IT contractors in the UK can improve their skills, particularly non-technical ones that can help them stay in contract, through a new scheme created by employers and e-skills UK.
The Sector Skills Council for Business and Information Technology, e-skills UK, has launched the pilot of its Professional Programme Foundation stage. This is designed to ensure IT professionals have the business skills their employers and clients require to impact positively on business performance.
Helen Porter, Employer Engagement Manager at e-skills UK, says the development scheme was originally created by IT employers to rapidly provide key skills to new entrants to the sector, helping businesses achieve the skills they need to compete globally. But the scheme could benefit IT professionals of all types, including many IT contractors.
“Much of the foundation programme is based around modules that require practical, business-oriented case study material from the workplace,” says Porter. “So experienced contractors who have worked with multiple clients could benefit hugely, and find their contracting career highly relevant.”
Building skills beyond technical expertise
As Porter explains, e-skills UK acts as the link between employers and clients in the fields of information technology and telecoms, and education. Its aim is to ensure that education providers are providing the workforce, and their clients and employers, with the skills needed.
“The e-skills Professional Programme will enable IT professionals to rapidly build a strong foundation of competence beyond their technical expertise,” explains Porter. “Initially delivered by Lancaster University Management School and the Open University, the foundation course is modular and covers topics like problem solving, leadership, project management and communication skills.”
She continues, “Once they have completed the foundation levels of the e-skills Professional Programme, candidates will have gained a nationally recognised post graduate certificate and can progress to Professional Specialist Options to gain further post-graduate diplomas that can lead to a masters degree.”
The e-skills Professional Programme will enable IT professionals to rapidly build a strong foundation of competence beyond their technical expertise
Helen Porter, e-skills UK
Skills to help IT contractors stay in contract
Successful contractors, those that win regular and well-paid contracts, are frequently not those most technically qualified. Typically, they are those who have the right combination of business, marketing and technical skills to convince agents and clients that they can add value to the client’s organisation.
The new e-skills UK programme presents an opportunity for less commercial and less experienced IT contractors to learn new skills. It is also likely to be of value to those who have already invested in gaining sales and marketing skills, but wish to further up their game.
“The programme has been designed to take into account everything major IT employers in the UK have said they would want to see in a well rounded IT professional,” explains Porter. “This presents IT contractors with the opportunity to gain those skills and be recognised through independent learning with major academic institutes. In addition, the Open University option allows a level of flexibility that is ideal for busy contractors.”
The programme can also lead to further valuable qualifications. IT contractors who move on from the foundation level to study for Specialist Levels could gain professionally recognised qualifications in PRINCE2 or credits towards full ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) certification.
Subsidies for IT contractors who act quickly
Porter says that the foundation course offered by The Open University and the Lancaster University Management School costs £4,500 per person, but a limited number of subsidised places are available on a ‘first come, first served basis’ due to funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England.
“There is no reason why a contractor employed by their own contracting limited company or an umbrella company contractor should not apply for the 50% subsidy,” she says. “But time is running out and limited places are still available.”
And there is good news for contractors who want to pay for the programme via their limited company. According to Steve Crouch of contractor accountant Crunch: “Because the professional programme is building on IT contractors’ existing business skills, and not learning a new skill, limited company contractors should be able to claim back the cost from their contractor limited company.”
With increasing competition from IT offshoring and IT clients becoming more selective in their choice of IT contractor, there is no better time for contractors to invest in developing their commercial skills, particularly those that client organisations have specifically requested.
IT contractors interested in exploring this further should visit the e-skills Professional Programme website or email professionalprogramme@e-skills.com.