*By Edvar Pera Jr.
The health crisis that we are still experiencing had a great impact on the information technology market. Companies from all sectors were forced to accelerate their digital transformation process and this, of course, has considerably increased the demand for IT professionals. This pressure, suddenly placed on the labor market, has resulted in a lack of labor, inflated wages and an important obstacle to the development of companies in all sectors of the economy, since the use of technology is transversal to all areas.
Although it seems a one-off phenomenon, the truth is that the transformation brought about by the pandemic only shed light on a problem that was already latent in the Brazilian IT sector. According to the ICT Sectoral Report (2019), of the Association of Information and Communication Technology Companies and Digital Technologies (Brasscom), Brazil should have a deficit of 270 thousand professionals in this area by 2024. This, obviously, will be a obstacle to Brazilian competitiveness, resulting in an estimated loss of revenue of R$ 167 million by companies.
In addition to the small labor supply, there is another problem to be faced: the mismatch between the technical and behavioral profile required by companies and the knowledge and experience profile of professionals available in the market. Therefore, in addition to the shortage of professionals being a growing problem in the area, those available need experience time and additional training to meet the effective needs of companies.
Therefore, agile, short-term measures are even more necessary to meet the new demands of companies with technical and professional training, both for young people who are completing regular training courses, and for workers who have lost their jobs, and who can update themselves in relation to new technologies and languages that appear in the market.
It is in this context that remote learning (e-learning), already very present before the pandemic, has intensified a lot in recent months and is already presented as an effective alternative for complementing training and for the improvement of Information Technology professionals.
The difference between the pre- and post-pandemic moment is that this type of educational tool has evolved a lot and, also, the engagement of contracting companies – given the enormity of the problem they have to face – has been much greater. Platforms such as Workover, for example, already make it possible for an interested professional to find vacancies available at partner companies and carry out, online, the process of training and updating their portfolio of knowledge that enhances their chances of applying for that position.
These professionals can get in touch with the latest trends in the development of software, design and entrepreneurship. In this way, it is possible to contribute to reduce the deficit of specialized technical labor that exists today in Brazil and give access to technology-based companies to young people who until then were excluded from the selection processes of these companies.
The shortage of professionals ICTs, if not faced, will be a bottleneck for the country in the process of resumption of post-pandemic growth. Both technical and university education are essential, however, they are not sufficient, at this time, to meet market demand. Only with innovative teaching models that engage candidates, companies, entities, governments and based on the e-learning, it will be possible to avoid a workforce blackout and prepare the IT sector for a sustainable future.
*Edvar Pera Jr. is executive director of NSC – Núcleo Softex Campinas – and responsible for managing the Up Skill - technological training project, which aims to prepare skilled labor in information technology.
Notice: The opinion presented in this article is the responsibility of its author and not of ABES - Brazilian Association of Software Companies
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