When you think about interdependencies, one of the disciplines that we as emergency managers have become wedded to is the information and telecommunications (IT) team that supports us. These IT professionals are sometimes the backbone for what we do. Today, when IT stops, work stops. In the future it could get worse since we'll have more systems and processes that have to be maintained and remain operational during times of crisis.
Which brings me to this story in
Governing magazine,
CIOs Fear Mass Exodus of Government IT Workers.This silver tsunami that is also hitting emergency management is having an impact on government's ability to provide IT services.
Recent surveys of IT leadership revealed the following:
- 32% of states say retirements have altered the way they deliver It services and support
- 92% of states say salary rates and pay grade structures present a challenge in attracting and retaining IT talent
- 66% of states say that a shortage of qualified candidates for IT positions is hindering their ability to achieve strategic initiatives
- 46% of states report that it is taking 3-5 months to fill senior-level IT positions
I don't see the situation getting better in the short term. Young, talented IT professionals can write their own tickets for jobs. This is especially true in IT hotbeds where there are significant numbers of large and small private sector firms sucking up the IT talent in the region.
Warning! I see trouble ahead for us as emergency managers. You might need to grow your own IT support internally.
Eric Holdeman is a contributing writer for Emergency Management magazine and is the former director of the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management.
