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IT recruitment - November 2009
IT News |
06/11/2009
Business confidence can be a funny thing. It can take months or even years to build up and then vanish in the time it takes for a queue to form outside a Northern Rock branch. Plans which have been carefully considered are then suddenly consigned to the scrap heap as cashflow and the bottom line face ever greater scrutiny. Management decides that ageing computer systems can last a few more years and infrastructure upgrades which might be seen as vital by the tech team suddenly become unaffordable luxuries. In some ways then, the IT sector might be seen as the unfortunate victim of a recession not of its making. Fortunately, it seems that positivity is slowly returning to the economy and, after a tough few quarters, technology looks set to drive the recovery forward.
The latest Ashdown Group Jobs Index shows that the number of IT jobs on offer in October increased by 3.33 per cent when compared to the preceding month. When the fact that the number of positions available in September actually fell by 2.39 per cent is taken into account, it becomes clear that something is afoot.
John Lynes, director of the Ashdown Group, believes that growing optimism about the wider economy is clearly boosting the tech sector. He said: "[We've seen] demand for IT personnel growing steadily in line with increased economic confidence, There have been a number of predictions that IT spending will accelerate through 2010, of most note was the study conducted by Microsoft and IDC."
But how long can the IT sector afford to ride on the coattails of other areas of the economy before it has to take charge of its own destiny? According to Ken McGee, vice-president of Gartner, not long at all. He has predicted that 2010 will be a vital year for IT and called on businesses to use the period between the bottom of the recession and a return to growth to make changes.
Mr McGee said: "We urge organisations to exploit this unusual opportunity to question the efficacy of their IT business practices and determine whether those practices warrant change. But they need to act now, by the time business growth returns, they will be far too busy."
However, with the Ashdown Group Jobs Index already suggesting that IT recruitment is on the rise, firms must act soon or they might discover they lack the talent they need to implement vital changes.
Posted by Jon Aspinell.
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