Experience counts for more than qualifications for IT managers

IT Skills - Experience Rated Over Qualifications

Many organisations see IT management experience as more important than qualifications, according to a new British Computer Society (BCS) survey.

Almost 90% (88%) of organisations surveyed said that it was the experience of their IT managers that was important to them rather than their IT qualifications (41%).

When recruiting IT managers, 69% of companies put a high importance on the IT knowledge of the applicant compared with 51% who rated management knowledge highly. For the majority of organisations the head of IT or the equivalent was the key decision maker in the recruitment of IT managers.

The majority of organisations (69%) did not use a Professional Development scheme for their IT managers. However of those organisations that did use such a scheme, half were based on a scheme either run by or accredited by a professional body. In addition, 59% of the companies stated that they would put a high value on more standardised education and qualifications for IT managers.