Job market information
Finding out about Telecoms
Telecoms include people working in this industry, as well as people working with specialist telecoms qualifications in other sectors. The IT industry together with Telecoms is represented by e‐skills UK Sector Skills Council. The Telecoms industry is difficult to separate from the IT sector, since many of the new technologies use broadband data networks carrying high volumes of multimedia traffic. Telecoms is defined here as ‘telecoms manufacturing’ and ‘telecoms services’.
The Telecoms sector is one of the fastest changing in the UK as new technologies are being explored and developed. Migration from voice telephony to broadband data networks carry high volumes of multimedia traffic, which means that boundaries between Telecoms and IT are blurring.
Job roles are diverse, ranging from sales and customer‐facing roles to those that are highly technical. Good communication and problem‐solving skills are required as well as specialised knowledge.
Key facts:
- There is a total IT and Telecoms workforce of 1.5 million of which:
- 890,000 people are in IT and Telecoms products and services
- 600,000 IT and Telecoms professionals are working in organisations outside of the IT and Telecoms industries
- There are around 105,000 businesses in the UK offering IT and Telecoms products and services.
- IT‐intensive sectors represent 55% of the UK's total Gross Value Added.
- Less than 1% of those employed in IT and Telecoms occupations are under 18.
- 22% of companies who are trying to recruit IT and Telecoms professionals report difficulties in attracting applicants with the right skills.
- 51% of Telecoms professionals work outside of the industry.
- The Telecoms workforce accounts for 1% of the UK workforce.
- The workforce is predominately male working on a full‐time basis.
- 58% of the IT and Telecoms workforce has a degree or higher education qualification.
- The Telecoms industry is likely to grow at a rate of 0.3% per year, which is lower than the UK average growth rate of 0.5%.
- There are 8,530 telecoms manufacturing and services establishments in the UK employing 301,000 people, including 235,000 who are not Telecoms professionals.
Jobs in the Telecoms industry include: aerial rigging; equipment wirer and assembler; internal network construction; mobile switching engineer; network management; satellite communications; fibre optic installation and configuration; core access network technician; customer support; radio base station engineer; network planning.
Entry and progression
IT and Telecoms employers have a strong preference to recruit experienced people and when recruiting from education, preferences are for graduate level and above.
Telecoms apprenticeships are a route to employment in the industry for young people. Major employers in the industry, such as BT, Orange and O2, report that apprenticeships are an integral part of their workforce development.
New entrants into IT and Telecoms professional job roles each year is expected to be:
- 70,900 people from occupations other than IT or Telecoms (i.e. experienced workers who can be re‐trained as IT and Telecoms professionals)
- 26,800 people from education (predominantly graduate level and higher)
- 43,600 people from other sources (e.g. re‐entering the workforce after a career break, early retirement or unemployment)
Five of the most frequently requested communications and network skills requested are: Exchange; Cisco; Firewall; WAN; and ASP. However, the demand for these skills has reduced slightly over the last year. Increased demand for Apache (a type of open source software related to the internet) skills has been recorded.
For job specific entry requirements, take a look at our job profiles.
Workforce statistics
| Number of Telecoms manufacturing and services employees in the UK: |
301,000 |
|---|
| Number of Telecoms manufacturing and services employers in the UK: |
8,530 |
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| Gender: |
82% male |
18% female |
|---|
| Ethnicity: |
89% white |
6% Asian/Asian British |
|---|
| Age: |
21% of IT and Telecoms professionals are 16‐29 years |
|---|
| 34% 30‐39 years |
| 29% 40‐49 years |
| 16% are over 50 years |
| On average, an IT/Telecoms professional working in the UK is around 37 years old. |
[N.B. Data derived from Labour Force Survey (April‐June), 2009.]
Employment trends and future prospects
The Telecoms industry will grow at a much slower rate than the IT industry with the North East (2.8%) being the only region where Telecoms is projected to grow faster. Projections of employment growth in the Telecoms industry vary from 1.03% in the North West to only 0.11% in Yorkshire and the Humber. Decreases in employment numbers are predicted in London and the West Midlands.
Of the overall recruitment into IT and Telecoms professional jobs (to cover both growth and replacement):
- 65% are into managerial and senior professional positions
- 19% are into associate professional and technician level positions (such as IT Operations technicians and User Support)
- 17% are into skilled trades (Telecoms and Computer Engineers) and administrative roles (e.g. Database Assistants)
There is a need for an average of 141,300 new entrants a year into IT and Telecoms professional job roles to 2012.
In the North East, telecoms employment is expected to grow at a higher rate than the IT industry.
A number of key forces have been identified, which will change the industry:
- Business and economic factors such as the impact of globalisation; the importance of technology‐enabled business transformation; and the pressure for constant innovation in technology‐intensive products and services.
- Technology driven factors such as increased standardisation and industrialisation of IT; convergence of platforms, devices and services; and the consequent impact on markets and business models.
- Social factors such as environmental concerns and the desire for ‘green IT’; the rise of social computing and increased power to the consumer to determine content and services; and the impact of the new generation of ‘digital natives’ and the expectations they bring to the workplace and the market.
Skill requirements and shortages
- While technical skills are needed for many roles, employers also want team‐players, problem‐solvers and good communicators.
- Because technologies are changing so rapidly, constant up‐skilling is essential, with skills traditionally regarded as being IT rather than Telecoms based now being required.
- Business and interpersonal skills are becoming more important.
Occupational trends
16% of firms have reported difficulties in recruiting ICT staff with the required skills, qualifications or experience. Problems have been reported with the recruitment of software engineers, technical support staff, systems designers, programmers, systems developers and IT/telecoms managers.
National and regional data
Across the UK, there is an estimated IT and Telecoms workforce of 1.5 million who are predominately located in London and the South East. The IT workforce can be classified in Telecoms manufacturing and Telecoms services. The largest number of companies is located in:
- Telecoms manufacturing
- South East
- London
- South West
- East of England
- Telecoms services
- London
- South East
- East of England
- North West
Key regional facts:
- 39% of IT and Telecoms professionals are located in London and the South East
- the East of England has the third highest number of IT and Telecoms employees
- Northern Ireland, Wales and the North East combined comprise just 6% of the IT and Telecoms professionals
- 44% of all types of IT and Telecoms companies are located in London and the South East
- 38% of Telecoms manufacturing takes place in either London or the South East
- the South West and East account for just 11% each of Telecoms manufacturing
- the highest median gross weekly earnings for IT and Telecoms staff are in London, the South East and the East of England, which are all above the UK median
[N.B. Data derived from Labour Force Survey (April‐June), 2009.]
Salary levels
IT and Telecoms employees’ median gross weekly earnings are on average £673; 49% more than the median gross earnings across the UK workforce (£452).
All occupations within IT and Telecoms, earn above the gross UK median, with the exception, database assistants/clerks who earn £300 a week, which is 34% below the UK median. Telecommunications engineers earn on average £450 per week and line repairers and cable jointers earn £440.
Career paths
Further sources
Produced Sept 2010, using e‐skills UK AACS LMI report (Jun 2010)
