Personnel cold: by 2030, an additional 600 thousand IT specialists are required in the Russian Federation

The Russian economy will need at least 600,000 additional IT specialists by 2030. This was stated by Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the government Staff Dmitry Grigorenko at the opening of the International IT Olympiad for Schoolchildren. Izvestia investigated how to fill this deficit and in what other areas there is an acute shortage of workers.

Market offer

To meet the economy's need for IT personnel, it is necessary to reconsider approaches to hiring and developing specialists in this field, Maria Ignatova, HeadHunter's research director, told Izvestia.

— Employers should pay attention to young professionals, including graduates and aspiring professionals. There are a sufficient number of juniors in the labor market who lack experience, but have potential. If you invest in their training and development, you can quickly grow specialists at the middle or senior level "for yourself," she said.

Also, in her opinion, it is important to shift the emphasis when selecting employees. It is necessary to evaluate candidates based on their real skills, not on stereotypes. Avoiding gender or age-related bias will help attract new talented professionals.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Kirill Zykov

Today, the overall demand for IT specialists is decreasing (in the first quarter, 16% fewer vacancies were opened than in the same period last year), and the number of people wishing to build or continue a career in this field increased by 23%. This is a great chance for companies to strengthen their team.

There is a shortage of personnel in other industries. So, according to HeadHunter, doctors (1.4 resumes per vacancy) and nurses (2.9) are still in short supply. There is an acute shortage of mass staff (for example, there are only 1.4 resumes for one sales position) and skilled workers such as turners (only 1.7 resumes per vacancy at a rate of four), cooks (1.8), locksmiths (2.5), electricians (2.7), NDP engineers (3.0) and car mechanics (3.1). These professions also require attention from employers and educational institutions, which will not only improve the situation on the labor market, but also raise the status of working professions in society.

Support measures

To attract staff, several tasks need to be solved, Alexander Shepelev, an expert on the stock market at BCS World of Investments, told Izvestia.

— It is necessary to improve educational programs in the field of information technology, tighten the technical base of educational institutions, and increase the volume of practical research, including in collaboration with technology companies. Business and industry education could get a greater effect from interaction, there is potential here," he noted. — The focus should not be on the number of graduates, but on the quality and relevance of the acquired knowledge and skills.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Eduard Kornienko

In addition, the expert believes, it is necessary to continue to increase the attractiveness of the industry and the prestige of working in it — these may be, for example, bonus programs, an expanded social package or extended vacations. The most important role in supporting the sector remains with the state — these are tax and credit incentives, investments in the development of technological infrastructure, the development of innovation clusters, etc.

— In addition to IT, the tense personnel situation is currently observed in industry, construction, logistics and agriculture, — Alexander Shepelev added.

Job stupefaction: what are the most common reasons for job rejection?

Only 6% of companies do not hire candidates because of their age

The methods of attracting personnel are well known, Anton Tabakh, chief economist of the Expert RA rating agency, noted in an interview with Izvestia. In particular, it is the organization of adult retraining and incentives for students at the expense of the budget and employers. At the same time, attracting migrant workers is becoming too expensive due to the high global competition among employers for highly qualified employees. There is still a high demand for IT personnel in both Europe and Asia. Another important aspect is to increase labor productivity and transfer part of IT functions to AI-based developments.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Dmitry Korotaev

It will not be possible to fill this deficit by simply increasing the number of budget places in IT areas at universities due to the fact that the training period takes four to five years, said Tatiana Podolskaya, an expert at the Presidential Academy, in an interview with Izvestia. A total of 42,863 budget places are planned for recruitment in 2025 in the IT areas of bachelor's and specialist degrees. These specialists will receive their diplomas in 2029-2030.

— IT is necessary to create IT lyceums together with leading technology companies that will work on programs for grades 10-11 and 8-11 with advanced training in mathematics, computer science, physics and solving practical problems in the IT field, - said the expert. - For this, large IT companies need to promote the field in schools and select trained students..

Photo: RIA Novosti/Mikhail Mordasov

Due to the widespread use of outsourcing and outstaff employment models for IT employees, including those on foreign orders, according to her, the problem of staffing is not only to find such specialists, but also to retain them. 38% of graduates of IT specialties are already working at the time of graduation. And about half of the students do not graduate from universities, which does not prevent them from working in this field. When there is a shortage of staff, they choose a job rather than completing their studies with a diploma.

— There is an acute shortage of engineering personnel in the country. And as the range of measures to ensure technological sovereignty will expand, the need for engineers will increase even more. Given the task set by the president to enter the list of 25 leading countries in the use of industrial robots and the plans of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, according to which 94 thousand robots should appear at Russian enterprises by 2030, the need for robotics engineers will increase many times, Tatyana Podolskaya is sure.

Allow me in IT: the demand for AI specialists has increased in Russia

What is the reason for this and which areas are relevant?

International cooperation

It is difficult to understand what else can be offered to Russian IT specialists, Kristina Tancyura, managing partner of SKY Consulting Group, admitted in an interview with Izvestia. They were released from military service, provided preferential mortgages, and development companies received a number of preferences. All conditions have been created for development and comfortable work. But it still feels like it's not enough.

In her opinion, alternative options can be considered. For example, attracting foreign specialists.

— For example, representatives of more than 150 nationalities live in the UAE, 90% of the population are newcomers. Nevertheless, the crime rate is extremely low, and there are almost no conflicts with migrants. It's all about a well—designed system: if you want to work, you're welcome, but follow the rules. No indulgences, free benefits, medicine or education. And only really valuable specialists get a chance for a long—term stay or citizenship," she noted.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Konkov

At the same time, the shortage of labor resources stimulates the growth of capital intensity, Dmitry Kulikov, senior director of the ACRA group of sovereign and regional ratings, told Izvestia. In the future, companies will hire fewer IT specialists to perform the same or more tasks than they do now, a trend that will affect both the world and Russia.

Izvestia sent a request to the Ministry of Labor, but no response had been received at the time of publication.