The huge number of IT qualifications available can make it difficult for chief information officers and IT managers to judge their worth, it has been claimed.

IT Week reports that the vast array of different awards available means that some executives can find it hard to choose between candidates when appointing people to IT management roles

David Byrne, architecture director at Carphone Warehouse, told the website: "People have a whole scattering of qualifications when they apply to jobs and it makes it difficult to know what is what."

The publication suggested that a recognised, chartered qualification will allow the IT industry to universally recognise the skills of staff working in the sector.

However, until such a qualification is introduced firms may wish to consider IT outsourcing to avoid the sometime difficult process of appointing their own in house staff.

Last week, Charles Black of Nasstar told Computerweekly.com that IT departments are set to become a thing of the past as new technology allows many of their duties to be carried out remotely.

A recent Connect survey found that the two major concerns about outsourcing services like IT support were 'loss of control' (56 per cent) and 'budget over-runs' (43 per cent).