Army struggling to hire cyber experts

The Army is struggling to hire cybersecurity experts amid intense competition from business, according to reports.

In an interview with The Telegraph, Richard Holroyd, managing director of Defence and Security at Capita, which handles recruitment for the Armed Forces, said the Army was having difficulty attracting candidates given the wealth of jobs on offer in the private sector.

He said: “You’re saying to people with an interest in it, come and be a cyber specialist in the armed forces, but Raytheon is saying come and be a cyber specialist, BT are saying come and be a cyber specialist. So in those spaces, you’re competing.

“In a labour market with full employment it’s a tough, tough play.”

In the report, Holroyd said Capita was on track to only meet 80 percent of its Army recruitment target this year, in part because of difficulties filling technical roles.

He said: “Anything related to STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] is a highly competitive environment. So STEM skills are tough.”

Working with the private sector

Holroyd said cyber security experts have “much more choice” than in previous years and admitted that private sector companies have proven faster at recruiting, sometimes making offers within a few weeks.

In its Defence Command paper published last month, the Ministry of Defence said addressing its most critical skills shortfalls, particularly in digital and STEM, was a priority.

“As we invest in upskilling our own people in these areas, as well as in nuclear, space, and cyber, we will also work more closely across Government, and with industry and academia, to ensure that we are growing those skills nationally,” it said.

It cited new initiatives, including digital training to upskill employees, and developing the Digital Skills for Defence (DS4D) project – funded to £19 million over three years. It will also work with industry and academia on “an ambitious pan-Defence programme for all Defence staff to transform their digital skills, through a Virtual Digital Skills Fusion Academy linked to the Defence Academy.”

“This will work alongside world-leading organisations and institutions to upskill over 65,000 leaders, technically upskill 13,000 digital professionals and raise the digital bar for the entire 250,000-strong workforce.”

Strategic industry partners, including AWS and Microsoft, will be involved, it said.

“We will encourage greater fluidity and mobility between Government and industry for our most digitally able civil servants and military personnel, opening new opportunities for our national talent,” it said.