Aug

8

Versatilists, a New Breed of IT Professionals?

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Gartner is predicting future IT professionals would need to become versalists, as opposed to specialists or generalists. So what’s the difference? Well…..

  • Specialists have technical skills and knowledge which is deep and narrow, they rely on their deep knowledge within a specific domain to give them an advantage within their field.
  • Generalists have a broad, shallow range of skills and knowledge. Their broad knowledge allows them to respond quickly to emerging opportunities and threats, giving them an advantage in their field.
  • Versalists are able to blend the depth of the specialist with the breadth of the generalist within changing business contexts. They are able to leverage relationships and develop competencies and skills to add value to rapidly changing contexts.

At first glance this notion seems impossible for a single individual to master. However, rapidly changing business and technology environments, create opportunities for IT professionals to develop a portfolio of competencies, skills and knowledge. Within this context IT professionals can develop a broad portfolio of competencies and skills allowing then to respond quickly to changing business requirements and in so doing add tremendous value to an organisation.

So, according to Gartner, how does one become a versalist? By:

  • Objectively reviewing your experiences and roles.
  • Looking outside the confines of your current role, region, employer or business unit. The more informed you are about a company, its industry segment and the forces that affect them, the greater your contextual grasp.
  • Laying out your opportunities and assignments methodically. Focusing on the areas and challenges that make you squirm; those generally will be the areas of greatest growth.
  • Exploring possibilities outside the world of corporate business. Not-for-profit ventures, startups, government agencies and consumer IT service providers offer powerful ways to bolster experiences, behavioral competencies or management skills.
  • Enrolling in advanced degree programs or in qualified education courses to expand your perspective.

The suggestion to enroll in advanced degree programmes is something I support, although I have a biased view!
Could the future demand for versalists be one of the reasons we are seeing to be an increase in the demand for MBA graduates?

My personal view is that versalists would tend to be older, someone who has had a couple of years experience in a specific discipline, coupled with broad experiences within an organisation or industry. Masters of an organisation and its associated industry context, quick to adapt to changing environments and able to perform multiple roles.

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