My Thoughts on 2010 - The playground of the Wgtn IT Recruitment Marketplace

The way we go about finding talent for permanent roles has changed dramatically. In the ten years I have been doing what I do, our percentage of placements in 2010 that have been made via headhunting / shoulder tapping increased dramatically. Looking back I think people are relying on being called vs. actively going out and applying to a role – thus meaning the ability of firms like ours to first identify the right people will come under the microscope and will be the making and breaking of some firms.

I would love to know the amount of IT contractors that are working at any one point in time! We think we know most people but then out of the woodwork we find another handful of outstanding contractors working within an organisation. Looking at 2010 I have seen the expectations on contractors from organisations increase, meaning that contractors cannot let their guard down or get to comfortable.

On that note we have seen many organisations that would not have entertained using a contractor actually engage in having a contractor or two involved in their projects.

There is now some obvious competition coming from the IT Vendors / IT Services firms (aside from the other IT Recruitment firms). Many government panel supplier agreements for ‘services’ are going to the IT Vendor / IT Services marketplace who either simply attempt to advertise themselves or come to us for people (in this particular instance the end user organisation effectively pays more than what they need to as two parties are involved in the transaction)!

I have also seen some parties who operate in the ‘consulting’ space effectively operating as recruitment firms. Fair play to them, but their clients might want to ask what additional value they are adding for their hefty prices, if they are simply body-shopping.

At the top end of the marketplace it is extremely competitive for CIO / IT Director positions. Recently I worked a CIO role which reported to the organisations CEO. We had over 100 individuals involved in this process, meaning that there were a few disappointed individuals. With a number of government departments being folded into other departments I can see that at the top end of the marketplace there will be a large demand for these types of roles.

LINZ's CEO Colin MacDonald speaking on the CIO role

No prizes for working out who is a great speaker and who needs to improve on speaking in front of a camera!!

http://www.920.co.nz/uncategorized/nathan-masters-with-colin-macdonald-from-linz

If it doesn't rain it pours!

Within 48-hours three different CIO roles go live

The Ministry of Social Development have had an acting CIO for over 12-mths but went to market yesterday searching for a CIO. Not a small role.

On behalf of Land Information New Zealand I am recruiting a CIO that will be a direct report to the CEO and along with the other members of the executive team contribute in the running of the organisation.

Then there is the Head of IT role at Trade Me. Jon McDonald the CEO is looking for an individual to join his executive team and help shape the future of Trade Me.

All different but fantastic roles. For the Ministry of Social Development role I believe Sheffield is running that process but if you are interested in finding out more regarding the Land Information New Zealand or Trade Me roles feel free to make contact with me on 978 1896 or nathanmasters@920.co.nz

Wellington - Full of genuises

On Friday I was sitting have a beer in 3C' listening to one of the founders of company who has been going for 13 years, listening to how a great partner relationship saved them one on occasion when things got a bit tight. The afternoon beer and chat got me thinking about:

- how talented some people are, to have done what they have done
- but also with some additional focus and investment (whether funding or tax incentives) how good we can really be when it comes to software or product development?

What I was most impressed by was the lack of ego and the passion these guys have for what they do. I could easily see how they have grown from three guys to over one hundred staff (but they do have some good war stories to tell).

Now there are many stories like this I am sure (just look at Xero, Starnow, Kitomba etc) but do we, the general public or the politicians know about them, especially those that are between one and two years of age where the acid really comes on small start-up companies?

I am sure talking to people inside the likes of Starnow and Kitomba they would have a few suggestions for the politicians on what else could be done for small entities, that can ship product off-shore or have the ability to capture an international audience based on their product / software to enhance there chances of succeeding.

Or is it as simple as going to the bank or going to angel investors asking for funding? Possibly, but I think there is still more the government can do as there are many, many geniuses in our city.

How powerful is Twitter?

People probably don't need me to tell them, but I was told a story yesterday which rammed it home for me about how powerful Twitter can be.

I was talking to a couple of guys from Trade Me regarding twitter and unfortunately for them the Trade Me site went down earlier this year (which is probably the worst thing that can happen to Trade Me). Anyway within a matter of minutes someone who was on the site 'tweeted' that 'the Trade Me website is down'. Someone from www.stuff.co.nz site was following that person and had the story up on the front page of the Stuff website - this meant that some Trade Me employees found out via Stuff that their own website was down - this is how quickly news can travel via Twitter!

It's the quick and the dead!!

I am noticing that organisations are getting frustrated by not being able to secure people that they want to secure, simply because they are to slow in:

• making a decision on wanting to see a person
• arranging interviews
• giving feedback after the interviews
• not having the correct approvals in place in the first place

In some instances where there might be an over supply of candidates (Helpdesk or Systems Engineers) they can possibly afford to take their time, but when it comes to Business Analysts, Software Developers, Software / Solution Architects and Test Analysts be prepared to lose candidates if you don't move quickly on someone you like!

I would encourage line managers / clients to ensure they have approval to recruit, ensure that if an exceptional candidates comes out of the woodwork, you can make yourself available to see that person, ensure that the people you want involved in the process are available and that you can turn around an offer quickly - all these things show candidates that you are serious, that you can be nimble and juggle things to accommodate them - those first impressions are critical.

I can't see the demand or the competitive nature of the current Wellington marketplace going away - in fact I can see it getting even tighter - especially when the demand from Australia is picking up.

Using SEEK

I was in Sydney for a couple of days around two weeks ago now and I was surprised to hear IT Recruiters and Employers talking about the way they source candidates.

The two recruiters I talked with very rarely would use www.seek.com.au but relied purely on their database, www.linkedin.com and getting referrals from people.

From what I can see within New Zealand the likes of www.seek.co.nz website still plays a vital part in the recruitment game (more vital than in Australia) and would get used alongside getting referrals and using the Linkedin portal.

There will always be a place for the Internet job boards but it will be interesting to see whether the trend in Sydney comes to New Zealand?

Regarding referrals people (agencies) were offering up to $1,000 AUD for referring someone to them that they placed into a role. From what I can see the most an agency is offering in NZ is $250 NZD - it might be time to increase the stakes?