exports them as .xls, .csv, .xlsx, .tsv files

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 Therefore, it is essential for students to develop the ‘Tertiary Qualifications are not necessary for the role; we believe a piece of
necessary skills to adapt to these evolving professions. paper doesn’t prove your value. Your competence will be verified through
reference check so it will be necessary that you’ve worked in the IT field
Consequently, it is essential to expose students to various before and assessed through your probation period.’
fields to develop their abilities and enable them to ‘We hire people based on their skills and merit no matter their gender, age,
collaborate with people with different perspectives. location or background.’
Providing them with supervised firsthand experience is a key This underscores the IT industry's belief that academic
factor in achieving this goal. achievement should not be the sole criterion when selecting
The majority of the job adverts omitted educational competent employees for their organizations. Companies
prerequisites and instead highlighted the significance of increasingly reaffirm that they prioritize skills over
skills and competencies. Some occupations indicate educational degrees [6, 31]. Moreover, the findings confirm
'preferable' skills and corresponding educational degrees. the claim that transitioning from knowledge-based to
Below are some quotes extracted from the job posting. competency-based education is the future direction in
Computing Education [45, 46].
'Tertiary qualifications (IT, Engineering etc.) preferred'
'Tertiary qualifications in an IT or related discipline are a huge advantage.' Additionally, students who solely possess discipline-
'A tertiary qualification such as a bachelor's degree in specific knowledge may have difficulties in adjusting to a
computing/Information Technology preferable'
'Our grad techs quickly take on supporting roles with enterprise projects pro- swiftly evolving world. As a result, in today's environment, it
active, organised and able to communicate with customers and colleagues is critical to have the ability to analyse current information,
effectively are curious, a natural trouble shooter who loves solving problems recognize knowledge gaps, and be willing and motivated to
in innovative ways are tertiary qualified or equivalent in IT/Computer learn new things.
Science/Business Information Systems desirable to have (but if not, we'll
teach you!)' Further, within 222 job advertisements, 136 skills were
Several companies claim that while skills and identified at the iteration 1. The diagram below illustrates the
competencies are vital when entering a new career, the mere distribution of the 136 skills and their classification during
possession of a tertiary degree does not always demonstrate a the second iteration of the coding process (Fig. 2).
professional's worth. Here are a few quotes taken from the
job advertisements.

Fig. 2. Thematic map of need analysis (Iteration 1, 2)

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 Gray-coloured boxes represent the 136 unique skills, while the In today's dynamic landscape, where advancements in AI
green-coloured ovals represent the 22 broader professional skills. are revolutionizing industries and redefining opportunities, the
These professional skills included technical skills, communication dedication to ongoing learning becomes of utmost importance.
skills, customer focus, collaborative synergy, time management, Today, this refers to AI, whereas tomorrow it may include an
flexibility, efficiency, leadership and mentorship, documentation entirely new concept beyond our current expectations. Industry
and reporting, positive mindset, analytical thinking, attention to expectations are that professionals will constantly re-skill and
details, lifelong learner, innovator's mindset, problem-solving upskill to keep up with fast workplace changes [42]. This
skills, passionate, ethics and integrity, responsibility, wellness and necessitates a willingness to adjust, possessing an open-minded
work-life balance, personal development, community attitude, remain up-to-date, a mentality of continuous learning
engagement, and career focus. throughout one's life, accepting change, adopting new
technologies, and cultivating resilience. Through active
This indicates that these professional skills have the involvement with developing technology and real-life
potential to evolve over time, especially if future job experiences, individuals not only enhance their skill sets but
advertisements are analysed. also cultivate a mentality of innovation and adaptability.
In phase 2, among the 39 AI related job adverts, 27 After synthesizing the skills identified in phases 1 and 2, the
positions were offered in the Australian job market, while the inductive analysis of the empirical data revealed four themes:
remaining 12 careers were located outside of Australia, mostly strategic thinking and cognitive agility, workplace agility and
in the United States. Skills such as problem-solving, attention performance excellence, adaptive resilience, and technical
to detail, innovator's mindset, lifelong learner, leadership and skills, which are associated with addressing research question
mentorship, ethics and integrity, analytical thinking, “How do demands or professional skills and competencies in
collaboration and teamwork, passionate, research mindset, the IT industry evolve over time?”. The mind map in Fig. 3
adoptability, forward thinking, troubleshooting, documentation, illustrates the categorization of skills under each theme. The 22
excitement for improvements, following best practices, professional skills were categorized to form these four themes.
continuous learning, critical thinking and decision making,
awareness on security, responsible, communication, time
management, understanding, and understanding the role of AI
were identified as the skill set that companies are now seeking.
The AI literacy related codes (skills) which were emerged
were previously recognized in the non-AI context as well. For
example, problem-solving was commonly referred to for its
practicality in applying past experiences to real-life situations
and swiftly devising optimal solutions for complex problems by
breaking them down into manageable components, and this was Fig. 3 Mind map (Need analysis: Themes)
discussed in the context of AI as the capacity to utilize AI
knowledge for addressing real-world problems. This emphasizes Adaptive resilience describes an individual's capacity to
the significance of students getting familiar with AI-powered advance in today's ever-changing environment. It involves
platforms in the classroom and their proficiency in using AI possessing skills and judgment such as the ability to see
technologies in real-life scenarios. opportunities, adapt to new ideas, make commitments, have a
desire for change, be open-minded, and be curious. These skills
An innovative mindset which was defined by creativity, will enable individuals to effortlessly adjust to various living
commitment to innovation, and continuous pursuit of circumstances and keep pace with technological progress.
excellence referred to the capacity to use AI to tackle problems Below are a number of passages from job adverts related to this
and explore novel AI models for problem-solving. This theme. Here are few quotes extracted from the job ad that
highlights that professionals must possess the capacity to be provide support.
adaptive to AI advancements, and to tackle challenging issues.
‘seeking to make their mark, back their skills and judgement and shape their
Furthermore, leadership and mentorship pertain to those who own future’
act as motivating, dedicated, and results-driven role models. ‘revolutionise content creation’
Within the realm of AI, this related to providing guidance on ‘improve the recognition ability of violated content in TikTok Livestream, and
leadership strategies to help teams optimize their use of AI will also be responsible for optimizing our distributed model training
framework continuously’
technology and inspire others working on the area of AI. IT ‘better adapt to the training of large models’
professionals must remain alert to the latest developments in the ‘passionate about leveraging the power of AI to drive innovation and efficiency
industry and provide visionary leadership and support to across their clients’ operations’
empower others to succeed in the field of IT and AI or any ‘join the brightest minds’
‘Curious and stays on top of new and changing tools and techniques in the AI
upcoming trends in the future. Professionals must adhere to space’
ethical standards and demonstrate honesty while using AI. ‘passion for artificial intelligence’
‘passion for innovation and a desire’
Hence, it is essential for professionals to have a thorough ‘mission to build innovative photo and video creation products, we aim to
understanding of AI regulations before incorporating or enable creators and brands to produce engaging, top-performing content’
mindlessly adopting the newest technological breakthroughs to
simplify their daily activities. Strategic thinking and cognitive agility foster a mentality in
individuals that enables them to navigate a dynamic

