Hays Information Technology - July 2007

Public Sector

Hotspots

  • Demand for ICT staff has steadily increased since January and this trend will continue through the coming quarter.
  • Business analysts are in high demand and the market is moving extremely fast. Candidates with both infrastructure and applications backgrounds are being sought.
  • Technical project managers are in demand, in particular in the infrastructure market.

The coming quarter

Recruitment activity has been high in the public sector's information technology market since the New Year and the coming quarter is showing no signs of abating. As election promises are now acted upon, an even greater list of ICT related projects need to be delivered. The approaching end of Financial Year places pressure on departments to spend funds and develop business cases for the upcoming budget phase, which will continue to increase ICT staff requirements and vacancy activity.

Executive recruitment

A steady increase in the number of executive opportunities will continue over the coming quarter as fixed term contracts end and annual performance reviews take place. There has been a shift to competency-based recruitment rather than the traditional skills matching process of previous years for the executive market. As public sector salaries are not keeping pace with commercial salaries, more innovative solutions regarding salary packaging are becoming common and this trend should continue for some time to come.

Salaries

Commercial salaries and contractor rates have risen significantly over the last quarter and this is placing pressure on the public sector. While the size and complexity of public sector ICT initiatives will continue to attract candidates, the increased salaries offered by the commercial sector will play a significant factor in the retention of staff over the coming six months.

Candidate trends

Both the permanent and contract markets will continue to move quickly. Continued and sustained pressure for public sector recruitment activities to move at a quicker pace will occur. Candidates will have more than one opportunity offered to them and so it will be imperative that hiring managers act quickly and decisively in regards to candidate selection and offer processes.