Staying up to date with changes in IT

McGill, T.J. and Dixon, M.W. (2009) Staying up to date with changes in IT. In: Khosrow-Pour, M., (ed.) Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology, Second Edition. Idea Group, Hershey, PA, pp. 789-808.

Abstract

Information and communications technology (ICT) has been changing rapidly over a long period and this rate of change is likely to continue or increase (Benamati & Lederer, 2001a; Lee & Xia, 2005). This rapid rate of change has produced many opportunities for organizations, but has also brought with it many challenges (Benamati & Lederer, 2001b). Among these challenges is the struggle for organizations to obtain personnel with the appropriate information technology (IT) knowledge and skills in order to meet their ICT needs (Byrd & Turner, 2001; Doke, 1999; Standbridge & Autrey, 2001). This is mirrored by the continual requirement for IT professionals to keep up to date with the skills required by organizations (Benamati et al., 2001a; Klobas & McGill, 1993; Moore, 2000). Previous research has investigated the importance employers place on various skills and perceived deficiencies in these skills (e.g., Doke, 1999; Leitheiser, 1992; Nelson, 1991; Prabhakar, Litecky, & Arnett, 2005). While the call for improved communication and social skills has been consistent, the technical skills in demand have varied dramatically over time (Prabhakar et al., 2005; Van Slyke, Kittner, & Cheney, 1998). Less has been written about students’ perceptions of the importance of various ICT skills, though this was addressed in a study that compared Australian and American students’ perceptions of ICT job skills (von Hellens, Van Slyke, & Kittner, 2000). This article provides an overview of a project that investigated the channels of information that ICT students use to keep up to date with employers’ needs.