The Growing Demand for Cybersecurity Professionals
Earlier this year, CompTIA reported that the demand for cybersecurity professionals in the public sector remains quite strong. The number of listings for cybersecurity jobs grew 25 percent from 2021 to 2022 across the U.S. public sector, according to CompTIA. (Private sector demand grew at 21 percent during that time.)
“Lightcast data shows an even larger disparity between growth rates when comparing the growth since 2019. In the past three years, private sector cybersecurity demand has grown 36 percent, while public sector demand grew 58 percent,” CompTIA noted in a press release. “The supply-demand ratio is currently 68 workers per 100 job openings” across all sectors nationally, the release added.
On its website, McKinsey recommends that government agencies tackle their labor shortages in part by carefully considering their job requirements and clearly communicating the value of a position to applicants.
“Governments have a significant built-in advantage when it comes to purpose and meaning. Leaning into that value proposition with a succinct, well-crafted job description while offering greater flexibility and professional development opportunities could help reach and attract the next generation of public sector employees, including those with highly competitive skill sets,” McKinsey notes.
EXPLORE: How to ensure government staff stay up-to-date on evolving security threats.
Understanding the Importance of a Holistic Approach
It’s also important to examine how a state government manages its job requirements holistically. Many experts, such as those at Deloitte, recommend a whole-of-state approach to cybersecurity. In doing so, they call for centralized cybersecurity governance to strengthen network defenses.
In the NASCIO-Deloitte study, one-third of state CISOs indicated that individual agencies remain responsible for cyber incidents against their networks. Centralization would reduce duplicative efforts, Deloitte suggests.