Cybersecurity, cloud and software development are among the technology sector’s biggest skills gaps according to a report published by workforce development company Pluralsight on 22 April. 

The report also found that upskilling existing employees can save companies time and money. 

Pluralsight reported that the average cost of hiring a new employee for US companies was $23,000 and usually took around 10 weeks. 

Over 50% of organisations in the report stated that upskilling employees instead cost them around $5,000 per employee. 

The 2024 Technical Skills report surveyed over 1400 executives and IT professionals on technology hiring, upskilling and training. 

Cybersecurity and cloud skills were found to have the greatest skills gaps in Pluralsight’s annual reports since 2021, with over 60% of respondents stating that their organisation needed more people with cybersecurity expertise in 2024. 

Around 63% of respondents answered that cybersecurity skills should be a learning priority for prospective tech workers within the next year.  

In comparison, 47% of respondents named cloud skills as the greatest learning priority and 45% of respondents cited software development. 

The tech industry is facing a global skills shortage and over 70% of organisations that took part in Pluralsight’s study reported that they had abandoned projects halfway through because of a lack of appropriate talent. 

Despite this, a large percentage of organisations continue to struggle with upskilling their existing workforce according to the report. 

Around 68% of tech workers in the report stated that their company’s executives are not sufficiently aware of the tech skills gap facing their organisation. 

“This year’s report highlights the financial benefits of upskilling current workforces and how continuous learning boosts the confidence of employees and empowers them to thrive in their roles as the technology landscape continues to shift,” stated Pluralsight’s chief people officer Will Clive. 

“It’s clear that investing in tailored learning paths to assess and address specific knowledge gaps can lead to significant business outcomes,” he stated.