A defined need
Identify the tasks, capabilities, or roles represented by the demand measure.
Research Center · Skills-Gap Research
The Cyber Skills Gap Report
A workforce shortage means little until you can explain what is missing. The Cyber Skills Gap Report explores the relationship between the capabilities organizations need and the capability available to meet that work. Read the industry evidence with its definition and scope, then connect the research with a clearer question about what to develop, hire, or plan next.
The cybersecurity skills shortage
How big is the cyber skills gap?
A cyber skills gap is a mismatch between the capabilities work requires and the capability available to perform it. Its size depends on the population, skill definition, and measure. Read the report's finding with those details before treating a shortage headline as evidence of the same problem across every role, region, or organization.
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A defined supply
Understand which people or skill evidence the source population represents.
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A relevant comparison
Review how the method relates supply to the workforce need.
Key skills-gap findings
The evidence behind the capability shortfall
Cyber skills gap statistics need to explain what the measure represents. Read the headline with its definition, then follow the evidence into the driver and role or geographic context behind the finding.
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Headline gap measure
[Approved gap figure or finding] [Definition, population, and period] [Source table or figure]
Explore the Workforce Index -
Drivers in the evidence
[Approved driver finding] [Research method and period] [Source table or figure]
Explore demand research -
Where the gap appears
[Approved skill/region/sector finding] [Comparable measure and scope] [Source table or figure]
Explore workforce upskilling
What is driving the gap?
A shortage question needs a clearer diagnosis
Before deciding how to respond, ask which requirement is difficult to meet and what the evidence says about the cause. The research may examine skill requirements, access to development, or the relationship between roles and available capability. Use the findings to distinguish the driver from the symptom, then relate the result to the work you need to support.
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Requirement changes
Investigate the capabilities a role needs and the basis for any reported change.
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Available capability
Review what the evidence shows about access to the required skills.
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Response choices
Connect the defined need with development, hiring, or a workforce-planning question.
Skill, region, and sector context
The gap needs a relevant scope
An industry finding does not describe every team in the same way. Review the skill group, geography, and sector behind the analysis before carrying a cybersecurity workforce gap into a local decision. The report provides market context. Your organization still needs a view of the work it must perform and the capability its people can demonstrate.
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Skill group
Identify the capability represented by the gap measure.
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Geography
Keep the market or regional scope with the finding.
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Sector context
Review the work and constraints represented by the research population.
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Team context
Compare the industry question with your own requirements and evidence.
The capability question and your next step
The response depends on the gap you can explain
Security talent shortage data can help frame the need, while a workforce decision needs a specific diagnosis. Define the work, review current capability, and use the relevant QuickStart route to explore the response that fits the role and timeline.
| Workforce question | Relevant next route |
|---|---|
| Which capability do we need to understand? | Workforce question Skills Gap Analysis for the organization's own context. |
| Where can current people build the skill? | Workforce question Cyber Workforce Upskilling for a development priority. |
| What evidence should a new hire demonstrate? | Workforce question Skills-Based Hiring for the role requirement. |
| How does this fit the wider market? | Workforce question Cyber Workforce Index and Skills Demand research. |
Definitions and methods
A workforce gap needs its own definition
ISC2's 2025 Workforce Study omitted a workforce-gap estimate as it shifted attention toward critical skills needs. That public research context shows why the definition matters. Read QuickStart's gap measure on its own terms, with the population and method attached. A skills shortfall, staffing need, and vacancy count answer different workforce questions.
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Gap definition
[Approved definition and units] Explain exactly what the analysis measures.
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Source populations
[Approved demand and supply sources] Identify the basis for the comparison.
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Analysis method
[Approved calculation or research method] Explain how the finding follows from the evidence.
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Limits of the finding
[Approved coverage and uncertainty] Keep the relevant qualification with the result.
A practical route into a gap decision
Connecting an industry gap with the work you need done
Use the research to frame a capability question. Then bring the role, available evidence, and workforce timeline into a more specific decision about the next response.
Step 1
Define the work
Identify the role or responsibility that makes the capability question matter.
Step 2
Read the finding
Review the gap result with its definition, scope, and reporting period.
Step 3
Review capability
Compare your own requirements with evidence of the skills people hold.
Step 4
Choose a response
Explore development, hiring, or another workforce option that fits the defined need.
Step 5
Review the evidence
Use the same role expectations to assess progression and the next workforce decision.
The right route to address a gap
A capability question with three practical next routes
Industry research helps explain the wider issue. Follow the organization route when you need to understand your own gap, then choose the hiring or development context that fits the work.
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Skills Gap Analysis
Explore AdaptIQ's organization route for understanding role requirements and current capability in your own workforce.
Explore gap analysis -
Workforce upskilling
Explore SkillsIQ development when your people need to build capability for a defined responsibility or workforce priority.
Explore workforce upskilling -
Skills-Based Hiring
Explore HiringIQ's skills-based hiring route to connect role requirements with relevant candidate evidence when you need additional capability.
Explore skills-based hiring
Frequently asked questions
Cyber skills-gap
report FAQs
Answers about gap size, drivers, scope, the research method, workforce response, organization analysis, and citation.
A useful gap finding points to a workforce decision
Explore the research behind the capability question. Connect the evidence with what your team needs to build or hire, or talk with a Workforce Expert.