I recently arrived in the UK from New Zealand, where I worked for
the New Zealand Health Information Service for six years as a
technical analyst, developer and datawarehouse specialist. I will
be here for one year. I am British and have 30 years' experience in
IT and a masters degree in computing. Which agencies offer jobs in
the public sector/NHS, and where else should I look?
Use specialist agencies and media
With Tony Blair's
e-government initiative, the public sector is crying out for IT
professionals with public sector experience.
You will find some recruitment agencies are better placed than
others to find employment opportunities within the public sector.
Some will have divisions focused on health and technology, and
long-established relationships with many public sector
organisations.
When choosing agencies, deal with those that have relationships
with organisations within the public sector. When using the various
Internet job boards, be as precise with your search criteria as you
can. Including "public sector" and "health" in your vacancy
searches will show which agencies have the most roles within the
sector. As always, develop relationships with consultants that
specialise in the areas relevant to you.
Be as proactive as possible; there are several Internet job sites
that cater for the public sector:
www.lgjobs.com/ and
www.jobsgopublic.com/
are two of the best. Many public sector organisations will also
have vacancies pages on their Web sites. Within the print media,
the Guardian has an excellent public sector supplement called
"Society" which is published every Wednesday.
Even with the depressed state of the IT jobs market, by being
specific and focused with your search and by using specialist
agencies and media, there are some excellent opportunities in the
current market for IT professionals with the right experience in
the public sector.
Solution by Richard Herring, Reed Computing
The panel: MSB International, Best International,
British Computer Society, Computer Futures, Computer People, Elan,
Reed Computing, Zarak Technology, E-Skills UK