Another day, another round of big-tech layoffs. Per Bloomberg, the number of recently laid-off workers is more than 100,000. That’s a lot of people newly #OpenToWork.

If your LinkedIn page is filled with former Googlers, Meta-ites, and Amazonians seeking new employment after that severance runs out, consider calling them over to the one tech industry that is literally starving for employees. According to the (ISC)2 2022 Cybersecurity Workforce Study, the current cybersecurity workforce gap is 3.4 million people worldwide.

Per (ISC)2’s report: “While the cybersecurity workforce is growing rapidly, demand is growing even faster. (ISC)2’s cybersecurity workforce gap analysis revealed that despite adding more than 464,000 workers in the past year, the cybersecurity workforce gap has grown more than twice as much as the workforce with a 26.2% year-over-year increase, making it a profession in dire need of more people.”

In the United States today, there are nearly 800,000 cybersecurity job openings, according to CyberSeek’s heat map – many of these roles are in states like California, Texas, Florida, Colorado, and Virginia. These states have thousands of openings available in various capacities, ranging from analysts to manager roles.

And according to some cyber experts, soft skills may be just as important as certifications. In a recently-published op-ed in Forbes, Boyd Clewis of Baxter Clewis Cybersecurity highlighted how important communication skills are  for IT professionals.

“In cybersecurity, the number one most valuable trait isn’t being great at working on systems and software—it’s having clear, precise verbal and written communication,” Clewis wrote. “Unfortunately, schools and training programs focus on technical skills, often ignoring communication. This poses a real problem, since communication skills are absolutely necessary in this field. IT and cybersecurity exist only as an extension of business, to help business processes enable applications.”

As previously reported in this blog, the White House has also pushed on filling the widening cybersecurity jobs gap. At the end of 2022, the executive branch celebrated the end of its 120-day cybersecurity “Apprenticeship Sprint.”

At the end of this sprint, the White House boasted 194 new cybersecurity registered apprenticeship programs and more than 7,000 apprentices getting hired. Several hundred new cyber-related occupations were also added to registered apprenticeship programs.

Organizations like Austin Community College, ISC(2), Cisco Systems, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs all started new programs to train up-and-coming security experts, according to the WH press release. The largest provider of apprenticeships is within the U.S. government for the Department of Defense, according to the release.

Looking to expand your understanding of the cybersecurity industry? Meet with us in your city — check out our upcoming events at dataconnectors.com/events.

Laid-Off Tech Workers Could Consider Any of …

Industry News Posted by Jen Greco on Jan 23, 2023