IT graduates should brush up their language skills to benefit
from higher wages being offered by big foreign firms located in
Scotland and other areas.
IT and telecoms recruitment consultancy
NetworkersMSB is
currently looking to find candidates who are fluent in French,
Spanish, Dutch, German or any of the Nordic languages, to fill a
number of "well-paid opportunities" at top technology
companies.
The firm says about 20% of the positions on its books at its
specialist technology office in Glasgow require language skills for
technical support and customer service roles.
Candidates offering language skills can expect to earn as much
as £3,000 more at entry level, and will continue to earn more than
their peers without languages as they progress, claimed
NetworkersMSB.
The demand for languages is particularly acute in Scotland, it
says, because for the last decade, organisations including IBM,
Dell and Sun Microsystems have operated large call centres that
service European-wide areas.
And, as well as the more common Western European languages
required, there is now an emerging need for Eastern European
languages, such as Polish, Russian and Turkish.
Virginie Katz, NetworkersMSB's specialist technical languages
consultant, said, "At the moment, the majority of vacancies we have
are being filled by European Union technology graduates speaking
their mother-tongue and fluent English. With at least a dozen
universities on our doorstep in Scotland, it would be great if we
could identify some home-grown talent with the right combination of
skills."
NetworkersMSB predicts the demand for IT professionals with
linguistic skills will continue to grow in other areas of the UK,
including Northern Ireland, where government initiatives such as
beneficial tax-breaks and other incentives are encouraging service
outsourcing businesses to relocate.