The continued advancement and growth of technology has led to considerable changes in how organizations operate. As an example, the workplace has become dependent on technology as one of the key resources, which has simplified work process immensely. Thus, the benefits o technology cannot be understated. In the information communication technology (ICT) sector, employees are always interacting with tech devices as they complete their various assigned tasks. Some of these individuals spend the better part of their day sited at their desks working on their computers as well as in other stations using sophisticated ICT equipment. Competence in the ICT sector in terms of knowledge and skills qualifies as a fundamental aspect, which determines a company's productivity and performance. As the number of companies going adapting to the technological revolution increases, the demand for tech savvy personnel has reached at an all time high. The growing and increasing urgency of highly qualified ICT personnel has forced companies to resort to mentoring as an immediate approach compared to waiting for those yet to graduate from higher institutions of learning; a considerable number of this population involves individuals with little experience working in the ICT sector. However, as the race to have more individuals equipped with ICT skills intensifies, challenges arise, which affect the effectiveness of mentoring in this particular field.
Acute shortage of skilled human labor
Before delving into a review of other challenges that mentoring in ICT faces, one could consider the motivating as well as challenging factor, which is increased shortage of ICT skills, while demand rises. An Australian company, Deloitte, wrote a report demonstrating that as the contemporary society adapts to the technological advancement, it experiences challenges in meeting resource needs when it comes to availability of ICT savvy personnel. According to the report, there has been a 5% growth of ICT professionals in Australia, while demand remains high. However, despite this state of being, the report confirms that there the number of ICT graduates has continued to decline since the early 2000s (Deloitte Access Economics, 2017). The report further states that, "The ongoing strong demand for ICT workers and skills is consistent with the significant role digital technologies will to play in driving Australia's economic growth," (Deloitte Access Economics, 2017, p. 1). Apart from that, growing concerns focus on the employment of ICT workforce in fields, which are non-related to ICT activities. As an example, the report noted that about " 52% of the current ICT workforces employed outside ICT-related industries, in such areas as professional services public administration and financial services," ( Deloitte Access Economics, 2017, p. 1 ).
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In an article, " ICT sector faces acute skills shortage: Study", Chia Yan Min provides a summary of a report, which demonstrates the considerable shortage of ICT professionals. According to Min (2016), the Singapore Management University (SMU) study found that, the ICT sector in the country would demand a further 15,000 professionals in 2017 with a key focus on data analytics, development and network infrastructure, as well as cyber security. In 2012, only 0.8% of the 144,300 ICT workers qualified as IT security specialists demonstrating that a shortage really exists (Min, 2016). Unfortunately, despite this state of being, "Relatively little progress has been made since then to narrow the skills gap, the report noted," (Min, 2016, para. 7). In support, the Council of European Professional Informatics Societies (CEPIS) presents similar views about the acute shortage of ICT skills, but with particular focus on Europe. The organization points at two factors, which have played a considerable role in promoting ICT skills shortage, which are lack of enough ICT graduates and competence mismatch across all sectors. The second factor relates to what Deloitte noted as being a major problem escalating the acute shortage of ICT personnel in Australia. Based on its findings, the organization noted that about 40% of companies in Europe reported difficulties when trying to recruit ICT professionals; the main challenge was finding skilled workers (CEPIS, n.d.).
Understandably, effective mentoring can only take place when there is access to qualified personnel savvy in the various fields or areas of ICT. This leads to the concept or idea of mentor selection, which plays a considerable role in determining the success of the mentoring process itself. Jamissen and Phelps (2006) wrote an article, "The role of reflection and mentoring in ICT teacher professional development: Dialogue and learning across the hemispheres", where they focus on the various issues associated with mentoring in the ICT sector. They present a framework called the metacognitive approach to ICT learning, which posits that, "…adoption and integration of ICT by teachers is influenced by their attitudes, beliefs, motivation, confidence and learning strategies," (Jamissen & Phelps, 2006, p. 4). However, while that is the case, they also emphasized on the rather delicate role of the mentor in terms of having a recognized skill-set in the field of ICT. They noted that, "…the selection of mentors, and the conceptualisation and presentation of their role, can have a major impact on project dynamics and outcomes," (Jamissen & Phelps, 2006, p. 11). Therefore, there is great importance in having the right individuals when considering about initiating a mentoring program especially in this rather sophisticated profession.
