Throughout the first half of 2011, the IT recruitment sector was looking positive – stronger than many had anticipated. Director of sales, Pete Healey, explains that overall, positions advertised on The IT Job Board website increased over the course of the year, and the demand for IT professionals continued to outstrip supply. He comments:
“It’s a well known fact that today’s advertisers are still finding it a real challenge to recruit true IT specialists, but we haven’t seen the same oversupply of candidates that we saw during 2008-9; and I don’t believe it will return to quite the same levels over the next 12 months.”
Predictions for 2012
Overall, The IT Job Board is positive about recruitment levels within the sector for the year ahead. Pete Healey comments: “We’re hearing from clients with plans to grow their departments significantly; at a similar level to 2011.
“Yes, clients are being cautious, but we’re not anticipating that there will be a real slow down in 2012, nor that many will plan for reduced headcount.”
In December 2011, The IT Job Board highlighted in its monthly update from the Salary Monitor that SQL and SQL Server IT jobs were those creating the highest demand within the sector. At the time, Alexandra Farrell, managing director, said: “Clearly SQL is a core skill as we move into 2012, and we would anticipate seeing increasing numbers of IT professionals either retraining in this area, or looking to improve on existing skills. It certainly seems to be one to watch.”
Pete Healey continues: “We are still seeing growth in web based applications such as Java and .NET. This is in line with the movement from physical computing environments to the cloud. SAP roles maintain a high level of demand but one area really increasing is that of Microsoft Dynamics – Microsoft’s move in the enterprise space. Demand for Project Managers continues to prevail, along with IT Security. As a lot of systems move to web based environments, IT Security becomes more of a concern for administrators and users.
“And, despite permanent roles remaining in the majority, contract positions continue to increase – currently accounting for 26 percent of roles advertised on The IT Job Board UK site. I would expect this trend to continue.”
Credit: onrec.com
