Jack Downing, the Chicago-based technology practice leader for consulting firm WorldBridge Partners, has been on the hunt for some solid IT labor - particularly DBA programmers, DBA leaders and DBA administrators - to fill 50 positions. He's having a tough time finding experienced IT folks willing to do database work. "It's just not as sexy or cool as it once was," he says. "Basically, there's a shortage of experienced DBAs."

An alarm over a shortage of IT talent is being sounded by corporate executives, university professors, analysts, consultants and recruiters. Last year, research firm Gartner warned of a shortage of people with the skills to bridge the gap between technology and business needs. Microsoft's Bill Gates and Intel Chief Executive Craig Barrett have called on the federal government to increase the annual H-1B visa cap so companies can hire more foreign workers. Not surprisingly, tech professionals in ths U.S. see themselves as being pushed off their career tracks by lower-paid talent working under the H-1B program.

Now, some are calling the shortage a myth. "While exceptional talent or skills in emerging technologies will always, by definition, be in short supply, the most relevant market indicators - wages and employee risk - clearly show there's no broad-based scarcity of U.S. IT workers," declares InformationWeek.

The debate is shaping up to be perplexing and contentious. "There are so many variables to this issue. There are so many moving parts," says Melanie Holmes, vice president of World at Work Solutions at Manpower, Inc., in Milwaukee. "This talent-shortage discussion has taken on a life of its own."

To be sure, the dot-com bust in 2002 and, more recently, the number of businesses moving technical help desk and programming jobs overseas have pushed some experienced workers out of the field. Furthermore, there are some signs the technology-inclined younger generation has smelled smoke and is opting for different careers.

Making Their Own Bed

The result: "Businesses have shot themselves in the foot," says Gregory P. Smith, a business consultant and CEO of Chart Your Course International in Atlanta. "There are fewer people going into IT, and the ones that want to go into IT are being scared off. Many of them think, 'Why would I go into a career where I'm here today and gone tomorrow?'"

Meanwhile, universities contend the pipeline of computer science and engineering undergraduate majors is shrinking, which in turn affects the number of graduate and Ph.d. students. According to a survey by the Computing Research Association, enrollment of undergraduate computer science majors in major U.S. colleges and universities has plummeted an astounding 40 percent over the past four years.

Take the University of Wisconsin's Department of Computer Science, where 179 students graduated in 2001 with bachelor of science degrees. That figure dropped to 143 degrees in 2003 and 80 degrees in 2006. Last year showed a small uptake, with 88 CS undergraduates. Even as the number of graduates shrinks, "I talk to a lot of companies that say they want to hire, at all different levels," reports Professor Gurindar S. Sohi, chair of the university's computer science department.

Keeping Up with the Market

Meanwhile, experienced technology workers are faced with a market in rapid transition due to globalization. Yes, certain jobs - such as pure computer programming - have been shipped overseas. But the root problem may be a disconnect between the type of IT worker U.S. companies are seeking and the skill-set of experienced IT workers looking for jobs.

"This skills shortfall is very different from the shortage experienced during the dot-com squeeze of the late 1990s and early 2000s," reports Gartner. "Then there were shortages of specific, technical skills and domain-expertise. Today, by contrast, there are shortages of people with more general qualifications, experience and business insight."

Companies have set higher expectations on IT workers, and some observers believe those expectations are unrealistic. "There is a shortage of people with specific skills that clients desire, and there is also a shortage of intelligent managers that apply realistic requirements," says Dan Martineau, president of Martineau Recruiting Technology, in Kernersville, N.C. "Too many companies are unrealistic about their expectations, and they can't find that 'right' talent. When they fail, they blame it on a lack of talent rather than an unwillingness to be real about the job they are trying to fill."

IT workers, of course, are under pressure to enhance and grow their qualifications. Some argue IT workers who have difficulty finding work haven't done a good job building their skill-set and changing with the times. Organizations are demanding a more hybrid technology worker - one who can ensure the technology side of the house is aligned with a business's needs or goals. Jobs with titles such as project managers, architects, business analysts - which require a strong left-brain/right-brain agility - are more in demand these days."

"You can't just cut code anymore. The jobs of just pure programming are gone," says Martineau.

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