Hiring trends in the IT job market

Monday, June 20, 2005

By Brian Margarita

It's an odd time for tech workers. Rising out of the ashes from the infamous dot-com bust, the IT job market has demonstrated consistent growth since late 2004. Recently, Economy.com (an independent provider of economic research) reported that an estimated 214,000 IT jobs will be added in 2005, the largest increase since 2000.

While hiring has picked up, the terrain has changed. Gone are the days of first year graduates demanding high salaries and a BMW signing bonus. Today's market is back to tradition--matching skill sets and experience with generous compensation and bonus opportunities.

IT Skills: What Employers Are Looking For

During the late 90's if you generally understood HTML Web-designing and truly believed selling bridesmaids' dresses online was a solid business model, becoming a top-level IT executive frequently quoted in BusinessWeek was not out of the question.

Although Web-based applications continue to proliferate, companies are now looking for more in-depth coding skills that will allow porting of mission-critical information, over several device types, across an increasingly distributed network.

Two skills currently in demand are Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) and Microsoft's .NET. Based largely on modular components, J2EE is a programming platform used for developing and running multi-tier architecture applications. Since J2EE can be downloaded free with several third party open source tools available to extend capabilities, companies can begin developing with little or no expenditure.

In addition, .NET is also a development framework designed for rapid application development and network transparency. The value of .NET is that it's object oriented application programmable interface is generic enough to work with many other high-level programming languages.

This openness and flexibility allows developers to create Web-based services that can share information between applications running over various platforms like Linux, UNIX or Mac. Several industry experts believe that .NET's initiative will play a big role in server and desktop solutions over the next decade.

Possessing programming skill and strong technical knowledge does not guarantee a secure career however. Candidates must demonstrate the ability to multi-task responsibilities while sharing expertise and knowledge in a group environment.

Relying on a select few with exceptional skill is one way managers can dig themselves into a hole. If a small number of people, responsible for 95 per cent of productivity decide to leave, corporations will find themselves scrambling to fill in the gaps, while possibly losing significant market share and competitive advantage.

Managers understand that creating a team player atmosphere, future-proofs departmental assets and intellectual property from inevitable change.

A New Climate

The labour force may not be aware, but trends in the technology job market are shifting. Taking a page from the European's "life-work balance" philosophy, people are valuing their time more than ever. Having the option to cart the kids to soccer practice or visit the beach during the afternoon while holding down a full-time job, is now a reality brought on by breakthroughs in communication.

Broadband Internet and remote access has enabled the employer to present flexible work arrangements by allowing staff to telecommute, with studies supporting an overall increase in the individual's work production.

Due to lost confidence in the stock market, compensation packages have also evolved. Very few candidates are accepting stock options as a source of near-term wealth. Offerings must be tangible and hard cash is still the most trusted asset a company can propose.

Aggressive use of bonuses are also on the rise... but rather than obtaining them based on a calendar date or tenure length, bonuses are more readily handed out based on performance of stated goals and objectives.

Equivalently, this new climate has affected the overall hiring process. It now takes an average of two to three weeks for a company to fill an IT position.

Because emphasis is on finding the right team player, it is not uncommon for all team members to be an integral part of the hiring process. An initial interview with several follow-ups are sometimes needed to find that perfect cog.

Conclusion

Many in the IT community consistently compare today's current situation with the tech bubble which most analysts say was a once-in-a-lifetime event. Often overlooked is the fact that today's tech job market is twice as productive in terms of growth than it was before the boom.

The sheer size of the market coupled with global independence on technology, means huge employment opportunities for many years to come.

Brian Margarita is the founder and CEO of TalentFuse, a full service staffing company focused exclusively on the IT industry niche.