Opinion

Opinion

IT technical skills

• Is tech team remuneration opening up a new form of cyber risk?

  Failing to reward cyber security staff in line with increases for other members of the tech team could open up new risks to organisations  Continue Reading

• The secret to building a future-proof cyber security team

  In a post-pandemic digital world, where cyber criminals see a feast of opportunities, what are the secrets to building a world-class cyber security function?  Continue Reading

• Ethical hacking: What, why, and overcoming concerns

  We find out why and how hitting your own business with a cyber attack can help improve security  Continue Reading

• How CIOs can help their organisations accelerate digital transformation

  Companies need to win the trust of their customers to gather the data they need to transform their businesses  Continue Reading

• Shaping a Digital Strategy to support UK productivity and jobs

  With an all-party parliamentary group calling for evidence on digital skills, there are three key areas that policymakers should address    Continue Reading

• Digital bootcamp initiative could kickstart new thinking about technology skills

  The government’s digital bootcamps initiative could help begin to shift the way we think about the roles of technology professionals  Continue Reading

• Python @ 30: Praising the versatility of Python

  Python recently celebrated its 30th birthday, and pioneers of the language have been reflecting on its significance as an open source project  Continue Reading

• Why it’s fantastic to be a woman in the technology sector (and what’s stopping more from joining)

  The enforced move by many employers to flexible home working during the pandemic is challenging the culture of long hours in the office – and opening up new opportunities for women in tech  Continue Reading

• Let’s build on the innovation shown by UK tech during pandemic

  The UK’s technology sector has innovated and shown leadership through the Covid-19 crisis, particularly with developments in AI. It is now time to maintain and build on that progress, so the UK remains a global force in tech innovation  Continue Reading

• Could ambiguous rules spur IT personnel offshoring bonanza?

  Could the combination of Brexit and ambiguous rules on recruitment enable businesses to hire IT staff from overseas to carry out work remotely?  Continue Reading

• Fixing the cracks in public sector digital infrastructure

  The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the flaws in the UK's digital government set-up. The appointment of new IT leadership presents an ideal opportunity for the government to fix them  Continue Reading

• SMEs poised to reap tech and agility advantage in wake of Covid-19

  The UK’s small and medium-sized businesses have, in some respects, reacted more nimbly to Covid-19 than larger organisations. As a result, they have put themselves in a better position to take advantage of growth opportunities  Continue Reading

• How to write an executive CV for IT leadership jobs

  Knowing how to write an IT executive CV requires a deep knowledge and skillset that not everyone has. Find out how to set yourself apart from the competition  Continue Reading

• Top 10 skills to include in your IT CV

  Find out what skills and keywords you should include on your CV to stand out as an IT professional in a competitive market  Continue Reading

• Tech executives need new skills to lead in a remote world

  After helping organisations adapt to new ways of working during the Covid-19 pandemic, IT leaders worldwide are now enjoying greater influence, according to this year’s Harvey Nash/KPMG CIO Survey  Continue Reading

• Digital leaders and the widening divide

  This year’s Harvey Nash/KPMG CIO Survey shows a widening of the digital business divide, with companies that have already adopted digital technologies more likely to accelerate those investments than those still in the planning stage  Continue Reading

• How to acquire and keep your IT skills up to date

  Little, often and varied study is the key to keeping your IT skills up to date in an industry that is constantly changing  Continue Reading

• How the chancellor’s Plan for Jobs could benefit the UK tech sector

  Technology has a strong role to play in the UK’s recovery, with Rishi Sunak’s Plan for Jobs offering opportunities for the sector  Continue Reading

• Tackling digital skills gap post-pandemic is key to UK economic recovery

  We have all – as individuals and businesses – seen the importance of technology to get us through lockdown. Let’s build on that to address the digital skills shortage in the UK  Continue Reading

• The impact of spycraft on how we secure our data

  The history of cyber security owes much to the world of espionage, as a recent, pre-lockdown Science Museum exhibition showed  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: CISO stress – moving from recognition to action

  Cyber criminals are enjoying a boom during the Covid-19 pandemic, and security teams are working overtime as a result. How can security professionals manage their increased workload, safeguard their mental well-being and avoid burnout?  Continue Reading

• How effective security training goes deeper than ‘awareness’

  Cyber criminals are constantly developing their techniques and strategies, so security training needs to do the same  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: Burnt out CISOs are a huge cyber risk

  Cyber criminals are enjoying a boom during the Covid-19 pandemic, and security teams are working overtime as a result. How can security pros manage their increased workload, safeguard their mental wellbeing, and avoid burnout?  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: Create healthy habits to avoid burnout

