Core IT occupations cannot meet demand
Germany is quantitatively well positioned in the core IT professions and will also be able to meet the increasing demand for qualified specialists due to the conversion of production processes to Industry 4.0.
However, the BIBB researchers point out that the occupational field of IT core occupations - including data processing specialists, computer scientists and software developers - does not produce enough skilled workers itself, but rather benefits from a strong influx of workers from related occupational fields.
The fact that employees in the core IT professions are "in principle" satisfied with their income, working conditions and workload as well as further training opportunities also encourages them to change careers.
Soft skills for the smart factory
According to BIBB President Friedrich Hubert Esser, the study makes it clear that IT skills will increase significantly as a sub-skill in all professions and sectors.
"Work in Factory 4.0 is becoming more demanding. In addition to increased IT skills, it also requires more social and personal skills. BIBB is currently evaluating the dual IT occupations of IT specialist, IT systems electronics technician, IT systems administrator and IT clerk and is examining which adjustments are required here."
According to Esser, the study also shows that professions and activities in the manufacturing industry in particular will change.
"BIBB will therefore contribute in its proven quality to ensuring that the new requirements associated with Industry 4.0 are identified as quickly and validly as possible in order to further develop the professions in a well-founded and evidence-based manner."
According to a recent BIBB analysis, around one in ten people in employment in 2012 worked in a professional IT job. This includes around 575,000 employees (2.7 percent) in core IT occupations and around two million employees (7.2 percent) in so-called mixed IT occupations.
These include, for example, technicians, engineers, electrical professions, but also service professions from auditing, management consultancy and parts of commercial office professions or administrative professions.
According to the projections of the BIBB and the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) and a recently published joint scenario on Industry 4.0, the supply of skilled workers available in these occupational fields up to 2030 will be sufficient to meet the rising demand in purely mathematical terms.
The BIBB researchers state that the supply of academically qualified skilled workers will rise sharply due to the young generation's growing propensity to study.
In this respect, the economy's additional demand for highly qualified workers in this area, which is also rising sharply, can also be met without this being at the expense of those in employment with a vocational or advanced training qualification.
The level of qualifications in the IT professions is already very high. Academic qualifications dominate in the core IT professions (56.5%), while 34.5% of those with vocational training are represented.
In the IT mixed occupations, people with vocational training (45.7%) are more strongly represented than academics (38.3%). Nine percent of employees in IT mixed occupations have a further education qualification.