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environment and create strategies that align with corporate CONCLUSION
goals while also proactively anticipating and adapting to the The research question 'How do demands for professional
changing dynamics of the virtual domain. Additionally, they skills and competencies in the IT industry evolve over
enable people to quickly understand the demands and time?' was addressed through this needs analysis and the
difficulties posed by this ever-changing environment. This findings indicate that the skill set necessary for IT professionals
fosters a growth mindset, which encourages continuous will continue to evolve even in the future and it is anticipated
learning and innovation, resulting in long-term progress and that professionals be prepared to adapt their skills and
achievement. Below are some elements from job adverts related competencies as needed. Therefore, it is essential that IT
to this theme. professionals adapt to diverse domains of expertise and swiftly
‘create a bridge between real world and virtual world’ acquire new skills as per the requirements of the IT industry in
‘ever-evolving suite of investment strategies’ the future. This study may facilitate industry in effectively
‘Opportunity to work on cutting-edge AI projects that have a real impact’
‘strategic decisions aligned with business goals’ conveying their expectations to students and academics
‘empowering users with greater authority and influence’ beforehand, thus potentially reducing skills gaps and increasing
‘Strong understanding of the unique needs and challenges sector’ awareness about demands.
‘Solve real-world problems and create value for customers and stakeholders’
‘identify and rectify inefficiencies in our global group of companies with the The need analysis allows professionals to identify the
use of AI’ specific skills and competencies required when entering the
‘rapidly iterating over new ideas’
‘Growth mindset ‘
workplace. Moreover, the needs analysis could establish a
‘strategic thinker’ connection between the industry and education sectors,
fostering a collaborative partnership to guarantee alignment
Workplace agility is crucial for attaining success in the between job demands and curriculum. The competence
rapidly evolving IT industry of today. Individuals that requirements will provide insight into the broader array of
demonstrate adaptability, perform well in difficult situations, occupational clusters that will be available in the future [47].
and inspire excitement for industry developments contribute to
their professional success. Workplace agility eventually Finally, this may assist IT academics in understanding the
improves performance by promoting inventiveness and real demands of IT professionals in terms of professional skills
facilitating achievement in dynamic situations. Below are some and competencies, enabling them to provide more focused
supporting quotes extracted from the job posting. education to undergraduate students. In this case, IT academics
‘experience & willingness to work in a fast-paced environment is a must’
should choose the best pedagogical approaches to impart both
‘Have a positive attitude that is contagious & build positive relationships with technical knowledge and skills. Further research is required to
customers and colleagues’ determine how to better adapt IT undergraduate education to
‘Use your thought leadership, influencing and relationship building skills’ meet these industry's changing needs for professional skills. In
‘Visionary leaders shaping the future of AI solutions & systems’
‘ensuring a smooth transition and maximum adoption’
this way, IT students will comprehend the profession they will
‘To help in always providing a best-in-class service’ enter after graduation better, be adaptable to changes in the
‘hybrid flexible work arrangements’ workplace, recognize the value of completing a well-structured
‘Flexibility, transparent & collaborative’ educational program to acquire these skills, and comprehend
‘Collaborate with various teams across Tibra to understand business needs and
areas that would benefit from AI-driven improvement’
why universities employ various pedagogical approaches in
their education.
Technical skills include expertise in technology, job- REFERENCES
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