The programming committee for the 77th Annual SAM International Business Conference is pleased to announce the acceptance of the panel presentation Projected Industry Needs for Information Systems and Business Analytics Personnel, authored by Timothy Burns, Cherie Sherman, Fariba Nosrati, and Yuan Gao of Ramapo College of New Jersey.
Presentation Abstract: In the USA, the projected job market for information systems (IS) and business analytics (BA) related occupations remains stronger than average well into the future (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2021). Statisticians and analytics based occupations (with a median income of 91k in 2019) are expected to be in the top five of fastest growing jobs through 2029 and software developers (with a median income of 107k) are in the top five of occupations with the most new jobs through 2029 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2021). Other IS related jobs such as information security analysts and computer programmers are also projected to have strong demand. This trend is not isolated to the US and is also expected at a worldwide level (World Economic Forum, 2018). According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), “among the range of established roles that are set to experience increasing demand… are Data Analysts and Scientists, Software and Applications Developers, and Ecommerce and Social Media Specialists, roles that are significantly based on and enhanced by the use of technology… Moreover, our analysis finds extensive evidence of accelerating demand for a variety of wholly new specialist roles related to understanding and leveraging the latest emerging technologies: AI and Machine Learning Specialists, Big Data Specialists, Process Automation Experts, Information Security Analysts, User Experience and Human-Machine Interaction Designers, Robotics Engineers, and Blockchain Specialists” (World Economic Forum, 2018).
One important question in considering demand for IS related jobs is the effect of the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. According to data from LinkedIn, “Software Engineer” still ranks as number four on the list of most in-demand jobs as of August 2020 (Southern, 2021). LinkedIn data also shows that Software Engineer, Software Architect, DevOps Engineer, Back End Developer, Project Manager, and Full Stack Engineer, all IS related jobs, are in the top ten of highest demand remote jobs. Burning Glass research predicts that the pandemic will have an impact on specific areas of the economy including the readiness, logistics, green, remote, and automated sectors (Burning Glass Technologies, 2020). As a result there will be an increase in demand for software developers, information security professionals, network engineers, business intelligence analysts, AI specialists, machine learning, and data scientists (among others) (Burning Glass Technologies, 2020).
There is a large body of literature (both academic and occupational based) detailing what specific IS and BA related skills are currently in demand now as well as predicting into the future. Based on data from indeed.com, an American worldwide employment website for job listings, IS job seekers need a combination of technical (“hard”) skills and soft skills (Indeed.com, 2021). Hard skills include technical writing, social media management, coding, network configuration, hardware deployment, operating system knowledge, and database management (Indeed.com, 2021). Soft (non-technical) skills include communication, organization, analytical abilities, creativity, project management, tenacity, problem-solving, resourcefulness, leadership, and flexibility (Indeed.com, 2021).
Scott W. O’Connor from Northeastern University, lists seven “must have” skills for data analysts (O’Connor, 2020). Those skills include Structured Query Language (SQL), Microsoft Excel, critical thinking, R or Python statistical programming, data visualization, presentation skills, and machine learning (O’Connor, 2020). According to O’Connor, “SQL, or Structured Query Language, is the ubiquitous industry-standard database language and is possibly the most important skill for data analysts to know” (O’Connor, 2020). He also notes “while a programming language like R or Python is better suited to handle a large data set, advanced Excel methods like writing Macros and using VBA lookups are still widely used for smaller lifts and lighter, quick analytics” (O’Connor, 2020). It should be noted that Stanton & Stanton determined that, ”By far, the most important credential employers sought in entry-level data science and analytics positions was prior experience” (Stanton and Stanton, 2020).
Join us online to see this great paper and many more March 31 – April 2, 2022. For registration information visit www.samnational.org/conference.