Ineffectiveness of e-mentoring
In their book, Multiculturalism in Technology-Based Education: Case Studies on ICT-Supported Approaches: Case Studies on ICT-Supported Approaches, Garcia-Panelvo and Francisco Jose (2012, p. 163) describe e-mentoring as a "special type of mentoring where the relationship is conducted primarily or through electronic means." Following the already existing shortage of personnel with highly qualified ICT skills, it becomes a major challenge for the few that exist to mentor the dispersed population of individuals with an interest in becoming savvy in ICT fields. For this reason, some individuals have resorted to e-mentoring as an approach help overcome the geographical differences that exist between a mentor and a mentee. Actually, some professionals post videos on YouTube where they explain various ICT processes.
In order to demonstrate the value of e-mentoring compared to face-to-face mentoring, Shrestha et al. (2009) conducted a study and wrote the article "From face-to-face to e-mentoring: Does the "e" add any value for mentors?". In the study, the authors noted that one of the factors determining the successful mentoring of individuals was impersonality. For instance, Nicola, a respondent, confessed while impersonality saved one from revealing too much about oneself, the fact that it was impersonal was a considerable disadvantage. From this finding, the researchers concluded that impersonality is "…beneficial for mentees, but less so for mentors, highlighting that mentor and mentee do not benefit equally from the aspects of electronic communication and that it has different implications for each," (Shrestha, et al. 2009, p. 121). Based on this finding, it is evident that e-mentoring has not provided both mentors and mentees with an effective platform on which learning can take place.
As mentioned, e-mentoring has replaced face-to-face interaction between a mentor and a mentee. However, when teaching ICT skills, one ought to consider the potential for the need of immediate technical support. Karen J. Grove (2008), in an article, " Student Teacher ICT Use: Field Experience Placements and Mentor Teacher Influences", discusses some of the challenges that the process of mentoring faces in relation to ICT. One of the major challenges that Grove (2008) noted was the lack of availability of technical support. Notably, for individuals who are unfamiliar with new tools, different software versions, or new labs, access to technical and instructional support is key to promoting successful integration of technology (Grove, 2008). Although some individuals might have exemplary productivity skills, they face challenges with limitation in how to use ICT tools. For this reason, technical support for instructional use becomes a fundamental aspect in promoting successful mentor-mentee relationship. The message put across is that instructional support is a significant predictor when it comes to mentoring especially in the field of ICT (Grove, 2008).
Conclusion
Already gathered literature demonstrates the various challenges facing mentoring for ICT professionals. One of the domineering issues faced deals with acute shortage of personnel with the required ICT skills. It is important to note that in order for ICT mentoring to be successful, individuals entrusted with such a task have to demonstrate a high level of competence in different ICT areas. For instance, the summary about the study conducted in Singapore revealed that the country suffered from major deficits in personnel skilled in cyber security, data analytics, as well as development and network infrastructure areas. This means that Singapore can only outsource the role of mentoring in these particular areas of study in ICT. Apart from that, career mismatches also have also led to considerable effects on mentoring when one considers the availability of individuals with the potential to mentor ICT professionals. The reports from CEPIS and Deloitte have revealed this as one of the major concerns leading to ICT personnel shortage across different sub-fields. Lastly, despite the convenience of e-mentoring, research has found a number of flaws such as inaccessibility of immediate technical support, which undermines success of the mentoring relationship. Further research is however required to uncover other challenges that face mentoring for ICT professionals.
References
Council of European Professional Informatics Societies, Europe's widening ICT skills gap, viewed 24th September 2017, < https://www.cepis.org/media/CEPISe-CFBackgrounder1.pdf>
Deloitte Access Economics 2017, Australia's Digital Pulse: Policy priorities to fuel Australia's digital workforce boom .
Garcia-Penalvo & Jose, F 2012, Multiculturalism in Technology-Based Education: Case Studies on ICT-Supported Approaches : Case Studies on ICT-Supported Approaches , IGI Global.
Grove, JK, 2008, 'Student Teacher ICT Use: Field Experience Placements and Mentor Teacher Influences.' <https://www.oecd.org/edu/ceri/41674583.pdf>
Jamissen, G & Phelps, R 2006, 'The role of reflection and mentoring in ICT teacher professional development: Dialogue and learning across the hemispheres', Teacher Development , vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 293-312.
Min, YC 2016, 'ICT sector faces acute skills shortage: Study', Straits Times , viewed 24th September 2017, <http://www.straitstimes.com/business/ict-sector-faces-acute-skills-shortage-study>
Shrestha, CH, May S, Edirisingha P, Burke L & Linsey, T 2009, 'From face-to-face to e-mentoring: Does the "e" add any value for mentors?', International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education , vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 116-124
