Software suppliers and systems integrators are hiring
more Microsoft .net developers as demand for new projects forces
them to expand, according to recruitment companies.
“Software houses are mainly recruiting web developers,” said
Simon Churen, managing director at consultancy Certes
Computing.
Software suppliers are still hiring large numbers of J2EE
developers, but most development jobs are going to people with .net
Framework expertise, he added.
Michael Bennett, director of recruitment company Rethink, said
demand for .net Framework skills had picked-up after a slow
start.
Software suppliers and systems integrators are increasingly
asking for people with a mix of technology and business skills,
rather than the pure technology skills needed during the dotcom
boom, said Jason D’Silva Williams, managing consultant at
international staffing company Hudson.
“We can find programmers in the UK, but we are finding a massive
issue with soft skills,” he said. “Companies need people who can
also communicate back to the business. They are in short supply
compared with the ‘geek in the corner’, who is a difficult
commodity to place now.”
This means that recruitment companies are assessing people
seeking development jobs for their communication skills as much as
their technical skills.
Suppliers are also taking on more project managers and business
analysts, said Churen. “The marketplace has been boosted so much
that all these new projects need extra management.”
Although demand for IT skills is strongest in investment banking
and the public sector, all industries are increasing their spending
on technologies such as customer relationship management and RFID,
recruitment firms said.