Upekha Ukuwela – Director – Human Capital Consulting, Deloitte, handing over the report to the SLASSCOM Team

SLASSCOM recently conducted an Employability Skills Survey aimed at assessing the current skills landscape and evaluating the readiness of candidates from Sri Lankan universities and higher educational institutes for the IT industry. The survey, conducted in collaboration with Deloitte, sought to identify key trends, challenges, and opportunities in the industry while fostering collaboration between the industry and the education sector.

Over 37 IT companies were surveyed and over 80,000 IT professionals with more than 15 years of industry experience. This year’s survey focused exclusively on IT/IS companies, with IT product company representation reduced to 19%. Additionally, all surveyed companies in 2024 had more than 50 employees, indicating a shift away from startup participation.

The Survey had several objectives. It aimed to collect detailed data on the current state of employability skills within Sri Lanka’s IT market and identify key trends and challenges in the industry. It also sought to understand the specific skill demands of employers and the perspectives of IT professionals regarding their skills and job prospects. By providing a platform for industry stakeholders to discuss and collaborate on addressing skills gaps, the survey intended to generate actionable insights and recommendations to improve employability skills. Ultimately, it aimed to foster partnerships and initiatives to enhance the overall employability skills landscape for IT professionals in Sri Lanka. The survey was conducted through a detailed questionnaire distributed among IT industry professionals and employers, with the collected data analyzed to pinpoint trends, challenges, and opportunities within the IT/software industry.

The survey unveiled several key findings. It highlighted that emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, cloud computing, and cybersecurity are top priorities for organizations, reflecting a strong demand for skills in these areas.  Technologies like process automation, big data platforms, and machine learning are seeing growing demand, with frameworks and libraries such as Automation Anywhere, React, .NET (5+), and Spring Framework becoming increasingly important.

Software engineering continues to be a top profession, though software quality assurance (SQA) has surged from fifth to second place, and system/network engineering has dropped out of the top five. The demand for software engineering has increased from 14% in 2021 to 30% in 2024, with emerging needs for QA automation and DevOps professionals. There has been a decline in demand for project management and quality assurance roles, with QA automation no longer among the top professions.

Regarding skill supply and graduate hiring, it indicated a rise in graduate hires, although companies are struggle to fill these positions due to a limited talent pool, and mismatched salary expectations. There is a clear shift towards valuing practical and applied skills over theoretical knowledge, with teamwork becoming crucial to meet industry demands.

Additionally, 41% of responding companies are investing between LKR 100,000 and 250,000 per graduate hire, reflecting a strong commitment to developing new talent. The survey also highlights current trends in tools and technologies, including the prominence of cloud platforms, frameworks, and AI development tools, while noting that software engineering, AI, data science, and machine learning remain distinct tracks. Furthermore, the importance of soft skills—such as communication, public speaking, and collaboration—has become increasingly evident, especially given the decline in these skills due to the reliance on online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Based on the findings from the Survey, the goal now is to improve IT education, talent development, address the skills gaps, and enhance the industry’s growth and competitiveness in Sri Lanka.