  Cyber criminals are enjoying a boom during the Covid-19 pandemic, and security teams are working overtime as a result. How can security professionals manage their increased workload, safeguard their mental well-being and avoid burnout?  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: CISOs must adapt to fight Covid-19 burnout

  Cyber criminals are enjoying a boom during the Covid-19 pandemic, and security teams are working overtime as a result. How can security pros manage their increased workload, safeguard their mental wellbeing, and avoid burnout?  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: How to manage security team well-being

  Cyber criminals are enjoying a boom during the Covid-19 pandemic, and security teams are working overtime as a result. How can security professionals manage their increased workload, safeguard their mental well-being and avoid burnout?  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: Bug bounties are changing the image of hackers

  The traditional picture of a hacker is of a script kiddie in a hoodie hunched over a computer keyboard, but this stereotype is stale and outdated. Is it time to move away from a fear-based approach to security?  Continue Reading

• The UK civil service is broken and needs reform to deliver true digital government

  Boris Johnson’s special adviser, Dominic Cummings, has attracted criticism for his plans to overhaul Whitehall culture, but one former government digital chief argues that he is absolutely right  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: Hooded hackers? More like ruthless competitors

  The traditional picture of a hacker is of a script kiddie in a hoodie hunched over a computer keyboard, but this stereotype is stale and outdated. Is it time to move away from a fear-based approach to security?  Continue Reading

• Industry, academia and government are joining forces to drive AI education

  Building a diverse, advanced skills base in the UK will support the thriving technology sector and encourage the adoption of artificial intelligence across the broader economy  Continue Reading

• Liberal Democrats: We want to lead the world in ethical, inclusive technology

  Layla Moran, Liberal Democrat MP and party spokesperson for digital, culture, media and sport, writes about the party's technology policies ahead of the upcoming General Election  Continue Reading

• Life under the loan charge: An IT contractor’s story

  Thousands of IT contractors are being pursued by HMRC for “life-changing” tax bills for work they did up to 20 years ago, as part of a disguised remuneration clampdown known as the loan charge policy. One of those affected anonymously shares his ...  Continue Reading

• The five software testing techniques every software developer should know about

  Five simple testing techniques that will help developers test their software systematically, thoroughly and quickly  Continue Reading

• Businesses need to keep investing in tech and hope to avoid a no-deal Brexit

  A no-deal Brexit could have serious consequences for the UK tech sector and skills base, making it more difficult to recruit technology specialists and hire freelancers  Continue Reading

• Opening a path into a tech career for anyone

  The technology sector needs new talent and must get better at appealing to people at all stages of their life and career  Continue Reading

• Feudal Lords and anarchic allies – the new models for software collaboration

  Software developers often take an unconventional view of contracts for the work they undertake, which can come back and bite them  Continue Reading

• The lesson of TSB – testing, 1, 2, 3

  An organisation’s IT system might look good on the surface, but you can’t fix a problem if you don’t know it’s there  Continue Reading

• Big data skills shortages – and how to work around them

  Businesses are finding it hard to recruit enough people with big data and analytics skills, but for CIOs there are alternative strategies to consider  Continue Reading

• Tier 2 visas – a challenge for the tech sector

  With staff shortages already being reported in the technology sector and Brexit potentially adding to the problem, tech departments need to get their Tier 2 visa applications right  Continue Reading

• Building a tech future between the UK and India

  A new tech partnership between the UK and India will benefit the digital economy in both countries, says secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport Matt Hancock  Continue Reading

• Security Think Tank: How to evolve SecOps capacity

  How can organisations evolve their security operations teams to do more automation of basic tasks and cope with dynamic IT environments?  Continue Reading

• How to futureproof your career as a CIO

  Many CIOs have yet to earn the right to be on the board. How can IT leaders upgrade their business acumen, to benefit their own careers and the health of their employer?  Continue Reading

• How to attract investors for your enterprise software startup

  Are you looking to find an investor for your enterprise software company? This expert advice explains what investors will be looking to find in an innovative software business seeking backing  Continue Reading

• My brother Lauri Love should have the right to a trial in the UK

  Lauri Love should face trial over hacking allegations in a British Court, rather than be extradited to the US, where his extraordinary skills will be lost to society, says his younger sister  Continue Reading

• Bringing more of the top global tech talent to the UK

  The government wants to ensure the most highly talented technology and digital experts from overseas can work in the UK, writes home secretary Amber Rudd  Continue Reading

• Opinion: Why the UK’s visa expansion is important to the tech sector

  Following the government’s decision to expand the UK’s visa scheme for overseas talent, home secretary Amber Rudd tells Computer Weekly why this will help the UK tech sector  Continue Reading

• Cloud pricing: Are per-second billing models really needed?

