Don't Depend Only on Hiring Talent – Develop it

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The technology demands of the financial services industry are accelerating. Yet, talent is getting scarcer, especially in the tech sectors that credit unions need. ManpowerGroup, a staffing and recruitment firm, reported that 45% of companies cannot find the skills they need. This is the highest level since they began reporting this data in 2006. Moreover, 25% of companies they surveyed find recruiting talent more difficult now than just a year ago. Companies with more than 250 employees face the most difficulty with 67% reporting talent shortfalls.

Data science and machine learning skills are increasingly indispensable for credit unions. Fannie Mae’s recent survey of 184 lenders found that 60% expect to be using machine learning in their businesses by the end of 2020, and most credit unions are exploring their options in this area. Relatedly, IBM’s Institute for Business Value found that almost two-thirds of the companies it surveyed predicted that artificial intelligence and automation will continue to affect the skills that companies need. Concerningly, at the same time new tech skills are critically needed, the useful life of a learned skill is decreasing. IBM said it foresees half of the technical skills learned today will not be relevant in five years.