The State of ICT Sector Workforce

The second annual Information & Communications Statistical Compendium released by the ACS (Australian Computer Society) reveals interesting new data on the behaviour and status of the ICT workforce.

Two things stood out. Female representation in the workforce is surprisingly high.  23.5% of all ICT trade, technical and professional jobs are performed by women. In some areas like graphics and web design, 50% of the workforce are women. Almost 60% of ICT trainers are women.

For all its volatility, the health of the industry is strong. The workforce (ICT professionals employed across all industry sectors) grew by a total of 13,000 and currently stands at 545,500. Interestingly, total IT staff employed in the IT sector has declined while the number of ICT professionals employed across other sectors has increased (refer graphs). This could be because of the changing structure of the ICT industry, with practices like Consulting and Software services dropping in demand.

The ACS is one of the few professional bodies that keep good track of progress of the professionals  and industry it represents. The compendium is a must read for all those involved in recruiting or employing IT professionals.  Download here