Demand for IT staff goes up again, as does pay says KPMG/REC
Both permanent and temporary workers saw marked increases in demand, with the sharper growth seen for the former. The seasonally adjusted index measuring demand for permanent staff in the IT sector rose to a three-month high. IT and computing though was only in seventh place out of the nine industry sectors measured when it came to demand.
IT skills in particular demand during February were BPM (business process management), cyber security, games development, Java, .Net, SharePoint and SQL Server.
Kevin Green, REC chief executive, said: "Recruiters are reporting talent shortages across the economy as businesses expand in response to increasing demand. This is a major challenge for employers, however those seeking work are feeling the benefit. A third of recruiters say that starting salaries for permanent jobs overall are increasing as competition for skilled staff drives up pay."
Heath Jackson, partner in the CIO Advisory practice at KPMG, said: "Recovery in the job market is gaining real traction. The availability of skilled candidates remains a significant concern and businesses are already fiercely competing to secure top talent.
"This dynamic is driving significant salary growth in pockets of the market, particularly in the IT space where the demand/supply mismatch is particularly prevalent."
On the report, IT services firm Trustmarque has its own opinions. Angelo Di Ventura, director at Trustmarque, said: "In response to the financial crisis of six years ago, many organisations trimmed their IT workforce to the bare minimum and stopped investing in their IT infrastructure. Organisations are now beginning to invest again in large-scale IT projects, which is creating a big demand for people with the right skill-set."
And "flexible resourcing" must be considered said Di Ventura. He said: "Technology is changing all the time, with new innovations coming to market at a rate of knots. It is expensive and inefficient to maintain constant staff levels when the needs of the business change often.
"A flexible resourcing model is the answer to fluctuating IT needs, helping businesses augment their core of permanent staff with temporary staff in line with their requirements."