  Clive Longbottom looks at the growing complexity of cloud pricing models, and weighs up the value of per-second billing  Continue Reading

• The children of the digital revolution

  Digital professionals are emerging as the source of expertise within the agile enterprise. They understand how to use digital technologies, starting small then building big  Continue Reading

• How can CIOs drive innovation?

  Three steps CIOs can take to help them take the lead in driving innovation in their organisations.  Continue Reading

• Cyber defence just one of the skills next-gen IT professionals will need

  Emerging technologies, the impact of Brexit and fintech companies are creating new opportunities for the next generation of IT professionals  Continue Reading

• Government, industry and citizens all have a stake in a successful transformation strategy

  By focusing on skills, collaboration and the citizen in its transformation strategy, government has set an ambitious plan for digital public services which deserves widespread support  Continue Reading

• How CIOs trap themselves by recycling the same talent

  Research pointing to talent standing in the way of CIOs achieving their objectives suggests a lack of innovation. It’s now time to think differently  Continue Reading

• The digital opportunity for CIOs

  CIOs have a unique opportunity to lead the digital strategy in their organisations, but they have to move quickly to make sure they have the right skills and infrastructure in place  Continue Reading

• What the IR35 reforms, coupled with a hard Brexit, could mean for the UK tech sector

  Colin Morley, professional services director at recruitment firm Harvey Nash, spells out the possible consequences of the forthcoming IR35 tax reforms and the prospect of a “hard Brexit”  Continue Reading

• A global, digital Britain will only succeed with global tech talent

  Government plans for a Brexit Britain must take into account the international nature of tech talent in its approach to immigration  Continue Reading

• Investigatory Powers Bill – the case for mass surveillance

  As the Investigatory Powers Bill goes through its final stages in Parliament, a former GCHQ intelligence officer puts the case for the bulk surveillance powers contained in the legislation  Continue Reading

• UK tech firms spend less, deliver more on training

  Survey shows technology firms spend 46% of the national average on learning and development per employee, but deliver an above-average number of hours’ training  Continue Reading

• Brexit – does it matter for IT?

  Brexit will have both short-term and long-term implications for businesses and their relationships with IT suppliers  Continue Reading

• What CIOs should know about Brexit

  CIOs should start talking with other executives and their teams and begin planning now for potential changes  Continue Reading

• IT professionals: volunteer your skills to help a charity

  The newly launched Charity IT Association wants to help charities improve their use of technology – and they’re looking for support from IT expert volunteers  Continue Reading

• Brexit and technology: How network effects will damage UK IT industry

  Although largely ignored in the Brexit debate, network effects will damage the UK's high-tech industry if Britain leaves Europe  Continue Reading

• The race to public sector transformation

  TechUK's survey of civil servants highlights the challenges of digital transformation in government  Continue Reading

• The European Cloud Initiative: A silver lining for data sharing?

  The European Commission has published proposals for a new cloud initiative – part of a package of measures designed to enhance the EU’s position in the global, data-driven economy  Continue Reading

• Are apprenticeships the solution to London’s digital skills problem?

  With the technology skills shortage holding back London's burgeoning tech startup scene, can a commitment to apprenticeships help?  Continue Reading

• Saving Bletchley Park: The women of Station X

  Sue Black recalls her first experience of Bletchley Park and the women who worked there, inspiring a campaign to save the home of the WW2 codebreakers  Continue Reading

• Creating a CIO legacy beyond the systems

  So much of what a business does today needs to be technology-driven that CIOs have a choice between leading and lagging behind  Continue Reading

• Rise of the super-contractors as IT skills gap widens

  More IT professionals are becoming contractors in order to charge a premium for their much-in-demand services  Continue Reading

• Supercharging cyber security protection: Questions to ask when hiring a managed services provider

  With information security concerns and challenges at an all-time high, and a global shortage of security professionals to address them, some enterprises are turning to managed security services for help. To ease the selection process, Dragana Vranic...  Continue Reading

• The importance of e-leadership in meeting digital challenges

  Henley Business School identifies ICT trends that will alter the demand of e-skills, especially those needed by e-leaders  Continue Reading

• Looking beyond nine-to-five

  Technology is changing the face of work faster than we realise. How can you plan your career in the face of technological disruption?  Continue Reading

• The ROI of a gender-balanced workforce

  Jacqueline de Rojas, president of TechUK and area vice-president, northern Europe at Citrix, looks at the business advantages of addressing the tech gender imbalance  Continue Reading

• Getting women into tech careers to tackle the skills gap

  Focusing on crucial stages of a career in IT is the key to encouraging more women and girls to work in the sector  Continue Reading

• The top 10 myths about agile development

  Examining some of the most common misconceptions in the growing field of agile software development  Continue Reading

• Investment banks recruit for rise of big data analytics

  Investment banks have been slower to embrace big data analytics than many consumer retailers, technology businesses, even retail banking  Continue Reading

• Devices, recruitment and staff retention

  Research suggests the technology used in the workplace can play a role in staff recruitment and retention  Continue Reading

• Are ex-hackers the answer to addressing the cyber security skills gap?

