One of the most respected cybersecurity research organizations in the world, just dropped their 2026 Cybersecurity Workforce Report this week.
And buried inside it was a number that stopped me in my tracks.
60%.
That’s the percentage of organizations that say their cybersecurity teams lack the skills needed to defend against current threats.
Not 10%.
Not 20%.
Six out of every ten companies, right now, in 2026, are operating with a workforce that isn’t equipped for the job.
And here’s what makes it worse:
27% of those same organizations have already experienced a breach they directly attribute to that skills gap.
Let that sink in.
Companies aren’t just worried about being attacked.
They’re already getting hit, and they’re openly admitting that the people they have don’t know what to do about it.
The problem isn’t that there aren’t enough people in IT.
The problem is that the people in IT don’t have the right credentials and skills to handle what’s coming at them.
You’re reading this because you want to break into IT….
Or you’re already in IT and you want to level up.
Either way, you already know that something needs to change, in your career, in your income, in the way you spend 40+ hours of your week.
Most people reading this are stuck.
Stuck in that in-between place where you know exactly what you want to do, you’ve known for a while now, and somehow you still haven’t started.
You’ve watched the YouTube videos.
You’ve looked at the cert roadmaps.
You’ve told yourself you’ll start when things settle down, when you have more money saved up, when the timing is better.
I’ve been coaching people through this for over 20 years.
And I can tell you from thousands of conversations that the timing never gets better on its own.
You make it better.
And the first step is always smaller than you think it needs to be.
But here’s what that report makes undeniable: the demand for skilled, certified IT professionals isn’t slowing down.
It’s accelerating.
Companies are under regulatory pressure, facing daily attacks, and desperately short on people who have the credentials to respond.
The workforce gap isn’t closing, it’s widening.
Which means the window you’re sitting in right now, where you could get certified, walk into that market, and be exactly what companies are frantically looking for, that window is open.
But it won’t stay open forever.
Every month you wait is a month someone else steps through it.
I started with nothing.
No IT background, no connections, no roadmap handed to me.
What I had was structure, discipline, and a decision to stop waiting for conditions to be perfect and just move.
That decision led to 20+ years in IT, 12+ CompTIA certifications, and building a program that has helped over 15,000 people get certified and change the direction of their careers.
None of it started with perfect timing.
All of it started with one step.
The question isn’t whether the opportunity is there.
The report just confirmed it is.
The question is whether you’re going to take it.
If you’re ready to figure out what your first step actually looks like, based on where you are right now, not some generic advice that treats everyone the same, I built something specifically for this moment.
→ Take the Free IT Career Roadmap Quiz
2 minutes · No cost · Tells you exactly where to start
— Rob
Founder, Master I.T. | Helping People Like You Win
P.S. The report also flagged something else worth knowing, AI is reshaping entry-level IT roles faster than anyone predicted. Which is why you need to focus on the basics , networking, and cybersecurity.