Closing the skills gap in cloud infrastructure

Are you struggling to close the cloud computing skills gap in your firm? Explore 4 ways to proceed in our guide.



In many ways, running a business is all about closing the gap between dreams and reality. Things don't always work out the way they're planned, after all. A key part of your job is to notice this gap and take concrete steps to close it.

This is something we see again and again in the so-called "skills gap". This is one of those phrases that gets bandied around a lot in business. But what does it mean, exactly?

A skills gap is the mismatch between what you need to achieve your business goals and the skills your employees – or candidates – possess.

This mismatch or gap in knowledge or proficiency could be a case of hard skills or soft skills. A hard skill might be mastery of Python or project management, while a soft skill might be an aptitude for communication or problem-solving.

Why does the skills gap matter? Well, if your business doesn't have the skills it needs to achieve its business goals, it's probably not going to achieve its business goals. Simple as that.

A skills gap can reduce the quality of your work, your productivity, your ability to innovate and even your ability to fill open positions.

Every industry has skills gaps, and they're often related to technology. To take a common and straightforward example, a marketing team might want to make its first foray into Facebook advertising but only have experience with traditional advertising.

In the world of cloud computing, the skills gap is highly relevant simply because the landscape is changing all the time – and we mean all the time.

AI, serverless architecture, multi-cloud environments and more… These are now fixtures of IT companies. And yet they're highly specialised niches that require highly specialised knowledge.

So, what's the answer? Sadly, there's no silver bullet to turn that skills gap into a seamless join. But any business aiming to close the skills gap should seriously consider the following four steps:

1. Upskilling
2. AI
3. Building a learning culture
4. Training, training and more training.
   
   

1. Upskilling

OK, so you need someone on your team who can handle multi-cloud environments in all their complexity. You've got three choices.

First, you can hire a new recruit with an impressive CV. Secondly, you can upskill an existing IT professional on your team through training. And thirdly, you can reskill them, moving them from one area of expertise to another.

Reskilling can be a hard sell. It involves encouraging a member of staff to switch lanes, so to speak. They're unlikely to do this without a financial incentive. It's not impossible – but it's not the easiest route to take.

Hiring a new recruit could be the shot in the arm you need. But to get there, you need to go through the costly and time-consuming process of sifting through CVs and interviewing candidates.

Far better, in our opinion, to upskill an existing member of your team. This doesn't just save you money. It also means you're building on existing relationships, improving team cohesion and making the most of the talent you have.

2. Harness AI

There's an argument raging in the world of cloud computing: can AI help close the skill gap? Let's consider both sides of the argument.

In the red corner, we have the view that AI-driven learning platforms can provide personalised training. This means IT professionals can quickly adopt new skills.

What's more, the contestant in the red corner says, some AI systems can handle routine administrative tasks such as network monitoring, software updates and security patching. This means employees can focus on skilled tasks.

In the blue corner is the view that AI could deepen the skills gap, not close it. This view argues that AI "diminishes hands-on learning opportunities for IT professionals… making career progression difficult". In turn, this may "[result] in a workforce which relies heavily on AI-driven tools without fully understanding the underlying processes."

What's more, "AI cannot fully replace soft skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving and interpersonal communication".

Perhaps the truth lies somewhere in the middle. AI can't close the skills gap altogether – but used wisely, it can help.

3. Think about the culture

Upskilling is vital in closing the skills gap. As a mindset, however, it tends to focus on improving the knowledge and proficiency of individual staff members.

That's all very well and good – and it could produce highly competent team members. But without considering company culture as a whole, it's unlikely to bring about the changes you desire.

This means it's vital to move from sporadic training to continuous, hands-on and incentivised training. Without this, you'll get left behind, no matter how many tech whizzes you have on payroll.

It also means creating a workplace culture where people feel incentivised to share their knowledge. You could hold webinars, hackathons or show-and-tells. The most important thing is to demonstrate to your staff that your business is committed to deepening its knowledge and skills.

4. Training and hands-on experience

Here comes the big one. A company that wants to close the skills gap won't stand a chance without training, training and more training.

Not any training will do, of course. It needs to be role-specific and personalised. And perhaps most importantly of all, it needs to be hands-on.

In the context of cloud infrastructure, this means executing core tasks and problem-solving in a virtual sandbox environment. Without these virtual guardrails, mistakes can create downtime and throw money down the drain.

A cloud lab, by contrast, is the cloud equivalent of a flight simulator. You get to deepen your skills and internalise processes without any risk to yourself or others. Win-win!

Are you looking for VMware lab hosting services for VEDP courses? Get in touch with Ascend Cloud Solutions today to find out how we can help you bring learning to life.