  Harnessing existing expertise could address the demand for competence in countering cyber security threats  Continue Reading

• Why public sector is losing the war for tech talent

  The problem the public sector faces is not how to transform to a digital government, but how to find the people to help do this  Continue Reading

• In the war for talent we need a public sector alliance

  Chi Onwurah discusses the challenges the public sector faces amid digital transformation and the important role of public sector workers  Continue Reading

• Software integration is removing system blindfolds

  Since the introduction of auto-complete forms, there has been a steady progression in the way business data and information is handled  Continue Reading

• IT failure: The highs and lows of high availability

  The causes of IT outages are many and varied and, more importantly, depend on the viewpoint of the observer  Continue Reading

• Doing More with Less – Smart Resource Management in Project-Driven Environments

  Flinging spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks is one way to divvy out project work. But it’s messy and you tend to lose a lot along the way.  Continue Reading

• Can London bridge skills gap to make talk of tech capital status a reality?

  Richard Nott, director of IT jobs specialist CWJobs.co.uk, warns of the emerging skills shortage and its potential impact on London's status as a global technology hub  Continue Reading

• Tackling the IT skills shortage through diversity of employment

  We all have to do our part in tackling the IT skills shortage in the UK to ensure the industry continues to grow  Continue Reading

• The digital CIO: The CIO is dead. Long live the CIO

  There is a new breed of CIOs who are defining what it means to be a digital leader  Continue Reading

• CSI IT: Forensic security skills for IT professionals

  TV shows such as CSI have popularised digital forensics, piquing the interest of a generation of graduates and career-movers  Continue Reading

• It’s no longer a man’s world: The IT girls of the 21st century

  Getting students involved in practical projects is essential in making computing more accessible to girls, says expert from Apps For Good  Continue Reading

• BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT: We are investing for the nation's future

  Roger Marshall, immediate past president of BCS, explains how the Institute for IT is investing its cash reserves  Continue Reading

• How does your personality contribute to your success in IT?

  Take part in our ground-breaking study to discover the key personality factors that contribute to success in IT  Continue Reading

• Sketch: Don't panic, it's the hitchhiker's guide to the BCS AGM

  Kevin Cahill gives his (mostly harmless) take on the struggles facing the Chartered Institute for IT  Continue Reading

• BCS faces 'plebeian revolt' over business reforms

  The Chartered Institute for IT is haemorrhaging money and losing touch with its members, claims a member of the BCS's governing council  Continue Reading

• Dark data could halt big data’s path to success

  Dark data – data that lacks any control or classification, but is all too prevalent in many organisations – could halt big data's path to success  Continue Reading

• How to prepare the IT workforce for cloud and mobility    

  CompTIA is working to identify the key skills that staff responsible for cloud and mobility implementations need  Continue Reading

• User acceptance testing needs real training, not just a short course

  In spite of its importance, user acceptance testing (UAT) is often chaotic, problematic and ineffective  Continue Reading

• Extending your professional Influence: a guide for IT professionals

  Organisations want people who can bring both breadth and depth of expertise, and collaborate successfully with others  Continue Reading

• IT skills shortage still tops the technology agenda

  Many executives in the UK expect to increase investment in IT products and services, but there is an ongoing skills challenge  Continue Reading

• Technology, society and morality: the implications for technology leaders

  Technology is evolving at a pace and scale that has never been experienced. Society is struggling to keep up with the social and moral implications  Continue Reading

• How to make IT professionals more effective and happy in their jobs

  The majority of UK-based IT professionals are happy at work as concerns over job security recede, research from Comptia reveals.  Continue Reading

• Enterprise IT skills must keep pace with game-changing technologies

  Virtually all of the most important technologies emerging for businesses require new IT learning, thinking and behaviour  Continue Reading

• An evidence-based approach must underpin digital transformation

  The government IT profession needs to question failings in IT delivery and consider a different approach to business analysis  Continue Reading

• Hot hiring areas in the IT jobs market

  The overall picture in the jobs market over the past year has been mixed, but demand is extremely strong in some areas  Continue Reading